April 4, 2026 - Exodus 31 & Psalm 76

We read Exodus 31 and Psalm 76 and see God give detailed commands while also empowering craftsmen to obey through His Spirit. We talk about Spirit-empowered skill, the difference between Old Testament and New Testament Spirit language, and why Sabbath rest trains our trust in Christ. 

For more information about Compass Bible Church South Valley, visit compassbiblesv.org. Keep reading. Keep growing. God’s Word is a lamp to your feet, and a light to your path. 

Transcript

Welcome And Reading Plan Aim

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome to the Lamp and Light Bible Reading Plan, where we are seeking to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength with God's word lighting the way. I'm Josiah Smith joined by Tyler Sandboard. Today is Saturday, April 4th, 2026. Listen intently to God's written word. Exodus 31. The Lord said to Moses, See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood to work in every craft. And behold, I have appointed with him Aholia, the son of Ahizamak of the tribe of Dan, I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you, the tent of meeting, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy seat that is on it, and all the furnishings of the tent, the table and its utensils, and the pure lamp stand with all its utensils, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin in its stand, and the finely worked garments, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, for their service as priests, and the anointing oil, and the fragrant incense for the holy place. According to all that I have commanded you, they shall do. And the Lord said to Moses, You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death. Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations as a covenant forever. It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel, that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed. And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.

SPEAKER_01 2:31

Psalm seventy-six. In Judah God is known, his name is great in Israel, his abode has been established in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion, where he broke the flashing arrows, the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war. Glorious are you, more majestic than the mountains full of prey. The stout hearted were stripped of their spoil, they sank into sleep. All men, all the men of war, were unable to use their hands. At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both rider and horse lay stunned. But you, you are to be feared. Who can stand before you when once your anger is aroused? From the heavens you uttered judgment. The earth feared and was still. When God arose to establish judgment, to save all the humble of the earth, surely the wrath of man shall praise you. The remnant of wrath you will put on like a belt. Make your vows to the Lord your God and perform them. Let all around him bring gifts to him who is to be feared, who cuts off the spirit of princes, who is to be feared by the kings of the earth.

SPEAKER_00 3:47

Exodus thirty-one is the conclusion of Moses' forty days and forty nights on Mount Sinai. And it concludes with a lot of interesting details. I mean, we have these two gentlemen, Holyab and Bezalel, that are chosen to be kind of the, you could say, the general contractors, in a way, the foreman of this whole construction of the tabernacle. Now, a couple of interesting things that I want to note. First, we're going to talk about uh just the way in which God gives commands. And then second, we'll talk about the spirit and the role of the spirit, uh, both in the old testament and in the new testament, because there's some things mentioned here uh that are interesting that we'll get into. But first, God gives lengthy commands, Tyler, for the construction of the tabernacle. And even here, we have kind of a condensed list of everything that he just said the tent of meaning, the ark of the testimony, the mercy seat, the furnishings of the tent, the table and its utensils. He says all of these things need to be constructed, and he gives all of these very explicit commands. And uh he doesn't just give these commands and kind of leave them to their own devices, he, by his spirit, chooses and enables two men specifically, but then even more beyond. It seems like these are kind of the point men in this project, but he enables men, Oholiab and Bezalel, with the gifts and the skills that they need to accomplish the commands that he has given. And so we need to think about that in in our life, whatever commands that God has given us to obey as Christians, as his children, we need to have a confidence that what he has commanded, we are able to do, not in ourself, not because of our own ability, but because of the Spirit of God working in us to help us accomplish that. So think of Aholiab and Bezalel as kind of an example, uh, a case study of people being given what they need by the Spirit of God to accomplish what God has commanded. Now, think about that in your life, uh, the the sin that you might struggle with, or the the ways in which you might struggle to obey Christ in every aspect of your life. And sometimes in our weaker moments in our flesh, we can think that these commands are impossible. We can, Tyler, I know we we've talked to a lot of men that feel like lust is an impossible uh command to not engage with, to not uh give into, right? In the sense of that sin, right? We're not to give in to any sin, but we feel like it's an impossible command given to us that we are not to lust. And I think this is just a great example in Exodus 31 that God gives very explicit, detailed instructions and then gives exactly what is necessary to see that come to pass. And the same is true with us. God gives commands, whether it's a sin struggle, or maybe it's something more active and doing something rather than not doing something. But whatever the case may be, God gives us commands, of course, and then he gives us his spirit, uh, which Jesus refers to as the helper, uh, the Greek word paraklete, the perikletas, he is the helper. There's a sense of that word, not meaning just putting his arm around, it's actually a sense of empowering. He he empowers, he enables, just like a holy ab and bezalow, he enables us to do what God has commanded. And so we can have confidence uh that the the commands of God are not a fool's errand, that he gives us what we need exactly when we need it to walk in obedience to him.

SPEAKER_01 7:17

Yeah, in the margins of my journaling Bible, I wrote the how uh and the whom. Um, the spirit is the whom that empowers these men to do what God has called them to do. And the instructions are what to do, the how. And we have we have a great work before us as we read our Bibles. How are we to live this life, not isolated, not by ourselves? And oftentimes it requires us to make our struggles in humility, rejecting pride, making our struggles known to those around us. And of course, we look at all these commands and we we wouldn't expect one man, two men, maybe a handful of men to accomplish this great work that we see concerning the tabernacle. No, it takes it takes many, it takes many in a in in Israel to accomplish these commands from God concerning the temple, and we have leaders here, but also in in the local church, it it takes many to walk aside you and to help you honor the Lord as we walk through life seeking to please and honor him.

SPEAKER_00 8:29

Yeah, so I think it's just a great encouragement that though there are just lots, I mean, chapter after chapter after chapter, of detailed instructions of what to build, where to place it, the materials, the the wood, the gold overlay, the rings, the poles, all of it. Um, God again just doesn't leave his people to kind of figure it out. He, by his spirit, empowers these two craftsmen, these master skillful craftsmen to lead the way. And then even it says uh that he says, I have given to all able men ability that they may make all that I have commanded you. So he gives a holyab and bezalel kind of a unique empowering by his spirit to lead the charge, but he's also given the men of Israel as a whole uh the ability uh that they may make all that I have commanded you. So God enables uh obedience to his commands by his spirit.

SPEAKER_01 9:24

Are you saying it's okay for leaders to delegate? I'm not trying to read anything into the text, but I'm just imagining these two guys being filled, and it's it's not like just those two men are accomplishing all the work. No, they're they're guiding, they're teaching, probably, they're instructing guys how to do it. They're they're overseeing the work, right?

The Spirit In Old And New

SPEAKER_00 9:40

Yeah, of course. Uh yeah, holy Ab and Bezalel. I mean, just think of all the things that need to be constructed. There's no way that they could do it by themselves. Uh I mean, they could, I'm sure, but it would take way too long. And so, yeah, of course, that uh I mean, with the 600,000 men plus the women and the children, uh, lots and lots of people, uh, God has given them these two men, Holy Abbe and Bezalel, an opportunity again to lead the charge, but with the help of other men. Now, let's talk about the spirit of God, because it says interestingly in verse 3, I have filled him. This is talking about Bezile, I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs to work in gold, silver, and bronze, and cutting stones for settings, and in carving wood to work in every craft. So there's a sense in which Bezalel and Aholiab as well are filled in a unique way with the spirit for a specific purpose. And that purpose is artisanship, it's craftsmanship. It says ability and intelligence with knowledge and all craftsmanship to devise artistic designs, to do all of the things that God just commanded them to do. Now that begs the question: what is the relationship between an individual, you could say Israelite and the spirit of God? And how does that differ, if it does at all, uh, to the relationship of an individual Christian today and the spirit of God? Well, we see in the Old Testament that the language that you're going to often find, actually here in Exodus 31, uh, this is more of the exception rather than the norm. The norm of the language surrounding the spirit in the Old Testament is came upon, fell upon. Uh, the spirit is around kind of those words and those signifiers of the spirit's work. It's actually very rare that you see the phrase uh that the spirit is has been put in them or they have been filled with the spirit of God. So when we see that kind of language, typically it's associated, uh, I guess with four primary things. One, the threefold office, all right. So I guess that's three, the one and three. Uh that's the prophet, the priest, and the king. So the spirit of God uh, of course, spoke through the prophets. So we see that uh the spirit of God has is said to come into certain kings in Israel. Uh the same thing with uh the priests, uh, but it's also said here, of course, with uh Holiah and Bezalel uh to empower them for unique abilities to accomplish a unique task. And certainly building the tabernacle was a unique task. I mean, this with all of the things that we just read about and all the things necessary to construct, I mean, you would need supernatural empowerment to do this to the letter. And that's what God expected was to the letter uh fulfillment of his commands. So in the Old Testament, uh, you're you don't typically see language about the spirit kind of dwelling in believers individually, or even dwelling within an Israelite individually, most often you're gonna see the spirit of God talked about corporately with the nation as a whole. The spirit is working corporately and again with specific unique figures like a prophet, like a priest, like a king, or in this example in Exodus 31, with these two craftsmen. Now that differs from the New Testament, because even in the new covenant in Jeremiah 31, as a part of that new covenant, it says, I will put my spirit within them. So in the new covenant, every single person that is actually and authentically in the covenant has the spirit of God because that's what a part that's what it means to be a part of the new covenant. So in uh the New Testament, and even today, uh, a New Testament, new covenant Christian, to be a new covenant Christian, you have to have the Spirit of God indwelling within you. The Spirit of God takes up residence in you. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. No longer is there a need for a tabernacle or a temple. Your body individually is a temple, and then collectively, Paul says, together we are being built into a temple, a dwelling place for the Lord. So there's a difference there where uh the filling of the Holy Spirit is uh, you know, across every single person in the New Testament in the church. If you're genuinely a part of the church, you have believed in Christ, you've been saved, you have the Spirit of God. And that differs from the Old Testament. Like I said, it seems to be more corporate, there's not individual dwelling in the same way. And as we continue reading through the Old Testament, you're gonna see that kind of language of the in and around uh the spirit came upon rather than language of being in. And so that's just something to note that we see here. This is somewhat unique, and of course, it makes sense given the unique task ahead, uh, the the divine task in many ways ahead of building this tabernacle that was to be a dwelling place for the Lord. And who better uh to build a dwelling place for the Lord than the Lord Himself, right? Uh, which of course he uses these men, but he's he uh oversees that process with his spirit. He fills uh Holiab and Bezalel with the Spirit of God and gives them ability, intelligence, knowledge, and all craftsmanship uh to be able to do what God has commanded. So there's a great encouragement in that, that God always empowers his people to obey his commands. Uh, and then even as we look forward to the New Testament, kind of a theological point here, uh, you know, every single person in the New Testament, or at least in the New Covenant, I should say, uh, is indwelt by the Spirit if they have placed their faith and trust in Jesus Christ. And if you are not indwelt by the Spirit, the scriptures would say you're not in the new covenant, uh, you're not someone who has been saved. So in the New Testament, that's something that's slightly different than what we see in the old.

SPEAKER_01 15:34

So something I saw in the second chunk of our Exodus text this morning is this word sanctify. And for whatever reason, Pastor Josiah, I thought that this word sanctify was like a New Testament only term, but I'm looking here in verse twelve, and it's connected to God's command to um abal above all keep uh his Sabbaths, and it's a sign, as God says, uh, between me and you, speaking to Israel throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. And um, this word sanctify is um I'm I'm connecting it to making God's people more like himself. There's this refining process that's happening day after day and week after week. And I'm thinking about the ways that we trust God, and that's that's a way that um he's continuing to refine us and make us more like him. And and part of that for me is is trusting God that he is going to provide for my needs. I don't need to do these all the things in my own strength. I could trust in him, I can continue in prayer and in relying um that he will take care of my needs. It's good to work hard, it's good to sweat, it's good to um to exert yourself in a way that would be pleasing to the Lord to get as much done as you can. But in the same ways, it's good to follow God's commands to rest well. So, what is that what does that look like? Is there a difference between this um this people here we see in Exodus 31 that are receiving these commands where uh if you are found working on the Sabbath, um it's not gonna go well for you. What is the connection between this text and our lives today?

SPEAKER_00 17:23

Yeah, well, I think of course the Sabbath is fulfilled in Christ. Hebrews talks about that. Um and even in Romans 14, Paul talks about how we let each person be convinced in his own mind that one day is better than the next. So I don't think the Sabbath, being on Saturday as it as it was historically, uh, is the is some sort of command that's continuing to be binding today for New Testament, New Covenant Christians uh that has found its fulfillment in Christ. And we'll study that more in detail in the book of Hebrews. But I do think, um, as we've talked about, the whole idea of rhythm and the the necessity for rest, of course, God has created us with limitations as humans. And so I think this rhythm that God does institute of six days of work, one day of rest, uh, is intended for the purpose of reflecting on who God is, reflecting on his character. And it's even a it's a constant reminder of our need for the Lord because uh we can't just go, go, go, go, go. I mean, our bodies will literally break down, we'll get sick. And I mean, you've seen that, Tyler, when when we kind of when we red line and we're not sleeping, we're not eating well, like things start to fall apart. And so I think even the the the rhythm of rest that God instituted for the nation of Israel, of course, there's explicit commands that were unique to them in that. But I think that should be something that we seek to pattern it in our life, where it's kind of a humble acknowledgement of our limitations as humans. And so we we work hard uh and then we we build in rest as a way of remembering and reflecting on who God is. And there's not some sort of specific way that you're supposed to do that. I mean, in the in the New Testament, of course, you you do that in part uh by your involvement in the church, but I think even as an individual, uh, you are to just spend that time reflecting. And I'm not saying that you you go off into the woods and you lay in a hammock or anything like that. I just think the whole point of it is to have kind of a rhythm baked into your life uh where you recognize that your rest is in Christ, uh, and that right now there's a sense in which you are resting in him, but there's even in a future kind of eschatological rest that we look forward to when we will spend eternity with Christ and experience our rest fully in him that day. So just like the the nation of Israel gets to the edge of Canaan, uh, but because of their disobedience and rebellion, they don't experience rest by going into the promised land just yet. They become sojourners and things like that. We we kind of experience uh a similar pattern where right now we are considered sojourners and that we are kind of on the edge of the promised land, if you will, waiting for Christ to return, waiting for him to bring us home, to give us glorified bodies for all the promises of the resurrection to be ours in terms of eternal life, fully speaking, uh, with Christ and these glorified bodies where I no longer will have type one diabetes, or uh you will no longer have cancer, and all of those promises that we one day look forward to, uh, where every knee will bow, every time we'll confess, and Christ is gonna wipe away every tear from our eyes, and there will be no more sin, no more sorrow, no more suffering. So I think the Sabbath points forward ultimately and climactically to Christ, and his his fulfillment is uh ultimately in a future sense where we will be with him in all of eternity.

SPEAKER_01 20:44

Well, that was a great explanation. Thank you so much for that. And I don't want to neglect our our psalm passage today, as we spent the vast majority here in Exodus 31. But I'd just like to uh to look at this psalm, Psalm 76, and and just remember that the majority at this point in our time in Exodus, the majority of of the conflict or any kind of battles or any kind of military victory are ahead of Israel. And this this psalm is uh helping the people that would be singing it to remember that God gives the victory, it belongs to him. The praise in battle belongs to him. Anything that goes well for uh for God's people, it the the praise belongs to him. And there's no room for a stout heart or or pride um for God's people because it's him that it is God is Yahweh that um that is to be feared, not not a sword, not a mighty man who can stand before you once your anger is roused. This isn't speaking about the people of Israel, this is speaking about Yahweh. And as we as we think about the the vows and the and the covenants that God has made with his people and just through the reminders that That God's people would have in their promises that they have made to follow and obey God, to obey Yahweh. Um, it's a reminder for them and also a reminder for us to think about what God has done, what he's accomplished, and what what our role is through the power of the spirit to follow after after him. It's God that we need to fear. It's not man, it's not the princes of the world, it's not the authorities that we have here that might be able to manipulate, air quotes, manipulate us or do whatever it is that uh we feel like is going on, whether it's mistreatment or unjust laws, etc., that it's it's God that is to be feared um by kings of all the earth. And in one day, the every knee will bow, the wrath of man shall praise you. We were talking about this before the podcast started, Pastor Josiah. One day every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. There will be no room for a proud man to say, I did it. No, even God's enemies will confess and declare that that he is the king of all the earth.

Closing And Where To Learn More

SPEAKER_00 23:06

And we certainly long for that day. Well, thank you so much for joining us today on the Lamp and Light Bible Reading Podcast. For more information about Compass Bible Church, South Valley, visit compass Bible SV.org. Keep reading, keep growing. God's word is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path.