The Cheerful Cacophony of Covenant Construction Text: Exodus 35:20-29
Introduction: After the Fall, the Freewill Offering
We come now to a remarkable scene. Israel has just come through the sordid business of the golden calf. They had committed cosmic treason at the very foot of the mountain where God was cutting a covenant with them. Moses had interceded, God in His mercy had relented, and the covenant was renewed. And what is the very first thing that happens after this great apostasy and gracious restoration? It is a massive, joyful, freewill offering for the construction of the Tabernacle. This is not a coincidence. This is covenant logic.
Our modern sensibilities are often allergic to the idea of material things in worship. We prefer our religion to be abstract, spiritual, and internal. We want a faith that doesn't touch our wallets, our workshops, or our women's sewing circles. But biblical faith is earthy. It is material. It is incarnational. God is not building a philosophy; He is building a house. And houses are built with stuff. Gold, silver, bronze, wood, yarn, and skill.
This passage is a direct rebuke to two opposite errors. The first is the error of legalism, which says that our giving and our work can earn God's favor. Israel had just learned in the most dramatic way possible that they could earn nothing but wrath. Their salvation was by grace alone, through the mediation of Moses alone. The second error is that of antinomianism, which says that because we are saved by grace, our works and our material possessions don't matter. This passage shouts that grace does not neutralize our work; it energizes it. Grace does not make our stuff irrelevant; it consecrates it.
What we see here is the direct result of covenant renewal. Forgiveness of sin does not lead to passivity. It leads to productivity. Justified people are generative people. When a people understand that they have been redeemed from bondage, not by their own merit but by the sheer grace of God, the result is not a grudging, minimal obedience. The result is an explosion of joyful, willing, extravagant generosity. This is the heart of true worship. It is not a tax; it is a thank offering.
The Text
Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel went out from Moses’ presence. And everyone whose heart stirred him and everyone whose spirit was willing came and brought the contribution to Yahweh for the work of the tent of meeting and for all its service and for the holy garments. Then all whose hearts were willing, both men and women, came and brought brooches and earrings and signet rings and bracelets, all articles of gold; so did every man who waved it as a wave offering of gold to Yahweh. And every man, who had in his possession blue and purple and scarlet material and fine linen and goats’ hair and rams’ skins dyed red and porpoise skins, brought them. Everyone who could raise up a contribution of silver and bronze brought the contribution to Yahweh; and every man who had in his possession acacia wood for any work of the service brought it. All the women wise at heart spun with their hands and brought what they had spun, in blue and purple and scarlet material and in fine linen. And all the women whose heart stirred with wisdom spun the goats’ hair. And the rulers brought the onyx stones and the stones for setting for the ephod and for the breastpiece; and the spice and the oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense. The sons of Israel, all the men and women whose heart was willing to bring material for all the work, which Yahweh had commanded through the hand of Moses to do, brought a freewill offering to Yahweh.
(Exodus 35:20-29 LSB)
The Stirred Heart's Response (vv. 20-22)
We begin with the immediate aftermath of Moses's instruction.
"Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel went out from Moses’ presence. And everyone whose heart stirred him and everyone whose spirit was willing came and brought the contribution to Yahweh..." (Exodus 35:20-21)
The first thing to notice is that this is a popular movement. "All the congregation" heard the call. But the response was individual and internal. The text emphasizes this repeatedly: "everyone whose heart stirred him," "everyone whose spirit was willing." This is the language of regeneration. God does not want coerced compliance. He is not a tyrant who taxes his subjects into submission. He is a Father who stirs the hearts of His children. True Christian giving and service is never the result of external manipulation, guilt-tripping, or high-pressure fundraising tactics. It is the fruit of a heart that has been quickened by the Spirit of God.
The world says, "See a need, feel the pressure, give." The Bible says, "God stirs the heart, the spirit is made willing, you give." The initiative is God's. This is why we call it a "freewill offering." It is not that our will is autonomous and sovereign. It is that God's grace makes our will free to do what it was created to do: joyfully give back to God what is already His.
"Then all whose hearts were willing, both men and women, came and brought brooches and earrings and signet rings and bracelets, all articles of gold..." (Exodus 35:22)
Notice the equality of participation. "Both men and women." This is not a project for the elders or the priests or some special committee. This is an all-hands-on-deck, covenant community project. And what are they bringing? They are bringing their personal, valuable, beautiful possessions. Brooches, earrings, rings. This is the very same kind of gold that they had recently melted down to make the idolatrous calf. Here we see repentance in action. The very instruments of their idolatry are now being consecrated to the worship of the true God. This is what sanctification looks like. God doesn't just forgive our sin; He redeems the very stuff we sinned with and puts it to holy use.
A Diversity of Gifts (vv. 23-26)
The offering was not limited to the wealthy who had gold to give.
"And every man, who had in his possession blue and purple and scarlet material and fine linen and goats’ hair and rams’ skins dyed red and porpoise skins, brought them. Everyone who could raise up a contribution of silver and bronze brought the contribution to Yahweh; and every man who had in his possession acacia wood for any work of the service brought it." (Exodus 35:23-24 LSB)
Here we see the glorious diversity of God's kingdom. Not everyone had gold, but some had fine linen. Not everyone had silver, but some had acacia wood. Not everyone could bring precious stones, but some could bring goats' hair. The point is that everyone brought what they had. God's house is not built only by the spectacular gifts of the few, but by the faithful, willing contributions of the many. The man who brings a plank of acacia wood from a willing heart is just as pleasing to God as the man who brings a bracelet of gold.
This demolishes our tendency to create hierarchies of service in the church. We think the preacher's work is more important than the usher's, or the elder's work is more valuable than the woman who prepares the fellowship meal. This is pagan thinking. In God's economy, the crucial factor is not the size or visibility of the gift, but the willingness of the heart from which it comes. Goats' hair is just as necessary for the Tabernacle as gold is.
"All the women wise at heart spun with their hands and brought what they had spun... And all the women whose heart stirred with wisdom spun the goats’ hair." (Exodus 35:25-26 LSB)
Here the text highlights the contribution of the women. And notice the description: they are "wise at heart" and their hearts are "stirred with wisdom." This is not just busy-work. This is skilled craftsmanship, Spirit-endowed wisdom applied to a practical task. Spinning thread was a common domestic skill, but here it is elevated to a holy art. God consecrates the work of our hands. Whether you are writing code, changing diapers, balancing spreadsheets, or spinning goats' hair, if your heart is stirred with wisdom to do it for the glory of God, it is an act of worship. This is a profound affirmation of the dignity of skilled labor and the essential role of wise, productive women in building the house of God.
Leadership and the Freewill Offering (vv. 27-29)
The leaders of the community also participated, setting an example.
"And the rulers brought the onyx stones and the stones for setting for the ephod and for the breastpiece; and the spice and the oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense." (Exodus 35:27-28 LSB)
Biblical leadership is not about commanding others to do what you are unwilling to do yourself. The rulers brought the most precious and costly items, the stones for the high priest's ephod and breastpiece. They led the way in sacrificial giving. Their generosity was not for show; it was for the central act of worship, for the articles that represented Israel's communion with God. They gave to what was most important.
The passage concludes with a summary statement that drives the main point home one last time.
"The sons of Israel, all the men and women whose heart was willing to bring material for all the work, which Yahweh had commanded through the hand of Moses to do, brought a freewill offering to Yahweh." (Exodus 35:29 LSB)
Notice the beautiful interplay between divine command and human willingness. This was not a spontaneous, self-generated project. It was for "the work, which Yahweh had commanded." God gives the blueprint. He sets the terms. Our freedom is not the freedom to do whatever we want; it is the freedom to joyfully and willingly obey what God has commanded. The world thinks of freedom as the absence of commands. The Bible shows us that true freedom is a heart so transformed by grace that it delights in the commands of God. The command did not produce grudging compliance; it provided the opportunity for willing hearts to express their love and gratitude. This is the essence of a freewill offering.
Building the True Tabernacle
This entire scene is a type and a shadow of a greater reality. The Tabernacle was the place where God condescended to dwell with His people. But it was a temporary structure, a placeholder. The ultimate Tabernacle is the Lord Jesus Christ, who "tabernacled among us, and we have seen his glory" (John 1:14).
And now, in this age, God is building another house, the Church, which is the body of Christ (1 Peter 2:5). And how is this house being built? It is being built in exactly the same way the first Tabernacle was. God has given us the command, the Great Commission. He has given us the blueprint in His Word. And He is stirring the hearts of His people, men and women, whose spirits are made willing by His grace.
He is calling you to bring your "freewill offering" to this great construction project. What is your gold? What is your silver? What is your acacia wood? What is your goats' hair? What is the skill, the talent, the resource, the wisdom that God has given you? Is it a gift for teaching? Bring it. Is it a gift for administration? Bring it. Is it a gift for hospitality, for mercy, for craftsmanship, for encouragement? Bring it. Do you have wealth? Bring your gold and silver. Do you have a strong back? Bring your acacia wood. Are you a woman wise at heart? Bring the fruit of your skilled hands.
God is building His kingdom, not with the coerced labor of slaves, but with the joyful, freewill offerings of redeemed sons and daughters. He doesn't need your stuff. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. But He is pleased to use your stuff. He is pleased to take the varied and diverse gifts of His people and weave them together into a glorious dwelling place for His Spirit. The question this text poses to each of us is simple. Has the grace of God so stirred your heart and made your spirit so willing that you are joyfully bringing your offering for the work?