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Scriptorium · Exodus

The Tabernacle

God gave Moses explicit measures for the dwelling in the wilderness — cubits of length, breadth, and height for the court, the boards, the veil, and the holy furniture. This engine tabulates those numbers from Exodus, converts them with an honest cubit scale, and draws a schematic plan. It teaches from the text; it does not claim to have dug the site.

According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it. — Exodus 25:9

The Measures of the Tabernacle

The LORD gave Moses explicit measures for the Tabernacle in Exodus 25–27. This engine tabulates those stated cubit dimensions, converts them with a selectable cubit length, and draws a schematic plan from the text. It is a Scripture-first teaching instrument — not an archaeological survey, a recovered floor plan, or proof of any modern reconstruction.

The cubit was an anthropometric unit (forearm length). Scholars commonly use roughly 17.5–20.4 inches; Egyptology and metrology still debate the exact span at Sinai. Switch the cubit length below to see how totals shift. Color symbolism follows the four sacred colors named in the curtains (ported read-only from the native tabernacle_color_map organ).

At 18.0 in per cubit (45.72 cm): court footprint 5000 sq cubits (~1045 m²); dwelling footprint 300 sq cubits (~62.7 m²).

Court 100 × 50 cubits (Ex 27:18) Most Holy 10×10 Holy Place 20×10 Dwelling 30 × 10 cubits (schematic; west at left)
ElementCubits (L×W×H)At this cubitScripture
Court of the Tabernacle
The outer court — hangings of fine twined linen, pillars and sockets of brass.
100.0 × 50.0 × 5.0~150.0 × 75.0 × 7.5 ftExodus 27:18
Dwelling (Tabernacle proper)
Twenty boards on the long sides (1.5 cubits wide each) give 30; six boards on the ends give 10 cubits wide; boards are 10 cubits high.
30.0 × 10.0 × 10.0~45.0 × 15.0 × 15.0 ftExodus 26:15-16
Holy Place
The chamber east of the veil — lampstand, table of shewbread, altar of incense.
20.0 × 10.0 × 10.0~30.0 × 15.0 × 15.0 ftExodus 26:33
Most Holy Place
The western cube behind the veil — the Ark of the Testimony.
10.0 × 10.0 × 10.0~15.0 × 15.0 × 15.0 ftExodus 26:33
Ark of the Testimony
Acacia wood overlaid with gold — the mercy seat and the testimony within.
2.5 × 1.5 × 1.5~3.8 × 2.2 × 2.2 ftExodus 25:10
Table of shewbread
Gold-overlaid table bearing the twelve loaves.
2.0 × 1.0 × 1.5~3.0 × 1.5 × 2.2 ftExodus 25:23
Altar of incense
Before the veil — perpetual incense before the LORD.
1.0 × 1.0 × 2.0~1.5 × 1.5 × 3.0 ftExodus 30:2
Bronze altar (burnt offering)
In the court, east of the dwelling — the sacrifices.
5.0 × 5.0 × 3.0~7.5 × 7.5 × 4.5 ftExodus 27:1
Bronze laver
Between the tent and the altar — washing for Aaron and his sons (dimensions not given in cubits).
not dimensioned in cubitsExodus 30:18

The four sacred colors (Exodus 26)

Tekhelet (Blue) תכלת
Exodus 26:1
Argaman (Purple) ארגמן
Exodus 26:31
Shani (Scarlet) שׁני
Exodus 26:1
Shesh (White linen) שׁשׁ
Exodus 28:39

Anchor verses (KJV)

Exodus 25:8
And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. — KJV
Exodus 25:10
And they shall make an ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. — KJV
Exodus 26:15
And thou shalt make boards for the tabernacle of shittim wood standing up. — KJV
Exodus 26:33
And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy. — KJV
Exodus 27:18
The length of the court shall be an hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty every where, and the height five cubits of fine twined linen, and their sockets of brass. — KJV

See also the Feasts of the LORD, the Eschatology guide, and the Scriptorium. For Scripture-first study see /bible-search.

Computed inside davar_http from the stated Exodus dimensions. The cubit was an anthropometric unit; scholars commonly use roughly 17.5–20.4 inches. Layout is a schematic from the text — not a recovered floor plan or archaeological survey. Scripture is the authority.

How the Engine Works

Exodus 25–27 names the Tabernacle court (100 × 50 cubits), the dwelling proper (30 × 10 cubits, boards 10 cubits high), the Holy Place and Most Holy Place divided by the veil, and the principal furniture — the Ark, the table, the altars, and the laver where dimensions are given.

The engine multiplies each stated cubit measure by your chosen cubit length (default 18 inches), reports approximate imperial feet and metric areas, and renders an SVG schematic: the court as an outer rectangle, the dwelling at the west with the Most Holy Place as the western third. The four sacred colors of the curtains — tekhelet, argaman, shani, and shesh — are listed from the native tabernacle_color_map organ. Anchor verses are quoted verbatim from the King James Bible. Everything is plain C on the server; no client JavaScript.

Go Deeper

This engine measures from Scripture; it does not replace archaeology or careful study:

The Feasts of the LORD — including Tabernacles (Sukkot).

Eschatology guide — four schools on Daniel and Revelation.

The Chronology Atlas — Creation to the Nativity.

Search the Bible — every KJV verse.