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LXX Exodus

Septuagint

About this book
Chapter 40

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 On the first day of the first month, at the new moon, you shall set up the tabernacle of witness, 3 and you shall place in it the ark of the testimony, and shall cover the ark with the veil, 4 and you shall bring in the table and shall set forth that which is to be set forth on it; and you shall bring in the candlestick and place its lamps on it. 5 And you shall place the golden altar, to burn incense before the ark; and you shall put a covering of a veil on the door of the tabernacle of witness. 6 And you shall put the altar of burnt offerings by the doors of the tabernacle of witness, 7  8 and you shall set up the tabernacle all around, and you shall hallow all that belongs to it all around. 9 And you shall take the anointing oil, and shall anoint the tabernacle, and all things in it; and shall sanctify it, and all its furniture, and it shall be holy. 10 And you shall anoint the altar of burnt offerings, and all its furniture; and you shall hallow the altar, and the altar shall be most holy. 11  12 And you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the doors of the tabernacle of witness, and you shall wash them with water. 13 And you shall put on Aaron the holy garments, and you shall anoint him, and you shall sanctify him, and he shall minister to me as priest. 14 And you shall bring up his sons, and shall put tunics on them. 15 And you shall anoint them as you anointed their father, and they shall minister to me as priests; and it shall be that they shall have an everlasting anointing of priesthood, throughout their generations. 16 And Moses did all things whatever the Lord commanded him, so he did. 17 And it happened in the first month, in the second year after their going forth out of Egypt, at the new moon, that the tabernacle was set up. 18 And Moses set up the tabernacle, and put on the capitals, and put the bars into their places, and set up the posts. 19 And he stretched out the curtains over the tabernacle, and put the veil of the tabernacle on it above as the Lord commanded Moses. 20 And he took the testimonies, and put them into the ark; and he put the carrying poles under the ark. 21 And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and put on it the covering of the veil, and covered the ark of the testimony, as the Lord commanded Moses. 22 And he put the table in the tabernacle of witness, on the north side outside the veil of the tabernacle. 23 And he put on it the show bread before the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses. 24 And he put the candlestick into the tabernacle of witness, on the side of the tabernacle toward the south. 25 And he put on it its lamps before the Lord, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 26 And he put the golden altar in the tabernacle of witness before the veil; 27 and he burnt on it incense of composition, as the Lord commanded Moses. 28  29 And he put the altar of the burnt offerings by the doors of the tabernacle. 30  31  32  33 And he set up the court all around the tabernacle and the altar; and Moses accomplished all the works. 34 And the cloud covered the tabernacle of witness,⁠ and the tabernacle was filled with the glory of the Lord. 35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tabernacle of testimony, because the cloud overshadowed it,⁠ and the tabernacle was filled with the glory of the Lord.⁠ 36 And when the cloud went up from the tabernacle, the children of Israel prepared to depart with their baggage. 37 And if the cloud did not go up, they did not prepare to depart, till the day when the cloud went up. 38 For a cloud was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night before all Israel, in all their journeyings.

Texts in conversation

Compare LXX Exodus 40:35 and Matthew 17:5

Septuagint · New Testament

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Summary

Matthew 17 describes a bright cloud that covered those present at the transfiguration of Jesus, using unique Greek language also found in the Septuagint translation of Exodus 40, where the cloud covered the tabernacle and prevented Moses from entering.

Passages

LXX Exodus 40:35

Septuagint
29 And he put the altar of the burnt offerings by the doors of the tabernacle. 30 31 32 33 And he set up the court all around the tabernacle and the altar; and Moses accomplished all the works. 34 And the cloud covered the tabernacle of witness, and the tabernacle was filled with the glory of the Lord. 35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tabernacle of testimony, because the cloud overshadowed it, and the tabernacle was filled with the glory of the Lord. 36 And when the cloud went up from the tabernacle, the children of Israel prepared to depart with their baggage. 37 And if the cloud did not go up, they did not prepare to depart, till the day when the cloud went up. 38 For a cloud was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night before all Israel, in all their journeyings.
300–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in LXX Exodus

Matthew 17:5

New Testament
2 And he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. 3 Then Moses and Elijah also appeared before them, talking with him. 4 So Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you want, I will make three shelters—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my one dear Son, in whom I take great delight. Listen to him!” 6 When the disciples heard this, they were overwhelmed with fear and threw themselves down with their faces to the ground. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Do not be afraid.” 8 When they looked up, all they saw was Jesus alone.
70–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Matthew

References

"... Heavenly dwellings for the heavenly three is thus a good interpretive option, especially since in the Matthean version of the transfiguration Peter’s suggestion is not the result of somnolent confusion (as in Luke 9:32–33) or raw fear (as in Mark 9:6). The story does not imply Peter’s suggestion is categorically wrong. Rather, the heavenly voice suggests that it is ill-timed; before Jesus enters into ultimate glory, he must go the way of the cross. The cloud concerns the eschaton as well. The voice comes from a “bright cloud” which “overshadowed them” (ἰδοὺ νεφέλη φωτεινὴ ἐπεσκίασεν αὐτούς, presumably Jesus, Moses and Elijah). This is most likely an allusion to Exodus 40:35, the only verse in the LXX which contains both νεφέλη and ἐπισκιάζω ... Davies and Allison note that the description of the cloud as “bright” (φωτεινός) makes a reference to the Shekinah “unmistakable.” ..."
Leroy A. Huizenga, The New Isaac: Tradition and Intertextuality in the Gospel of Matthew (Leiden: Brill, 2009), 232.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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LXX Exodus 40:35 and Matthew 17:5

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