A rare thing happens in this chapter - the people are restrained from contribution! You heard me right...the charity and willingness of the people to provide the means by which the tabernacle would be built and adorned was too much and they had to be instructed to stop donating. No way that would happen these days! Can you imagine a charitable organization making a statement that their coffers runneth over and thank you but no thank you...NEVER!
Keep in mind that the Israelites were not poor by any means, remember they had borrowed the riches of Egypt prior to their great exodus so they had plenty of "stuff." They found themselves lacking in food, water, weapons, and medical supplies, at times, but riches they did have.
The setup here is with the master craftsmen who were chosen to create the Tabernacle. They could have kept the extra supplies for themselves as payment for their work, for that matter even Moses could have kept the excess riches, but all were righteous men and chose not to fill their own pockets with wealth but use only that which was needed and refuse the rest - pretty awesome!
EXODUS 36:4-7
4 And all the wise men, that wrought all the work of the sanctuary, came every man from his work which they made;"The people were restrained from bringing..." I cannot fathom such a thing. What a change from all the murmurings of not to long ago. Maybe the Levite extermination of the 3,000 wicked calf dancers roused a sense of faith in the people, hmmm...
5 And they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work, which the Lord commanded to make.
6 And Moses gave commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing.
7 For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.
~Kipling
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