WHY DON’T WE KNOW ABOUT THIS GUY?

He is a major character in five chapters of one of the most important books of the Bible: Exodus.

Bezalel and his buddy Oholiab had funny sounding names, but they have much to teach us.

In fact, Bezalel was not only skilled with his hands, but also called to train others (Ex. 35:34).  Talk about the dignity of all work!

R. Paul Stevens mentions in his fine book, The Other Six Days, how the clearest and earliest example of the Holy Spirit falling on someone in the Old Testament is Bezalel (Ex. 31:3).  And he was neither prophet nor priest.  He was a craftsman, skilled and creative so he could make beautiful things…for God!

And here is a shocker.  I dug a bit and found out that the Babylonian Talmud (third to fifth centuries AD) asks how old Bezalel was when called by God to build the tabernacle:

Now, how old was Bezalel when he made the Tabernacle? Thirteen years, for it is written… (Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Sanhedrin 69b)

 

2 thoughts on “WHY DON’T WE KNOW ABOUT THIS GUY?

  1. David McCoy

    One important principle that Leland Ryken, in his book Culture in Christian Perspective, draws from this passage is that artistic talent is a gift from God. Ryken continues: “This is the opposite of the humanistic theory of art as a strictly human talent and the romantic view of artists as a race of geniuses far superior to ordinary people. The Bible puts the artist (like everyone else) into a circle of grace. God is the source of artistic ability. Art is his gift.”
    So this biblical passage elevates the dignity of work and punctures the artistic ego at the same time!

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