Exodus 31 Study Notes

31:16-17 To observe the Sabbath would be a sign forever of the covenant between the Lord and the Israelites, reminding them of the Lord’s provision as the one who had made the heavens and the earth and as the one who had made Israel a new nation (16:24-30; 20:8-11). As part of their loyalty to the Lord, their Sovereign, the Israelites could participate in the rest he enjoyed.

31:18 The two tablets of the testimony contained the Ten Commandments and were to be placed inside the ark in the most holy place in the tabernacle to remind the people of the covenant that the Israelites had promised to keep (25:16).