Skilled workers and artisans. God is sometimes compared to a master craftsman in his work of creation. Scripture also identifies God as the giver of talent and ability to certain individuals, in particular those employed in the construction of the tabernacle and the temple.
God the Creator seen as a master craftsman
Proverbs 3:19–20 See also Genesis 1:1–31; Job 38:4–38 inanimate creation; Job 38:39–39:30 animate creation; Proverbs 8:22–31
The LORD founded the earth by wisdom and established the heavens by understanding. By His knowledge the watery depths were broken open, and the clouds dripped with dew.
Craftsmen employed in the construction of the tabernacle and its furnishings
Exodus 31:1–11 See also Exodus 26:1, Exodus 26:31, Exodus 28:6–8, Exodus 28:15, Exodus 35:30–36:3, Exodus 36:8–38:11, Exodus 39:1–3
Craftsmen employed in the construction of the temple and its furnishings
1 Kings 7:13–45 parallels 2 Chronicles 4:2–6, 2 Chronicles 4:10–16 See also 1 Kings 5:17–18; 1 Chronicles 22:14–16, 1 Chronicles 29:3–5; 2 Chronicles 2:5–7, 2 Chronicles 2:13–14
Craftsmen employed in the manufacture of idols
Isaiah 40:19–20 See also Isaiah 41:5–7, Isaiah 44:9–20; Jeremiah 10:3–10; Hosea 8:4–6, Hosea 13:2; Acts 19:23–41
To an idol that a craftsman casts and a metalworker overlays with gold and fits with silver chains? One lacking such an offering chooses wood that will not rot. He seeks a skilled craftsman to set up an idol that will not topple.
Carpenters
2 Samuel 5:11 parallel 1 Chronicles 14:1 See also 2 Chronicles 24:12; Isaiah 44:13; Ezekiel 27:9; Matthew 13:55 parallel Mark 6:3
Now Hiram king of Tyre sent envoys to David, along with cedar logs, carpenters, and stonemasons, and they built a palace for David.
Gem cutters
Engrave the names of the sons of Israel on the two stones the way a gem cutter engraves a seal. Then mount the stones in gold filigree settings.
Masons
2 Chronicles 24:12 See also 1 Chronicles 22:14–16; Ezra 3:7
Then the king and Jehoiada would give the money to those who supervised the labor on the house of the LORD to hire stonecutters and carpenters to restore the house of the LORD, as well as workers in iron and bronze to repair the house of the LORD.
Goldsmiths
Isaiah 46:6 See also Nehemiah 3:31–32; Jeremiah 51:17
They pour out their bags of gold and weigh out silver on scales; they hire a goldsmith to fashion it into a god, so they can bow down and worship.
Silversmiths
Proverbs 25:4 See also Judges 17:4; Acts 19:24
Remove the dross from the silver, and a vessel for a silversmith will come forth.
Potters
Romans 9:21 See also 1 Chronicles 4:23; Isaiah 64:8; Jeremiah 18:2–4
Does not the potter have the right to make from the same lump of clay one vessel for special occasions and another for common use?
Weavers and embroiderers
Skilled craftsmen
Exodus 35:35 See also Exodus 26:1, Exodus 26:31, Exodus 28:6, Exodus 28:15, Exodus 39:22, Exodus 39:27; Isaiah 19:9–10, Isaiah 38:12
He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and as weavers — as artistic designers of every kind of craft.[’’]
A weaver's shuttle
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle; they come to an end without hope.
A weaver's rod
1 Chronicles 20:5 See also 1 Samuel 17:7; 2 Samuel 21:19; 1 Chronicles 11:23
Once again there was a battle with the Philistines, and Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
Craftsmen taken into exile
2 Kings 24:10–17 See also Isaiah 3:1–3; Jeremiah 24:1, Jeremiah 29:2, Jeremiah 52:12–16
At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched up to Jerusalem, and the city came under siege. And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to the city while his servants were besieging it. Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his servants, his commanders, and his officials all surrendered to the king of Babylon. So in the eighth year of his reign, the king of Babylon took him captive. As the LORD had declared, Nebuchadnezzar also carried off all the treasures from the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and he cut into pieces all the gold articles that Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD. He carried into exile all Jerusalem — all the commanders and mighty men of valor, all the craftsmen and metalsmiths — ten thousand captives in all. Only the poorest people of the land remained. Nebuchadnezzar carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, as well as the king’s mother, his wives, his officials, and the leading men of the land. He took them into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. The king of Babylon also brought into exile to Babylon all seven thousand men of valor and a thousand craftsmen and metalsmiths— all strong and fit for battle. Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah.
Craftsmen in place-names
1 Chronicles 4:14 See also Nehemiah 11:31–35
Meonothai was the father of Ophrah, and Seraiah was the father of Joab, the father of those living in Ge-harashim, which was given this name because its people were craftsmen.
Metaphorical references to craftsmen
Proverbs 8:22–31 See also Isaiah 41:25, Isaiah 64:8; Jeremiah 18:6; Zechariah 1:20–21; 1 Corinthians 3:10
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.