Exodus 28-29

New Century Version

Clothes for the Priests

28 “Tell your brother Aaron to come to you, along with his sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. Separate them from the other Israelites to serve me as priests. ² Make holy clothes for your brother Aaron to give him honor and beauty. ³ Tell all the skilled craftsmen to whom I have given wisdom to make special clothes for Aaron—clothes to show that he belongs to me so that he may serve me as a priest. ⁴ These are the clothes they must make: a chest covering, a holy vest, an outer robe, a woven inner robe, a turban, and a cloth belt. The craftsmen must make these holy clothes for your brother Aaron and his sons. Then they may serve me as priests. ⁵ The craftsmen must use gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen.

The Holy Vest

⁶ “Use gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen to make the holy vest; skilled craftsmen are to make it. ⁷ At each top corner of this holy vest there will be a pair of shoulder straps tied together over each shoulder.

⁸ “The craftsmen will very carefully weave a belt on the holy vest that is made with the same materials—gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen.

⁹ “Take two onyx stones and write the names of the twelve sons of Israel on them, ¹⁰ six on one stone and six on the other. Write the names in order, from the oldest son to the youngest. ¹¹ Carve the names of the sons of Israel on these stones in the same way a person carves words and designs on a seal. Put gold around the stones to hold them on the holy vest. ¹² Then put the two stones on the two straps of the holy vest as reminders of the twelve sons of Israel. Aaron is to wear their names on his shoulders in the presence of the Lord as reminders of the sons of Israel. ¹³ Make two gold pieces to hold the stones ¹⁴ and two chains of pure gold, twisted together like a rope. Attach the chains to the two gold pieces that hold the stones.

The Chest Covering

¹⁵ “Make a chest covering to help in making decisions. The craftsmen should make it as they made the holy vest, using gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen. ¹⁶ The chest covering must be square—nine inches long and nine inches wide—and folded double to make a pocket. ¹⁷ Put four rows of beautiful gems on the chest covering: The first row must have a ruby, topaz, and yellow quartz; ¹⁸ the second must have turquoise, a sapphire, and an emerald; ¹⁹ the third must have a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; ²⁰ the fourth must have a chrysolite, an onyx, and a jasper. Put gold around these jewels to attach them to the chest covering. ²¹ There must be twelve jewels on the chest covering—one jewel for each of the names of the sons of Israel. Carve the name of one of the twelve tribes on each of the stones as you would carve a seal.

²² “Make chains of pure gold, twisted together like rope, for the chest covering. ²³ Make two gold rings and put them on the two upper corners of the chest covering. ²⁴ Attach the two gold chains to the two rings at the upper corners of the chest covering. ²⁵ Attach the other ends of the two chains to the two gold pieces on the shoulder straps in the front of the holy vest.

²⁶ “Make two gold rings and put them at the two lower corners of the chest covering, on the inside edge next to the holy vest. ²⁷ Make two more gold rings and attach them to the bottom of the shoulder straps in the front of the holy vest. Put them close to the seam above the woven belt of the holy vest. ²⁸ Join the rings of the chest covering to the rings of the holy vest with blue ribbon, connecting it to the woven belt so the chest covering will not swing out from the holy vest.

²⁹ “When Aaron enters the Holy Place, he will wear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart, on the chest covering that helps in making decisions. This will be a continual reminder before the Lord. ³⁰ And put the Urim and Thummim inside the chest covering so that they will be on Aaron’s heart when he goes before the Lord. They will help in making decisions for the Israelites. So Aaron will always carry them with him when he is before the Lord.

³¹ “Make the outer robe to be worn under the holy vest, using only blue cloth. ³² Make a hole in the center for Aaron’s head, with a woven collar around the hole so it will not tear. ³³ Make balls like pomegranates of blue, purple, and red thread, and hang them around the bottom of the outer robe with gold bells between them. ³⁴ All around the bottom of the outer robe there should be a gold bell and a pomegranate ball, a gold bell and a pomegranate ball. ³⁵ Aaron must wear this robe when he serves as priest. The ringing of the bells will be heard when he enters and leaves the Holy Place before the Lord so that Aaron will not die.

³⁶ “Make a strip of pure gold and carve these words on it as you would carve a seal: ‘Holy to the Lord.’ ³⁷ Use blue ribbon to tie it to the turban; put it on the front of the turban. ³⁸ Aaron must wear this on his forehead. In this way, he will be blamed if anything is wrong with the gifts of the Israelites. Aaron must always wear this on his head so the Lord will accept the gifts of the people.

³⁹ “Make the woven inner robe of fine linen, and make the turban of fine linen also. Make the cloth belt with designs sewn on it. ⁴⁰ Also make woven inner robes, cloth belts, and headbands for Aaron’s sons, to give them honor and beauty. ⁴¹ Put these clothes on your brother Aaron and his sons, and pour olive oil on their heads to appoint them as priests. Make them belong to me so they may serve me as priests.

⁴² “Make for them linen underclothes to cover them from the waist to the upper parts of the legs. ⁴³ Aaron and his sons must wear these underclothes when they enter the Meeting Tent and anytime they come near the altar to serve as priests in the Holy Place. If they do not wear these clothes, they will be guilty of wrong, and they will die. This will be a law that will last from now on for Aaron and all his descendants.

Appointing the Priests

29 “This is what you must do to appoint Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests. Take one young bull and two male sheep that have nothing wrong with them. ² Use fine wheat flour without yeast to make bread, cakes mixed with olive oil, and wafers brushed with olive oil. ³ Put these in one basket, and bring them along with the bull and two male sheep. ⁴ Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the Meeting Tent and wash them with water. ⁵ Take the clothes and dress Aaron in the inner robe and the outer robe of the holy vest. Then put on him the holy vest and the chest covering, and tie the holy vest on him with its skillfully woven belt. ⁶ Put the turban on his head, and put the holy crown on the turban. ⁷ Take the special olive oil and pour it on his head to make him a priest.

⁸ “Then bring his sons and put the inner robes on them. ⁹ Put the headbands on their heads, and tie cloth belts around their waists. Aaron and his descendants will be priests in Israel, according to a rule that will continue from now on. This is how you will appoint Aaron and his sons as priests.

¹⁰ “Bring the bull to the front of the Meeting Tent, and Aaron and his sons must put their hands on the bull’s head. ¹¹ Then kill the bull before the Lord at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. ¹² Use your finger to put some of the bull’s blood on the corners of the altar, and then pour the blood that is left at the bottom of the altar. ¹³ Take all the fat that covers the inner organs, as well as the best part of the liver, both kidneys, and the fat around them, and burn them on the altar. ¹⁴ Take the bull’s meat, skin, and intestines, and burn them outside the camp. This is an offering to take away sin.

¹⁵ “Take one of the male sheep, and have Aaron and his sons put their hands on its head. ¹⁶ Kill it, and take its blood and sprinkle it on all four sides of the altar. ¹⁷ Then cut it into pieces and wash its inner organs and its legs, putting them with its head and its other pieces. ¹⁸ Burn the whole sheep on the altar; it is a burnt offering made by fire to the Lord. Its smell is pleasing to the Lord.

¹⁹ “Take the other male sheep, and have Aaron and his sons put their hands on its head. ²⁰ Kill it and take some of its blood. Put the blood on the bottom of the right ears of Aaron and his sons and on the thumbs of their right hands and on the big toes of their right feet. Then sprinkle the rest of the blood against all four sides of the altar. ²¹ Take some of the blood from the altar, and mix it with the special oil used in appointing priests. Sprinkle this on Aaron and his clothes and on his sons and their clothes. This will show that Aaron and his sons and their clothes are given to my service.

²² “Then take the fat from the male sheep, the fat tail, and the fat that covers the inner organs. In addition, take the best part of the liver, both kidneys, and the fat around them, and the right thigh. (This is the male sheep to be used in appointing priests.)

²³ “Then take the basket of bread that you made without yeast, which you put before the Lord. From it take a loaf of bread, a cake made with olive oil, and a wafer. ²⁴ Put all of these in the hands of Aaron and his sons, and tell them to present them as an offering to the Lord. ²⁵ Then take them from their hands and burn them on the altar with the whole burnt offering. This is an offering made by fire to the Lord; its smell is pleasing to the Lord. ²⁶ Then take the breast of the male sheep used to appoint Aaron as priest, and present it before the Lord as an offering. This part of the animal will be your share. ²⁷ Set aside the breast and the thigh of the sheep that were used to appoint Aaron and his sons as priests. These parts belong to them. ²⁸ They are to be the regular share which the Israelites will always give to Aaron and his sons. It is the gift the Israelites must give to the Lord from their fellowship offerings.

²⁹ “The holy clothes made for Aaron will belong to his descendants so that they can wear these clothes when they are appointed as priests. ³⁰ Aaron’s son, who will become high priest after Aaron, will come to the Meeting Tent to serve in the Holy Place. He is to wear these clothes for seven days.

³¹ “Take the male sheep used to appoint priests and boil its meat in a place that is holy. ³² Then at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, Aaron and his sons must eat the meat of the sheep and the bread that is in the basket. ³³ They should eat these offerings that were used to remove their sins and to make them holy when they were made priests. But no one else is to eat them, because they are holy things. ³⁴ If any of the meat from that sheep or any of the bread is left the next morning, it must be burned. It must not be eaten, because it is holy.

³⁵ “Do all these things that I commanded you to do to Aaron and his sons, and spend seven days appointing them. ³⁶ Each day you are to offer a bull to remove the sins of Aaron and his sons so they will be given for service to the Lord. Make the altar ready for service to the Lord, and pour oil on it to make it holy. ³⁷ Spend seven days making the altar ready for service to God and making it holy. Then the altar will become very holy, and anything that touches it must be holy.

The Daily Sacrifices

³⁸ “Every day from now on, offer on the altar two lambs that are one year old. ³⁹ Offer one lamb in the morning and the other in the evening before dark. ⁴⁰ In the morning, when you offer the first lamb, offer also two quarts of fine flour mixed with one quart of oil from pressed olives. Pour out a quart of wine as a drink offering. ⁴¹ Offer the second lamb in the evening with the same grain offering and drink offering as you did in the morning. This is an offering made by fire to the Lord, and its smell is pleasing to him.

⁴² “You must burn these things as an offering to the Lord every day, from now on, at the entrance of the Meeting Tent before the Lord. When you make the offering, I, the Lord, will meet you there and speak to you. ⁴³ I will meet with the people of Israel there, and that place will be holy because of my glory.

⁴⁴ “So I will make the Meeting Tent and the altar holy; I will also make Aaron and his sons holy so they may serve me as priests. ⁴⁵ I will live with the people of Israel and be their God. ⁴⁶ And they will know that I am the Lord their God who led them out of Egypt so that I could live with them. I am the Lord their God.