The Law of the Altar

²² Then the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘You have seen that I have talked with you ^(A)from heaven. ²³ You shall not make anything to be ^(B)with Me—gods of silver or gods of gold you shall not make for yourselves. ²⁴ An altar of ^(C)earth you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, ^(D)your sheep and your oxen. In every ^(E)place where I ^[a]record My name I will come to you, and I will ^(F)bless you. ²⁵ And ^(G)if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you ^(H)use your tool on it, you have profaned it. ²⁶ Nor shall you go up by steps to My altar, that your ^(I)nakedness may not be exposed on it.’

³ So Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the ^[a]judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, ^(A)“All the words which the Lord has said we will do.” ⁴ And Moses ^(B)wrote all the words of the Lord. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve ^(C)pillars according to the twelve tribes of Israel. ⁵ Then he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered ^(D)burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the Lord. ⁶ And Moses ^(E)took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. ⁷ Then he ^(F)took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has said we will do, and be obedient.” ⁸ And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is ^(G)the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you according to all these words.”