Exodus 30
English Standard Version
The Altar of Incense
30 (A)“You shall make (B)an altar on which to burn incense; you shall make it of acacia wood. 2 A cubit[a] shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth. It shall be square, and two cubits shall be its height. (C)Its horns shall be of one piece with it. 3 You shall (D)overlay it with pure gold, its top and around its sides and its horns. And you shall make a molding of gold around it. 4 And you shall make two golden rings for it. Under its molding on two opposite sides of it you shall make them, and they shall be (E)holders for poles with which to carry it. 5 You shall make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. 6 And you shall put it in front of the veil that is above the ark of the testimony, in front of the (F)mercy seat that is above the testimony, where I will meet with you. 7 And Aaron shall (G)burn fragrant incense on it. Every morning when he (H)dresses the lamps he shall burn it, 8 and when Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he shall burn it, a regular incense offering before the Lord throughout your generations. 9 You shall not offer (I)unauthorized incense on it, or a burnt offering, or a grain offering, and you shall not pour a drink offering on it. 10 (J)Aaron shall make atonement on its horns once a year. With the blood of the (K)sin offering of atonement he shall make atonement for it once in the year throughout your generations. It is most holy to the Lord.”
The Census Tax
11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 (L)“When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give (M)a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. 13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel[b] according to the (N)shekel of the sanctuary (the (O)shekel is twenty gerahs),[c] (P)half a shekel as an offering to the Lord. 14 Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the Lord's offering. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than (Q)the half shekel, when you give the Lord's offering to make atonement for your lives. 16 You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall (R)give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to (S)remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives.”
The Bronze Basin
17 The Lord said to Moses, 18 “You shall also make a (T)basin of bronze, with its stand of bronze, for washing. (U)You shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it, 19 with which Aaron and his sons (V)shall wash their hands and their feet. 20 When they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn a food offering[d] to the Lord, they shall wash with water, so that they may not die. 21 They shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they may not die. It shall (W)be a statute forever to them, even to him and to his offspring throughout their generations.”
The Anointing Oil and Incense
22 The Lord said to Moses, 23 “Take the (X)finest spices: of liquid myrrh 500 shekels, and of sweet-smelling cinnamon half as much, that is, 250, and 250 of (Y)aromatic cane, 24 and 500 of cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and a (Z)hin[e] of olive oil. 25 And you shall make of these a sacred anointing oil blended as by the (AA)perfumer; it shall be a (AB)holy anointing oil. 26 (AC)With it you shall anoint the tent of meeting and the ark of the testimony, 27 and the table and all its utensils, and the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense, 28 and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils and the (AD)basin and its stand. 29 You shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy. (AE)Whatever touches them will become holy. 30 (AF)You shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. 31 And you shall say to the people of Israel, ‘This shall be my holy anointing oil throughout your generations. 32 It shall not be poured on the body of an ordinary person, and you shall make no other like it in composition. (AG)It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. 33 (AH)Whoever compounds any like it or whoever puts any of it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’”
34 The Lord said to Moses, (AI)“Take sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense (of each shall there be an equal part), 35 and make an (AJ)incense blended as by the (AK)perfumer, (AL)seasoned with salt, pure and holy. 36 You shall beat some of it very small, and put part of it before the testimony in the tent of meeting (AM)where I shall meet with you. (AN)It shall be most holy for you. 37 And the incense that you shall make (AO)according to its composition, you shall not make for yourselves. It shall be for you holy to the Lord. 38 (AP)Whoever makes any like it to use as perfume shall be cut off from his people.”
Footnotes
- Exodus 30:2 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
- Exodus 30:13 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
- Exodus 30:13 A gerah was about 1/50 ounce or 0.6 gram
- Exodus 30:20 Or an offering by fire
- Exodus 30:24 A hin was about 4 quarts or 3.5 liters
Shemot 30
Orthodox Jewish Bible
30 And thou shalt make a Mizbe’ach to burn ketonet (incense) upon; of acacia wood shalt thou make it.
2 A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the width thereof; ravu’a (foursquare, square) shall it be; and two cubits shall be the height thereof; the karnenot thereof shall be of the same.
3 And thou shalt overlay it with zahav tahor, the top thereof, and the sides thereof all around, and the karnenot thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of zahav all around.
4 And two tabe’ot zahav (golden rings) shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the carrying poles to bear it withal.
5 And thou shalt make the carrying poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with zahav.
6 And thou shalt put it in front of the Parochet that is before the Aron HaEdut, before the Kapporet that is over HaEdut, where I will set My meetings with thee.
7 And Aharon shall burn thereon spice ketoret every boker; when he cleaneth the nerot (lamps), he shall burn it.
8 And when Aharon lighteth the nerot (lamps) in the afternoon, he shall burn ketoret upon it, ketoret tamid before Hashem throughout your dorot.
9 Ye shall offer no ketoret zarah thereon, nor olah, nor minchah; neither shall ye pour nesekh thereon.
10 And Aharon shall make kapporah upon the karenot of it once in a year with the dahm of the chattat hakippurim; once in the year shall he make kapporah upon it throughout your dorot; it is kodesh kodashim unto Hashem [see Lev 16 on this].
[KI TISSA]
11 And Hashem spoke unto Moshe, saying,
12 When thou takest the census of the Bnei Yisroel after their number, then shall they give every man a kofer nafsho (life price, atoning payment for his nefesh or soul) unto Hashem, when thou numberest them; that there be no negef (plague) among them, when thou numberest them.
13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are pekudim (numbered, counted), half a shekel after the shekel of HaKodesh. (A shekel is twenty gerahs.) A half shekel shall be the terumah (offering) unto Hashem.
14 Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give a terumah (offering) unto Hashem.
15 The oisher (rich man) shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give a terumah (offering) unto Hashem, to make kapporah for your nefashot.
16 And thou shalt take the kesef hakippurim of the Bnei Yisroel, and shalt appoint it for the Avodat Ohel Mo’ed (Work, Service of the Tent of Appointed Meeting); that it may be a zikaron unto the Bnei Yisroel before Hashem, to make kapporah for your nefashot [see Psalm 49; 1K 1:18-19 OJBC].
17 And Hashem spoke unto Moshe, saying,
18 Thou shalt also make a Kiyor of nechoshet, and its Stand also of nechoshet, to wash withal; and thou shalt place it between the Ohel Mo’ed and the Mizbe’ach, and thou shalt put mayim therein.
19 For Aharon and his banim shall wash their hands and their feet thereat;
20 When they go into the Ohel Mo’ed, they shall wash with mayim, that they die not; or when they come near to the Mizbe’ach to minister, to present offering made by eish unto Hashem;
21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not; and it shall be a chok olam to them, even to him and to his zera throughout their dorot.
22 Moreover Hashem spoke unto Moshe, saying,
23 Take thou also unto thee choice spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekel-weights, and of fragrant cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty, and of fragrant cane spice two hundred and fifty,
24 And of cassia five hundred shekel-weights, after the shekel of HaKodesh, and of shemen zayit (oil olive) a hin:
25 And thou shalt make it a shemen mishchah kodesh, an ointment of blended compound, the art of the perfumer; it shall be a shemen mishchah kodesh.
26 And thou shalt anoint the Ohel Mo’ed therewith, and the Aron HaEdut,
27 And the Shulchan and all its utensils, the Menorah and its utensils, and the Mizbe’ach HaKetoret,
28 And the Mizbe’ach HaOlah with all its utensils, and the Kiyor and its Stand.
29 And thou shalt set them apart as kodesh, that they may be kodesh kodashim; whatsoever toucheth them shall be kodesh.
30 And thou shalt anoint Aharon and his banim, and set them apart as kodesh, that they may minister unto Me in the kohen’s office.
31 And thou shalt speak unto the Bnei Yisroel, saying, This shall be a shemen mishchat kodesh unto Me throughout your dorot.
32 Upon the basar adam shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the formulation of it; it is kodesh, and it shall be kodesh unto you.
33 Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a zar, shall even be cut off from his people.
34 And Hashem said unto Moshe, Take unto thee spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these spices with pure frankincense; of each shall there be an equal weight;
35 And thou shalt make it a compound of spice, the art of a perfumer, mixed thoroughly together, tahor and kodesh;
36 And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and place it in front of HaEdut in the Ohel Mo’ed, where I will set a meeting with thee; it shall be unto you kodesh kodashim.
37 And as for the ketoret which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the formulation thereof; it shall be unto thee kodesh for Hashem.
38 Whosoever shall make its like, to smell it, shall even be cut off from his people.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International