Exodus 30
World English Bible
30 “You shall make an altar to burn incense on. You shall make it of acacia wood. 2 Its length shall be a cubit,[a] and its width a cubit. It shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits. Its horns shall be of one piece with it. 3 You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top, its sides around it, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding around it. 4 You shall make two golden rings for it under its molding; on its two ribs, on its two sides you shall make them; and they shall be for places for poles with which to bear it. 5 You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. 6 You shall put it before the veil that is by the ark of the covenant, before the mercy seat that is over the covenant, where I will meet with you. 7 Aaron shall burn incense of sweet spices on it every morning. When he tends the lamps, he shall burn it. 8 When Aaron lights the lamps at evening, he shall burn it, a perpetual incense before Yahweh throughout your generations. 9 You shall offer no strange incense on it, nor burnt offering, nor meal offering; and you shall pour no drink offering on it. 10 Aaron shall make atonement on its horns once in the year; with the blood of the sin offering of atonement once in the year he shall make atonement for it throughout your generations. It is most holy to Yahweh.”
11 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “When you take a census of the children of Israel, according to those who are counted among them, then each man shall give a ransom for his soul to Yahweh when you count them, that there be no plague among them when you count them. 13 They shall give this, everyone who passes over to those who are counted, half a shekel according to the shekel[b] of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs[c]); half a shekel for an offering to Yahweh. 14 Everyone who passes over to those who are counted, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the offering to Yahweh. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel,[d] when they give the offering of Yahweh, to make atonement for your souls. 16 You shall take the atonement money from the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the Tent of Meeting; that it may be a memorial for the children of Israel before Yahweh, to make atonement for your souls.”
17 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 18 “You shall also make a basin of bronze, and its base of bronze, in which to wash. You shall put it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it. 19 Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet in it. 20 When they go into the Tent of Meeting, they shall wash with water, that they not die; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to Yahweh. 21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they not die. This shall be a statute forever to them, even to him and to his descendants throughout their generations.”
22 Moreover Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Also take fine spices: of liquid myrrh, five hundred shekels;[e] and of fragrant cinnamon half as much, even two hundred and fifty; and of fragrant cane, two hundred and fifty; 24 and of cassia five hundred, according to the shekel of the sanctuary; and a hin[f] of olive oil. 25 You shall make it into a holy anointing oil, a perfume compounded after the art of the perfumer: it shall be a holy anointing oil. 26 You shall use it to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the ark of the covenant, 27 the table and all its articles, the lamp stand and its accessories, the altar of incense, 28 the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin with its base. 29 You shall sanctify them, that they may be most holy. Whatever touches them shall be holy. 30 You shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and sanctify them, that they may minister to me in the priest’s office. 31 You shall speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘This shall be a holy anointing oil to me throughout your generations. 32 It shall not be poured on man’s flesh, and do not make any like it, according to its composition. It is holy. It shall be holy to you. 33 Whoever compounds any like it, or whoever puts any of it on a stranger, he shall be cut off from his people.’”
34 Yahweh said to Moses, “Take to yourself sweet spices, gum resin, onycha, and galbanum: sweet spices with pure frankincense. There shall be an equal weight of each. 35 You shall make incense of it, a perfume after the art of the perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy. 36 You shall beat some of it very small, and put some of it before the covenant in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you. It shall be to you most holy. 37 You shall not make this incense, according to its composition, for yourselves: it shall be to you holy for Yahweh. 38 Whoever shall make any like that, to smell of it, he shall be cut off from his people.”
Footnotes
- 30:2 A cubit is the length from the tip of the middle finger to the elbow on a man’s arm, or about 18 inches or 46 centimeters.
- 30:13 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces.
- 30:13 a gerah is about 0.5 grams or about 7.7 grains
- 30:15 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces.
- 30:23 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces, so 500 shekels is about 5 kilograms or about 11 pounds.
- 30:24 A hin is about 6.5 liters or 1.7 gallons.
Exodus 30
Common English Bible
Instructions for the incense altar
30 Make an acacia-wood altar for burning incense. 2 The altar should be square, eighteen inches long and eighteen inches wide. It should be three feet high. Its horns should be permanently attached. 3 Cover the altar with pure gold, including its top, all its sides, and its horns. You should also make a gold molding all around it. 4 Make two gold rings and attach them under the molding on two opposite sides of the altar. They will house the poles used to carry the altar. 5 Make acacia-wood poles and cover them with gold. 6 Place the incense altar in front of the veil that hangs before the chest containing the covenant, in front of the cover that is on top of the covenant document where I will meet with you. 7 Aaron will burn sweet-smelling incense on the incense altar every morning when he takes care of the lamps. 8 And again when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he will burn incense. It should be a regular incense offering in the Lord’s presence in every generation. 9 Don’t offer the wrong incense on the altar or an entirely burned offering or a grain offering. Don’t pour a drink offering on it. 10 Once a year Aaron should perform a ritual of reconciliation on its horns with the blood of the purification offering for reconciliation. Once a year in every generation he should perform a ritual of reconciliation at the altar. It is most holy to the Lord.
Census and compensation
11 The Lord spoke to Moses: 12 When you take a census of the Israelites to count them, each of them should pay compensation for their life to the Lord when they are counted. Then no plague will descend on them when they are counted. 13 Every one who is counted should pay a half shekel according to the official shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs). The half shekel is a gift offering to the Lord. 14 Every one who is counted, from 20 years old and above, should present a gift offering to the Lord. 15 When you bring this gift offering to the Lord to pay compensation for your lives, the rich shouldn’t give more and the poor shouldn’t give less than the half shekel. 16 Take the compensation money from the Israelites and use it to support the service of the meeting tent. It will serve for the Israelites as a reminder in the Lord’s presence of the compensation paid for your lives.
Instructions for the washbasin
17 The Lord spoke to Moses: 18 Make a copper basin for washing along with its copper stand. Put it between the meeting tent and the altar, and put water in it. 19 Aaron and his sons will use it to wash their hands and their feet. 20 When they go into the meeting tent or approach the altar to minister and to offer a food gift to the Lord, they must wash with water so that they don’t die. 21 They must wash their hands and their feet so that they don’t die. This will be a permanent regulation for them, for Aaron and his descendants in every generation.
Instructions for oil and incense
22 The Lord spoke to Moses: 23 Now take for yourself high-quality spices: five hundred weight of solid myrrh; half as much of sweet-smelling cinnamon, that is, two hundred fifty; two hundred fifty weight of sweet-smelling cane; 24 five hundred of cassia—measured by the sanctuary shekel—and a hin[a] of olive oil. 25 Prepare a holy anointing oil, blending them like a skilled perfume maker to produce the holy anointing oil. 26 Use it to anoint the meeting tent, the chest containing the covenant, 27 the table and all its equipment, the lampstand and its equipment, the incense altar, 28 the altar for entirely burned offerings and all its equipment, and the washbasin with its stand. 29 Make them holy so that they may be perfectly holy. Whatever touches them will become holy. 30 Then anoint Aaron and his sons and make them holy to serve me as priests. 31 Say to the Israelites: This will be my holy anointing oil in every generation. 32 Don’t allow anyone else to use this oil. Don’t make another oil like it by using the same formula. This oil is holy, and you should regard it as holy. 33 Whoever blends an oil like it or whoever uses the oil on someone else will be cut off from the people.
34 The Lord said to Moses: Take an equal amount of each of these spices: gum resin, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense. 35 Like a skilled perfume maker, carefully blend them together and make incense, seasoned with salt, pure and holy. 36 Beat some of it into a fine powder and put part of it in front of the covenant document in the meeting tent where I will meet with you. You should regard it as perfectly holy. 37 When you make incense according to this formula, you shouldn’t make any of it for your own use. You should regard it as holy to the Lord. 38 Whoever makes incense with this same formula to enjoy its fragrance will be cut off from the people.
Footnotes
- Exodus 30:24 One hin is approximately one gallon.
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