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Exodus 30
Legacy Standard Bible

The Altar of Incense

30 “Moreover, you shall make (A)an altar as a place for burning incense; you shall make it of acacia wood. 2 Its length shall be a [a]cubit, and its width a cubit; it shall be square. And its height shall be two cubits; its horns shall be [b]of the same piece. 3 You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its [c]sides all around, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding all around for it. 4 You shall make two gold rings for it under its molding; you shall make them on its two side walls—on [d]opposite sides—and [e]they shall be holders for poles with which to carry it. 5 You shall make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. 6 You shall put [f]this altar in front of the veil that is [g]near the ark of the testimony, in front of the [h](B)mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with you. 7 Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it; he shall burn it every morning when he trims the lamps. 8 When Aaron [i]trims the lamps [j]at twilight, he shall burn incense. There shall be continual incense before Yahweh throughout your generations. 9 You shall not offer any strange incense on [k]this altar or burnt offering or grain offering; and you shall not pour out a drink offering on it. 10 Aaron shall (C)make atonement on its horns once a year; he shall make atonement on it with the blood of the sin offering of atonement once a year throughout your generations. It is most holy to Yahweh.”

The Census and the Atonement Price

11 Yahweh also spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “When you take (D)a [l]census of the sons of Israel [m]to number them, then each one of them shall give (E)a price of atonement for [n]himself to Yahweh when you [o]number them, so that there will be no plague among them when you [p]number them. 13 This is what everyone who [q]is numbered shall give: half a [r]shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary ((F)the shekel is twenty [s]gerahs), half a shekel as a [t]contribution to Yahweh. 14 Everyone who [u]is numbered, from twenty years old and over, shall give the [v]contribution to Yahweh. 15 The rich shall not pay more and the poor shall not pay less than the half shekel when you give the [w]contribution to Yahweh to make atonement for your souls. 16 And you shall take the atonement money from the sons of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may be a remembrance for the sons of Israel before Yahweh, to make atonement for your souls.”

The Laver for the Priestly Washing

17 And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 18 “You shall also make (G)a laver of [x]bronze, with its stand of bronze, for washing; and you shall (H)put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it. 19 And Aaron and his sons shall (I)wash their hands and their feet from it; 20 when they come into the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water, so that they will not die; or when they approach the altar to minister, by offering up in smoke a fire sacrifice to Yahweh. 21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they will not die; and (J)it shall be a perpetual statute for them, for [y]Aaron and his seed throughout their generations.”

The Holy Anointing Oil

22 Moreover, Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “But as for you, take for yourself the finest of spices: of flowing myrrh 500 shekels, and of fragrant cinnamon half as much, 250, and of fragrant cane 250, 24 and of cassia 500, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and of olive oil a [z]hin. 25 And you shall make [aa]of these a holy anointing oil, a perfume mixture, the work of a perfumer; it shall be (K)a holy anointing oil. 26 And with it (L)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 and all its utensils, and the laver and its stand. 29 You shall also set them apart as holy, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them shall be holy. 30 (M)And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and you shall set them apart as holy, that they may minister as priests to Me. 31 And you shall speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations. 32 It shall not be poured on [ab]anyone’s body, nor shall you make any like it in [ac]the same specifications; (N)it is holy, and it shall be holy to you. 33 (O)Whoever shall mix any like it or whoever puts any of it on a [ad]layman [ae](P)shall be cut off from his people.’”

The Incense

34 Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Take for yourself fragrances, stacte and onycha and galbanum, fragrances with pure frankincense; there shall be an equal part of each. 35 With it you shall make incense, a perfume, the work of a perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. 36 You shall beat some of it very fine, and you shall put part of it before the testimony in the tent of meeting (Q)where I will meet with you; it shall be most holy to you. 37 The incense which you shall make, (R)you shall not make in [af]the same specifications for yourselves; it shall be holy to you for Yahweh. 38 (S)Whoever shall make any like it, to [ag]use as perfume, [ah]shall be cut off from his people.”

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 30:2 A cubit was approx. 18 in. or 45 cm
  2. Exodus 30:2 Lit from itself
  3. Exodus 30:3 Lit walls
  4. Exodus 30:4 Lit its two
  5. Exodus 30:4 Lit it
  6. Exodus 30:6 Lit it
  7. Exodus 30:6 Or over; lit upon
  8. Exodus 30:6 Or propitiatory seat, place of atonement
  9. Exodus 30:8 Lit causes to ascend
  10. Exodus 30:8 Lit between the two evenings
  11. Exodus 30:9 Lit it
  12. Exodus 30:12 Lit sum
  13. Exodus 30:12 Lit for their being mustered
  14. Exodus 30:12 Lit his soul
  15. Exodus 30:12 Lit muster
  16. Exodus 30:12 Lit muster
  17. Exodus 30:13 Lit passes over to those who are mustered
  18. Exodus 30:13 A shekel was approx. 0.4 oz. or 11 gm
  19. Exodus 30:13 Approx. 0.5 oz. or 14 gm, a gerah was approx. 0.025 oz. or 0.7 gm
  20. Exodus 30:13 Lit heave offering
  21. Exodus 30:14 See v 13, note 1
  22. Exodus 30:14 Lit heave offering of Yahweh
  23. Exodus 30:15 Lit heave offering of Yahweh
  24. Exodus 30:18 Or copper
  25. Exodus 30:21 Lit him
  26. Exodus 30:24 A hin was approx. 1 gal. or 3.8 l
  27. Exodus 30:25 Lit it
  28. Exodus 30:32 Lit the flesh of man
  29. Exodus 30:32 Lit its proportion
  30. Exodus 30:33 Lit stranger
  31. Exodus 30:33 Lit even he shall
  32. Exodus 30:37 Lit its proportion
  33. Exodus 30:38 Lit smell of it
  34. Exodus 30:38 Lit even he shall
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Exodus 30
New King James Version

The Altar of Incense(A)

30 “You shall make (B)an altar to burn incense on; you shall make it of acacia wood. 2 A cubit shall be its length and a cubit its width—it shall be square—and two cubits shall be its height. Its horns shall be of one piece with it. 3 And you shall overlay its top, its sides all around, and its horns with pure gold; and you shall make for it a [a]molding of gold all around. 4 Two gold rings you shall make for it, under the molding on both its sides. You shall place them on its two sides, and they will be holders for the poles with which to bear it. 5 You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. 6 And you shall put it before the (C)veil that is before the ark of the Testimony, before the (D)mercy seat that is over the Testimony, where I will meet with you.

7 “Aaron shall burn on it (E)sweet incense every morning; when (F)he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. 8 And when Aaron lights the lamps [b]at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations. 9 You shall not offer (G)strange incense on it, or a burnt offering, or a grain offering; nor shall you pour a drink offering on it. 10 And (H)Aaron shall make atonement upon its horns once a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonement; once a year he shall make atonement upon it throughout your generations. It is most holy to the Lord.”

The Ransom Money

11 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 12 (I)“When you take the census of the children of Israel for their number, then every man shall give (J)a[c] ransom for himself to the Lord, when you number them, that there may be no (K)plague among them when you number them. 13 (L)This is what everyone among those who are numbered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (M)(a shekel is twenty gerahs). (N)The half-shekel shall be an offering to the Lord. 14 Everyone included among those who are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an [d]offering to the Lord. 15 The (O)rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when you give an offering to the Lord, to make atonement for yourselves. 16 And you shall take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and (P)shall [e]appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of meeting, that it may be (Q)a memorial for the children of Israel before the Lord, to make atonement for yourselves.”

The Bronze Laver

17 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 18 (R)“You shall also make a [f]laver of bronze, with its base also of bronze, for washing. You shall (S)put it between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. And you shall put water in it, 19 for Aaron and his sons (T)shall wash their hands and their feet in water from it. 20 When they go into the tabernacle of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with water, lest they die. 21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, lest they die. And (U)it shall be a [g]statute forever to them—to him and his descendants throughout their generations.”

The Holy Anointing Oil(V)

22 Moreover the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23 “Also take for yourself (W)quality spices—five hundred shekels of liquid (X)myrrh, half as much sweet-smelling cinnamon (two hundred and fifty shekels), two hundred and fifty shekels of sweet-smelling (Y)cane, 24 five hundred shekels of (Z)cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and a (AA)hin of olive oil. 25 And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil, an ointment compounded according to the art of the perfumer. It shall be (AB)a holy anointing oil. 26 (AC)With it you shall anoint the tabernacle of meeting and the ark of the Testimony; 27 the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense; 28 the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base. 29 You shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy; (AD)whatever touches them must be holy. 30 (AE)And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister to Me as priests.

31 “And 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; nor shall you make any other like it, according to its composition. (AF)It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. 33 (AG)Whoever [h]compounds any like it, or whoever puts any of it on an outsider, (AH)shall be [i]cut off from his people.’ ”

The Incense(AI)

34 And the Lord said to Moses: (AJ)“Take sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, and pure frankincense with these sweet spices; there shall be equal amounts of each. 35 You shall make of these an incense, a compound (AK)according to the art of the perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. 36 And you shall beat some of it very fine, and put some of it before the Testimony in the tabernacle of meeting (AL)where I will meet with you. (AM)It shall be most holy to you. 37 But as for the incense which you shall make, (AN)you shall not make any for yourselves, according to its [j]composition. It shall be to you holy for the Lord. 38 (AO)Whoever makes any like it, to smell it, he shall be cut off from his people.”

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 30:3 border
  2. Exodus 30:8 Lit. between the two evenings
  3. Exodus 30:12 the price of a life
  4. Exodus 30:14 contribution
  5. Exodus 30:16 give
  6. Exodus 30:18 basin
  7. Exodus 30:21 requirement
  8. Exodus 30:33 mixes
  9. Exodus 30:33 Put to death
  10. Exodus 30:37 Lit. proportion
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Exodus 30
The Message

The Altar of Incense

30 1-5 “Make an Altar for burning incense. Construct it from acacia wood, one and one-half feet square and three feet high with its horns of one piece with it. Cover it with a veneer of pure gold, its top, sides, and horns, and make a gold molding around it with two rings of gold beneath the molding. Place the rings on the two opposing sides to serve as holders for poles by which it will be carried. Make the poles of acacia wood and cover them with a veneer of gold.

6-10 “Place the Altar in front of the curtain that hides the Chest of The Testimony, in front of the Atonement-Cover that is over The Testimony where I will meet you. Aaron will burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he polishes the lamps, and again in the evening as he prepares the lamps for lighting, so that there will always be incense burning before God, generation after generation. But don’t burn on this Altar any unholy incense or Whole-Burnt-Offering or Grain-Offering. And don’t pour out Drink-Offerings on it. Once a year Aaron is to purify the Altar horns. Using the blood of the Absolution-Offering of atonement, he is to make this atonement every year down through the generations. It is most holy to God.”

The Atonement-Tax

11-16 God spoke to Moses: “When you take a head count of the Israelites to keep track of them, all must pay an atonement-tax to God for their life at the time of being registered so that nothing bad will happen because of the registration. Everyone who gets counted is to give a half-shekel (using the standard Sanctuary shekel of a fifth of an ounce to the shekel)—a half-shekel offering to God. Everyone counted, age twenty and up, is to make the offering to God. The rich are not to pay more nor the poor less than the half-shekel offering to God, the atonement-tax for your lives. Take the atonement-tax money from the Israelites and put it to the maintenance of the Tent of Meeting. It will be a memorial fund for the Israelites in honor of God, making atonement for your lives.”

The Washbasin

17-21 God spoke to Moses: “Make a bronze Washbasin; make it with a bronze base. Place it between the Tent of Meeting and the Altar. Put water in it. Aaron and his sons will wash their hands and feet in it. When they enter the Tent of Meeting or approach the Altar to serve there or offer gift offerings to God, they are to wash so they will not die. They are to wash their hands and their feet so they will not die. This is the rule forever, for Aaron and his sons down through the generations.”

Holy Anointing Oil

22-25 God spoke to Moses: “Take the best spices: twelve and a half pounds of liquid myrrh; half that much, six and a quarter pounds, of fragrant cinnamon; six and a quarter pounds of fragrant cane; twelve and a half pounds of cassia—using the standard Sanctuary weight for all of them—and a gallon of olive oil. Make these into a holy anointing oil, a perfumer’s skillful blend.

26-29 “Use it to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the Chest of The Testimony, the Table and all its utensils, the Lampstand and its utensils, the Altar of Incense, the Altar of Whole-Burnt-Offerings and all its utensils, and the Washbasin and its base. Dedicate them so they’ll be soaked in holiness, so that anyone who so much as touches them will become holy.

30-33 “Then anoint Aaron and his sons. Consecrate them as priests to me. Tell the Israelites, ‘This will be my holy anointing oil throughout your generations.’ Don’t pour it on ordinary men. Don’t copy this mixture to use for yourselves. It’s holy; keep it holy. Whoever mixes up anything like it, or puts it on an ordinary person, will be exiled.”

Holy Incense

34-38 God spoke to Moses: “Take fragrant spices—gum resin, onycha, galbanum—and add pure frankincense. Mix the spices in equal proportions to make an aromatic incense, the art of a perfumer, salted and pure—holy. Now crush some of it into powder and place some of it before The Testimony in the Tent of Meeting where I will meet with you; it will be for you the holiest of holy places. When you make this incense, you are not to copy the mixture for your own use. It’s holy to God; keep it that way. Whoever copies it for personal use will be excommunicated.”

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