Exodus 30 – 31

The Altar for Incense

Exodus 30

¹ You shall make an altar on which to burn incense. Make it of acacia wood. ² It is to be eighteen inches long and eighteen inches wide. It is to be square, and three feet high. Its horns are to be one piece with it. ³ Overlay it with pure gold—its top, all its sides, and its horns. Make a gold border ^[1] around it. ⁴ Make two gold rings to place under its border. Make them for each of its two opposite sides. They will serve as holders for poles with which to carry it. ⁵ Make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold.

⁶ Put the altar in front of the veil that hides the Ark of the Testimony, in front of the atonement seat that is above the Testimony, where I will meet with you. ⁷ Aaron shall burn incense made of fragrant spices on it every morning. When he tends the lamps, he shall burn the incense. ⁸ When Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn it as the regular incense before the Lord throughout your generations. ⁹ You shall offer no other incense on it, no burnt offering, and no grain offering, and you shall pour no drink offering on it. ¹⁰ Aaron shall make atonement on its horns once a year. With the blood of the sin offering for atonement, once a year he shall make atonement for it throughout your generations. It is most holy to the Lord.

The Redemption Price

¹¹ The Lord spoke to Moses. He said, ¹² “When you count ^[2] the men of Israel to register them, each man shall give to the Lord a redemption price ^[3] for his life as you register him, so that there is no plague among them as you register them. ¹³ Each one shall give this redemption as he passes over to the group which has already been registered—half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), ^[4] half a shekel for an offering to the Lord. ¹⁴ Everyone who passes over to the group that has already been registered, those twenty years old and older, shall give the special elevated offering to the Lord. ¹⁵ The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than the half shekel when you give the elevated offering for the Lord to redeem your lives. ¹⁶ You shall take the redemption money from the people of Israel, and you shall designate it for the work of the Tent of Meeting so that it may be a memorial for the people of Israel before the Lord, to redeem your lives.”

The Bronze Basin

¹⁷ The Lord spoke to Moses. He said, ¹⁸ “You shall also make a large bronze basin in which to wash. Its pedestal shall also be bronze. Put it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and put water in it. ¹⁹ Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet with water from it. ²⁰ When they go into the Tent of Meeting, they must wash with water so that they will not die. They shall wash whenever they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to the Lord. ²¹ They shall wash their hands and their feet so that they do not die. This shall be a permanent regulation for them, for Aaron and for his descendants throughout their generations.”

Spices and Incense

²² The Lord spoke to Moses again. He said, ²³ “Take fine spices: twelve and a half pounds ^[5] of liquid myrrh, half as much (six and a quarter pounds) of fragrant cinnamon, six and a quarter pounds of fragrant cane, ²⁴ twelve and a half pounds of cassia (weighed by the shekel of the sanctuary), and one gallon ^[6] of olive oil. ²⁵ Make it into a holy anointing oil, a perfume mixed with the skill of a perfume maker. It will be a holy anointing oil. ²⁶ Use it to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the Ark of the Testimony, ²⁷ the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, the altar for incense, ²⁸ the altar for burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin with its pedestal. ²⁹ You shall consecrate them so that they may be most holy. Whatever touches them will be holy. ³⁰ You shall anoint Aaron and his sons and set them apart, so that they may minister to me in the priest’s office. ³¹ Speak to the people of Israel. Tell them, ‘This shall be a holy anointing oil for me throughout your generations. ³² Do not pour it on the flesh of anyone who is not a priest. Do not make any other perfume like it with the same ingredients. It is holy. It shall be holy to you. ³³ Whoever mixes any perfume like it or whoever puts any of it on anyone who is not a priest shall be cut off from his people.’”

³⁴ The Lord said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices, gum resin, shechelet, and helbanum, ^[7] fragrant spices with pure frankincense. Use an equal weight of each ingredient, ³⁵ and make incense from it, a blend made with the skill of a perfume maker, seasoned with salt, pure and holy. ³⁶ Grind some of it very fine, and put some of it in front of the Testimony in the Tent of Meeting where I will make myself known to you. It shall be most holy to you. ³⁷ When you make incense for yourselves, you shall not make any with this recipe. You shall regard it as holy to the Lord. ³⁸ Whoever makes any fragrance like that for himself shall be cut off from his people.”

The Craftsmen

Exodus 31

¹ The Lord spoke to Moses: ² “Look, here is Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, from the tribe of Judah. I have called him by name. ³ I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, and with skill in all kinds of crafts. ⁴ He has the ability to create designs. He works with gold, silver, and bronze. ⁵ He is able to cut and engrave precious stones and mount them. He can also carve wood. He works skillfully in all kinds of crafts.

⁶ “Not only that, but I have also appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamak, from the tribe of Dan, to work with him. I have put wisdom into the heart of all the skilled craftsmen, so that they may make everything that I have commanded you: ⁷ the Tent of Meeting, the Ark of the Testimony, the atonement seat that is on it, all the furnishings for the tent, ⁸ the table and its vessels and accessories, the pure gold lampstand with all its utensils, the altar for incense, ⁹ the altar for burnt offerings with all its utensils, the basin and its pedestal, ¹⁰ the finely woven garments (the holy garments for Aaron the priest), the garments for his sons to minister in the priest’s office, ¹¹ the anointing oil, and the incense made of fragrant spices for the Holy Place. The skilled craftsmen shall do everything just as I commanded.”

The Sabbath

¹² The Lord spoke to Moses. He said, ¹³ “Speak to the people of Israel. Tell them, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths diligently, because the Sabbath is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, so that you may know that I am the Lord, who sets you apart as holy. ¹⁴ So you shall observe the Sabbath, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it must certainly be put to death, for if anyone does any work on the Sabbath, his life shall be cut off from among his people. ¹⁵ On six days work may be done, but the seventh day is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must certainly be put to death. ¹⁶ Therefore the people of Israel shall observe the Sabbath by keeping the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. ¹⁷ It is a permanent sign between me and the people of Israel, for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’”

¹⁸ When the Lord had finished speaking with Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the Testimony, stone tablets, written with God’s finger.