Exodus 30
1 'And thou hast made an altar [for] making perfume; [of] shittim wood thou dost make it;
“Make an altar for burning incense from acacia wood.
2 a cubit its length, and a cubit its breadth, (it is square), and two cubits its height; its horns [are] of the same.
It shall be square, measuring a cubit by a cubit, by two cubits high, with horns on its corners that are all one piece with the altar.
3 'And thou hast overlaid it with pure gold, its top, and its sides round about, and its horns; and thou hast made to it a crown of gold round about;
Cover its top, its side, and its horns with pure gold, and make a gold trim to go all around it.
4 and two rings of gold thou dost make to it under its crown; on its two ribs thou dost make [them], on its two sides, and they have become places for staves, to bear it with them.
Make two gold rings for the altar and attach them below the trim, two on both sides, to hold the poles to carry it.
5 'And thou hast made the staves of shittim wood, and hast overlaid them with gold;
Make the poles of acacia wood and cover them with gold.
6 and thou hast put it before the vail, which [is] by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy-seat which [is] over the testimony, whither I am met with thee.
Put the altar in front of the veil that hangs before the Ark of the Testimony and the atonement cover that is over the Testimony where I will meet with you.
7 'And Aaron hath made perfume on it, perfume of spices, morning by morning; in his making the lamps right he doth perfume it,
Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he takes care of the lamps.
8 and in Aaron's causing the lamps to go up between the evenings, he doth perfume it; a continual perfume before Jehovah to your generations.
When he lights the lamps in the evening he must burn incense again so that incense will always be burned in the Lord's presence for generations to come.
9 'Ye do not cause strange perfume to go up upon it, and burnt-offering, and present, and libation ye do not pour out on it;
Don't offer on this altar any unapproved incense or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour out a drink offering upon it.
10 and Aaron hath made atonement on its horns, once in a year, by the blood of the sin-offering of atonements; once in a year doth he make atonement for it, to your generations; it [is] most holy to Jehovah.'
Once a year Aaron must perform the atonement ritual by placing blood on the horns of the altar from the sin offering for atonement. This yearly atonement ritual must be carried out for generations to come. This is the Lord's holy altar.”
11 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, saying,
The Lord told Moses,
12 'When thou takest up the sum of the sons of Israel for their numbers, then they have given each an atonement [for] his soul to Jehovah in their being numbered, and there is no plague among them in their being numbered.
“When you take a census of the Israelites, each man must pay the Lord to buy back his life when he's counted. Then they won't suffer from the plague when they're counted.
13 'This they do give, every one passing over unto those numbered, half a shekel, by the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel [is] twenty gerahs); half a shekel [is] the heave-offering to Jehovah;
Each one who crosses over to those counted must give a half shekel, (using the sanctuary shekel standard, which weighs twenty gerahs). This half shekel is an offering to the Lord.
14 every one passing over unto those numbered, from a son of twenty years and upwards, doth give the heave-offering of Jehovah;
This offering to the Lord is required from everyone twenty years old and more.
15 the rich doth not multiply, and the poor doth not diminish from the half-shekel, to give the heave-offering of Jehovah, to make atonement for your souls.
When you give this offering to buy back your lives the rich are not to give more than a half shekel and the poor are not to give less.
16 'And thou hast taken the atonement-money from the sons of Israel, and hast given it for the service of the tent of meeting; and it hath been to the sons of Israel for a memorial before Jehovah, to make atonement for your souls.'
Take this money paid by the Israelites and use it for the expenses involved in the services of the Tent of Meeting. It will serve as a reminder for the Israelites to buy back your lives in the presence of the Lord.”
17 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, saying,
The Lord told Moses,
18 'And thou hast made a laver of brass (and its base of brass), for washing; and thou hast put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and hast put water there;
“Make a bronze basin with a bronze stand for washing. Place it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and put water in it.
19 and Aaron and his sons have washed at it their hands and their feet,
Aaron and his sons will use it to wash their hands and feet.
20 in their going in unto the tent of meeting they wash [with] water, and die not; or in their drawing nigh unto the altar to minister, to perfume a fire-offering to Jehovah,
Whenever they enter the Tent of Meeting, they are to wash with water so that they will not die. When they approach the altar to present burnt offerings to the Lord,
21 then they have washed their hands and their feet, and they die not, and it hath been to them a statute age-during, to him and to his seed to their generations.'
they must also wash so that they will not die. This requirement is to be observed by them and their descendants for all generations.”
22 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, saying,
The Lord told Moses,
23 'And thou, take to thyself principal spices, wild honey five hundred [shekels]; and spice-cinnamon, the half of that, two hundred and fifty; and spice-cane two hundred and fifty;
“Take the best quality spices: 500 shekels of liquid myrrh, 250 shekels of sweet-smelling cinnamon, 250 shekels of aromatic reed,
24 and cassia five hundred, by the shekel of the sanctuary, and olive oil a hin;
500 shekels of cassia, (weights using the sanctuary shekel standard), and a hin of olive oil.
25 and thou hast made it a holy anointing oil, a compound mixture, work of a compounder; it is a holy anointing oil.
Mix these together into holy anointing oil, an aromatic blend like the product of an expert perfumer. Use it as holy anointing oil.
26 'And thou hast anointed with it the tent of meeting, and the ark of the testimony,
Use it to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the Ark of the Testimony,
27 and the table and all its vessels, and the candlestick and its vessels, and the altar of perfume,
the table and all its equipment, the lampstand and its equipment, the altar of incense,
28 and the altar of burnt-offering and all its vessels, and the laver and its base;
the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin plus its stand.
29 and thou hast sanctified them, and they have been most holy; all that is coming against them is holy;
Dedicate them so that they will be especially holy. Whatever touches them will become holy.
30 and Aaron and his sons thou dost anoint, and hast sanctified them for being priests to Me.
Anoint Aaron and his sons too and dedicate them to serve as priests for me.
31 'And unto the sons of Israel thou dost speak, saying, A holy anointing oil is this to Me, to your generations;
Tell the Israelites, ‘This is to be my holy anointing oil for all generations to come.
32 on flesh of man it is not poured, and with its proper proportion ye make none like it; it [is] holy; it is holy to you;
Don't use it on ordinary people and don't make anything like it using the same formula. It is holy, and you must treat it as being holy.
33 a man who compoundeth [any] like it, or who putteth of it on a stranger — hath even been cut off from his people.'
Anyone who mixes anointing oil like it, or puts it on someone other than a priest, will be expelled from their people.’”
34 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Take to thee spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum, spices and pure frankincense; they are part for part;
The Lord told Moses, “Take equal amounts of these aromatic spices: balsam resin, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense.
35 and thou hast made it a perfume, a compound, work of a compounder, salted, pure, holy;
Add some salt and make pure and holy incense blended like the product of an expert perfumer.
36 and thou hast beaten [some] of it small, and hast put of it before the testimony, in the tent of meeting, whither I am met with thee; most holy it is to you.
Grind some of it into powder and place it in front of the Ark of the Testimony in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you. It shall be especially holy to you.
37 'As to the perfume which thou makest, with its proper proportion ye do not make to yourselves, holy it is to thee to Jehovah;
Don't make for yourselves any incense like it using the same formula. You are to consider this incense as holy to the Lord.
38 a man who maketh [any] like it — to be refreshed by it — hath even been cut off from his people.'
Anyone who makes incense like this for themselves to enjoy will be expelled from their people.”
