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Exodus 30
Evangelical Heritage Version

The Altar for Incense

30 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[a] 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[b] the men of Israel to register them, each man shall give to the Lord a redemption price[c] 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),[d] 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[e] 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[f] 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,[g] 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.”

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 30:3 It is uncertain if this is a rim, trim, a frame, or edging.
  2. Exodus 30:12 Literally when you lift up the head. A more literal translation would be when you carry out a head count. This census was a registration for military service. The danger of death in battle is why there was the ransom or redemption price for each man’s life.
  3. Exodus 30:12 Or ransom or atonement
  4. Exodus 30:13 A shekel is a unit of weight (about two fifths of an ounce), but it is also the standard monetary unit. When shekel refers to a monetary unit, this translation retains the term shekel. It appears that the temple shekel was larger than the regular shekel, but we do not know how much a gerah weighed.
  5. Exodus 30:23 That is, five hundred shekels
  6. Exodus 30:24 One hin
  7. Exodus 30:34 The identification of these fragrances is unknown, so the Hebrew names are retained.
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Exodus 30
New International Version

The Altar of Incense(A)

30 “Make an altar(B) of acacia wood for burning incense.(C) 2 It is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high[a]—its horns(D) of one piece with it. 3 Overlay the top and all the sides and the horns with pure gold, and make a gold molding around it.(E) 4 Make two gold rings(F) for the altar below the molding—two on each of the opposite sides—to hold the poles used to carry it. 5 Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold.(G) 6 Put the altar in front of the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law—before the atonement cover(H) that is over the tablets of the covenant law—where I will meet with you.

7 “Aaron must burn fragrant incense(I) on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. 8 He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight so incense will burn regularly before the Lord for the generations to come.(J) 9 Do not offer on this altar any other incense(K) or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour a drink offering on it. 10 Once a year(L) Aaron shall make atonement(M) on its horns. This annual atonement must be made with the blood of the atoning sin offering[b](N) for the generations to come.(O) It is most holy to the Lord.”

Atonement Money

11 Then the Lord said to Moses, 12 “When you take a census(P) of the Israelites to count them, each one must pay the Lord a ransom(Q) for his life at the time he is counted. Then no plague(R) will come on them when you number them. 13 Each one who crosses over to those already counted is to give a half shekel,[c] according to the sanctuary shekel,(S) which weighs twenty gerahs. This half shekel is an offering to the Lord. 14 All who cross over, those twenty years old or more,(T) are to give an offering to the Lord. 15 The rich are not to give more than a half shekel and the poor are not to give less(U) when you make the offering to the Lord to atone for your lives. 16 Receive the atonement(V) money from the Israelites and use it for the service of the tent of meeting.(W) It will be a memorial(X) for the Israelites before the Lord, making atonement for your lives.”

Basin for Washing

17 Then the Lord said to Moses, 18 “Make a bronze basin,(Y) with its bronze stand, for washing. Place it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. 19 Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and feet(Z) with water(AA) from it. 20 Whenever they enter the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water so that they will not die.(AB) Also, when they approach the altar to minister by presenting a food offering to the Lord, 21 they shall wash their hands and feet so that they will not die. This is to be a lasting ordinance(AC) for Aaron and his descendants for the generations to come.”(AD)

Anointing Oil

22 Then the Lord said to Moses, 23 “Take the following fine spices:(AE) 500 shekels[d] of liquid myrrh,(AF) half as much (that is, 250 shekels) of fragrant cinnamon,(AG) 250 shekels[e] of fragrant calamus,(AH) 24 500 shekels(AI) of cassia(AJ)—all according to the sanctuary shekel—and a hin[f] of olive oil. 25 Make these into a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer.(AK) It will be the sacred anointing oil.(AL) 26 Then use it to anoint(AM) the tent of meeting, the ark of the covenant law, 27 the table and all its articles, the lampstand and its accessories, the altar of incense, 28 the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin with its stand. 29 You shall consecrate them(AN) so they will be most holy, and whatever touches them will be holy.(AO)

30 “Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate(AP) them so they may serve me as priests.(AQ) 31 Say to the Israelites, ‘This is to be my sacred anointing oil(AR) for the generations to come.(AS) 32 Do not pour it on anyone else’s body and do not make any other oil using the same formula. It is sacred, and you are to consider it sacred.(AT) 33 Whoever makes perfume like it and puts it on anyone other than a priest must be cut off(AU) from their people.’”

Incense

34 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices(AV)—gum resin, onycha and galbanum—and pure frankincense, all in equal amounts, 35 and make a fragrant blend of incense,(AW) the work of a perfumer.(AX) It is to be salted and pure and sacred. 36 Grind some of it to powder and place it in front of the ark of the covenant law in the tent of meeting, where I will meet(AY) with you. It shall be most holy(AZ) to you. 37 Do not make any incense with this formula for yourselves; consider it holy(BA) to the Lord. 38 Whoever makes incense like it to enjoy its fragrance must be cut off(BB) from their people.”

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 30:2 That is, about 1 1/2 feet long and wide and 3 feet high or about 45 centimeters long and wide and 90 centimeters high
  2. Exodus 30:10 Or purification offering
  3. Exodus 30:13 That is, about 1/5 ounce or about 5.8 grams; also in verse 15
  4. Exodus 30:23 That is, about 12 1/2 pounds or about 5.8 kilograms; also in verse 24
  5. Exodus 30:23 That is, about 6 1/4 pounds or about 2.9 kilograms
  6. Exodus 30:24 That is, probably about 1 gallon or about 3.8 liters
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Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

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