The Altar of Incense (Exodus 37:25–29)
1 AKJV And you shall make an altar to burn incense on: of shittim wood shall you make it. BSB BSB: “You are also to make an altar of acacia wood for the burning of incense.
2 AKJV A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. BSB BSB: It is to be square, a cubit long, a cubit wide, and two cubits high. Its horns must be of one piece.
3 AKJV And you shall overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and you shall make to it a crown of gold round about. BSB BSB: Overlay with pure gold the top and all the sides and horns, and make a molding of gold around it.
4 AKJV And two golden rings shall you make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, on the two sides of it shall you make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it with. BSB BSB: And make two gold rings below the molding on opposite sides to hold the poles used to carry it.
5 AKJV And you shall make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. BSB BSB: Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold.
6 AKJV And you shall put it before the veil that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with you. BSB BSB: Place the altar in front of the veil that is before the ark of the Testimony—before the mercy seat that is over the Testimony—where I will meet with you.
7 AKJV And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresses the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. BSB BSB: And Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he tends the lamps.
8 AKJV And when Aaron lights the lamps at even, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. BSB BSB: When Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he must burn the incense perpetually before the LORD for the generations to come.
9 AKJV You shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall you pour drink offering thereon. BSB BSB: On this altar you must not offer unauthorized incense or a burnt offering or grain offering; nor are you to pour a drink offering on it.
10 AKJV And Aaron shall make an atonement on the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement on it throughout your generations: it is most holy to the LORD. BSB BSB: Once a year Aaron shall make atonement on the horns of the altar. Throughout your generations he shall make atonement on it annually with the blood of the sin offering of atonement. The altar is most holy to the LORD.”
The Census Offering (2 Samuel 24:1–9; 1 Chronicles 21:1–6)
11 AKJV And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, BSB BSB: Then the LORD said to Moses,
12 AKJV When you take the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul to the LORD, when you number them; that there be no plague among them, when you number them. BSB BSB: “When you take a census of the Israelites to number them, each man must pay the LORD a ransom for his life when he is counted. Then no plague will come upon them when they are numbered.
13 AKJV This they shall give, every one that passes among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD. BSB BSB: Everyone who crosses over to those counted must pay a half shekel, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs. This half shekel is an offering to the LORD.
14 AKJV Every one that passes among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering to the LORD. BSB BSB: Everyone twenty years of age or older who crosses over must give this offering to the LORD.
15 AKJV The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering to the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls. BSB BSB: In making the offering to the LORD to atone for your lives, the rich shall not give more than a half shekel, nor shall the poor give less.
16 AKJV And you shall take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial to the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls. BSB BSB: Take the atonement money from the Israelites and use it for the service of the Tent of Meeting. It will serve as a memorial for the Israelites before the LORD to make atonement for your lives.”
The Bronze Basin (Exodus 38:8)
17 AKJV And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, BSB BSB: And the LORD said to Moses,
18 AKJV You shall also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash with: and you shall put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and you shall put water therein. BSB BSB: “You are to make a bronze basin with a bronze stand for washing. Set it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and put water in it,
19 AKJV For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat: BSB BSB: with which Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and feet.
20 AKJV When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire to the LORD: BSB BSB: Whenever they enter the Tent of Meeting or approach the altar to minister by presenting a food offering to the LORD, they must wash with water so that they will not die.
21 AKJV So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations. BSB BSB: Thus they are to wash their hands and feet so that they will not die; this shall be a permanent statute for Aaron and his descendants for the generations to come.”
The Anointing Oil 22 AKJV Moreover the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, BSB BSB: Then the LORD said to Moses,
23 AKJV Take you also to you principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels, BSB BSB: “Take the finest spices: 500 shekels of liquid myrrh, half that amount (250 shekels) of fragrant cinnamon, 250 shekels of fragrant cane,
24 AKJV And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin: BSB BSB: 500 shekels of cassia—all according to the sanctuary shekel—and a hin of olive oil.
25 AKJV And you shall make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the are of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil. BSB BSB: Prepare from these a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer; it will be a sacred anointing oil.
26 AKJV And you shall anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith, and the ark of the testimony, BSB BSB: Use this oil to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the ark of the Testimony,
27 AKJV And the table and all his vessels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar of incense, BSB BSB: the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, the altar of incense,
28 AKJV And the altar of burnt offering with all his vessels, and the laver and his foot. BSB BSB: the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin with its stand.
29 AKJV And you shall sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatever touches them shall be holy. BSB BSB: You are to consecrate them so that they will be most holy. Whatever touches them shall be holy.
30 AKJV And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister to me in the priest’s office. BSB BSB: Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them to serve Me as priests.
31 AKJV And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil to me throughout your generations. BSB BSB: And you are to tell the Israelites, ‘This will be My sacred anointing oil for the generations to come.
32 AKJV On man’s flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall you make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy to you. BSB BSB: It must not be used to anoint an ordinary man, and you must not make anything like it with the same formula. It is holy, and it must be holy to you.
33 AKJV Whoever compounds any like it, or whoever puts any of it on a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people. BSB BSB: Anyone who mixes perfume like it or puts it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’”
The Incense 34 AKJV And the LORD said to Moses, Take to you sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight: BSB BSB: The LORD also said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices—gum resin, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense—in equal measures,
35 AKJV And you shall make it a perfume, a confection after the are of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy: BSB BSB: and make a fragrant blend of incense, the work of a perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy.
36 AKJV And you shall beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with you: it shall be to you most holy. BSB BSB: Grind some of it into fine powder and place it in front of the Testimony in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you. It shall be most holy to you.
37 AKJV And as for the perfume which you shall make, you shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be to you holy for the LORD. BSB BSB: You are never to use this formula to make incense for yourselves; you shall regard it as holy to the LORD.
38 AKJV Whoever shall make like to that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people. BSB BSB: Anyone who makes something like it to enjoy its fragrance shall be cut off from his people.”