| Berean Study Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1“You are also to make an altar of acacia wood for the burning of incense. | 1“Then make another altar of acacia wood for burning incense. |
| 2It is to be square, a cubit long, a cubit wide, and two cubits high. Its horns must be of one piece. | 2Make it 18 inches square and 36 inches high, with horns at the corners carved from the same piece of wood as the altar itself. |
| 3Overlay with pure gold the top and all the sides and horns, and make a molding of gold around it. | 3Overlay the top, sides, and horns of the altar with pure gold, and run a gold molding around the entire altar. |
| 4And make two gold rings below the molding on opposite sides to hold the poles used to carry it. | 4Make two gold rings, and attach them on opposite sides of the altar below the gold molding to hold the carrying poles. |
| 5Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. | 5Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. |
| 6Place 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. | 6Place the incense altar just outside the inner curtain that shields the Ark of the Covenant, in front of the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—that covers the tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant. I will meet with you there. |
| 7And Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he tends the lamps. | 7“Every morning when Aaron maintains the lamps, he must burn fragrant incense on the altar. |
| 8When Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he must burn the incense perpetually before the LORD for the generations to come. | 8And each evening when he lights the lamps, he must again burn incense in the LORD’s presence. This must be done from generation to generation. |
| 9On 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. | 9Do not offer any unholy incense on this altar, or any burnt offerings, grain offerings, or liquid offerings. |
| 10Once 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.” | 10“Once a year Aaron must purify the altar by smearing its horns with blood from the offering made to purify the people from their sin. This will be a regular, annual event from generation to generation, for this is the LORD’s most holy altar.” Money for the Tabernacle |
| 11Then the LORD said to Moses, | 11Then the LORD said to Moses, |
| 12“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. | 12“Whenever you take a census of the people of Israel, each man who is counted must pay a ransom for himself to the LORD. Then no plague will strike the people as you count them. |
| 13Everyone 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. | 13Each person who is counted must give a small piece of silver as a sacred offering to the LORD. (This payment is half a shekel, based on the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs.) |
| 14Everyone twenty years of age or older who crosses over must give this offering to the LORD. | 14All who have reached their twentieth birthday must give this sacred offering to the LORD. |
| 15In 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. | 15When this offering is given to the LORD to purify your lives, making you right with him, the rich must not give more than the specified amount, and the poor must not give less. |
| 16Take 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.” | 16Receive this ransom money from the Israelites, and use it for the care of the Tabernacle. It will bring the Israelites to the LORD’s attention, and it will purify your lives.” Plans for the Washbasin |
| 17And the LORD said to Moses, | 17Then the LORD said to Moses, |
| 18“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, | 18“Make a bronze washbasin with a bronze stand. Place it between the Tabernacle and the altar, and fill it with water. |
| 19with which Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and feet. | 19Aaron and his sons will wash their hands and feet there. |
| 20Whenever they enter the Tent of Meeting or approach the altar to minister by presenting an offering made by fire to the LORD, they must wash with water so that they will not die. | 20They must wash with water whenever they go into the Tabernacle to appear before the LORD and when they approach the altar to burn up their special gifts to the LORD—or they will die! |
| 21Thus 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.” | 21They must always wash their hands and feet, or they will die. This is a permanent law for Aaron and his descendants, to be observed from generation to generation.” The Anointing Oil |
| 22Then the LORD said to Moses, | 22Then the LORD said to Moses, |
| 23“Take the finest spices: 500 shekels of liquid myrrh, half that amount (250 shekels) of fragrant cinnamon, 250 shekels of fragrant cane, | 23“Collect choice spices—12 1/2 pounds of pure myrrh, 6 1/4 pounds of fragrant cinnamon, 6 1/4 pounds of fragrant calamus, |
| 24500 shekels of cassia—all according to the sanctuary shekel—and a hin of olive oil. | 24and 12 1/2 pounds of cassia —as measured by the weight of the sanctuary shekel. Also get one gallon of olive oil. |
| 25Prepare from these a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer; it will be a sacred anointing oil. | 25Like a skilled incense maker, blend these ingredients to make a holy anointing oil. |
| 26Use this oil to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the ark of the Testimony, | 26Use this sacred oil to anoint the Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, |
| 27the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, the altar of incense, | 27the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and all its accessories, the incense altar, |
| 28the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin with its stand. | 28the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the washbasin with its stand. |
| 29You are to consecrate them so that they will be most holy. Whatever touches them shall be holy. | 29Consecrate them to make them absolutely holy. After this, whatever touches them will also become holy. |
| 30Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them to serve Me as priests. | 30“Anoint Aaron and his sons also, consecrating them to serve me as priests. |
| 31And you are to tell the Israelites, ‘This will be My sacred anointing oil for the generations to come. | 31And say to the people of Israel, ‘This holy anointing oil is reserved for me from generation to generation. |
| 32It 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. | 32It must never be used to anoint anyone else, and you must never make any blend like it for yourselves. It is holy, and you must treat it as holy. |
| 33Anyone who mixes perfume like it or puts it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’ ” | 33Anyone who makes a blend like it or anoints someone other than a priest will be cut off from the community.’” The Incense |
| 34The LORD also said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices—gum resin, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense—in equal measures, | 34Then the LORD said to Moses, “Gather fragrant spices—resin droplets, mollusk shell, and galbanum—and mix these fragrant spices with pure frankincense, weighed out in equal amounts. |
| 35and make a fragrant blend of incense, the work of a perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy. | 35Using the usual techniques of the incense maker, blend the spices together and sprinkle them with salt to produce a pure and holy incense. |
| 36Grind 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. | 36Grind some of the mixture into a very fine powder and put it in front of the Ark of the Covenant, where I will meet with you in the Tabernacle. You must treat this incense as most holy. |
| 37You are never to use this formula to make incense for yourselves; you shall regard it as holy to the LORD. | 37Never use this formula to make this incense for yourselves. It is reserved for the LORD, and you must treat it as holy. |
| 38Anyone who makes something like it to enjoy its fragrance shall be cut off from his people.” | 38Anyone who makes incense like this for personal use will be cut off from the community.” |
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