Exodus 30–31

The Altar for Burning Incense

30“Make an altar out of acacia wood, for burning incense. ²It is to be square, 45 centimetres long and 45 centimetres wide, and it is to be 90 centimetres high. Its projections at the four corners are to form one piece with it. ³Cover its top, all four sides, and its projections with pure gold, and put a gold border round it. ⁴Make two gold carrying rings for it and attach them below the border on two sides to hold the poles with which it is to be carried. ⁵Make these poles of acacia wood and cover them with gold. ⁶Put this altar outside the curtain which hangs in front of the Covenant Box. That is the place where I will meet you. ⁷Every morning when Aaron comes to get the lamps ready, he is to burn sweet-smelling incense on it. ⁸He must do the same when he lights the lamps in the evening. This offering of incense is to continue without interruption for all time to come. ⁹Do not offer on this altar any forbidden incense, any animal-offering, or any grain offering, and do not pour out any wine offering on it. ¹⁰Once a year Aaron is to perform the ritual for purifying the altar by putting on its four projections the blood of the animal sacrificed for sin. This is to be done every year for all time to come. This altar is to be completely holy, dedicated to me, the Lord.”

The Tax for the Tent of the ’s Presence

¹¹The Lord said to Moses, ¹²“When you take a census of the people of Israel, each man is to pay me a price for his life, so that no disaster will come on him while the census is being taken. ^13*Everyone included in the census must pay the required amount of money, weighed according to the official standard. Everyone must pay this as an offering to me. ¹⁴Everyone being counted in the census, that is, every man twenty years old or older, is to pay me this amount. ¹⁵The rich man is not to pay more, nor the poor man less, when they pay this amount for their lives. ¹⁶Collect this money from the people of Israel and spend it for the upkeep of the Tent of my presence. This tax will be the payment for their lives, and I will remember to protect them.”

The Bronze Basin

¹⁷The Lord said to Moses, ^18*“Make a bronze basin with a bronze base. Place it between the Tent and the altar, and put water in it. ¹⁹Aaron and his sons are to use the water to wash their hands and feet ²⁰before they go into the Tent or approach the altar to offer the food offering. Then they will not be killed. ²¹They must wash their hands and feet, so that they will not die. This is a rule which they and their descendants are to observe for ever.”

The Anointing Oil

^22*The Lord said to Moses, ^23*“Take the finest spices—6 kilogrammes of liquid myrrh, 3 kilogrammes of sweet-smelling cinnamon, 3 kilogrammes of sweet-smelling cane, ^24*and 6 kilogrammes of cassia (all weighed according to the official standard). Add 4 litres of olive oil, ^25*and make a sacred anointing oil, mixed like perfume. ^26*Use it to anoint the Tent of my presence, the Covenant Box, ^27*the table and all its equipment, the lamp-stand and its equipment, the altar for burning incense, ^28*the altar for burning offerings, together with all its equipment, and the washbasin with its base. ^29*Dedicate these things in this way, and they will be completely holy, and anyone or anything that touches them will be harmed by the power of their holiness.^{e 30*}Then anoint Aaron and his sons, and ordain them as priests in my service. ^31*Say to the people of Israel, ‘This holy anointing oil is to be used in my service for all time to come. ^32*It must not be poured on ordinary men, and you must not use the same formula to make any mixture like it. It is holy, and you must treat it as holy. ^33*Whoever makes any like it or uses any of it on anyone who is not a priest will no longer be considered one of my people.’ ”

The Incense

^34*The Lord said to Moses, “Take an equal part of each of the following sweet spices—stacte, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense. ^35*Use them to make incense, mixed like perfume. Add salt to keep it pure and holy. ^36*Beat part of it into a fine powder, take it into the Tent of my presence, and sprinkle it in front of the Covenant Box. Treat this incense as completely holy. ^37*Do not use the same formula to make any incense like it for yourselves. Treat it as a holy thing dedicated to me. ^38*If anyone makes any like it for use as perfume, he will no longer be considered one of my people.”

Craftsmen for the Tent of the ’s Presence

31The Lord said to Moses, ²“I have chosen Bezalel, the son of Uri and grandson of Hur, from the tribe of Judah, ³and I have filled him with my power.^f I have given him understanding, skill, and ability for every kind of artistic work- ⁴for planning skilful designs and working them in gold, silver, and bronze; ⁵for cutting jewels to be set; for carving wood; and for every other kind of artistic work. ⁶I have also selected Oholiab son of Ahisamach, from the tribe of Dan, to work with him. I have also given great ability to all the other skilled workers, so that they can make everything I have commanded to be made: ⁷the Tent of my presence, the Covenant Box and its lid, all the furnishings of the Tent, ⁸the table and its equipment, the lamp-stand of pure gold and all its equipment, the altar for burning incense, ⁹the altar for burnt offerings and all its equipment, the washbasin and its base, ¹⁰the magnificent priestly garments for Aaron and his sons to use when they serve as priests, ¹¹the anointing oil, and the sweet-smelling incense for the Holy Place. In making all these things, they are to do exactly as I have commanded you.”

Sabbath, the Day of Rest

¹²The Lord commanded Moses ¹³to say to the people of Israel, “Keep the Sabbath, my day of rest, because it is a sign between you and me for all time to come, to show that I, the Lord, have made you my own people. ¹⁴You must keep the day of rest, because it is sacred. Whoever does not keep it, but works on that day, is to be put to death. ^15*You have six days in which to do your work, but the seventh day is a solemn day of rest dedicated to me. Whoever does any work on that day is to be put to death. ¹⁶The people of Israel are to keep this day as a sign of the covenant. ^17*It is a permanent sign between the people of Israel and me, because I, the Lord, made heaven and earth in six days, and on the seventh day I stopped working and rested.”

¹⁸When God had finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two stone tablets on which God himself had written the commandments.