Exodus — Chapter 30

You shall make an altar for burning incense; make it of acacia wood.

It shall be a cubit long and a cubit wide—it shall be square—and two cubits high, its horns of one piece with it.

Overlay it with pure gold: its top, its sides round about, and its horns; and make a gold molding for it round about.

And make two gold rings for it under its molding; make them on its two side walls, on oppositeaopposite Lit. “its two.” sides. They shall serve as holders for poles with which to carry it.

Make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold.

Place it in front of the curtain that is over the Ark of the Pact—in front of the cover that is over the Pact—where I will meet with you.

On it Aaron shall burn aromatic incense: he shall burn it every morning when he tends the lamps,

and Aaron shall burn it at twilight when he lights the lamps—a regular incense offering before GOD throughout the ages.

You shall not offer alien incense on it, or a burnt offering or a grain offering; neither shall you pour a libation on it.

Once a year Aaron shall perform purification upon its horns with blood of the purgation offering of purification; purification shall be performed upon it once a year throughout the ages. It is most holy to GOD.

GOD spoke to Moses, saying:

When you take a census of the IsraelitesbIsraelites I.e., those qualified for the nation’s militia. according to their army enrollment, each shall pay GOD a ransom for himself on being enrolled, that no plague may come upon them through their being enrolled.

This is what everyone who is entered in the records shall pay: a half-shekel by the sanctuary weight—twenty gerahs to the shekel—a half-shekel as an offering to GOD.

Everyone who is entered in the records, from the age of twenty years up, shall give GOD’s offering:

the rich shall not pay more and the poor shall not pay less than half a shekel when giving GOD’s offering as expiation for your persons.

You shall take the expiation money from the Israelites and assign it to the service of the Tent of Meeting; it shall serve the Israelites as a reminder before GOD, as expiation for your persons.

GOD spoke to Moses, saying:

Make a laver of copper and a stand of copper for it, for washing; and place it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar. Put water in it,

and let Aaron and his sons wash their hands and feet [in water drawn] from it.

When they enter the Tent of Meeting they shall wash with water, that they may not die; or when they approach the altar to serve, to turn into smoke an offering by fire to GOD,

they shall wash their hands and feet, that they may not die. It shall be a law for all time for them—for him and his offspring—throughout the ages.

GOD spoke to Moses, saying:

Next take choice spices: five hundred weight of solidifiedcsolidified In contrast to others “flowing.” myrrh, half as much—two hundred and fifty—of fragrant cinnamon, two hundred and fifty of aromatic cane,

five hundred—by the sanctuary weight—of cassia, and a hin of olive oil.

Make of this a sacred anointing oil, a compound of ingredients expertly blended, to serve as sacred anointing oil.

With it anoint the Tent of Meeting, the Ark of the Pact,

the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and all its fittings, the altar of incense,

the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the laver and its stand.

Thus you shall consecrate them so that they may be most holy; whatever touches them shall be consecrated.

You shall also anoint Aaron and his sons, consecrating them to serve Me as priests.

And speak to the Israelite people, as follows: This shall be an anointing oil sacred to Me throughout the ages.

It must not be rubbed on any person’s body, and you must not make anything like it in the same proportions; it is sacred, to be held sacred by you.

Anyone who compounds its like, or puts any of it on a lay person, shall be cut off from kin.

And GOD said to Moses: Take the herbs stacte, onycha, and galbanum—these herbs together with pure frankincense; let there be an equal part of each.

Make them into incense, a compound expertly blended, refined, pure, sacred.

Beat some of it into powder, and put some before the Pact in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you; it shall be most holy to you.

But when you make this incense, you must not make any in the same proportions for yourselves; it shall be held by you sacred to GOD.

Anyone who makes any like it, to smell of it, shall be cut off from kin.