Exodus 30

1 “You are also to make an altar of acacia wood for the burning of incense.

And you are to make an altar for the burning of perfume; of hard wood let it be made.

2 It is to be square, a cubit long, a cubit wide, and two cubits high. Its horns must be of one piece.

The altar is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high, and its horns are to be made of the same.

3 Overlay with pure gold the top and all the sides and horns, and make a molding of gold around it.

It is to be plated with the best gold, the top of it and the sides and the horns, with an edging of gold all round it.

4 And make two gold rings below the molding on opposite sides to hold the poles used to carry it.

Under the edge on the two opposite sides, you are to make two gold rings, to take the rods for lifting it.

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

And make these rods of the same wood, plating them with gold.

6 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.

And let it be placed in front of the veil before the ark of the law, before the cover which is over the law, where I will come face to face with you.

7 And Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he tends the lamps.

And on this altar sweet spices are to be burned by Aaron every morning when he sees to the lights.

8 When Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he must burn the incense perpetually before the LORD for the generations to come.

And every evening, when he puts the lights up in their places, the spices are to be burned, a sweet-smelling smoke going up before the Lord from generation to generation for ever.

9 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.

No strange perfume, no burned offering or meal offering, and no drink offering is to be offered on it.

10 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.”

And once every year Aaron is to make its horns clean: with the blood of the sin-offering he is to make it clean once every year from generation to generation: it is most holy to the Lord.

11 Then the LORD said to Moses,

And 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.

When you are taking the number of the children of Israel, let every man who is numbered give to the Lord a price for his life, so that no disease may come on them when they are numbered.

13 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.

And this is what they are to give; let every man who is numbered give half a shekel, by the scale of the holy place: (the shekel being valued at twenty gerahs: ) this money is an offering to the Lord.

14 Everyone twenty years of age or older who crosses over must give this offering to the LORD.

Everyone who is numbered, from twenty years old and over, is to give an offering to the Lord.

15 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.

The man of wealth is to give no more and the poor man no less than the half-shekel of silver, when the offering is made to the Lord as the price for your lives.

16 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.”

And you are to take this money from the children of Israel to be used for the work of the Tent of meeting, to keep the memory of the children of Israel before the Lord and to be the price of your lives.

17 And the LORD said to Moses,

And 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,

You are to make a brass washing-vessel, with a brass base; and put it between the Tent of meeting and the altar, with water in it;

19 with which Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and feet.

That it may be used by Aaron and his sons for washing their hands and feet;

20 Whenever 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.

Whenever they go into the Tent of meeting they are to be washed with water, to keep them from death; and whenever they come near to do the work of the altar, or to make an offering by fire to the Lord,

21 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.”

Their hands and feet are to be washed. so that they may be safe from death: this is an order to them for ever; to him and his seed from generation to generation.

22 Then the LORD said to Moses,

And 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,

Take the best spices, five hundred shekels' weight of liquid myrrh, and of sweet cinnamon half as much, that is, two hundred and fifty shekels, and two hundred and fifty shekels of sweet calamus,

24 500 shekels of cassia —all according to the sanctuary shekel—and a hin of olive oil.

And of cassia, five hundred shekels' weight measured by the scale of the holy place, and of olive oil a hin:

25 Prepare from these a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer; it will be a sacred anointing oil.

And make these into a holy oil, a perfume made by the art of the perfume-maker; it is to be a holy oil.

26 Use this oil to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the ark of the Testimony,

This oil is to be put on the Tent of meeting, and on the ark of the law,

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

And on the table and all its vessels, and on the support for the lights, with its vessels, and on the altar for burning spices,

28 the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin with its stand.

And on the altar of burned offerings with its vessels, and on the washing-vessel and its base.

29 You are to consecrate them so that they will be most holy. Whatever touches them shall be holy.

And you are to make them most holy; anything touching them will become holy.

30 Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them to serve Me as priests.

And put the oil on Aaron and his sons, making them holy to do the work of priests to me.

31 And you are to tell the Israelites, ‘This will be My sacred anointing oil for the generations to come.

And say to the children of Israel, This is to be the Lord's holy oil, from generation to generation.

32 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.

It is not to be used for man's flesh, and no other is to be made like it: holy it is, and you are to keep it holy.

33 Anyone who mixes perfume like it or puts it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’”

Whoever makes any like it, or puts it on one who is not a priest, will be cut off from his people.

34 The LORD also said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices—gum resin, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense—in equal measures,

And the Lord said to Moses, Take sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, with the best frankincense, in equal weights;

35 and make a fragrant blend of incense, the work of a perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy.

And make from them a perfume, such as is made by the art of the perfume-maker, mixed with salt, and clean and holy.

36 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.

And put some of it, crushed very small, in front of the ark in the Tent of meeting, where I will come face to face with you; it is to be most holy.

37 You are never to use this formula to make incense for yourselves; you shall regard it as holy to the LORD.

You are not to make any perfume like it for yourselves: it is to be kept holy to the Lord.

38 Anyone who makes something like it to enjoy its fragrance shall be cut off from his people.”

Whoever makes any like it, for its sweet smell, will be cut off from his people.