Exodus 30

1 “Make an altar for burning incense from acacia wood.

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

2 It shall be square, measuring a cubit by a cubit, by two cubits high, with horns on its corners that are all one piece with the altar.

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 Cover its top, its side, and its horns with pure gold, and make a gold trim to go all 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 Make two gold rings for the altar and attach them below the trim, two on both sides, to hold the poles 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 cover them with gold.

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

6 Put the altar in front of the veil that hangs before the Ark of the Testimony and the atonement cover 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 Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he takes care of the lamps.

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

8 When he lights the lamps in the evening he must burn incense again so that incense will always be burned in the Lord's presence for 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 Don't offer on this altar any unapproved incense or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour out a drink offering upon 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 must perform the atonement ritual by placing blood on the horns of the altar from the sin offering for atonement. This yearly atonement ritual must be carried out for generations to come. This is the Lord's holy altar.”

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 The Lord told Moses,

And the Lord said to Moses,

12 “When you take a census of the Israelites, each man must pay the Lord to buy back his life when he's counted. Then they won't suffer from the plague when they're counted.

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 Each one who crosses over to those counted must give a half shekel, (using the sanctuary shekel standard, 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 This offering to the Lord is required from everyone twenty years old and more.

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

15 When you give this offering to buy back your lives the rich are not to give more than a half shekel and the poor are not to 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 this money paid by the Israelites and use it for the expenses involved in the services of the Tent of Meeting. It will serve as a reminder for the Israelites to buy back your lives in the presence of the Lord.”

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 The Lord told Moses,

And the Lord said to Moses,

18 “Make a bronze basin with a bronze stand for washing. Place 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 Aaron and his sons will use it 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, they are to wash with water so that they will not die. When they approach the altar to present burnt offerings to the Lord,

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 they must also wash so that they will not die. This requirement is to be observed by them and their descendants for all generations.”

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 The Lord told Moses,

And the Lord said to Moses,

23 “Take the best quality spices: 500 shekels of liquid myrrh, 250 shekels of sweet-smelling cinnamon, 250 shekels of aromatic reed,

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, (weights using the sanctuary shekel standard), 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 Mix these together into holy anointing oil, an aromatic blend like the product of an expert perfumer. Use it as holy 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 it 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 equipment, the lampstand and its equipment, 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 plus its stand.

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

29 Dedicate them so that they will be especially holy. Whatever touches them will become holy.

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

30 Anoint Aaron and his sons too and dedicate them to serve as priests for me.

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

31 Tell the Israelites, ‘This is to be my holy anointing oil for all generations to come.

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

32 Don't use it on ordinary people and don't make anything like it using the same formula. It is holy, and you must treat it as being holy.

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 anointing oil like it, or puts it on someone other than a priest, will be expelled from their 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 told Moses, “Take equal amounts of these aromatic spices: balsam resin, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense.

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

35 Add some salt and make pure and holy incense blended like the product of an expert perfumer.

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 powder and place it in front of the Ark of the Testimony in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you. It shall be especially 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 Don't make for yourselves any incense like it using the same formula. You are to consider this incense 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 incense like this for themselves to enjoy will be expelled from their people.”

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