Exodus 28
1 “Summon your [older] brother Aaron and his sons—Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ([Set them apart/They are the ones whom I have chosen]) from [the rest of] the Israeli people, in order that they can serve me [by being] priests.
And thou shalt take thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may serve me as priest — Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons.
2 [Tell the people to] make beautiful clothes for Aaron, clothes that are [suitable for one who] has this dignified and sacred [work].
And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, for glory and for ornament.
3 Talk to all the skilled workmen, those to whom I have given special ability. [Tell them] to make clothes for Aaron, for him to wear when he is (set apart/dedicated) [to become] a priest to serve me.
And thou shalt speak with all [that are] wise-hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron's garments to hallow him, that he may serve me as priest.
4 These are the clothes that they are to make: A sacred pouch for Aaron to wear over his chest, a sacred apron, a robe, an embroidered tunic/gown, a (turban/cloth to wrap around his head), and a sash/waistband. These are the clothes that your [older] brother Aaron and his sons must wear as they serve me [by doing the work that] priests do.
And these are the garments which they shall make: a breastplate, and an ephod, and a cloak, and a checkered vest, a turban, and a girdle; and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may serve me as priest.
5 The skilled workmen must use fine linen and blue, purple, and red yarn/thread to make these clothes.”
And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined byssus,
6 “The skilled workmen must make the sacred apron from fine linen, and skillfully embroider it with blue, purple, and red yarn/thread.
and shall make the ephod of gold, blue, and purple, scarlet and twined byssus, of artistic work.
7 It must have two shoulder straps, to join the front part to the back part.
It shall have two shoulder-pieces joined at the two ends thereof, where it is joined together.
8 A carefully-woven sash, which must be made from the same materials as the sacred apron, must be [sewn] onto the sacred apron.
And the girdle of the ephod, which is upon it, shall be of the same, according to its work of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet and twined byssus.
9 [A skilled workman] must take two [expensive] onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the twelve sons of Jacob.
And thou shalt take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the children of Israel:
10 He must engrave the names in the order in which Jacob’s sons were born. He must engrave six names on one stone, and the other six names on the other stone.
six of their names on the one stone, and the six names of the rest on the other stone, according to their birth.
11 A gem-cutter should engrave these names on the stones. Then he should enclose the stones in (settings/tiny gold frames).
According to the work of an engraver in stone, as the engravings of a seal, shalt thou engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel; surrounded by enclosures of gold shalt thou make them.
12 Then he should fasten the stones onto the shoulder straps [of the sacred apron], to represent the twelve Israeli tribes. In that way, Aaron will carry the names of the tribes on his shoulders in order that [I], Yahweh, will never forget [my people] (OR, in order that [he will always] remember that [those tribes belong to] Yahweh).
And thou shalt put the two stones upon the shoulder-pieces of the ephod [as] stones of memorial for the children of Israel; and Aaron shall bear their names before Jehovah upon his two shoulders for a memorial.
13 The settings for the stones must be made from gold.
And thou shalt make enclosures of gold;
14 [Tell them to] make two tiny chains that are braided like cords, and fasten the chains to the settings.”
and two chains of pure gold; of laced work shalt thou make them, of wreathen work, and fasten the wreathen chains to the enclosures.
15 “[Tell the skilled workman to] make a sacred pouch for Aaron to wear over his chest. [He will use the things he puts into the pouch] to determine [my answers to the questions he asks]. It must be made of the same materials as the sacred apron, and embroidered in the same way.
And thou shalt make the breastplate of judgment of artistic work, like the work of the ephod thou shalt make it; of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined byssus shalt thou make it.
16 It is to be square, and the material must be folded double, so that it is (9 in./22 cm.) on each side.
Square shall it be, doubled; a span the length thereof, and a span the breadth thereof.
17 [The skilled workman must] fasten four rows of valuable stones onto the pouch. In the first row he must put a [red] ruby, a [yellow] topaz, and a [red] garnet.
And thou shalt set in it settings of stones — four rows of stones: [one] row, a sardoin, a topaz, and an emerald — the first row;
18 In the second row he must put a [green] emerald, a [blue] sapphire, and a [clear/white] diamond.
and the second row, a carbuncle, a sapphire, and a diamond;
19 In the third row he must put a [red] jacinth, a [white] agate, and a [purple] amethyst.
and the third row, an opal, an agate, and an amethyst;
20 In the fourth row he must put a [yellow] beryl, a [red] carnelian, and a [green] jasper.
and the fourth row, a chrysolite, and an onyx, and a jasper; enclosed in gold shall they be in their settings.
21 A gem-cutter should engrave on each of these twelve stones the name of one of the sons of Jacob. These names will represent the twelve Israeli tribes.
And the stones shall be according to the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, engraved as a seal: every one according to his name shall they be for the twelve tribes.
22 The two [chains] that are made from pure gold and braided like cords are for [attaching] the sacred pouch [to the sacred apron].
And thou shalt make on the breastplate chains of laced work, of wreathen work, of pure gold.
23 [The workman must] make two gold rings, and attach them to the upper corners of the sacred pouch.
And thou shalt make on the breastplate two rings of gold, and shalt put the two rings on the two ends of the breastplate.
24 [He must make] two gold cords, and fasten one end of each cord to one of the rings.
And thou shalt put the two wreathen [cords] of gold in the two rings on the ends of the breastplate;
25 He must fasten the other end of each cord to the two settings [that enclose the stones]. In that way, the sacred pouch will be attached to the shoulder straps of the sacred apron.
and the two ends of the two wreathen [cords] thou shalt fasten to the two enclosures, and shalt put [them] on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, on the front thereof.
26 Then [he must] make two more gold rings, and attach them to the lower corners of the sacred pouch, on the inside edges, next to the sacred apron.
And thou shalt make two rings of gold, and shalt put them on the two ends of the breastplate, on the border thereof, which faceth the ephod inwards.
27 [He must] make two more gold rings, and attach them to the lower part of the front of the shoulder straps, near to where [the shoulder straps] are joined [to the sacred apron], just above the carefully-woven sash/waistband.
And two rings of gold shalt thou make, and shalt put them upon the two shoulder-pieces of the ephod underneath, to the front thereof just by the coupling thereof, above the girdle of the ephod.
28 The skilled workman must tie the rings on the sacred pouch to the rings on the sacred apron with a blue cord, so that the sacred pouch is above the sash/waistband and does not come loose from the sacred apron.
And they shall bind the breastplate with its rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that it may be above the girdle of the ephod, and that the breastplate be not loosed from the ephod.
29 In that way, Aaron will have the names of the twelve Israeli tribes in the sacred pouch close to his chest when he enters the Holy Place. This will remind him that I, Yahweh, [will never forget my people] (OR, [that he represents my people when he talks to me, Yahweh]).
And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment on his heart, when he goes in to the sanctuary, for a memorial before Jehovah continually.
30 Put into the sacred pouch the two things that the priest will use to determine my answers to the questions he asks. In that way, they will be close to his chest when he enters [the Holy Place to talk] to me. He will use them to find out what is my will for the Israeli people.”
And thou shalt put into the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, that they may be upon Aaron's heart when he goeth in before Jehovah; and Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before Jehovah continually.
31 “[Tell the workmen to] use only blue [cloth] to make the robe that is to be worn underneath the priest’s sacred apron.
And thou shalt make the cloak of the ephod all of blue.
32 It is to have an opening through which [the priest] can put his head. They must sew a border around this opening, to keep the material from tearing.
And its opening for the head shall be in the midst thereof; there shall be a binding of woven work at its opening round about; as the opening of a coat of mail, it shall be in it — it shall not rend.
33 At the lower edge on the robe, they must fasten [decorations that look like] pomegranate fruit. They must be [woven from] blue, purple, and red yarn/thread.
And on the skirts thereof thou shalt make pomegranates of blue, and purple, and scarlet, round about the skirts thereof; and bells of gold between them round about:
34 Between each of these decorations, they must fasten a tiny gold bell.
a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, in the skirts of the cloak round about.
35 When Aaron enters the Holy Place [in the Sacred Tent] to do his work as a priest and when he leaves the Sacred Tent, the bells will ring [as he walks]. As a result, he will not die [because of disobeying my instructions].
And it shall be on Aaron for service; that his sound may be heard when he goeth into the sanctuary before Jehovah, and when he cometh out, that he may not die.
36 “[Tell them to] make a tiny ornament of pure gold, and tell a (skilled workman/gem-cutter) to engrave on it the words, ‘Dedicated to Yahweh.’
And thou shalt make a thin plate of pure gold, and engrave on it, as the engravings of a seal, Holiness to Jehovah!
37 They should fasten this ornament to the front of the turban by a blue cord.
And thou shalt put it on a lace of blue, and it shall be upon the turban — upon the front of the turban shall it be.
38 Aaron must always wear this on his forehead. In that way, Aaron himself will show [that he accepts] the guilt if the Israeli people offer [their sacrifices] to me in a way that is not correct, and I, Yahweh, will accept their sacrifices.
And it shall be upon Aaron's forehead, and Aaron shall bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in all gifts of their holy things; and it shall be continually on his forehead, that they may be accepted before Jehovah.
39 “[Tell them to] weave the long-sleeved tunic/gown from fine linen. Also, they must make from fine linen a turban and a sash/waistband, and embroider [designs on it].
And thou shalt weave the vest of byssus; and thou shalt make a turban of byssus; and thou shalt make a girdle of embroidery.
40 “[Tell them to] make beautiful long-sleeved tunics/gowns, sashes, and caps for Aaron’s sons. Make ones that will be suitable for those who have this dignified work.
And for Aaron's sons thou shalt make vests; and thou shalt make for them girdles; and high caps shalt thou make for them, for glory and for ornament.
41 Put these clothes on your [older] brother Aaron and on his sons. Then (set them apart/dedicate them) for this work by anointing them [with olive oil], in order that they may serve me [by being] priests.
And thou shalt clothe with them Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and hallow them, that they may serve me as priests.
42 Also [tell them to] make linen undershorts for them. The undershorts should extend from their waists to their thighs, in order that no one can see their private parts.
And thou shalt make them linen trousers to cover the flesh of nakedness; from the loins even to the hips shall they reach.
43 Aaron and his sons must always wear those undershorts when they enter the Sacred Tent or when they come near to the altar to offer sacrifices in the Holy Place. If they do not obey this command, I will cause them to die. Aaron and all his male descendants must obey this rule forever.”
And they shall be upon Aaron and his sons when they enter into the tent of meeting, or when they come near to the altar to serve in the sanctuary; that they may not bear iniquity and die — an everlasting statute for him and his seed after him.
