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Exodus 30-32
Contemporary English Version
Exodus 30-32
Contemporary English Version
The Altar for Burning Incense
(Exodus 37.25-28)
The Lord said to Moses:
30 Build an altar of acacia wood where you can burn incense. 2 Make it 45 centimeters square and 90 centimeters high, and make each of its four corners stick up like the horn of a bull. 3 Cover it with pure gold and put a gold edging around it. 4 Then below the edging on opposite sides attach two gold rings through which you can put the poles for carrying the altar. 5 These poles are also to be made of acacia wood covered with gold.
6 Put the altar in front of the inside curtain of the sacred tent. The chest with the place of mercy[a] is kept behind that curtain, and I will talk with you there. 7-8 From now on, when Aaron takes care of the lamps each morning and evening, he must burn sweet-smelling incense to me on the altar. 9 Burn only the proper incense on the altar and never use it for grain sacrifices or animal sacrifices or drink offerings. 10 (A) Once a year Aaron must purify the altar by smearing on its four corners[b] the blood of an animal sacrificed for sin, and this practice must always be followed. The altar is sacred because it is dedicated to me.
The Money for the Sacred Tent
11 The Lord said to Moses:
12 Find out how many grown men there are in Israel and require each of them to pay me to keep him safe from danger while you are counting them. 13-15 (B) Each man over 19, whether rich or poor, must pay me the same amount of money, weighed according to the official standards. 16 This money is to be used for the upkeep of the sacred tent, and because of it, I will never forget my people.
The Large Bronze Bowl
(Exodus 38.8)
17 The Lord said to Moses:
18-21 (C) Make a large bronze bowl and a bronze stand for it. Then put them between the altar for sacrifice and the sacred tent, so the priests can wash their hands and feet before entering the tent or offering a sacrifice on the altar. Each priest in every generation must wash himself in this way, or else he will die right there.
The Oil for Dedication and Ordination
(Exodus 37.29)
22 (D) The Lord said to Moses:
23-25 Mix four liters of olive oil with the following costly spices: six kilograms of myrrh, three kilograms of cinnamon, three kilograms of cane, and six kilograms of cassia. Measure these according to the official standards. Then use this sacred mixture 26 for dedicating the tent and chest, 27 the table with its equipment, the lampstand with its equipment, the incense altar with all its utensils, 28 the altar for sacrifices, and the large bowl with its stand. 29 By dedicating them in this way, you will make them so holy that anyone who even touches them will become holy.
30 When you ordain Aaron and his sons as my priests, sprinkle them with some of this oil, 31 and say to the people of Israel: “This oil must always be used in the ordination service of a priest. It is holy because it is dedicated to the Lord. 32 So treat it as holy! Don't ever use it for everyday purposes or mix any for yourselves. 33 If you do, you will no longer belong to the Lord's people.”
The Sweet-Smelling Incense
34-35 Mix equal amounts of the costly spices stacte, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense, then add salt to make the mixture pure and holy. 36 Pound some of it into powder and sprinkle it in front of the sacred chest, where I meet with you. Be sure to treat this incense as something very holy. 37 It is truly holy because it is dedicated to me, so don't ever make any for yourselves. 38 If you ever make any of it to use as perfume, you will no longer belong to my people.
The Lord Chooses Bezalel and Oholiab
(Exodus 35.30—36.1)
31 The Lord said to Moses:
2 I have chosen Bezalel[c] from the Judah tribe to make the sacred tent and its furnishings. 3-5 Not only have I filled him with my Spirit, but I have given him wisdom and made him a skilled craftsman who can create objects of art with gold, silver, bronze, precious stones, and wood. 6 I have appointed Oholiab[d] from the tribe of Dan to work with him, and I have also given skills to those who will help them make everything exactly as I have commanded you: 7-11 the sacred tent with its furnishings, the sacred chest with its place of mercy, the table with all that is on it, the lamp with its equipment, the incense altar, the altar for sacrifices with its equipment, the bronze bowl with its stand, the beautiful priestly clothes for Aaron and his sons, the oil for dedication and ordination services, and the sweet-smelling incense for the holy place.
Laws for the Sabbath
12-13 Moses told the Israelites that the Lord had said:
The Sabbath belongs to me. Now I command you and your descendants to always obey the laws of the Sabbath. By doing this, you will know that I have chosen you as my own. 14-15 (E) Keep the Sabbath holy. You have six days to do your work, but the Sabbath is mine, and it must remain a day of rest. If you work on the Sabbath, you will no longer be part of my people, and you will be put to death.
16 Every generation of Israelites must respect the Sabbath. 17 (F) This day will always serve as a reminder, both to me and to the Israelites, that I made the heavens and the earth in six days, then on the seventh day I rested and relaxed.
18 When God had finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two flat stones on which he had written all his laws with his own hand.
The People Make an Idol To Worship
(Deuteronomy 9.6-29)
32 (G) After the people saw that Moses had been on the mountain for a long time, they went to Aaron and said, “Make us an image of a god who will lead and protect us. Moses brought us out of Egypt, but nobody knows what has happened to him.”
2 Aaron told them, “Bring me the gold earrings that your wives and sons and daughters are wearing.” 3 Everybody took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron, 4 (H) then he melted them and made an idol in the shape of a young bull.
All the people said to one another, “This is the god who brought us out of Egypt!”
5 When Aaron saw what was happening, he built an altar in front of the idol and said, “Tomorrow we will celebrate in honor of the Lord.” 6 (I) The people got up early the next morning and killed some animals to be used for sacrifices and others to be eaten. Then everyone ate and drank so much that they began to carry on like wild people.
7 The Lord said to Moses:
Hurry back down! Those people you led out of Egypt are acting like fools. 8 They have already stopped obeying me and have made themselves an idol in the shape of a young bull. They have bowed down to it, offered sacrifices, and said that it is the god who brought them out of Egypt. 9 Moses, I have seen how stubborn these people are, 10 and I'm angry enough to destroy them, so don't try to stop me. But I will make your descendants into a great nation.
11 (J) Moses tried to get the Lord God to change his mind:
Our Lord, you used your mighty power to bring these people out of Egypt. Now don't become angry and destroy them. 12 If you do, the Egyptians will say that you brought your people out here into the mountains just to get rid of them. Please don't be angry with your people. Don't destroy them!
13 (K) Remember the solemn promise you made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. You promised that someday they would have as many descendants as there are stars in the sky and that you would give them land.
14 So even though the Lord had threatened to destroy the people, he changed his mind and let them live.
15-16 Moses went back down the mountain with the two flat stones on which God had written all of his laws with his own hand, using both sides of the stones.
17 When Joshua heard the noisy shouts of the people, he said to Moses, “A battle must be going on down in the camp.”
18 But Moses replied, “It doesn't sound like they are shouting because they have won or lost a battle. It sounds more like a wild party!”
19 As Moses got closer to the camp, he saw the idol, and he also saw the people dancing around. This made him so angry that he threw down the stones and broke them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. 20 He melted the idol the people had made, and he ground it into powder. He scattered it in their water and made them drink it. 21 Moses asked Aaron, “What did these people do to harm you? Why did you make them sin in this terrible way?”
22 Aaron answered:
Don't be angry with me. You know as well as I do that they are determined to do evil. 23 They even told me, “That man Moses led us out of Egypt, but now we don't know what has happened to him. Make us a god to lead us.” 24 Then I asked them to bring me their gold earrings. They took them off and gave them to me. I threw the gold into a fire, and out came this bull.
25 Moses knew that the people were out of control and that it was Aaron's fault. And now they had made fools of themselves in front of their enemies. 26 So Moses stood at the gate of the camp and shouted, “Everyone who is on the Lord's side come over here!”
Then the men of the Levi tribe gathered around Moses, 27 and he said to them, “The Lord God of Israel commands you to strap on your swords and go through the camp, killing your relatives, your friends, and your neighbors.”
28 The men of the Levi tribe followed his orders, and that day they killed about 3,000 men. 29 Moses said to them, “You obeyed the Lord and did what was right, and so you will serve as his priests for the people of Israel. It was hard for you to kill your own sons and brothers, but the Lord has blessed you and made you his priests today.”
30 The next day Moses told the people, “This is a terrible thing you have done. But I will go back to the Lord to see if I can do something to keep this sin from being held against you.”
31 Moses returned to the Lord and said, “The people have committed a terrible sin. They have made a gold idol to be their god. 32 (L) But I beg you to forgive them. If you don't, please wipe my name out of your book.”[e]
33 The Lord replied, “I will wipe out of my book the name of everyone who has sinned against me. 34 Now take my people to the place I told you about, and my angel will lead you. But when the time comes, I will punish them for this sin.”
35 So the Lord punished the people of Israel with a terrible disease for talking Aaron into making the gold idol.
Footnotes
- 30.6 place of mercy: See the note at 26.34.
- 30.10 four corners: See 27.2; 30.2.
- 31.2 Bezalel: Hebrew “Bezalel, son of Uri and grandson of Hur.”
- 31.6 Oholiab: Hebrew “Oholiab son of Ahisamach.”
- 32.32 your book: The people of Israel believed that the Lord kept a record of the names of his people, and anyone whose name was removed from that book no longer belonged to the Lord.
Exodus 30-32
New International Version
Exodus 30-32
New International Version
The Altar of Incense(A)
30 “Make an altar(B) of acacia wood for burning incense.(C) 2 It is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high[a]—its horns(D) of one piece with it. 3 Overlay the top and all the sides and the horns with pure gold, and make a gold molding around it.(E) 4 Make two gold rings(F) for the altar below the molding—two on each of the opposite sides—to hold the poles used to carry it. 5 Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold.(G) 6 Put the altar in front of the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law—before the atonement cover(H) that is over the tablets of the covenant law—where I will meet with you.
7 “Aaron must burn fragrant incense(I) on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. 8 He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight so incense will burn regularly before the Lord for the generations to come.(J) 9 Do not offer on this altar any other incense(K) or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour a drink offering on it. 10 Once a year(L) Aaron shall make atonement(M) on its horns. This annual atonement must be made with the blood of the atoning sin offering[b](N) for the generations to come.(O) It is most holy to the Lord.”
Atonement Money
11 Then the Lord said to Moses, 12 “When you take a census(P) of the Israelites to count them, each one must pay the Lord a ransom(Q) for his life at the time he is counted. Then no plague(R) will come on them when you number them. 13 Each one who crosses over to those already counted is to give a half shekel,[c] according to the sanctuary shekel,(S) which weighs twenty gerahs. This half shekel is an offering to the Lord. 14 All who cross over, those twenty years old or more,(T) are to give an offering to the Lord. 15 The rich are not to give more than a half shekel and the poor are not to give less(U) when you make the offering to the Lord to atone for your lives. 16 Receive the atonement(V) money from the Israelites and use it for the service of the tent of meeting.(W) It will be a memorial(X) for the Israelites before the Lord, making atonement for your lives.”
Basin for Washing
17 Then the Lord said to Moses, 18 “Make a bronze basin,(Y) with its bronze stand, for washing. Place it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. 19 Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and feet(Z) with water(AA) from it. 20 Whenever they enter the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water so that they will not die.(AB) Also, when they approach the altar to minister by presenting a food offering to the Lord, 21 they shall wash their hands and feet so that they will not die. This is to be a lasting ordinance(AC) for Aaron and his descendants for the generations to come.”(AD)
Anointing Oil
22 Then the Lord said to Moses, 23 “Take the following fine spices:(AE) 500 shekels[d] of liquid myrrh,(AF) half as much (that is, 250 shekels) of fragrant cinnamon,(AG) 250 shekels[e] of fragrant calamus,(AH) 24 500 shekels(AI) of cassia(AJ)—all according to the sanctuary shekel—and a hin[f] of olive oil. 25 Make these into a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer.(AK) It will be the sacred anointing oil.(AL) 26 Then use it to anoint(AM) the tent of meeting, the ark of the covenant law, 27 the table and all its articles, the lampstand and its accessories, the altar of incense, 28 the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin with its stand. 29 You shall consecrate them(AN) so they will be most holy, and whatever touches them will be holy.(AO)
30 “Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate(AP) them so they may serve me as priests.(AQ) 31 Say to the Israelites, ‘This is to be my sacred anointing oil(AR) for the generations to come.(AS) 32 Do not pour it on anyone else’s body and do not make any other oil using the same formula. It is sacred, and you are to consider it sacred.(AT) 33 Whoever makes perfume like it and puts it on anyone other than a priest must be cut off(AU) from their people.’”
Incense
34 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices(AV)—gum resin, onycha and galbanum—and pure frankincense, all in equal amounts, 35 and make a fragrant blend of incense,(AW) the work of a perfumer.(AX) It is to be salted and pure and sacred. 36 Grind some of it to powder and place it in front of the ark of the covenant law in the tent of meeting, where I will meet(AY) with you. It shall be most holy(AZ) to you. 37 Do not make any incense with this formula for yourselves; consider it holy(BA) to the Lord. 38 Whoever makes incense like it to enjoy its fragrance must be cut off(BB) from their people.”
Bezalel and Oholiab(BC)
31 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “See, I have chosen Bezalel(BD) son of Uri, the son of Hur,(BE) of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge(BF) and with all kinds of skills(BG)— 4 to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, 5 to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts. 6 Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab(BH) son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan,(BI) to help him. Also I have given ability to all the skilled workers(BJ) to make everything I have commanded you: 7 the tent of meeting,(BK) the ark of the covenant law(BL) with the atonement cover(BM) on it, and all the other furnishings of the tent— 8 the table(BN) and its articles, the pure gold lampstand(BO) and all its accessories, the altar of incense,(BP) 9 the altar of burnt offering(BQ) and all its utensils, the basin(BR) with its stand— 10 and also the woven garments(BS), both the sacred garments for Aaron the priest and the garments for his sons when they serve as priests, 11 and the anointing oil(BT) and fragrant incense(BU) for the Holy Place. They are to make them just as I commanded(BV) you.”
The Sabbath
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, 13 “Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths.(BW) This will be a sign(BX) between me and you for the generations to come,(BY) so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy.(BZ)
14 “‘Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it is to be put to death;(CA) those who do any work on that day must be cut off from their people. 15 For six days work(CB) is to be done, but the seventh day is a day of sabbath rest,(CC) holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day is to be put to death. 16 The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath,(CD) celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. 17 It will be a sign(CE) between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.(CF)’”(CG)
18 When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai,(CH) he gave him the two tablets of the covenant law, the tablets of stone(CI) inscribed by the finger of God.(CJ)
The Golden Calf
32 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain,(CK) they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods[g] who will go before(CL) us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”(CM)
2 Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings(CN) that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol(CO) cast in the shape of a calf,(CP) fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods,[h](CQ) Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”(CR)
5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival(CS) to the Lord.” 6 So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings.(CT) Afterward they sat down to eat and drink(CU) and got up to indulge in revelry.(CV)
7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt,(CW) have become corrupt.(CX) 8 They have been quick to turn away(CY) from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol(CZ) cast in the shape of a calf.(DA) They have bowed down to it and sacrificed(DB) to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’(DC)
9 “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked(DD) people. 10 Now leave me alone(DE) so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy(DF) them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”(DG)
11 But Moses sought the favor(DH) of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?(DI) 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’?(DJ) Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster(DK) on your people. 13 Remember(DL) your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self:(DM) ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars(DN) in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land(DO) I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’” 14 Then the Lord relented(DP) and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
15 Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law(DQ) in his hands.(DR) They were inscribed(DS) on both sides, front and back. 16 The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.(DT)
17 When Joshua(DU) heard the noise of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “There is the sound of war in the camp.”
18 Moses replied:
“It is not the sound of victory,
it is not the sound of defeat;
it is the sound of singing that I hear.”
19 When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf(DV) and the dancing,(DW) his anger burned(DX) and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces(DY) at the foot of the mountain. 20 And he took the calf the people had made and burned(DZ) it in the fire; then he ground it to powder,(EA) scattered it on the water(EB) and made the Israelites drink it.
21 He said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you, that you led them into such great sin?”
22 “Do not be angry,(EC) my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil.(ED) 23 They said to me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’(EE) 24 So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”(EF)
25 Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock(EG) to their enemies. 26 So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him.
27 Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’”(EH) 28 The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died. 29 Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.”
30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin.(EI) But now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement(EJ) for your sin.”
31 So Moses went back to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed!(EK) They have made themselves gods of gold.(EL) 32 But now, please forgive their sin(EM)—but if not, then blot me(EN) out of the book(EO) you have written.”
33 The Lord replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out(EP) of my book. 34 Now go, lead(EQ) the people to the place(ER) I spoke of, and my angel(ES) will go before you. However, when the time comes for me to punish,(ET) I will punish them for their sin.”
35 And the Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf(EU) Aaron had made.
Footnotes
- Exodus 30:2 That is, about 1 1/2 feet long and wide and 3 feet high or about 45 centimeters long and wide and 90 centimeters high
- Exodus 30:10 Or purification offering
- Exodus 30:13 That is, about 1/5 ounce or about 5.8 grams; also in verse 15
- Exodus 30:23 That is, about 12 1/2 pounds or about 5.8 kilograms; also in verse 24
- Exodus 30:23 That is, about 6 1/4 pounds or about 2.9 kilograms
- Exodus 30:24 That is, probably about 1 gallon or about 3.8 liters
- Exodus 32:1 Or a god; also in verses 23 and 31
- Exodus 32:4 Or This is your god; also in verse 8
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