Exodus 29

Make Aaron and His Sons Priests—Leviticus 8:1–36

1 The Lord continued, “Now, this is what you must do in order to set Aaron and his sons apart to serve me as priests:“Take a young bull that has no defects and two rams that have no defects.2 Use the finest wheat flour, but no yeast, and bake some loaves of bread, some rings of bread made with olive oil, and some wafers brushed with olive oil.

3 Put the bread in a basket, and bring the basket along with the young bull and the two rams.
4 “Then bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting, and wash them.5 Take the clothes, and put them on Aaron—the linen robe, the ephod and the robe that is worn with it, and the breastplate. Use the belt to tie it on him tightly.6 Put his turban on him, and fasten the holy crown to it.

7 Take the anointing oil, pour it on his head, and anoint him.
8 “Have his sons come forward. Dress them in their linen robes,

9 and put turbans on them. Tie belts around the waists of Aaron and his sons. They alone are to be priests; this is a permanent law. In this way you will ordain Aaron and his sons.
10 “Then bring the young bull to the front of the tent of meeting. Aaron and his sons will place their hands on its head.11 Slaughter the bull in the Lord’s presence at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

12 Take some of the bull’s blood, and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger. Pour the rest of it out at the bottom of the altar.
13 “Then take all the fat that covers the internal organs, the lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys with the fat on them, and burn them on the altar.

14 But burn the bull’s meat, skin, and excrement outside the camp. It is an offering for sin.
15 “Take one of the rams. Then Aaron and his sons will place their hands on its head.16 Slaughter it, take the blood, and throw it against the altar on all sides.17 Cut the ram into pieces, wash the internal organs and legs, and put them with the other pieces and the head.

18 Then burn the whole ram on the altar. It’s a burnt offering, a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to the Lord.
19 “Take the other ram. Then Aaron and his sons will place their hands on its head.20 Slaughter it, take some of the blood, and put it on the right ear lobes of Aaron and his sons, on their right thumbs, and on the big toes of their right feet. Throw the rest of the blood against the altar on all sides.

21 Take some of the blood that is on the altar and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and his clothes and on his sons and their clothes. In this way Aaron, his sons, and their clothes will be holy.
22 “From this same ram take the fat, the fat from the tail, the fat that covers the internal organs, the lobe of the liver, the two kidneys with the fat on them, and the right thigh. (This is the ram for the ordination.)23 From the basket of unleavened bread which is in the Lord’s presence, take a round loaf of bread, a ring of bread made with olive oil, and a wafer.24 Put all of these in the hands of Aaron and his sons, who will offer them to the Lord.

25 Then take them from their hands, and burn them on the altar on top of the burnt offering. It’s a soothing aroma in the Lord’s presence, an offering by fire to the Lord.
26 “Take the breast from the ram used for Aaron’s ordination, and present it to the Lord. This will be your share.27 Set apart as holy the breast that is offered to the Lord and the thigh that is the contribution. Both will come from the ram used for the ordination. They both belong to Aaron and his sons.

28 It is a permanent law that the Israelites give this portion to Aaron and his sons as a contribution. This will also be their contribution to the Lord from the fellowship offerings.
29 “Aaron’s holy clothes will belong to his descendants so that they can be anointed and ordained in them.

30 The son who succeeds him as priest—the one who goes into the tent of meeting to serve in the holy place—will wear them for seven days.
31 “Take the ram used for the ordination, and boil its meat in a holy place.32 At the entrance to the tent of meeting, Aaron and his sons will eat the meat of the ram and the bread left in the basket.33 They will eat those offerings through which they made peace with the Lord at their ordination and installation. No one else may eat them because the offerings are holy.

34 If any meat or bread from the ordination is left over until morning, burn it up. It must not be eaten because it is holy.
35 “Do this with Aaron and his sons exactly as I have commanded you. Take seven days to ordain them.36 Each day sacrifice a young bull as an offering to make peace with the Lord. Sacrifice this offering for sin on the altar in order to pay for its sins. Then anoint it with olive oil in order to dedicate it.

37 For seven days at the altar make peace with the Lord and set the altar apart for its holy purpose. Then the altar will be most holy. Anything that touches the altar will become holy.
38 “This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly every day: two one-year-old lambs.39 Offer one in the morning and the other at dusk.40 With the first lamb make an offering of eight cups of flour mixed with one quart of virgin olive oil. Make a wine offering of one quart of wine.

41 Offer the other lamb at dusk, and with it make the same grain offering and wine offering as in the morning. This is a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to the Lord.
42 “For generations to come this will be the daily burnt offering made in the Lord’s presence at the entrance to the tent of meeting. There I will meet with you to speak to you.43 I will also meet with the Israelites there, and my glory will make this place holy.

44 I will dedicate the tent of meeting and the altar for their holy purposes. I will set Aaron and his sons apart for their holy duties of serving me as priests.
45 “Then I will live among the Israelites and be their God.

46 They will know that I am the Lord their God. I brought them out of Egypt so that I might live among them. I am the Lord their God.”

Exodus 30

The Altar for Incense—Exodus 37:25–29

1 The Lord continued, “Build an altar out of acacia wood for burning incense.2 Make it 18 inches square and 36 inches high. The horns and altar must be made out of one piece of wood.3 Cover all of it with pure gold—the top, the sides, and the horns. Put a gold molding around it.4 Make two gold rings, and put them below the molding on opposite sides to hold the poles for carrying it.5 Make the poles out of acacia wood, and cover them with gold.

6 Put the altar in front of the canopy which hangs over the ark containing the words of my promise. I will meet with you there in front of the throne of mercy that is on the ark.
7 “Aaron must burn sweet-smelling incense on this altar every morning when he takes care of the lamps.

8 Also, when Aaron lights the lamps at dusk, he must burn incense. For generations to come an incense offering must burn constantly in the Lord’s presence.
9 “Never burn any unauthorized incense on this altar or any burnt offerings or grain offerings. Never pour a wine offering on it.

10 Once a year Aaron must make peace with the Lord by putting blood on its horns. Once a year—for generations to come—blood from the offering must be placed on the altar to make peace with the Lord. It is most holy to the Lord.”

Counting the Israelites

11 Then the Lord said to Moses,12 “When you take a census of the Israelites, each person must pay the Lord a ransom for his life when he is counted. Then no plague will happen to them when they are counted.13 As each person is counted, he must give one-fifth of an ounce of silver using the standard weight of the holy place.t This one-fifth of an ounce of silver is a contribution to the Lord.14 Everyone counted who is at least 20 years old must give this contribution to the Lord.15 The rich must not give more than one-fifth of an ounce of silver, and the poor must not give less. This contribution is given to make peace with the Lord and make your lives acceptable to the Lord.

16 Take the money the Israelites give to make peace with the Lord, and use it to pay the expenses of the tent of meeting. It will be a reminder for the Israelites in the Lord’s presence that the sins in their lives are removed.”

The Bronze Basin—Exodus 38:8

17 The Lord said to Moses,18 “Make a bronze basin with a bronze stand for washing. Put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and fill it with water.19 Aaron and his sons will use it for washing their hands and feet.20 Before they go into the tent of meeting, they must wash so that they will not die. Before they come near the altar to serve as priests and burn an offering by fire to the Lord,

21 they will wash their hands and feet so that they will not die. This will be a permanent law for him and his descendants for generations to come.”

The Oil for Anointing

22 The Lord said to Moses,23 “Take the finest spices: 12½ pounds of powderedt myrrh; half as much, that is, 6¼ pounds of fragrant cinnamon; 6¼ pounds of fragrant cane;24 12½ pounds of cassia—all weighed using the standard weight of the holy place—and 4 quarts of olive oil.

25 Have a perfumer make these into a holy oil, a fragrant mixture, used only for anointing. This will be the holy oil used for anointing.
26 “Use it to anoint the tent of meeting, the ark containing the words of my promise,27 the table and all the dishes, the lamp stand and all the utensils, the altar for incense,28 the altar for burnt offerings and all its accessories, and the basin with its stand.29 In this way you will dedicate them for their holy purpose. Then they will be most holy, and anything that touches them will become holy.

30 Anoint Aaron and his sons as well. In this way you will set them apart for their holy duties of serving me as priests.
31 “Say to the Israelites, ‘For generations to come, this will be my holy oil used only for anointing.32 It must never be poured on the bodies of other people. Never make any perfumed oil using this formula. It is holy, and you must treat it as holy.

33 Whoever prepares a perfume like this or puts it on anyone who is not a priest must be excluded from the people.’ ”

The Incense for Use in the Tent

34 The Lord said to Moses, “Take one part fragrant spices (two kinds of gum resin and aromatic mollusk shells), and mix them with one part pure frankincense.35 Have a perfumer make it into fragrant incense, seasoned with salt, pure and holy.36 Grind some of it into a fine powder, and put it in front of the ark containing the words of my promise in the tent of meeting, where I will meet with you. You must treat it as most holy.37 Never make any incense for yourselves using this formula. Treat it as holy to the Lord.

38 Whoever prepares anything like it for his own enjoyment must be excluded from his people.”

Exodus 31

The Craftsmen for the Tent—Exodus 35:30–35

1 The Lord said to Moses,2 “I have chosen Bezalel, son of Uri and grandson of Hur, from the tribe of Judah.3 I have filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God, making him highly skilled, resourceful, and knowledgeable in all trades.4 He’s a master artist familiar with gold, silver, and bronze.5 He knows how to cut and set stones and how to work with wood. He’s an expert in all trades.6 Also, I have appointed Oholiab, son of Ahisamach, from the tribe of Dan, to help him. I have given every craftsman the skill necessary to make everything I have commanded you:7 the tent of meeting, the ark containing the words of my promise with the throne of mercy on it, and all the other furnishings for the tent,8 the table and the dishes, the pure gold lamp stand and all its utensils, the altar for incense,9 the altar for burnt offerings and all its accessories, the basin with its stand,10 the specialt clothes—the holy clothes for the priest Aaron and the clothes for his sons when they serve as priests,

11 the anointing oil, and the sweet-smelling incense for the holy place. They will make all these things as I commanded you.”

The Sign Between the Lord and His People

12 The Lord said to Moses,

13 “Say to the Israelites, ‘Be sure to observe my days of worship. This will be a sign between me and you for generations to come so that you will know that I am the Lord who makes you holy.
14 “ ‘Observe the day of worship because it is holy to you. Whoever treats it like any other day must be put to death. Whoever works on that day must be excluded from the people.15 You may work for six days, but the seventh day is a day of worship, a day when you don’t work. It is holy to the Lord. Whoever works on that day must be put to death.16 The Israelites must observe this day of worship, celebrating it for generations to come as a permanent reminder of my promise.t

17 It will be a permanent sign between me and the Israelites, because the Lord made heaven and earth in six days, and on the seventh day he stopped working and was refreshed.’ ”
18 The Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai. Then he gave him the two tablets with his words on them, stone tablets inscribed by God himself.