Verses 1-5 And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. 2 A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. 3 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. 4 And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. 5 And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold.
It is easy to confuse the altars in the original tabernacle. This altar was small and used only to burn incense. It was approximately 18 inches long by 18 inches wide by 36 inches tall and it was completely covered in gold. There was a “crown” or border around it and rings for places to insert staves for carrying it when the camp moved from one area to another. The priests were to burn incense unto the LORD so the entire tabernacle would be filled with a pleasant aroma.
What did the incense represent and why was it to be burned continually? It represented and does represent today the prayers of the saints. God sees the believers’ prayers as a sweet smelling incense. “And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” Revelation 8:3 God gave the tabernacle plan to Moses based on what already exists in Heaven. The incense altar was and is in Heaven. Moses made a replica for the tabernacle on Earth. “And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.” Revelation 8:4
Application: Praying is important and should be a part of every believer’s day. Every prayer is heard by the LORD and is registered in Heaven. Elizabeth and Zacharias had prayed for a child and this prayer was answered by an angel when Zacharias, a Levite priest, was ministering in the temple. The son that was born to them was John the Baptist. Where was Zacharias ministering? “According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense” Luke 1:9-11
Verses 6-10 And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee. 7 And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. 8 And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. 9 Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon. 10 And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD.
The placement was at the west end of the tabernacle in front of the vail that separated the most holy place from the rest of the tabernacle. The high priest was to tend to the lamps and the altar of incense. It was to be burning continually and the incense was to be made from a specific recipe given to Moses by God. Notice what could not be offered on this little altar.
Verses 11-16 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 12 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them. 13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD. 14 Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the LORD. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls. 16 And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.
How did the Levites keep the tabernacle in good repair and service? God provided for the expenses by requiring an offering of money from all adults twenty years and older and the money amount was the same for all people regardless of their financial status. The rich did not have to pay more than the poor. Everyone was treated equally by the God of the universe. Apparently, by being faithful to this offering, the people would be protecting their souls (mind, will and emotions), and keeping plagues away from their nation. This was a small price to pay for such security. The offering also served as a reminder to the people of the importance of their God and His preeminent position in their lives.
Verses 17-21 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 18 Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein. 19 For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat: 20 When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the LORD: 21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations.
The laver was for washing. The size of the laver is not given in the verses above. The ritual of washing was extremely important as the priest who failed to clean himself before handling the things of God would die. This represented a type of water baptism for the servants of God.
Application: Each believer today is a priest in the spiritual kingdom of God. As such, each believer needs to be sure that they are clean before the LORD and that there is no sin in their lives before handling the things of God. Perhaps prayers remain unanswered because the believer has unrepentant sin in his/her life. Perhaps the believer has failed to be baptized after conversion and has disobedience in his/her life. Each believer needs to examine his/her spiritual condition daily and fix that which needs fixing so that he/she stands clean before the LORD.
Verses 22-29 Moreover the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 23 Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels, 24 And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin: 25 And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil. 26 And thou shalt anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith, and the ark of the testimony, 27 And the table and all his vessels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar of incense, 28 And the altar of burnt offering with all his vessels, and the laver and his foot. 29 And thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy.
God is always in the details. In the verses above, specific spices were to be mixed with olive oil to make an anointing oil that would be holy unto the LORD. Myrrh was used in embalming of corpses and it has powerful cleansing properties. Today, 15cc’s of Myrrh oil will cost anywhere from $50-$80. Cinnamon was used for flavor as it is today and it is antimicrobial as well. This writer does not know what calamus was but it appears to have been derived from a reed like plant. Cassia is thought to be related to cinnamon and is very fragrant.
Verses 30-33 And thou shalt anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office. 31 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations. 32 Upon man’s flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you. 33 Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people.
The Hebrew word for “cut off” is “karath” and it can mean to cut, to cut down, cut out, eliminate, kill, or cut a covenant. This writer thinks that the person illegally using the holy anointing oil was removed from the community and from the nation. Not really sure. You decide. Regardless, it was wrong to use the things of God that were holy or set apart for the ministry for any other purpose. Things that are set apart for the ministry today such as buildings, tithes and offerings, etc. are not to be used improperly.
Application: The believer is set apart and holy unto the LORD. The believer’s body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Could it be that believers today often fail to care for their physical bodies and their minds and emotions in a manner that is pleasing to the LORD? Think about it.
Verses 34-38 And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight: 35 And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy: 36 And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy. 37 And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the LORD. 38 Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people.
So there was a specially made incense and a specially made anointing oil that were to be only manufactured and used in the service of the tabernacle and later in the service of the temple. Now there is a specially made perfume. Frankincense was perhaps the most precious of the ancient spices/oils. It was expensive then and it is expensive now. It was unlawful for this compounded perfume to be used outside of the ministry of the tabernacle.