Exodus 29:1-46
Directions for Setting Apart the Priests
“Here is what you must do to set apart Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests. Get a young bull and two rams. They must not have any flaws. Get the finest wheat flour. Make round loaves of bread that do not have yeast in them. Make thick loaves of bread that do not have yeast in them. Mix olive oil into the thick loaves of bread. Also make thin loaves of bread that do not have yeast in them. Brush the thin loaves with olive oil. Put everything in a basket. Offer them along with the bull and the two rams. Then bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting. Wash them with water. Take the inner robe, the outer robe of the linen apron, the apron itself and the chest cloth. Dress Aaron in them. Take the skillfully made waistband and tie the apron on him with it. Put the turban on his head. Connect the sacred plate to the turban. Take the anointing oil and pour it on his head. Bring his sons and dress them in their inner robes. Put caps on their heads. Tie belts on Aaron and his sons. The work of the priests belongs to them. This is my law that will last for all time to come.
“Then you must prepare Aaron and his sons to serve me.
“Bring the bull to the front of the tent of meeting. Have Aaron and his sons place their hands on its head. Kill it in front of the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. Dip your finger into some of the bull’s blood. Put it on the horns that stick out from the upper four corners of the altar. Pour the rest of it out at the base of the altar. Then take all the fat on the inside parts. Take the long part of the liver. Get both kidneys with the fat on them. And burn all of it on the altar. But burn the bull’s meat, hide and guts outside the camp. It is a sin offering.
“Get one of the rams. Have Aaron and his sons place their hands on its head. Kill it. Take the blood and splash it against the sides of the altar. Cut the ram into pieces. Wash the inside parts and the legs. Put them with the head and the other pieces. Then burn the whole ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to me. It has a pleasant smell. It is a food offering presented to the Lord.
“Get the other ram. Have Aaron and his sons place their hands on its head. Kill it. Put some of its blood on the right earlobes of Aaron and his sons. Put some on the thumbs of their right hands. Also put some on the big toes of their right feet. Then splash the blood against the sides of the altar. Get some of the blood from the altar. Also get some of the anointing oil. Sprinkle both of them on Aaron and his clothes and on his sons and their clothes. Then he and his sons and their clothes will be set apart to serve the Lord.
“Here is what you must take from this second ram. Take the fat, the fat tail and the fat around the inside parts. Take the long part of the liver. Also take both kidneys with the fat on them, and the right thigh. It is the ram you must use when you prepare the priests to serve the Lord. Get one round loaf of bread and one thick loaf of bread with olive oil mixed in. Also get one thin loaf of bread. Take them from the basket of bread made without yeast. It is the one in front of the Lord. Put all these things in the hands of Aaron and his sons. Tell them to lift them up and wave them in front of the Lord as a wave offering. Then take all these things from their hands. Burn them on the altar along with the burnt offering. Its smell pleases the Lord. It is a food offering presented to the Lord. Get the breast of the ram used when you prepare Aaron to serve the Lord. Wave it in front of the Lord as a wave offering. It will be your share of the meat.
“Here are the parts of the second ram that belong to Aaron and his sons. You must set apart the breast that was waved and the thigh that was offered. It will be the regular share from the Israelites for Aaron and his sons. The people must give it to the Lord from their friendship offerings.
“Aaron’s sacred clothes will belong to his sons who will come after him. Then they can wear them when you anoint them and prepare them to serve the Lord. The son who comes after Aaron as priest must wear them seven days. He will come and serve in the Holy Room in the tent of meeting.
“Get the ram sacrificed when you prepare Aaron and his sons to serve the Lord. Cook the meat in a sacred place. Aaron and his sons must eat the ram’s meat. And they must eat the bread in the basket. They must eat all of it at the entrance to the tent of meeting. These are the offerings to pay for their sins. They must eat them. The offerings must be made when Aaron and his sons are set apart and prepared to serve the Lord. No one else can eat them. They are sacred. When you prepare Aaron and his sons to serve me, you will sacrifice the ram and the bread. If any parts of the ram or bread are left until morning, burn them up. They must not be eaten. They are sacred.
“Do everything I have commanded you to do for Aaron and his sons. Take seven days when you prepare them to serve the Lord. Sacrifice a bull each day. It is a sin offering to pay for their sins. Make the altar pure. Pour olive oil on it to set it apart. Take seven days to make the altar pure. Set it apart. Then the altar will be a very holy place. Anything that touches it will be holy.
“Every day sacrifice on the altar two lambs that are a year old. Sacrifice one in the morning and the other one when the sun goes down. Along with the first lamb, offer three and a half pounds of fine flour. Mix it with a quart of oil made from pressed olives. Along with that, sacrifice a quart of wine as a drink offering. Sacrifice the other lamb when the sun goes down. Sacrifice it along with the same grain offering and its drink offering as you do in the morning. It has a pleasant smell. It is a food offering presented to the Lord.
“For all time to come, this burnt offering must be sacrificed regularly. Sacrifice it at the entrance to the tent of meeting in front of the Lord. There I will meet with you and speak to you. There I will also meet with the people of Israel. My glory will make the place holy.
“So I will set apart the tent of meeting and the altar. And I will set apart Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests. Then I will live among the people of Israel. And I will be their God. They will know that I am the Lord their God. They will know that I brought them out of Egypt so I could live among them. I am the Lord their God.
Exodus 30:1-38
The Altar for Burning Incense
“Make an altar for burning incense. Make it out of acacia wood. It must be one and a half feet square and three feet high. Make a horn stick out from each of its upper four corners. Cover the top, sides and horns with pure gold. Put a strip of gold around it. Make two gold rings for the altar below the strip. Put the rings across from each other. They will hold the poles that are used to carry it. Make the poles out of acacia wood. Cover them with gold. Put the altar in front of the curtain that hangs in front of the ark. The ark is where the tablets of the covenant law are kept. The ark will have a cover. It will be the place where sin is paid for. There I will meet with you.
“Aaron must burn sweet-smelling incense on the altar. He must do it every morning when he takes care of the lamps. He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at sunset. Incense must be burned regularly in front of the Lord. Do it for all time to come. Do not burn any other incense on the altar. Do not use the altar for burnt offerings or grain offerings. And do not pour drink offerings on it. Once a year Aaron must put the blood of a sin offering on the horns of the altar. He must do this to make the altar pure. He must do this on the day Israel’s sin is paid for. Do this for all time to come. The altar is a very holy place to me.”
Money to Pay for the People’s Lives
Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Make a list of the Israelites and count them. When you do, each one must pay the Lord for his life at the time he is counted. Then a plague will not come on them when you count them. Each one counted must pay a fifth of an ounce of silver. It must be weighed out in keeping with the standard weights that are used in the sacred tent. The payment is an offering to the Lord. Each one counted must be 20 years old or more. He must give an offering to the Lord. When you make the offering, rich people must not give more than a fifth of an ounce of silver. And poor people must not give less. The offering you give to the Lord will pay for your lives. Receive the money from the people of Israel. Use it for any purpose in the tent of meeting. It will remind the people that they are paying me for their lives.”
The Large Bowl for Washing
Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Make a large bronze bowl for washing. Make a bronze stand to put it on. Place the bowl between the tent of meeting and the altar. Put water in it. Aaron and his sons must wash their hands and feet with water from it. When they enter the tent of meeting, they must wash with water so that they will not die. They will come to the altar to serve me. They will bring a food offering to the Lord. When they do, they must wash their hands and feet so that they will not die. For all time to come, that will be a law for Aaron and the priests in his family line.”
Anointing Oil
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get some fine spices. Get 12 pounds eight ounces of liquid myrrh. Get six pounds four ounces of sweet-smelling cinnamon and the same amount of sweet-smelling calamus. Also get 12 pounds eight ounces of cassia. All the spices must be weighed out in keeping with the standard weights that are used in the sacred tent. And get a gallon of olive oil. Have a person who makes perfume mix everything into a sacred anointing oil. It will smell sweet. Then use it to anoint the tent of meeting and the ark where the tablets of the covenant law are kept. Anoint the table for the holy bread and all its things. Anoint the lampstand and the things that are used with it. Anoint the altar for burning incense. Anoint the altar for burnt offerings and all its tools. And anoint the large bowl together with its stand. You must set them apart so that they will be very holy. Anything that touches them will be holy.
“Anoint Aaron and his sons. Set them apart so that they can serve me as priests. Say to the people of Israel, ‘This will be my sacred anointing oil for all time to come. Do not pour it on anyone else’s body. Do not make any other oil in the same way. It is sacred. So you must think of it as sacred. Suppose a person makes perfume in the same way. And suppose that person puts it on someone who is not a priest. Then that person must be separated from their people.’ ”
Incense
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get some sweet-smelling spices. Get some gum resin, onycha and galbanum. Also get some pure frankincense. Make sure everything is in equal amounts. Have a person who makes perfume mix it all up into a sweet-smelling incense. It must have salt in it. It will be pure and sacred. Grind some of it into powder. Place it in front of the ark of the covenant law in the tent of meeting. There I will meet with you. The incense will be very holy to you. Do not make any incense for yourselves in the same way. Think of it as holy to the Lord. Whoever makes incense in the same way to enjoy its sweet smell must be separated from their people.”
