The Daily Offerings
(Numbers 28:1–8)
38 This is what you are to offer regularly on the altar, each day: two lambs that are a year old. 39 Offer one lamb in the morning and the other at twilight.[1] 40 With the first lamb offer a tenth of an ephah of fine flour,[2] mixed with a quarter hin of oil from pressed olives,[3] and a drink offering of a quarter hin of wine. 41 And offer the second lamb at twilight with the same grain offering and drink offering as in the morning, as a pleasing aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD.
42 For the generations to come, this burnt offering shall be made regularly at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting before the LORD, where I will meet you to speak with you. 43 I will also meet with the Israelites there, and that place will be consecrated by My glory. 44 So I will consecrate the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and I will consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve Me as priests.
God Will Dwell among the People
45 Then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God. 46 And they will know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt so that I might dwell among them.
I am the LORD their God.
The Altar of Incense
(Exodus 37:25–29)
30 “You are also to make an altar of acacia wood for the burning of incense. 2 It is to be square, a cubit long, a cubit wide, and two cubits high.[4] Its horns must be of one piece. 3 Overlay with pure gold the top and all the sides and horns, and make a molding of gold around it. 4 And make two gold rings below the molding on opposite sides to hold the poles used to carry it. 5 Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold.
6 Place the altar in front of the veil that is before the ark of the Testimony [5]—before the mercy seat that is over the Testimony—where I will meet with you. 7 And Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he tends the lamps. 8 When Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight,[6] he must burn the incense perpetually before the LORD for the generations to come. 9 On this altar you must not offer unauthorized [7] incense or a burnt offering or grain offering; nor are you to pour a drink offering on it.
10 Once a year Aaron shall make atonement on the horns of the altar. Throughout your generations he shall make atonement on it annually with the blood of the sin offering [8] of atonement. The altar is most holy to the LORD.”
The Census Offering
(2 Samuel 24:1–9; 1 Chronicles 21:1–6)
11 Then the LORD said to Moses, 12 “When you take a census of the Israelites to number them, each man must pay the LORD a ransom for his life when he is counted. Then no plague will come upon them when they are numbered. 13 Everyone who crosses over to those counted must pay a half shekel,[9] according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs.[10] This half shekel is an offering to the LORD.
- ↑ 39 Hebrew between the two evenings; also in verse 41
- ↑ 40 A tenth of an ephah is approximately 2 dry quarts or 2.2 liters (probably about 2.6 pounds or 1.2 kilograms of flour).
- ↑ 40 Hebrew a quarter hin of pressed oil; that is, approximately 0.97 quarts or 0.92 liters
- ↑ 2 The altar was approximately 1.5 feet in length and width, and 3 feet high (45.7 centimeters in length and width, and 91.4 centimeters high).
- ↑ 6 That is, the ark of the covenant; also in verse 26
- ↑ 8 Hebrew between the two evenings
- ↑ 9 Or strange
- ↑ 10 Or purification offering
- ↑ 13 A half shekel is approximately 0.2 ounces or 5.7 grams; also in verse 15.
- ↑ 13 20 gerahs is equivalent to one shekel (approximately 0.4 ounces or 11.4 grams).
