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Sunday, July 27th, 2025
the Week of Proper 12 / Ordinary 17
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Easy-to-Read Version

Exodus 30:2

You must make the altar square—1 cubit long and 1 cubit wide. It must be 2 cubits high. There will be horns at the four corners. These horns must be made as one piece with the altar.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Altar;   Incense;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Altars;   Altar of Incense;   Horns;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Altar;   Horn;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Altar;   Horn;   Tabernacle;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Altar;   Censer;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Altar;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Tabernacle;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Censer;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - The Altar of Incense;   Foursquare;   Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types - Altar;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Horn;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Tabernacle, the;   Priesthood, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Altar;   Foursquare;   Holy Place;   Horn;   Tabernacle;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Altar;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Atonement, Day of;   Bonfils, Immanuel ben Jacob;   Censer;   Law, Reading from the;   Leviticus;   Triennial Cycle;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Its length shall be a cubit, and its breadth a cubit. It shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits. Its horns shall be of one piece with it.
King James Version
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.
Lexham English Bible
a cubit its length and a cubit its width—it will be square—and two cubits its height, its horns of one piece with it.
New Century Version
Make it square—eighteen inches long and eighteen inches wide—and make it thirty-six inches high. The corners that stick out like horns must be one piece with the altar.
New English Translation
Its length is to be a foot and a half and its width a foot and a half; it will be square. Its height is to be three feet, with its horns of one piece with it.
Amplified Bible
"It shall be a cubit long and a cubit wide. It shall be square and it shall be two cubits high. Its horns of one piece with it.
New American Standard Bible
"Its length shall be a cubit, and its width a cubit; it shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits; its horns shall be of one piece with it.
Geneva Bible (1587)
The length therof a cubite and the breadth thereof a cubite (it shalbe foure square) and the height thereof two cubites: the hornes thereof shalbe of the same,
Legacy Standard Bible
Its length shall be a cubit, and its width a cubit; it shall be square. And its height shall be two cubits; its horns shall be of the same piece.
Contemporary English Version
Make it eighteen inches square and thirty-six inches high, and make each of its four corners stick up like the horn of a bull.
Complete Jewish Bible
It is to be eighteen inches square and three feet high; its horns are to be of one piece with it.
Darby Translation
a cubit the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof—square shall it be; and two cubits its height; of itself shall be its horns.
English Standard Version
A cubit shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth. It shall be square, and two cubits shall be its height. Its horns shall be of one piece with it.
George Lamsa Translation
A cubit long, and a cubit wide; foursquare shall it be; and its height shall be two cubits; the horns thereof shall be of one piece of the same material.
Good News Translation
It is to be square, 18 inches long and 18 inches wide, and it is to be 36 inches high. Its projections at the four corners are to form one piece with it.
Christian Standard Bible®
It must be square, eighteen inches long and eighteen inches wide; it must be thirty-six inches high. Its horns must be of one piece with it.
Literal Translation
It shall be a cubit in length and a cubit in width; it shall be square. And its height shall be two cubits, its horns from itself.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
a cubyte longe & brode, eauen foure squared, and two cubytes hye with his hornes,
American Standard Version
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 one piece with it.
Bible in Basic English
The altar is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high, and its horns are to be made of the same.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
A cubite long, and a cubite brode, eue foure square shall it be, and two cubites hye: the hornes therof shall proceede out of it.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
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 one piece with it.
King James Version (1611)
A cubite shall bee the length thereof, and a cubite the breadth thereof, (foure square shall it bee) and two cubits shalbe the height thereof: the hornes thereof shalbe of the same.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And thou shalt make it a cubit in length, and a cubit in breadth: it shall be square; and the height of it shall be of two cubits, its horns shall be of the same piece.
English Revised Version
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 one piece with it.
Berean Standard Bible
It is to be square, a cubit long, a cubit wide, and two cubits high. Its horns must be of one piece.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and the auter schal haue a cubit of lengthe, and another cubit of brede, that is foure cornerid, and twei cubitis in heiythe; corneris schulen come forth of the auter.
Young's Literal Translation
a cubit its length, and a cubit its breadth, (it is square), and two cubits its height; its horns [are] of the same.
Update Bible Version
A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the width thereof; foursquare it shall be; and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of one piece with it.
Webster's Bible Translation
A cubit [shall be] its length, and a cubit its breadth; foursquare shall it be; and two cubits [shall be] its hight: its horns [shall be] of the same.
World English Bible
Its length shall be a cubit, and its breadth a cubit. It shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits. Its horns shall be of one piece with it.
New King James Version
A cubit shall be its length and a cubit its width--it shall be square--and two cubits shall be its height. Its horns shall be of one piece with it.
New Living Translation
Make it 18 inches square and 36 inches high, with horns at the corners carved from the same piece of wood as the altar itself.
New Life Bible
It will be as long and as wide as a man's arm and as high as a man's waist. Its horns will be of one piece with it.
New Revised Standard
It shall be one cubit long, and one cubit wide; it shall be square, and shall be two cubits high; its horns shall be of one piece with it.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
a cubit, the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof four square, shall it be, - and two cubits, the height thereof, of the same, shall be the horns thereof,
Douay-Rheims Bible
It shall be a cubit in length, and another in breadth, that is, four square, and two in height. Horns shall go out of the same.
Revised Standard Version
A cubit shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth; it shall be square, and two cubits shall be its height; its horns shall be of one piece with it.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Its length shall be a cubit, and its width a cubit, it shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits; its horns shall be of one piece with it.

Contextual Overview

1 "Make an altar from acacia wood. You will use this altar for burning incense. 2 You must make the altar square—1 cubit long and 1 cubit wide. It must be 2 cubits high. There will be horns at the four corners. These horns must be made as one piece with the altar. 3 Cover the top, the horns, and all four sides of the altar with pure gold. Then put gold trim all around the altar. 4 Below this trim there should be two gold rings. There should be two gold rings on opposite sides of the altar. These gold rings will be used with poles to carry the altar. 5 Make the poles from acacia wood and cover them with gold. 6 Put the altar just outside the special curtain that hangs in front of the Box of the Agreement. So the altar will be in front of the mercy-cover that is above the Agreement. This is the place where I will meet with you. 7 "Aaron must burn sweet-smelling incense on the altar every morning. He will do this when he comes to care for the lamps. 8 He must burn incense again when he checks the lamps in the evening so that incense will be burned before the Lord every day forever. 9 Don't use this altar for offering any other kind of incense or burnt offering or for any kind of grain offering or drink offering. 10 "Once a year Aaron must make a special sacrifice. He will use the blood of the sin offering to erase the sins of the people. He will do this at the horns of this altar. This day will be called the Day of Atonement, and it will be a very special day for the Lord ."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the horns: Exodus 27:2

Reciprocal: Exodus 29:12 - the horns

Cross-References

Genesis 16:2
Sarai told Abram, "The Lord has not allowed me to have children, so sleep with my slave. Maybe she can have a son, and I will accept him as my own." Abram did what Sarai said.
Genesis 25:21
Isaac's wife could not have children. So Isaac prayed to the Lord for her. The Lord heard Isaac's prayer, and he allowed Rebekah to become pregnant.
Genesis 29:31
The Lord saw that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah, so he made it possible for Leah to have children. But Rachel did not have any children.
Genesis 30:5
She became pregnant and gave birth to a son for Jacob.
Genesis 30:6
Rachel said, "God has listened to my prayer. He decided to give me a son." So she named this son Dan.
Genesis 30:13
Leah said, "I am very happy! Now women will call me happy." So she named that son Asher.
Genesis 30:14
During the wheat harvest Reuben went into the fields and found some special flowers. He brought them to his mother Leah. But Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your son's flowers."
Genesis 31:36
Then Jacob became very angry and said, "What wrong have I done? What law have I broken? What right do you have to chase me and stop me?
Genesis 50:19
Then Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. I am not God! I have no right to punish you.
Exodus 32:19
When Moses came near the camp, he saw the golden calf and the people dancing. He became very angry, and he threw the stone tablets on the ground. The stones broke into several pieces at the bottom of the mountain.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, four square shall it be,.... It was one Jewish square cubit, which is in surface, according to Bishop Cumberland, three English square feet, and about forty seven square inches; which may denote the solidity, perfection, and extensiveness of Christ's priesthood, it being unchangeable, firm, and lasting; and which passes not from one to another, and the which makes something perfect, which the law and priesthood of Aaron could not, even perfects for ever them that are sanctified; and is very extensive; the virtue of it reaches to all the elect of God, from the beginning of the world to the end of it; not his sacrifice only, but his intercession, which is principally respected; that is made for all the people of God, in all places, and in all ages, and for all things for them, both for this life, and that which is to come:

and two cubits shall be the height thereof; so that it was as high again as it was long and broad: Christ, our interceding high priest, is made higher than the heavens:

the horns thereof shall be of the same; of the same wood the altar itself was made: these were a sort of spires that rose up at the four corners of the altar; and the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases the words,

"and of it its horns shall be erect;''

which were chiefly for decoration and ornament; and may denote the honour and glory of Christ, as well as his power and ability to save, to the uttermost, all that come to God by him, or lay hold upon him, since he ever lives to make intercession.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Exodus 37:25-28; Exodus 40:26-27. The altar of incense was to be a casing of boards of shittim wood Exodus 25:5, Exodus 25:18 inches square and three feet in height (taking the cubit as 18 inches), entirely covered with plates of gold. Four “horns” were to project upward at the corners like those of the altar of burnt-offering Exodus 27:2. A crown or moulding of gold was to run round the top. On each of two opposite sides there was to be a gold ring through which the staves were to be put when it was moved from place to place.

Exodus 30:4

By the two corners thereof - Not corners. See the margin. The sense appears to be: And two gold rings shalt thou make for it under its moulding; on its two sides shalt thou make them (i. e. one ring on each side).

Exodus 30:6

The place for the altar of incense was outside the veil, opposite to the ark of the covenant and between the candlestick on the south side and the showbread table on the north Exodus 40:22-24. It appears to have been regarded as having a more intimate connection with the holy of holies than the other things in the holy place; and the mention of the mercy-seat in this verse, if we associate with it the significance of incense as figuring the prayers of the Lord’s people Psalms 141:2; Revelation 5:8; Revelation 8:3-4, seems to furnish additional pound for an inference that the incense altar took precedence of the table of showbread and the candlestick.

Exodus 30:7

The lamps - See Exodus 25:37.

Exodus 30:7-8

The offering of the incense accompanied that of the morning and evening sacrifice. The two forms of offering symbolized the spirit of man reaching after communion with Yahweh, both in act and utterance. See Psalms 141:2.

Exodus 30:9

By this regulation, the symbolism of the altar of incense was kept free from ambiguity. atonement was made by means of the victim on the brazen altar in the court ontside; the prayers of the reconciled worshippers had their type within the tabernacle.

Exodus 30:10

See the marginal references.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Exodus 30:2. Four-square — That is, on the upper or under surface, as it showed four equal sides; but it was twice as high as it was broad, being twenty-one inches broad, and three feet six inches high. It was called, not only the altar of incense, but also the golden altar, Numbers 4:11. For the crown, horns, staves, &c., see on the altar of burnt-offering, chap. xxvii. Exodus 27:1; Exodus 27:1, &c.


 
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