Exodus 30:3

Easy-to-Read Version

Cover the top, the horns, and all four sides of the altar with pure gold. Then put gold trim all around the altar.

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
You shall overlay it with pure gold, the top of it, the sides of it around it, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding around it.

King James Version
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.

Lexham English Bible
And you will overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around and its horns, and you will make for it a gold molding all around.

New Century Version
Cover its top, its sides, and its corners with pure gold, and put a gold strip all around the altar.

New English Translation
You are to overlay it with pure gold—its top, its four walls, and its horns—and make a surrounding border of gold for it.

Amplified Bible
"You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding all around it.

New American Standard Bible
"You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding all around for it.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And thou shalt ouerlay it with fine golde, both the toppe therof and the sides thereof round about, and his hornes: also thou shalt make vnto it a crowne of gold round about.

Legacy Standard Bible
You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding all around for it.

Contemporary English Version
Cover it with pure gold and put a gold edging around it.

Complete Jewish Bible
Overlay it with pure gold — its top, all around its sides, and its horns; and put around it a molding of gold.

Darby Translation
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 upon it a border of gold round about.

English Standard Version
You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and around its sides and its horns. And you shall make a molding of gold around it.

George Lamsa Translation
And you shall overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and you shall make for it a crown of gold round about.

Good News Translation
Cover its top, all four sides, and its projections with pure gold, and put a gold border around it.

Christian Standard Bible®
Overlay its top, all around its sides, and its horns with pure gold; make a gold molding all around it.

Literal Translation
And you shall overlay it with pure gold, its top, and its walls all around, and its horns. And you shall make a wreath of gold for it all around.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
& shalt ouerlaye it with pure golde, the rofe & the walles of it rounde aboute, and the hornes therof, & a crowne of golde shalt thou make rounde aboute it,

American Standard Version
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.

Bible in Basic English
It is to be plated with the best gold, the top of it and the sides and the horns, with an edging of gold all round it.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And thou shalt ouerlaye it with fine gold, both the ruffe & the walles round about, and his hornes also: and shalt make vnto it a crowne of gold round about.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
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.

King James Version (1611)
And thou shalt ouerlay it with pure gold, the top therof, and the sides thereof round about, and the hornes thereof: and thou shalt make vnto it a crowne of gold round about.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And thou shalt gild its grate with pure gold, and its sides round about, and its horns; and thou shalt make for it a wreathen border of gold round-about.

English Revised Version
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.

Berean Standard Bible
Overlay with pure gold the top and all the sides and horns, and make a molding of gold all around it.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And thou schalt clothe it with clennest gold, as wel the gridil therof, as the wallis and corneris bi cumpas therof; and thou schalt make to the auter a litil goldun coroun,

Young's Literal Translation
`And thou hast overlaid it with pure gold, its top, and its sides round about, and its horns; and thou hast made to it a crown of gold round about;

Update Bible Version
And you shall overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and you shall make to it a crown of gold round about.

Webster's Bible Translation
And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, its top, and its sides round about, and its horns; and thou shalt make to it a crown of gold round about.

World English Bible
You shall overlay it with pure gold, the top of it, the sides of it around it, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding around it.

New King James Version
And you shall overlay its top, its sides all around, and its horns with pure gold; and you shall make for it a molding of gold all around.

New Living Translation
Overlay the top, sides, and horns of the altar with pure gold, and run a gold molding around the entire altar.

New Life Bible
Cover its top, all its sides and its horns with pure gold. And make a piece of gold to go around it.

New Revised Standard
You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top, and its sides all around and its horns; and you shall make for it a molding of gold all around.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
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 to it a border of gold round about.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And thou shalt overlay it with the purest gold, as well the grate thereof, as the walls round about, and the horns. And thou shalt make to it a crown of gold round about,

Revised Standard Version
And you shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides round about and its horns; and you shall make for it a molding of gold round about.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding all around for 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

overlay it: Exodus 25:11, Exodus 25:24

top: Heb. roof

sides: Heb. walls

Reciprocal: Exodus 25:25 - a golden crown to the border Exodus 37:2 - General 1 Kings 6:22 - also Ezekiel 43:17 - and the border

Cross-References

Genesis 30:2
Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, "I am not God. He is the one who has caused you to not have children."

Genesis 30:3
Then Rachel said, "You can have my maid Bilhah. Sleep with her, and she will have a child for me. Then I can be a mother through her."

Genesis 30:9
Leah saw that she could have no more children. So she gave her slave girl Zilpah to Jacob.

Genesis 50:23
During Joseph's life Ephraim had children and grandchildren. And his son Manasseh had a son named Makir. Joseph lived to see Makir's children.

Ruth 4:11
So all the elders and the people who were near the city gates said, "We are witnesses to all of this. And may the Lord bless this woman who is coming into your home to be like Rachel and Leah. They are the ones who had many children to make the people of Israel strong. And may you become powerful in the tribe of Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem!

Job 3:12
Why did my mother hold me on her knees? Why did her breasts feed me?

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold,.... Hence this altar is sometimes called the golden altar, Numbers 4:11 this may figure the deity of Christ, whose head is as the most fine gold, and is in the divine nature, in the form of God, and is the brightness of his glory, and possessed of the same perfections; or rather the glorification of his human nature in heaven, where he is highly exalted, and the preciousness of his intercession, which is always powerful and prevalent, and the duration of it:

the top thereof, and the sides thereof, round about, and the horns thereof: all and each of them were covered with gold; this altar had a top, when the altar of burnt offering had none, but its hollow place was filled up with earth at every encampment; so Jarchi observes: this was not a grate, as the Vulgate Latin version renders it, for here were neither blood nor ashes to be let through; but it was a flat covering like the roof of a house, as the word signifies, on which was set a golden dish, with live coals and incense burning on them; and which, when burnt, was carried away: and the sides are the four sides of the frame, it being a square, or the two sides and two ends of it; and the horns, the four horns at each corner, all were covered with plates of gold; so that this altar was a richer and more excellent one than that of burnt offering; and may signify the superior excellency of Christ's state of exaltation to that of his humiliation: in the latter, which the altar of burnt offering respected, he was made of no reputation, and became obedient to the death of the cross, yea, was made sin, and a curse for his people; but in the former, which the altar of incense respected, he was raised from the dead, and had glory given him; he was raised for the justification of his people, and was himself justified in the Spirit, ascended on high, was received into glory, sat down at the right hand of God, making continual intercession for his saints:

and thou shall make unto it a crown of gold round about; which was partly to keep from slipping what was put upon it, but chiefly for ornament; and plainly points at the exaltation of Christ in our nature in heaven, as our interceding high priest, where he is a priest upon his throne; and is crowned with glory and honour.

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.