1 And thou shalt make the altar of acacia-wood, five cubits the length, and five cubits the breadth; the altar shall be square; and the height thereof three cubits.
And he made the altar of burnt-offering of acacia-wood; five cubits the length thereof, and five cubits the breadth thereof, square, and three cubits the height thereof. And he made its horns on the four corners thereof; its horns were of itself; and he overlaid it with copper. And he made all the utensils of the altar: the pots, and the shovels, and the bowls, the forks, and the firepans; all its utensils made he of copper. And he made for the altar a grating of network of copper under its ledge from beneath, to the very middle of it. And he cast four rings for the four corners of the grating of copper, as receptacles for the staves. And he made the staves of acacia-wood, and overlaid them with copper. And he put the staves into the rings on the sides of the altar, with which to carry it. Hollow with boards did he make it.
An altar of earth shalt thou make unto me, and shalt sacrifice on it thy burnt-offerings, and thy peace-offerings, thy sheep and thine oxen: in all places where I shall make my name to be remembered, I will come unto thee, and bless thee. And if thou make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone; for if thou lift up thy sharp tool upon it, thou hast profaned it. Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.
And thou shalt anoint the altar of burnt-offering, and all its utensils; and thou shalt hallow the altar, and the altar shall be most holy.
And he put the altar of burnt-offering at the entrance to the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and offered on it the burnt-offering and the oblation; as Jehovah had commanded Moses.
And he made a brazen altar: its length was twenty cubits, and its breadth twenty cubits, and its height ten cubits.
And these are the measures of the altar in cubits: the cubit is a cubit and a hand breadth. The bottom was a cubit [in height] and the breadth a cubit, and its border on the edge thereof round about, one span: and this was the base of the altar. And from the bottom upon the ground to the lower settle was two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the small settle to the great settle, four cubits, and the breadth a cubit. And the upper altar was four cubits; and from the hearth of ùGod and upward were four horns. And the hearth of ùGod was twelve [cubits] long, by twelve broad, square in the four sides thereof. And the settle was fourteen [cubits] long by fourteen broad in the four sides thereof; and the border about it, half a cubit; and the bottom thereof a cubit round about: and its steps looked toward the east.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Exodus 27
Commentary on Exodus 27 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 27
Ex 27:1-21. Altar for Burnt Offering.
1, 2. altar of shittim wood—The dimensions of this altar which was placed at the entrance of the sanctuary were nearly three yards square, and a yard and a half in height. Under the wooden frame of this chest-like altar the inside was hollow, and each corner was to be terminated by "horns"—angular projections, perpendicular or oblique, in the form of horns. The animals to be sacrificed were bound to these (Ps 118:27), and part of the blood was applied to them.
3. shovels—fire shovels for scraping together any of the scattered ashes.
basons—for receiving the blood of the sacrifice to be sprinkled on the people.
fleshhooks—curved, three-pronged forks (1Sa 2:13, 14).
fire-pans—A large sort of vessel, wherein the sacred fire which came down from heaven (Le 9:24) was kept burning, while they cleaned the altar and the grate from the coals and ashes, and while the altar was carried from one place to another in the wilderness [Patrick, Spencer, Le Clerc].
4. a grate of network of brass—sunk latticework to support the fire.
four brazen rings—by which the grating might be lifted and taken away as occasion required from the body of the altar.
5. put it under the compass of the altar beneath—that is, the grating in which they were carried to a clean place (Le 4:12).
6, 7. staves … rings—Those rings were placed at the side through which the poles were inserted on occasions of removal.
9-19. the court of the tabernacle—The enclosure in which the edifice stood was a rectangular court, extending rather more than fifty yards in length and half that space in breadth, and the enclosing parapet was about three yards or half the height of the tabernacle. That parapet consisted of a connected series of curtains, made of fine twined linen yarn, woven into a kind of network, so that the people could see through; but that large curtain which overhung the entrance was of a different texture, being embroidered and dyed with variegated colors, and it was furnished with cords for pulling it up or drawing it aside when the priests had occasion to enter. The curtains of this enclosure were supported on sixty brazen pillars which stood on pedestals of the same metal, but their capitals and fillets were of silver, and the hooks on which they were suspended were of silver also.
19. pins—were designed to hold down the curtains at the bottom, lest the wind should waft them aside.
20, 21. pure oil olive beaten—that is, such as runs from the olives when bruised and without the application of fire.
for the light … Aaron and his sons—were to take charge of lighting it in all time coming.
21. shall order it from evening to morning—The tabernacle having no windows, the lamps required to be lighted during the day. Josephus says that in his time only three were lighted; but his were degenerate times, and there is no Scripture authority for this limitation. But although the priests were obliged from necessity to light them by day, they might have let them go out at night had it not been for this express ordinance.