1 "Make an altar of acacia wood on which to burn incense.
2 It is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high, with its horns of one piece with it.
3 Overlay its top, its sides all around and its horns with pure gold, and make a gold molding around it.
4 Make two gold rings for it below the molding, on two opposite sides, to hold the poles by which it is carried.
5 Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold.
6 Place the altar in front of the veil that hangs before the ark of the testimony, in front of the mercy seat over the testimony, where I will meet with you.
7 Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he trims the lamps.
8 He is to burn it again when he lights the lamps at twilight, so that incense burns before the LORD regularly for all your generations.
9 Do not offer on this altar any unauthorized incense or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour a drink offering on it.
10 Once a year Aaron is to make atonement on its horns. With the blood of the sin offering for atonement he is to make atonement for it once a year for all your generations. It is most holy to the LORD."
11 Then the LORD said to Moses,
12 "When you take a census of the children of Israel to count them, each man must pay the LORD a ransom for his life at the time he is counted, so that no plague will come on them when you count them.
13 Everyone who crosses over to those already counted is to give half a shekel, by the sanctuary shekel, which is twenty gerahs. This half shekel is a contribution to the LORD.
14 Everyone twenty years old or more who crosses over to those counted is to give the LORD's contribution.
15 When you give the LORD's contribution to make atonement for your lives, the rich are not to give more than half a shekel, and the poor are not to give less.
16 Collect the atonement money from the children of Israel and use it for the service of the tent of meeting. It will be a reminder of the children of Israel before the LORD, making atonement for your lives."
17 The LORD said to Moses,
18 "Make a bronze basin with a bronze stand for washing. Set it between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it.
19 Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and feet with water from it.
20 Whenever they enter the tent of meeting they must wash with water so that they will not die; likewise when they approach the altar to minister by burning a food offering to the LORD,
21 they must wash their hands and feet so that they will not die. This is to be a lasting ordinance for Aaron and his descendants for all their generations."
22 The LORD also said to Moses,
23 "Take the choicest spices: five hundred shekels of liquid myrrh, half that amount, two hundred and fifty shekels, of fragrant cinnamon, two hundred and fifty shekels of fragrant cane,
24 five hundred shekels of cassia, by the sanctuary shekel, and a hin of olive oil.
25 From these make a holy anointing oil, a fragrant blend prepared by a perfumer. It will be the holy anointing oil.
26 Use it to anoint the tent of meeting, the ark of the testimony,
27 the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, the altar of incense,
28 the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin with its stand.
29 Consecrate them so that they will be most holy; whatever touches them will become holy.
30 Anoint Aaron and his sons as well, and consecrate them to serve me as priests.
31 Tell the children of Israel, 'This is to be my holy anointing oil for all your generations.
32 Do not pour it on ordinary people's bodies, and do not make any oil with the same formula. It is holy, and you are to treat it as holy.
33 Whoever blends any like it or puts any of it on an outsider is to be cut off from his people.'"
34 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Take fragrant spices, stacte, onycha and galbanum, these fragrant spices together with pure frankincense, all in equal amounts,
35 and make an incense blended as a perfumer would, salted, pure and holy.
36 Grind some of it into fine powder and place it in front of the testimony in the tent of meeting, where I will meet with you. You are to regard it as most holy.
37 Do not make any incense with this formula for yourselves; treat it as holy, set apart for the LORD.
38 Whoever makes any like it to enjoy its fragrance is to be cut off from his people."