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Exodus 27

KJV · Chapter 27/40

1And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits.

2And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass.

3And thou shalt make his pans to receive his ashes, and his shovels, and his basons, and his fleshhooks, and his firepans: all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of brass.

4And thou shalt make for it a grate of network of brass; and upon the net shalt thou make four brasen rings in the four corners thereof.

5And thou shalt put it under the compass of the altar beneath, that the net may be even to the midst of the altar.

6And thou shalt make staves for the altar, staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with brass.

7And the staves shall be put into the rings, and the staves shall be upon the two sides of the altar, to bear it.

8Hollow with boards shalt thou make it: as it was shewed thee in the mount, so shall they make it.

9And thou shalt make the court of the tabernacle: for the south side southward there shall be hangings for the court of fine twined linen of an hundred cubits long for one side:

10And the twenty pillars thereof and their twenty sockets shall be of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver.

11And likewise for the north side in length there shall be hangings of an hundred cubits long, and his twenty pillars and their twenty sockets of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of silver.

12And for the breadth of the court on the west side shall be hangings of fifty cubits: their pillars ten, and their sockets ten.

13And the breadth of the court on the east side eastward shall be fifty cubits.

14The hangings of one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits: their pillars three, and their sockets three.

15And on the other side shall be hangings fifteen cubits: their pillars three, and their sockets three.

16And for the gate of the court shall be an hanging of twenty cubits, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework: and their pillars shall be four, and their sockets four.

17All the pillars round about the court shall be filleted with silver; their hooks shall be of silver, and their sockets of brass.

18The length of the court shall be an hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty every where, and the height five cubits of fine twined linen, and their sockets of brass.

19All the vessels of the tabernacle in all the service thereof, and all the pins thereof, and all the pins of the court, shall be of brass.

20And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always.

21In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the Lord: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Instructions are given for building the bronze altar for sacrifices, the tabernacle courtyard with its curtains and pillars, and for the constant supply of oil that would fuel the lamps of the lampstand.

Explanation

This chapter completes the description of the tabernacle's outer structure, beginning with the bronze altar, where animal sacrifices would be offered — the first point of contact between the common people and the sacrificial system that made reconciliation with God possible. The courtyard surrounding the tabernacle, enclosed by fine linen curtains held up by bronze and silver pillars, created a defined space that visually distinguished the sacred territory from the rest of the Israelite camp, without making it entirely inaccessible to the common people. The final instruction to keep the lamps of the lampstand burning 'continually... from evening to morning' (v. 20-21) symbolizes the need for constant, unbroken spiritual watchfulness in worshiping God, a specific responsibility given to Aaron and his sons as priests. This meticulous care for every structural detail reflects the seriousness with which God treated the space set apart for his presence among the people.

Fun facts

  • The bronze altar, with its four 'horns' at the corners (v. 2), carried an important symbolic role beyond the sacrifices themselves — later in the Old Testament, grasping the horns of the altar would become a gesture of seeking refuge and mercy (1 Kings 1:50-51), showing how this object gained additional meaning over the course of Israel's history.
  • The requirement of 'pure oil olive beaten' (v. 20) specifically for the lampstand reflects a high standard of quality, since this type of oil, extracted without excessive heat or pressure, was considered the purest and finest available in ancient olive oil production.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Exodus 27:1The altar of sacrifice stood outside the tabernacle, made of acacia wood in a square frame about 7 feet 6 inches on each side.
  2. Exodus 27:2The “horns” were horn-shaped projections at the altar’s four upper corners, made of the same wood structure covered in bronze. In other biblical rituals, it was precisely on these horns that sacrificial blood was applied, a point of symbolic importance for the altar, not just a decorative detail.
  3. Exodus 27:3A set of auxiliary utensils came with the altar: ash pans, shovels, basins, forks, and firepans, all made of bronze to withstand the heat of the fire.
  4. Exodus 27:4A bronze grate in the shape of a net was placed inside the altar’s frame, with metal rings at the corners to bear the weight of the fire and the sacrifices.
  5. Exodus 27:5This grate was positioned halfway up the altar, creating an internal space to hold the coals.
  6. Exodus 27:6Like other movable pieces of the tabernacle, the altar had wooden poles overlaid with bronze, used to carry it without direct contact.
  7. Exodus 27:7The poles ran through the altar’s side rings, allowing it to be carried on the shoulders whenever the camp moved.
  8. Exodus 27:8The altar was built hollow inside, made of fitted boards, following exactly the specific pattern already shown to Moses on the mountain.
  9. Exodus 27:9Besides the tabernacle itself, an outer courtyard surrounded the whole structure, marked off by fine linen curtains along the south side, 150 feet long.
  10. Exodus 27:10The pillars that held up these curtains on the south side were bronze, while the finishing details, hooks and bands, were silver.
  11. Exodus 27:11The north side of the courtyard followed exactly the same measurements and the same material pattern as the south side, with its own twenty pillars.
  12. Exodus 27:12The west side of the courtyard was narrower, with 75 feet of curtain held up by ten pillars.
  13. Exodus 27:13The east side, facing the main entrance, was also 75 feet wide, split between the gate and the side curtains.
  14. Exodus 27:14On each side of the entrance, about 22 feet 6 inches of curtain completed the full width of the courtyard’s east side.
  15. Exodus 27:15The other side of the entrance followed the same measurement, symmetrically closing off the courtyard’s front.
  16. Exodus 27:16The courtyard gate itself had a more elaborate embroidered covering than the plain curtains, using the same colored fabrics found in other visible parts.
  17. Exodus 27:17All the pillars around the entire courtyard followed the same finishing pattern: silver bands at the top and bronze sockets at the bottom.
  18. Exodus 27:18Sums up the courtyard’s total dimensions: 150 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 7 feet 6 inches high for the curtains enclosing the whole space.
  19. Exodus 27:19Determines that all the utensils used in the tabernacle’s service, down to the pins used to set up the courtyard, had to be made of bronze.
  20. Exodus 27:20“Beaten” olive oil was extracted from the first pressings of the olive, without using heat or a heavy mill, producing a purer oil that burned more cleanly. It fed the lamps of the lampstand inside the tabernacle, which had to stay lit continually.
  21. Exodus 27:21Aaron and his sons had the daily task of keeping those lamps burning through the night, inside the tent. “A statute for ever” means this was not just an order for that moment, but a practice that had to keep being followed by the people’s future generations.

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