Preface: The Bible continues from Exodus 26 to give instructions as t how to built the altar and how to build the courtyard. There is really nothing that separates these two chapters.

The Bible Summary of Exodus 27 (in 140 characters or less): Make an altar of acacia wood with bronze utensils. Make a court for the tabernacle of fine linen hangings and bronze pillars.

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Exodus. This will be the most extensive examination of Exodus 27, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 27:

Introduction

         vv.     1–8           How to Build the Altar and Its Implements

         vv.     9–19         Instructions for Building the Courtyard

         vv.    20–21         Oil and the Responsibility of Aaron and His Descendants

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Exodus 27 (by various commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Exodus 27 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Exodus 27

         Introduction         The Prequel of Exodus 27

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Principals of Exodus 27

         Introduction         The Places of Exodus 27

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         Timeline for Exodus 27

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 27

         Introduction         Outlines of Exodus 27 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 27 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction         The Big Picture (Exodus 25–30)

         Introduction         Paragraph Divisions of Modern Translation for Exodus 27

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions (for Exodus 27)

         Introduction 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v.       5              The Bronze Altar (a graphic)

         v.       5              Bronze Altar with a Ledge (a graphic)

         v.       5              The Brazen Altar (a graphic)

         v.       5              The Altar with a Rampway (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v.       8              Various Bronze Altars (a graphic)

         v. 

         v.      10              Side-by-side Comparison of Pillars (a graphic)

         v.      10              Outside Pillars (a photo of a model)

         v.      11              The Outside Posts and Curtains (a graphic)

         v.      12              The Tabernacle and Courtyard (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      15              The Courtyard (a graphic)

         v.      15              The Breadth of the Court [vv. 12–15]

         v.      16              Courtyard Doorway (a photo of a mockup)

         v.      16              The Door to the Courtyard (a picture of a model)

         v.      17              Pillars and Curtain (photo of a mockup)

         v.      18              The Courtyard Wall (a graphic)

         v.      19              The Fully Functioning Tabernacle and Courtyard (a photo of a mockup)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      20              Oil Made from Olives (a photograph)

         v.      21              The Lampstand with Oil and Lights (a photo)

         v.      21              The Arrangement of the Furniture in and Near the Tabernacle (a graphic)

         v.      21              The Symbols in the Tabernacle Complex (Jim Bomkamp)

         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Exodus 27 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Exodus 27

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Exodus 27

         Summary            Shmoop Summary of Exodus 27

         Summary            Edersheim Summarizes Exodus 27

         Summary 

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Exodus 27

         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Exodus 27

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Exodus 27

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Exodus 27

——————————

An Introduction to Exodus 27

I ntroduction: Exodus 27 will deal with the building of the altar and the outer court of the tabernacle. God is still speaking to Moses and describing to him exactly what must be built. The altar was outside of the Tabernacle. People did not see what happened in the Tabernacle; but they saw the sacrifices of the animals on the altar of God.

I think that is might be helpful to many if you understand that the Tabernacle is simply a large tent; a structure which can be constructed, but also one that might be dismantled and set up elsewhere.

Also in this chapter, we study the building of the courtyard which surrounded the Tabernacle. The people of Israel did go into the courtyard. Given its size, it could only accommodate a finite number of Israelites (what I mean here is, a relatively small number; less than 100 at a time).

Just to make certain that you understand—my intention is to teach this chapter mostly from the standpoint of the people to whom this was given. I will try to convey what I believe that they understood; and then to suggest what we, as believers in the Church Age, should understand from this chapter.

There are certainly some differences in the understanding of exactly how the Tabernacle and its courtyard were built. I do not intend to take any amount of time discussing such issues in depth. When translations appear to have a different idea about what is here; or when there are graphics which show some significant disagreements, then I will certainly point this out. However, because the content of this chapter is from a bygone era, becoming to exacting on these issues would probably defeat the purpose of studying and teaching this in the first place. Ideally speaking, you will understand why this chapter was written, to whom it was written, and how it connects to you in this day and age.

A minor but important note: after doing a small amount of research on copper and on bronze, I would conclude that the outside metal used was more likely bronze than copper. At some point, I should change my translations to match. Based upon this research, I will change my reasonably literal paraphrase to reflect this information.

Timeline for Exodus 27

——————————

How to Build the Altar and Its Implements

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac (= Aramaic) and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

The comparisons which I do are primarily between the English translations which are taken from the ancient tongues. For the most part, the variances are so minor that I rarely investigate them any further than that.

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. From http://www.becomingjewish.org/texts/targum/onkelos_Exodus.html and first published in 1862.

Occasionally, there is an obvious error in the English translation, and I correct those without additional mention or footnoting. For instance, the online version of the Targum of Onkelos which I use has gorund in Ex. 4:9; I simply corrected the text. This may occur once or twice in a chapter.

I attempt to include translations which are different in their vocabulary and phrasing. On many occasions, I may include a translation which is not substantially different than another listed translation.

Most of the translations can be found here.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And you have made the altar [of] lumber of acacia wood, five of cubits of length and five of cubits of width—being square is the altar—and three cubits of his height. And you have made his horns upon four of his corners. From him are his horns. And you have overlaid him [with] copper.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Targum (Onkelos)                  And thou shalt make THE ALTAR of sittin woods; five cubits the length and five cubits the breadth; square shall be the altar, and three cubits its height. And thou shalt make its horns upon its four corners; of the same shall be its horns, and overlay it with brass. Translation for Onkelos and Pseudo-Jonathan by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. (1862).

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   And thou shalt make the Alter of woods of sitta; five cubits the length, and five cubits the breadth: square shall be the altar, and its height three cubits. And thou shalt make its horns upon its four corners: the, horns shall be of it, they shall rise upward, and thou shalt cover it with brass.

Jerusalem targum                  .

Revised Douay-Rheims         You shall make also an altar of setim wood, which shall be five cubits long and as many broad, that is, foursquare, and three cubits high.

And there shall be horns at the four corners of the same: and you shall cover it with brass.

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) .

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        "You shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and its height shall be three cubits. You shall make its horns on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it; and you shall overlay it with brass.

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     AND you shall make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare; and the height thereof three cubits. And you shall make the horns of it on the four corners thereof; its horns shall be of the same; and you shall overlay it with brass.

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     .

Samaritan Pentateuch           And thou shalt make for the hanging five pillars [of] shittim [wood], and overlay them with pure gold, [and] their hooks [shall be of] gold: and thou shalt cast five sockets of brass for them.

And 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.

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And you shall make an altar of incorruptible wood, of five cubits in the length, and five cubits in the breadth; the altar shall be square, and the height of it shall be three cubits. And you shall make the horns on the four corners; the horns shall be of the same piece, and you shall overlay them with brass.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And make an altar of hard wood, a square altar, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high. 

Put horns at the four angles of it, made of the same, plating it all with brass.

Easy English                          The altar on which to burn animals as gifts

Make an altar out of acacia wood. It must be 1¼ metres high and the top must be square, 2¼ metres long and wide. Make four horns, one at each corner. The horns and the altar must be one piece of work. Then cover it all with bronze.

Easy-to-Read Version–2001  {The Lord said to Moses,} "Use acacia wood and build an altar. The altar should be square. It must be 5 cubits long, 5 cubits wide, and 3 cubits high. Make a horn for each of the four corners of the altar. Join each horn to its corner so that everything is one piece. Then cover the altar with bronze.

God’s Word™                         The Altar

The Lord continued, “Make an altar out of acacia wood. It should be 7½ feet square, and 4½ feet high. Make a horn at each of its four corners. The four horns and the altar must be made out of one piece of wood covered with bronze.

Good News Bible (TEV)         "Make an altar out of acacia wood. It is to be square, 7 1/2 feet long and 7 1/2 feet wide, and it is to be 4 1/2 feet high. Make projections at the top of the four corners. They are to form one piece with the altar, and the whole is to be covered with bronze.

The Message                         The Altar

“Make an Altar of acacia wood. Make it seven and a half feet square and four and a half feet high. Make horns at each of the four corners. The horns are to be of one piece with the Altar and covered with a veneer of bronze.

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      The Altar for Burnt Offerings

“Build an altar out of acacia wood. It must be four feet six inches high and seven feet six inches square. Make a horn stick out from each of its upper four corners. The horns and the altar must be all one piece. Cover the altar with bronze.

New Simplified Bible              .

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Contemporary English V.       Use acacia wood to build an altar seven and a half feet square and four and a half feet high, and make each of the four top corners stick up like the horn of a bull. Then cover the whole altar with bronze, including the four horns.

The Living Bible                     “Using acacia wood, make a square altar 7½ feet wide, and 4½ feet high. Make horns for the four corners of the altar, attach them firmly, and overlay everything with bronze.

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    The Altar

“Make the altar of acacia wood. It will be as long and as wide as three steps, and as tall as a man’s chest. Make horns for it on its four corners. They will be of one piece and covered with brass.

New Living Translation           Plans for the Altar of Burnt Offering

“Using acacia wood, construct a square altar 7 1∕2 feet wide, 7 1∕2 feet long, and 4 1∕2 feet high.[a] Make horns for each of its four corners so that the horns and altar are all one piece. Overlay the altar with bronze.

Unlocked Dynamic Bible        .

Unfolding Bible (simplified)    "Tell them to make an altar from acacia wood. It is to be square, two and one-tenth meters long on each side, and make it one and one-third meters high.  They must make a projection that looks like a horn on each of the top corners. The projections must be carved from the same block of wood as the altar. Tell them to cover the whole altar with bronze.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          ‘Then you must make an Altar of durable wood that will be square, eight and a quarter feet long, eight and a quarter feet wide, and five feet high.

You must also create horns for each of the four corners. They will be made of a single piece and overlaid with bronze.

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           Instructions for the altar

Make an acacia-wood altar. The altar should be square, seven and a half feet long and seven and a half feet wide. It should be four and a half feet high. Make horns for the altar and attach them to it, one horn on each of its four corners. Cover it with copper.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Make an altar, too, of acacia wood, with a surface five cubits square, and a height of three cubits. It must have horns at the corners, all of a piece with it, and it must be plated with bronze.

Translation for Translators                                           Instructions for the altar

“Tell them to make an altar from acacia wood. It is to be square, ◂7-1/2 feet/2.2 meters► on each side, and make it ◂4-1/2 feet/1.3 meters► high. They must make a projection that looks like a horn on each of the top corners. The projections must be carved from the same block of wood as the altar. Tell them to cover the whole altar with gold.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Conservapedia                       .

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Make besides an altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad. The altar shall be square, and its height three cubits. And make horns to it upon its four sides. The horns shall project from it. You shall also sheathe it in brass.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           And you shall make an altar of sethim wood: five cubits long and five cubits broad, that it be foursquare, and three cubits high. And make it horns proceeding out in the four corners of it, and cover it with brass.

HCSB                                     .

International Standard V        The Altar

“You are to make the altar of acacia wood. It is to be seven and a half feet [Lit. five cubits; or about 2.3 meters] long, seven and a half feet [Lit. five cubits; or about 2.3 meters] wide; the altar is to be a square, and it is to be four and a half feet [Lit. three cubits; or about 1.4 meters] high. You are to make horns [Lit. its horns] on its four corners. Its corners shall be of one piece with it, and you are to overlay it with bronze.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  .

Lexham English Bible            Instructions for Making the Bronze Altar

“And you will make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; the altar will be square, and its height will be three cubits. And you will make its horns on its four corners; its horns will be of one piece with it, [Literally “from it”] and you will overlay it with bronze.

NIV, ©2011                             .

Tree of Life Version                .

Unfolding Bible Literal Text    You must make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide. The altar must be square and three cubits high.  You must make extensions of its four corners shaped like ox horns. The horns will be made as one piece with the altar, and you must cover them with bronze.

Unlocked Literal Bible            .

Urim-Thummim Version         You will make an altar of acacia wood, 7 1/2 feet long and wide, the altar is square, and its height is 4 1/2 feet. You will make horns for it at its 4 corners, the horns all being identical and you will overlay it with brass.

Wikipedia Bible Project          And you made the altar of acacia trees, five cubits in length and five cubits in width. The altar will be square, and its height three cubits. And you made its horns upon its four corners, one with itself will its horns be, and you plated it with copper.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  The altar of the holocaust

You are to make an altar out of acacia wood, a square five cubits long and five cubits wide, its height to be three cubits. At its four corners you are to put horns, the horns to be of one piece with it, covering it with bronze.

The Heritage Bible                 And you shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long, and five cubits wide; the altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits. And you shall make its horns upon its four corners; its horns shall be of the same, and you shall sheet it over with bronze.

New American Bible (2002)   .

New American Bible(2011)    The Altar for Burnt Offerings.

You shall make an altar^a of acacia wood, on a square, five cubits long and five cubits wide; it shall be three cubits high. At the four corners make horns* that are of one piece with the altar. You shall then plate it with bronze.

* [27:2] Horns: the horn of a ram, goat or ox is a common Old Testament figure for strength and dignity; they represent the divine character of the altar itself or the deity worshiped there.

a. [27:1–8] Ex 38:1–7.

New English Bible–1970        .

New Jerusalem Bible             .

New RSV                               .

Revised English Bible–1989   .

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           (vi) “You are to make the altar of acacia-wood, seven-and-a-half feet long and seven-and-a-half feet wide — the altar is to be square and four-and-a-half feet high. Make horns for it on its four corners; the horns are to be of one piece with it; and you are to overlay it with bronze.

exeGeses companion Bible   PATTERN FOR THE ALTAR

And work a sacrifice altar of shittim timber

five cubits long and five cubits wide;

the sacrifice altar is foursquare:

and its height, three cubits:

and work its horns on its four corners:

his horns of the same

- and overlay it with copper.

Hebraic Roots Bible               And you shall make the altar of acacia timbers; five cubits long and five cubits wide. The altar shall be square, and its height three cubits. And you shall make its horns on its four corners. Its horns shall be a part of itself. And you shall overlay it with bronze.

Israeli Authorized Version      .

Kaplan Translation                 The Altar

Make the altar out of acacia wood. The altar shall be square, 5 cubits by 5 cubits, and 3 cubits high.

Make protrusions on all four sides as an integral part of [the altar]. Then cover it with a layer of copper. The Kaplan Translation, particularly in Exodus through Deuteronomy, takes note of historic rabbinic opinions.

5 cubits...

The dimensions of the altar were thus 7 1/2' x 7 1/2' x 4 1/2' (Rabbi Yose, Zevachim 59b; Josephus 3:6:8). According to others, the altar also had a base that was 7 cubits high, and therefore, it stood 10 cubits (15') high (Rabbi Yehudah, Ibid.; Yad, Beth HaBechirah 2:5).

protrusions

Literally 'horns.' These were hollow boxes, one cubit square, and 5 handbreadths high (18' x 18' x 15') (Zevachim 54a; Yad, Beth HaBechirah 2:8; Maaseh Choshev 6:3). Others say that while this was true of the altar in the Temple, it may not have been true of the altar in the desert (Ralbag), and there the 'horns' may have been round and horn-shaped (Avraham ben HaRambam).

copper

Or 'brass' that shone like gold (Josephus 3:6:8)

The Scriptures 1998              .

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            .

Awful Scroll Bible                   You is to have made an altar of acacia wood, five cubits in length and five cubits in width. The altar is being square, and its height is to be three cubits. You is to have made horns on its four corners. The horns are to have been overlaid with bronze.

Concordant Literal Version    .

Darby Translation (1889)       .

exeGeses companion Bible   .

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And thou shalt build the Mizbe'ach of acacia wood, five cubits long, and five cubits wide; the Mizbe'ach shall be foursquare; and the height thereof shall be shalosh cubits.

And thou shalt make the karnot of it upon the four corners thereof; its karnot shall be of one piece with it; and thou shalt overlay it with nechoshet.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. And thou shalt make the altar of acacia wood,— of five cubits lengthˎ and five cubits breadthˎ <four square> shall the altar be, and three cubits the height thereof. 2 And thou shalt make its horns upon its four corners, <of the same> shall be its horns,—and thou shalt overlay it with copper.^e

^e Or: “bronze.”

Third Millennium Bible            .

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                .

The Expanded Bible              The Altar for the Burnt Offerings

“Make an altar of acacia wood, ·four and one-half feet [^L three cubits] high. It should be square—·seven and one-half feet [^L five cubits] long and ·seven and one-half feet [^L five cubits] wide. Make each of the four corners of the altar stick out like a horn [^C significance uncertain, but refers to rounded projections on each corner of top; 29:10–12; Lev. 4:18–21; 1 Kin. 2:28–34], in such a way that the corners with their horns are all one piece. Then ·cover [overlay] the whole altar with bronze.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Verses 1-8

The Altar

And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare, a form which gave it great solidity; and the height thereof shall be three cubits.

And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof, hornlike projections which were firmly attached to the altar, as though growing out of it. They are often mentioned, and their significance appears from the fact that the blood of the sin-offering was put upon them, and that people fleeing for their life took hold of them for their protection, Leviticus 4:7; 1Kings 1:50. His horns shall be of the same, that is, made of acacia wood, like the body of the altar; and thou shalt overlay it with brass.

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               Eternal One: Make the altar of burnt offering from acacia wood. It should be square and measure seven and a half feet by seven and a half feet. Make it four and a half feet high. Construct it with horns on each of the four corners so that the top forms one whole piece, and overlay it with bronze.

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           And you shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; the altar shall be square, and its height [shall be] three cubits.

And you shall make its horns on its four corners; its horns shall be from it, and you shall overlay it with copper.

The Geneva Bible                  .

Kaplan Translation                 .

NET Bible®                             The Altar

“You are to make the¹ altar of acacia wood, seven feet six inches long,² and seven feet six inches wide; the altar is to be square,³ and its height is to be⁴ four feet six inches. You are to make its four horns⁵ on its four corners; its horns will be part of it,⁶ and you are to overlay it with bronze.

^1tn The article on this word identifies this as the altar, meaning the main high altar on which the sacrifices would be made.

^2tn The dimensions are five cubits by five cubits by three cubits high.

^3tn Heb “four”; this refers to four sides. S. R. Driver says this is an archaism that means there were four equal sides (Exodus, 291).

^4tn Heb “and three cubits its height.”

^5sn The horns of the altar were indispensable – they were the most sacred part. Blood was put on them; fugitives could cling to them, and the priests would grab the horns of the little altar when making intercessory prayer. They signified power, as horns on an animal did in the wild (and so the word was used for kings as well). The horns may also represent the sacrificial animals killed on the altar.

^6sn The text, as before, uses the prepositional phrase “from it” or “part of it” to say that the horns will be part of the altar – of the same piece as the altar. They were not to be made separately and then attached, but made at the end of the boards used to build the altar (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 363).

New American Bible(2011)    .

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Brenner’s Mechanical Trans....and you will (make) the altar of / of acacia, five forearms is the length and five forearms is the width, the altar will exist squared, and three forearms is his height, and you will (make) his horns upon the four of his corners, from him his horns will exist, and you will overlay him with copper,...

Charles Thompson OT           .

C. Thompson LXX (updated) You will make also an Altar of incorruptible wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad. The Altar will be square and the height of it will be three cubits. And you will make the horns at the four corners. The horns will be a component part of it and you will overlay them with brass.

Context Group Version          And you shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height shall be three cubits. And you shall make its horns on the four corners; the horns shall be of one piece with it: and you shall overlay it with bronze.

English Standard Version      The Bronze Altar

“Now you shall make the altar of acacia wood, ^[a]five cubits long and five cubits wide; the altar shall be square, and its height shall be ^[b]three cubits. You shall make its horns on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with ^[c]bronze.

^[a] Exodus 27:1 About 7.5 ft. or 2.3 m

^[b] Exodus 27:1 About 4.5 ft. or 1.4 m

^[c] Exodus 27:2 Or copper, and so for bronze throughout the ch

Green’s Literal Translation    .

Modern English Version         .

Modern Literal Version           .

New American Standard B.    .

New European Version          The Altar

You shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and its height shall be three cubits. You shall make its horns on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it; and you shall overlay it with brass.

New King James Version       .

Niobi Study Bible                   .

Owen's Translation                .

Restored Holy Bible 6.0         .

Updated Bible Version 2.11   .

A Voice in the Wilderness      .

Webster’s Bible Translation  .

World English Bible                .

Young's Literal Translation     .

Young’s Updated LT             “And you have made the altar of shittim wood, five cubits the length, and five cubits the breadth—the altar is square—and three cubits its height. And you have made its horns on its four corners, its horns are of the same, and you have overlaid it with brass.

The gist of this passage: 

1-2

Translation: You will make the altar [from] acacia wood...

The altar, upon which sacrifices would be offered, is to be made out of acacia wood.

Translation: ...—5 cubits long and 5 cubits wide...

It will be 7.5' x 7.5'.

Translation: ...—the altar is square—...

In other words, the altar is a square.

Translation: ...and 3 cubits high.

The altar will stand 4.5' high.

Given that height, it seems like there must have been a platform and stairs to attend to it.

Exodus 27:1 “You will make the altar [from] acacia wood—5 cubits long and 5 cubits wide—the altar is square—and 3 cubits high.

This is the brazen (or bronze; possibly copper) altar which will be outside of the tabernacle, and inside the courtyard of the Tabernacle. Obviously, this speaks of the cross and our Lord dying on our behalf on the cross.

Scofield points out that this altar is twice as high as the mercy seat (the covering of Ex. 25:10); this means that the cross not only atones for our sins, but it glorifies God and reveals his tremendous mercy and justice. Our Lord proclaimed to God, "I have glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You had given Me to do." (John 17:4)

Translation: You will make horns at each of his four corners...

At each corner, a horn will be made.

Translation: ...—the horns will protrude [lit., are] from it.

These horns would protrude upward; they would be a part of the altar itself.

Translation: You will overlay the altar [lit., it] [with] copper.

The entire altar would be overlaid with copper. Throughout this document, I have simply used the word copper to describe the metal used. However, this may be some mixture of copper and silver (or whatever). Since these items made from copper oxidize easily, and since the copper is used primarily outside, I would suggest it is very possible that this is another metal, perhaps bronze.

From a google search: There are many different bronze alloys, but typically modern bronze is 88% copper and 12% tin. Alpha bronze consists of the alpha solid solution of tin in copper. To this is added, Bronze is harder than copper as a result of alloying that metal with tin or other metals. Bronze is also more fusible (i.e., more readily melted) and is hence easier to cast. It is also harder than pure iron and far more resistant to corrosion.

Quite frankly, I wish that I had done this search earlier; then I would have consistently translated this Hebrew word bronze rather than copper. For what is described in this portion of Exodus and based upon the fact that this metal is used outside, bronze would be a better choice than copper.

Exodus 27:2 You will make horns at each of his four corners—the horns will protrude [lit., are] from it. You will overlay the altar [lit., it] [with] copper.

The bronze speaks of judgement. This is illustrated when one compares Num. 21:9 with John 3:14.

If I am reading this correctly, the horns will be an integral part of the altar. The horns are projections of the four corner posts. They are used to symbolize refuge (1Kings 1:50 2:28 Psalm 18:2). Although one can hold onto the projections and beg for mercy, they are holding onto the bronze, which speaks of the judgement of our Lord.

The animal blood from the sacrifices was poured out upon these horns before pouring out the rest on the base of the altar (Ex. 29:12 Lev. 4:7).

Psalm 118:27b reads: Bind the festive [animal] sacrifice with cord even to the horns of the altar. This tells us that it was customary to tie the animal sacrifice to the protrusions of the altar, just as Jesus Christ would be bound to the cross.

Exodus 27:1–2 You will make the altar out of acacia wood. It will be square—7.5' x 7.5', by 4.5' high. You will make horns protruding up as part of the altar, and then overlay the entire altar with bronze.

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Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        “And you have made his pots to remove ashes and his shovels and his basins and his forks and his pans—for all his manufactured goods you have made [of] copper.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Jerusalem targum                  .

Targum (Onkelos)                  And make its pots, to collect the ashes, and its fireshovels, and its basins, and its flesh hooks, and its thuribles, all its vessels make thou of brass.

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   And thou shalt make its pots to carry away its ashes and its shovels, and its basins, and its thuribles; all its vessels thou shalt make of brass. [JERUSALEM. And thou shalt make its pots to carry its ashes, and its scoops and basins, and its fleshhooks, and its thuribles; all its vessels thou shalt make of brass.]

Revised Douay-Rheims         And you shall make for the uses thereof pans to receive the ashes, and tongs and fleshhooks, and firepans: all its vessels you shall make of brass.

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) .

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        You shall make its pots to take away its ashes, its shovels, its basins, its flesh hooks, and its fire pans: all its vessels you shall make of brass.

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     .

Plain English Aramaic Bible   .

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     And you shall make pots for the use thereof; and its cauldrons and its shovels and its fleshhooks and censers, all the vessels thereof you shall make of brass.

Samaritan Pentateuch           And 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.

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And you shall make a rim for the altar; and its covering and its cups, and its flesh-hooks, and its fire-pan, and all its vessels shall you make of brass.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And make all its vessels, the baskets for taking away the dust of the fire, the spades and basins and meat-hooks and fire-trays, of brass.

Easy English                          Make all the tools for the altar out of bronze. Make pots to remove the ashes. Make spades, dishes and forks for the meat. Make buckets out of metal to carry the fire.

Easy-to-Read Version–2001  .

Easy-to-Read Version–2006  "Use bronze to make all the tools and dishes that will be used on the altar. Make pots, shovels, bowls, forks, and pans. These will be used for cleaning ashes from the altar.

God’s Word™                         "Make all the utensils for it out of bronze: pots for taking away the altar's ashes, also shovels, bowls, forks, and incense burners.

Good News Bible (TEV)         Make pans for the greasy ashes, and make shovels, bowls, hooks, and fire pans. All this equipment is to be made of bronze.

The Message                         .

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      Make everything for the altar out of bronze. Make its pots to remove the ashes. Make its shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks, and pans for carrying ashes.

New Simplified Bible              »Make all the utensils for it out of copper: pots for taking away the altar’s ashes, also shovels, bowls, forks, and incense burners.

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Casual English Bible             .

College Press Bible Study     .

Contemporary English V.       All the equipment for the altar must also be made of bronze--the pans for the hot ashes, the shovels, the sprinkling bowls, the meat forks, and the fire pans.

The Living Bible                     The ash buckets, shovels, basins, carcass hooks, and fire pans are all to be made of bronze.

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    Make its pails for taking away its ashes, its tools for picking up the ashes, its pots, meat-hooks and fire-holders. Make all of these out of brass.

New Living Translation           .

Unlocked Dynamic Bible        .

Unfolding Bible Simplified      They must make pans in which to put the ashes from the animal sacrifices. Also they must make shovels for cleaning out the ashes, basins, and forks for turning the meat as it cooks, and buckets for carrying hot coals. All of these things must be made from bronze.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          You must make a rim for the Altar and a covering, plus cups, meat hooks, a fire pan and all its utensils, from bronze.

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           Make pails for removing its ashes and its shovels, bowls, meat forks, and trays. Make all its equipment out of copper.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       .

Translation for Translators     They must make pans in which to put the greasy ashes from the animal sacrifices. Also they must make shovels for cleaning out the ashes, basins and forks for turning the meat as it cooks, and buckets for carrying hot coals/ashes. All of these things must be made from bronze.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Berean Study Bible                Make all its utensils of bronze—the pots for removing ashes, and the shovels, basins, meat forks, and firepans.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                And make buckets for the ashes, and shovels, and brushes, and tongs. Make all its instruments of brass.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           And make his ashpans, shovels, basins, fleshhooks, firepans and all the apparel thereof, of brass and you shall make a grid iron also like a net, of brass: upon whose four corners shall be four brass rings: and the grid shall reach unto the midst of the altar. Vv. 4–5 are included for context.

HCSB                                     .

International Standard V        .

Jubilee Bible 2000                  .

H. C. Leupold                         .

Lexham English Bible            And you will make its pots for removing its fat-soaked ashes and its shovels and its sprinkling bowls and its forks [1 Samuel 2:13 mentions a fork with “three teeth” used by priests] and its fire pans; you will make all its equipment with bronze.

NIV, ©2011                             .

Peter Pett’s translation          .

Unfolding Bible Literal Text    You must make equipment for the altar: pots for ashes, and also shovels, basins, meat forks, and firepans. You must make all these utensils with bronze.

Unlocked Literal Bible            .

Urim-Thummim Version         You will fashion its pans to receive ashes and make shovels, bowls, three- pronged forks, and fire holders, and all of these vessels will be overlaid with brass.

Wikipedia Bible Project          And you made its bowls for sprinkling it, and its basins and its gutters and its carving forks and its fire pans, all its implements make of copper.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  For the service of the altar you are to make pans for the ashes for burning the fat, as well as shovels, sprinkling basins, fire pans; you must make all the vessels for the altar out of bronze.

The Heritage Bible                 And you shall make its pans for what is anointed, and its shovels, and its bowls, and its forks, and its firepans; you shall make all the vessels of bronze.

New American Bible (2002)   .

New American Bible (2011)   .

New English Bible–1970        .

New Jerusalem Bible             And for it you will make pans for taking away the fatty ashes, and shovels, sprinkling basins, hooks and fire pans; you will make all the altar accessories of bronze.

New RSV                               .

Revised English Bible–1989   Make for it pots to take away the fat and the ashes, with shovels, tossing-bowls, forks, and firepans, all of bronze.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           .

exeGeses companion Bible   And work his cauldrons to de-ash

and his shovels and his sprinklers

and his forks and his trays:

work all its instruments of copper.

Hebraic Roots Bible               And you shall make its pots to remove its ashes, and its shovels and its sacrificial bowls, and its flesh forks, and its pans. You shall make all its vessels to be bronze.

Israeli Authorized Version      .

The Israel Bible (beta)            .

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               .

Kaplan Translation                 Make pots to remove its greasy ashes, as well as scoops, sacrificial basins, flesh pokers, and fire pans [for the altar]. All these instruments shall be made of copper.

scoops

(Rashi, videl in French). These were used to scoop up the ashes.

sacrificial basins

To catch the blood of sacrifices and splash it on the altar (Rashi; Rashbam).

flesh pokers

To turn over the sacrifices on the altar. They were in the shape of curved hooks (Rashi). Others say that they were like pitchforks (Or HaAfelah) or rakes (Ralbag).

fire pans

To carry fire to the inside altar (Rashi). Some say that they were like large spoons (Ralbag). According to others, they were pokers for the ashes on the altar (Rashbam; Midrash HaGadol).

The Scriptures 1998              .

The Scriptures 1998              “And you shall make its pots to receive its ashes, and its shovels and its basins and its forks and its fire holders. Make all its utensils of bronze.

Tree of Life Version                .

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            AND YOU SHALL MAKE A RIM FOR THE ALTAR; AND ITS COVERING AND ITS CUPS, AND ITS FLESH-HOOKS, AND ITS FIRE-PAN, AND ALL ITS VESSELS SHALL YOU MAKE OF BRASS

.

Awful Scroll Bible                   You is to have made pots to remove the burnt fat, and shovels, basins, flesh forks, and fire pans. Even were the utensils to be made of bronze.

Charles Thompson OT           .

Concordant Literal Version    You will make its pots for its greasy ash, and its shovels, its sprinkling bowls, its flesh-hooks, and its fire-pans; all its furnishings shall you make of copper.

Darby Translation                  .

exeGeses companion Bible   .

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And thou shalt make its pots to receive its ashes, and its shovels, and its basins, and its meat forks, and its firepans; all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of nechoshet.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. And thou shalt make its pans for removing its ashes, and its shovelsˎ and its sprinkling bowls, and its flesh-hooksˎ^f and its fire-pans,^g—<all its vessels> shalt thou make of bronze.

^f Or: “forks.”

^g Fire-shovels—Kalisch.

Third Millennium Bible            .

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                You shall make pots to remove its ashes, and shovels, basins [to catch the blood of the sacrificed animal], meat-forks, and firepans [to store live coals]. You shall make all its utensils of bronze.

The Expanded Bible              “Use bronze to make all ·the tools and dishes that will be used on the altar [^L its utensils]: the pots to remove the ashes, the shovels, the ·bowls for sprinkling blood [^L basins], the meat forks, and the ·pans for carrying the burning wood [firepans].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    And thou shalt make his pans to receive his ashes, the vessels which were used in removing the ashes of the fat, and his shovels, and his basins, or bowls, used for sprinkling the blood of the sacrifices, and his flesh-hooks, the great prongs for spearing the meat, and his fire-pans, in which the live coals for the kindling of the fires were carried: all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of brass, of copper or one of its common alloys.

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               Fashion buckets and shovels for the ashes, basins, forks, and fire pans out of bronze. Make a grate out of bronze, and attach four bronze rings at each of its four corners.

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           And you shall make its pots to remove its ashes, and its shovels and its sprinkling basins and its flesh hooks and its scoops; you shall make all its implements of copper.