Preface: The exterior items of furniture are constructed and the exterior wall is constructed. An inventory is taken of all valuable metals brought to the Tabernacle build site.

The Bible Summary of Exodus 38 (in 140 characters or less): Bezalel made the altar of burnt offering, the laver and the court. Ithamar kept an inventory of the gold, silver and bronze used.

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Exodus. This will be the most extensive examination of Exodus 38, 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 38:

Introduction

         vv.     1–7           Construction of the Copper Altar

         vv.     8            Construction of the Copper Laver

         vv.     9–20         Construction of the Court of the Tabernacle

         vv.    21–31         Materials Used for the Construction of the Tabernacle

         vv.        21–23        The Human Raw Material

         vv.        24–26        The Gold Raw Material

         vv.        27–28        The Silver Raw Material

         vv.        29–31        The Copper Raw Material

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Why the repetition of this material?

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Exodus 38 (by various commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Exodus 38 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Exodus 38

         Introduction         The Prequel of Exodus 38

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Principals of Exodus 38

         Introduction         The Places of Exodus 38

         Introduction         Map of the Exodus Journey (a graphic)

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         Timeline for Exodus 38

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 38

         Introduction         Outlines of Exodus 38 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 38 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction         The Big Picture (Exodus 35–40)

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions (for Exodus 38)

         Introduction 

         v. 

         v.       2              The Brazen Altar (a picture of a model)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.       3              The Brazen Altar and Its Utensils (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v.       7              The Altar of the Burnt Offering (a graphic)

         v.       8              The Copper Laver (a graphic)

         v.       8              A Greek Bronze Mirror; Archaic Period, Late 6th-early 5th Century (a graphic)

         v. 

         v.      10              Tabernacle Courtyard, Pillars and Bases (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      11              Pillar, Base, Ring and Capitals (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      13              The Completed Courtyard (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      17              The Tabernacle and Courtyard (a graphic)

         v. 

         v.      18              The Gate to the Courtyard (photo of a model)

         v.      18              One Gate — Meaning of the Symbols (from the Albany Missionary Baptist Church)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      20              Each Manufactured Part of the Courtyard (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      23              Bezalel and Aholiab, Artisans of God (a graphic)

         v. 

         v.      29              Talents in the Bible (a graphic)

         v. 

         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Exodus 38 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Exodus 38

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Exodus 38

         Summary            Prior Instructions and Their Fulfilment in Exodus 38

         Summary            The Tabernacle and Courtyard — the Finished Product (a graphic)

         Summary            Shmoop Summary of Exodus 38

         Summary            Edersheim Summarizes Exodus 38

         Summary 

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Exodus 38

         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Exodus 38

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Exodus 38

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Exodus 38

——————————

An Introduction to Exodus 38

I ntroduction: The difference between Exodus 37 and Exodus 38:1–20 is, the first is the actual building of the interior furniture and the Tabernacle; the first half of this chapter is devoted to the exterior of the Tabernacle and the furniture built for that.

Vv. 1–8 is the construction of the brazen altar, which is one of the pieces of furniture in the tabernacle. The outside court is built in vv. 9–20. The end of this chapter (vv. 21–31) will be a record of all of the precious metals materials used for building the Tabernacle and its furniture (inside and out).

Like the past few chapters, we have covered the significance of most of what we find in this chapter already so we will move rather quickly through it.

I did not add much additional commentary to this chapter simply because so much of it repeats what we have already studied in a portion of Exodus 30 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

We need to know where this chapter takes place.
The Places of Exodus 38
Place	Description
Mount Sinai Map of the Exodus Journey (a graphic); from Precept Austin (a good resource); accessed June 27, 2020.

Timeline for Exodus

As I have done previously, since this chapters is what God is saying to Moses, I will begin and end the chapter with quotation marks. I will not insert a new set of quotation marks for each new paragraph.

——————————

Construction of the Copper Altar

Vv. 1–7 are about the Altar of Burnt Offering (also known as the Brazen Altar), which is placed right outside of the Tabernacle. How to build it has already been covered. This will be its actual construction. I do not know whether the altar was made from copper or brass. I treated all such objects as having been made with copper.

It would have made more sense to place the building of the altar and the laver with the previous chapter. When dividing these books up into chapters, one of the considerations was apparently length.

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 so he makes an altar of the burnt offering wood pieces of acacia wood; five cubits his length and five cubits his width (being a square); and three cubits his height. And so he makes his horns upon his four corners. From him are his horns. And so he overlays him [with] copper. And so he makes all utensils of the altar—the pots and the shovels and the basins, the forks and the firepans—all his utensils he made [with] copper.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) He made also the altar of holocaust of setim wood, five cubits square, and three in height: The horns whereof went out from the corners, and he overlaid it with plates of brass. And for the uses thereof, he prepared divers vessels of brass, cauldrons, tongs, fleshhooks, pothooks and firepans.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        He made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood. It was square. Its length was five cubits, its breadth was five cubits, and its height was three cubits. He made its horns on its four corners. Its horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with brass. He made all the vessels of the altar, the pots, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the fire pans. He made all its vessels of brass.

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     And he made the altar of burning, from wood of the box tree, five cubits its length, and five cubits its width, square, and three cubits its height. They made its horns on the four corners; its horns were of it and its horns were brass. They made all of the implements of the altar: the pots and cauldrons and large hanging pots and fire pans and forks and censers; and all its implements he made of brass.

Samaritan Pentateuch           Making the Altar of Burnt Offering

And he made the holy anointing oil, and the pure incense of sweet spices, according to the work of the apothecary. And he made the altar of burnt offering [of] shittim wood: five cubits [was] the length thereof, and five cubits the breadth thereof; [it was] foursquare; and three cubits the height thereof. And he made the horns thereof on the four corners of it; the horns thereof were of the same: and he overlaid it with brass.

Updated Brenton (Greek)       He made the bronze altar of the bronze censers, which belonged to the men engaged in sedition with the gathering of Core. He made all the vessels of the altar and its grate, its base, its bowls, and the bronze flesh-hooks. (Exodus 38:22–23)

Complete Apostles’ Bible      I am somewhat confused here; this translation does not match up with the text being studied. See above.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             The altar of burned offerings he made of hard wood; a square altar, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high, And he put horns at its four angles made of the same, plating it all with brass; And brass was used for all the vessels of the altar, the baskets and the spades, the basins and the meat-hooks and the fire-trays; all the vessels he made of brass.

Easy English                          The altar for burnt offerings

Bezalel used acacia wood to build the altar for burnt offerings. It was square, 2.2 metres long and 2.2 metres wide. It was 1.3 metres high. He made four horns, one at each corner of the altar. The horns and the altar itself were one piece of work. He covered the whole altar with bronze. He made all the tools for the altar with bronze. He made pots to remove the ashes, and also spades and bowls. He made forks for the meat and dishes to carry the fire.

Easy-to-Read Version–2002  Then Bezalel used acacia wood to build the altar. This was the altar used for burning offerings. The altar was square. It was 5 cubits [416] long, 5 cubits wide, and 3 cubits [417] high. He made a horn for each of the four corners of the altar. He joined each horn to its corner so that everything was one piece. He covered the altar with bronze. [418] Then he used bronze to make all the tools to be used on the altar. He made the pots, shovels, bowls, forks, and pans.

God’s Word™                         He made the altar for burnt offerings out of acacia wood 7 1/2 feet square and 4 1/2 feet high.  He made a horn at each of its four corners. He made the four horns and the altar out of one piece of wood covered with bronze.  He made all the utensils out of bronze: pots, shovels, bowls, forks, and incense burners.

Good News Bible (TEV)         For burning offerings, he made an altar out of acacia wood. It was square, 71/2 feet long and 71/2 feet wide, and it was 41/2 feet high.  He made the projections at the top of the four corners, so that they formed one piece with the altar. He covered it all with bronze.  He also made all the equipment for the altar: the pans, the shovels, the bowls, the hooks, and the fire pans. All this equipment was made of bronze.

The Message                         The Altar of Whole-Burnt-Offering

He made the Altar of Whole-Burnt-Offering from acacia wood. He made it seven and a half feet square and four and a half feet high. He made horns at each of the four corners. The horns were made of one piece with the Altar and covered with a veneer of bronze. He made from bronze all the utensils for the Altar: the buckets for removing the ashes, shovels, basins, forks, and fire pans.

NIRV                                      The Altar for Burnt Offerings

The workers built the altar for burnt offerings out of acacia wood. It was four feet six inches high and seven feet six inches square. They made a horn stick out from each of its four upper corners. They covered the altar with bronze. They made all its tools out of bronze. They made its pots, shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks, and pans for carrying ashes.

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

Casual English Bible             Exodus 38

Finishing the worship center

Bezalel builds the hollow altar

Bezalel’s next project was the main altar for the worship center. This was the altar for burnt offerings. He made the sacrificial altar out of acacia wood. He shaped it into a square that was 7½ feet wide and long, and 4½ feet high (2.3 m x 1.5 m).

He shaped each of the four corners into what looked like an animal horn, attaching them to the altar so they formed one unit. Then he covered the wooden altar with a layer of bronze. He also used bronze to make the utensils needed for sacrificing animals on the altar. These included fire pans to carry hot coals to start the fire, forks to position the sacrifice on the altar, bowls used in sprinkling rituals, shovels to scoop up the ashes, and buckets to haul the ashes away.

Contemporary English V.       Bezalel built an altar of acacia wood for offering sacrifices. It was seven and a half feet square and four and a half feet high with each of its four corners sticking up like the horn of a bull, and it was completely covered with bronze. The equipment for the altar was also made of bronze--the pans for the hot ashes, the shovels, the meat forks, and the fire pans.

The Living Bible                     The burnt-offering altar was also constructed of acacia wood; it was 7-1/2 feet square at the top, and 4-1/2 feet high. There were four horns at the four corners, all of one piece with the rest. This altar was overlaid with bronze. Then he made bronze utensils to be used with the altar—the pots, shovels, basins, meat hooks, and fire pans.

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    Making the Altar for Burnt Gifts

Then he made the altar for burnt gifts of acacia wood. It was as long and as wide as three steps, and as tall as a man’s chest. He made horns on its four corners of one piece with it and covered it with brass. He made all the objects of the altar, its pails, its tools for picking up the ashes, its pots, meat-hooks and fire-holders of brass.

Unfolding Bible (simplified)    Bezalel and his men made the altar for burning sacrifices out of acacia wood. It was square, two and one-third meters on each side, and it was one and two-fifths meters high.   They made a projection that looked like a horn on each of the top corners. The projections were carved from the same block of wood from which the altar was made. They covered the whole altar with bronze.   They made the pans in which to put the ashes from the animal sacrifices. They also made the shovels for cleaning out the ashes. They made the basins and forks for turning the meat as it cooked, and buckets for carrying hot coals. They made all of these things from bronze.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          Then he made an Altar for the whole burnt offerings out of durable wood.

It was seven-and-a-half feet long and seven-and-a-half feet wide. It had four corners, and it stood four-and-a-half feet tall.

He made horns for each of the four corners, which he then covered in bronze.

He also made a rim for the Altar, a lid for it, bowls for it, meat hooks for it, and a fire pit… he made everything out of bronze.

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           Making the altar for entirely burned offerings

He made the altar for entirely burned offerings out of acacia wood. The altar was square, seven and a half feet long and seven and a half feet wide. It was four and a half feet high. He made horns for it, one horn on each of its four corners. Its horns were attached to the altar, and he covered it with copper. He made all the altar’s equipment: the pails, the shovels, the bowls, the meat forks, and the trays. He made all its equipment out of copper.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       He made another altar, too, of acacia wood, for burnt-sacrifice, with a surface five cubits square, and a height of three cubits; it had horns at the corners, and it was plated with bronze. And he provided it with appurtenances all of bronze, ash-pans, tongs, forks, hooks and braziers; and made it a bronze grating of network, and a hearth under this, in the middle of the altar. V. 4 is included for context.

Translation for Translators     They made the altar for burning sacrifices, and they made the washbasin

Several men helped Bezalel to make the altar for burning sacrifices. They made it from acacia wood. It was square, ◂7-1/2 feet/2.2 meters► on each side, and it was ◂4-1/2 feet/1.3 meters► high. They made a projection that looked like a horn on each of the top corners. The projections were carved from the same block of wood that the altar was made of. They covered the whole altar with bronze. They made the pans in which to put the greasy ashes from the animal sacrifices. They also made the shovels for cleaning out the ashes. They made the basins and forks for turning the meat as it cooked, and buckets for carrying hot coals/ashes. All of those things were made from bronze.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Then he made of acacia wood the Altar of Burnt Offerings. Its length was five cubits, and its breadth five cubits, square; and its height three cubits. He also made horns upon its four faces; its horns were all alike and he plated them with brass. Besides he made all the instruments for the altar; the cauldrons, and the brushes, and the sprinklers, and the rakes, and the shovels, he made of brass.

International Standard V        The Altar for Burnt Offerings

Then he made the altar for burnt offerings of acacia wood. It was a square, seven and a half feet [Lit. five cubits; or about 2.3 meters] long and seven and a half feet [Lit. five cubits; or about 2.3 meters] wide, and it was four and a half feet [Lit. three cubits; or about 1.37 meters] high. He made horns [Lit. its horns] on its four corners. Its horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze. He made all the utensils for the altar, the pans, the shovels, the bowls, the forks, and the fire-pans, and he made all its utensils of bronze.

Lexham English Bible            Making the Bronze Altar and the Basin

And he made the burnt-offering altar of acacia wood; its length was five cubits, and its width was five cubits—it was square—and its height was three cubits. And he made its horns on its four corners; its horns were of one piece with it; [Literally “from it”] and he overlaid it with bronze. And he made all the equipment of the altar—the pots and the shovels and the sprinkling bowls and the forks [1 Samuel 2:13 mentions a fork with “three teeth” used by priests] and the fire pans—all its equipment he made with bronze.

Unfolding Bible Literal Text    Bezalel made the altar for burnt offerings of acacia wood. It was five cubits long and five cubits wide—a square—and three cubits high.   He made extensions of its four corners shaped like ox horns. The horns were made of one piece with the altar, and he covered it with bronze.   He made all the equipment for the altar—pots for ashes, shovels, basins, meat forks, and firepans. He made all this equipment with bronze.

Urim-Thummim Version         He made the Altar of Burnt-Offering of acacia wood, square, 7 1/2 feet being both its length and width, and 4 1/2 feet in height. He fashioned the horns on its 4 corners, the horns of it were made of the same piece, and he overlaid it with bronze. He made all the vessels of the Altar, the pots, shovels, bowls, the three-pronged fork and the fire holder, all its vessels he made of bronze.

Wikipedia Bible Project          And he made the offering altar of acacia wood: its length five cubits and its width five cubits, a square, and its height three cubits. And he made its emanations on its four corners, its emanations were one of itself, and he coated it copper. And he made all the implements of the altar, the pots and the spatulas, and the basins and the carving forks, and the fire pans, all its implements he made copper.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

The Heritage Bible                          And he made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood: five cubits, its length, and five cubits, its width; square; and three cubits, its height.

And he made the horns on its four corners; the horns were the same; and he sheeted it over with bronze.

And he made all the vessels of the altar: the pots, and the shovels, and the sprinkling bowls, and the forks, and the firepans; he made all its vessels of bronze.

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

The altar for burnt offerings^a was made of acacia wood, on a square, five cubits long and five cubits wide; its height was three cubits. At the four corners horns were made that sprang directly from the altar. It was then plated with bronze. All the utensils of the altar, the pots, shovels, basins, forks and fire pans, were likewise made of bronze.

a. [38:1–7] Ex 27:1–8; 2 Chr 1:5.

New Catholic Bible                 The Altar of Burnt Offering. He made an altar out of acacia wood. It was five cubits long and five cubits wide and three cubits high. It had horns on its four corners and they were all one piece with it. It was covered with bronze. He also made the accessories for the altar: vessels to take away its ashes, shovels, basins, forks, and firepans. All of its utensils were made out of bronze.

New Jerusalem Bible             He made the altar of burnt offerings of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; it was square and three cubits high. At its four corners he made horns, the horns being of a piece with it, and overlaid it with bronze. He made all the altar accessories: the ash pans, shovels, sprinkling basins, hooks and fire pans; he made all the altar accessories of bronze.

Revised English Bible–1989   He made the altar of whole offering from acacia-wood; it was square, five cubits long by five cubits broad, and its height was three cubits. Its horns at the four corners were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze. He made all the vessels for the altar, its pots, shovels, tossing-bowls, forks, and firepans, all of bronze.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           (RY: iv, LY: vii) He made the altar for burnt offerings of acacia-wood, seven-and-a-half feet long and seven-and-a-half feet wide — it was square — and four-and-a-half feet high. He made horns for it on its four corners, the horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze. V. 3 will be placed with the next passage for context.

exeGeses companion Bible   CONSTRUCTION OF THE HOLOCAUST SACRIFICE ALTAR

And he works the sacrifice altar of holocaust

of shittim timber:

five cubits long and five cubits wide

- foursquare;

and three cubits high.

And he works its horns on its four corners

- the horns being of the same:

and he overlays it with copper.

And he works

all the instruments of the sacrifice altar

- the cauldrons and the shovels and the sprinklers

and the forks and the trays:

and works all its instruments of copper.

Kaplan Translation                 [142. Making the Sacrificial Altar]

He made the sacrificial altar* out of acacia wood, five cubits square, and three cubits high. He made the protrusions on all four corners as an integral part of [the altar’s] structure, and then covered [the entire structure] with a layer of copper. He made all the altar’s utensils, pots, scoops, sacrificial basins, flesh pokers, and fire pans. They were all made out of copper. The Kaplan Translation, particularly in Exodus through Deuteronomy, takes note of historic rabbinic opinions.

38:1 He made . . . Paralleling 27:1-8.

The Scriptures 1998              And he made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide, square, and three cubits high. And he made its horns on its four corners, the horns were of it. And he overlaid it with bronze. And he made all the utensils for the altar: the pots, and the shovels, and the basins, and the forks, and the fire holders. He made all its utensils of bronze.

The Scriptures–2009              And he made the slaughter-place of ascending offering of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide, square, and three cubits high.  And he made its horns on its four corners, the horns were of it. And he overlaid it with bronze.  And he made all the utensils for the slaughter-place: the pots, and the shovels, and the basins, and the forks, and the fire holders. He made all its utensils of bronze.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible   HE MADE THE BRAZEN ALTAR OF THE BRAZEN CENSERS, WHICH BELONGED TO THE MEN ENGAGED IN SEDITION WITH THE GATHERING OF CORE. HE MADE ALL THE VESSELS OF THE ALTAR AND ITS GRATE, AND ITS BASE, AND ITS BOWLS, AND THE BRAZEN FLESH-HOOKS. (Exodus 38:22–23)

Awful Scroll Bible                   He was to make the altar of the whole burnt offering of acacia wood, five cubits in length, five cubits in width, being square, and three cubits in height. He was to make its horns at the four bends, even the horns was he to overlay with bronze. He was to make the implements of the altar, the pots, shovels, basin, the flesh forks, and firepans, even the implements is he to have made them of bronze.

Concordant Literal Version    Then he made the altar of ascent offering of acacia boards, five cubits its length and five cubits its width. It was square, and its rise was three cubits.

He made its horns on its four corners; its horns were of one piece with it. And he overlaid it with copper.

He also made all the furnishings of the altar, the pots and the shovels and the sprinkling bowls, the flesh-hooks and the fire-pans; all its furnishings he made of copper.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           PEKUDEI

And he made the Mizbe'ach HaOlah of acacia wood; five cubits was the length thereof, and five cubits the width thereof; it was ravu'a (square, foursquare); and three cubits the height thereof.

And he made the karenot thereof on the four corners of it; the karenot thereof were from it; and he overlaid it with nechoshet.

And he made all the Klei HaMizbe'ach, the pots, and the shovels, and the sprinkling basins, and the meat hooks, and the firepans; all the utensils thereof made he of nechoshet.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                The Tabernacle Completed

Then Bezalel made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood; its top was square, five cubits long and five cubits wide, and three cubits high. And he made its horns (horn-shaped projections) on the four corners of it; the horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze. He made all the utensils and vessels of the altar [of burnt offering], the pots, shovels, basins [to catch the blood of the sacrificed animal], meat hooks and the firepans [to store live coals]. He made all its utensils of bronze.

The Expanded Bible              The Altar for Burnt Offerings

Then he built the altar for burnt offerings [Lev. 1] out of acacia wood. The altar was square—·seven and one-half feet [^L five cubits] long and ·seven and one-half feet [^L five cubits] wide—and it was ·four and one-half feet [^L three cubits] high. He made each corner stick out like a horn [27:2] so that the horns and the altar were joined together in one piece. Then he ·covered [overlaid] the altar with bronze. He made all the ·tools [utensils] of bronze to use on the altar: the pots, shovels, ·bowls for sprinkling blood [^L basins], meat forks, and ·pans for carrying the fire [firepans].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Verses 1-8

The Altar of Burnt Offering

And he made the altar of burnt offering of shittim wood; five cubits was the length thereof and five cubits the breadth thereof (it was foursquare) and three cubits the height thereof. There is no top or plate mentioned, and it is probable that the hollow frame-work was filled with earth or stones whenever the altar was in position.

And he made the horns thereof on the four corners of it; the horns thereof were of the same, made of acacia wood; and he overlaid it with brass.

And he made all the vessels of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the basins, bowls used for sprinkling and pouring the blood of the sacrifices, and the flesh-hooks, for spearing the meat in the caldrons, 1 Samuel 2:13, and the fire-pans, for carrying the live coals used in kindling the fires ; all the vessels thereof made he of brass, of copper or one of its alloys.

The Voice                               Bezalel made the altar for burnt offerings out of acacia wood. He made it square—seven and a half feet long by seven and a half feet wide—and four and a half feet high. He constructed it with horns on each of the four corners so that the top formed one piece and overlaid it with bronze. He fashioned all the tools and accessories needed for the altar out of bronze—the buckets and shovels for the ashes, basins, forks, and fire pans.

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           And he made the altar for the burnt offerings of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; [the altar was] square, and it [was] three cubits high. And he made its horns on its four corners; its horns were [all one piece] from it, and he overlaid it with copper. And he made all the implements of the altar, the pots, and the shovels and the sprinkling basins and the flesh hooks and the [fire] pans; he made all its implements of copper.

NET Bible®                             The Making of the Altar for the Burnt Offering

He made the altar for the burnt offering of acacia wood seven feet six inches long and seven feet six inches wide – it was square – and its height was four feet six inches. He made its horns on its four corners; its horns were part of it,¹ and he overlaid it with bronze. He made all the utensils of the altar – the pots, the shovels, the tossing bowls, the meat hooks, and the fire pans – he made all its utensils of bronze.

^1tn Heb “its horns were from it,” meaning from the same piece.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. And he made the altar for the ascending sacrifice ʹ of acacia wood,—||five cubits|| the length thereofˎ and ||five cubits|| the breadth thereofˎ ||foursquare||, and ||three cubits|| the height thereof. And he made the horns thereofˎ upon the four corners thereof, <of the same> were the horns thereof,—and he overlaid it with bronze. And he made all the utensils of the altar—the pans and the shovelsˎ and the sprinkling bowls, the flesh-hooks^h and the fire-pans,—<all the utensils thereof> made he of bronze.

^h Or: “forks.”

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Brenner’s Mechanical Trans....and he (made) the altar of the rising sacrifice of acacia /, five forearms is his length, and five forearms is his width, it is square, and three forearms is his height, and he (made) his horns upon his four corners, (out of) him his horns will exist, and he overlaid him with copper, and he (made) all the items of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the sprinkling basins, the forks, and the fire pans, he (made) all his items with copper,...

Charles Thompson OT           He made the brasen altar out of the brasen censers which belonged to the men who conspired with the congregation of Kore.

He made all the utensils of the altar, its fire hearth and its base and the cups and the flesh forks which were of brass.

Literal Standard Version        And he makes the altar of burnt-offering of shittim wood; five cubits its length, and five cubits its breadth (square), and three cubits its height; and he makes its horns on its four corners; its horns have been of the same; and he overlays it with bronze; and he makes all the vessels of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the sprinkling-pans, the forks, and the fire-pans; he has made all its vessels of bronze.

New American Standard B.    The Tabernacle Completed

Then he made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood, five cubits [About 7.5 ft. square and 4.5 ft. high or 2.3 m and 1.4 m] long [Lit its length], and five cubits wide [Lit its width], square, and three cubits high [Lit its height]. And he made its horns on its four corners, its horns being [Lit were] of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze [Or copper, and so for bronze throughout the ch]. He also made all the utensils of the altar, the pails, the shovels, the basins, the meat-forks, and the firepans; he made all its utensils of bronze.

New European Version          Making the Altar of Burnt Offering and Brass Basin

He made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood. It was square. Its length was five cubits, its breadth was five cubits, and its height was three cubits. He made its horns on its four corners. Its horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with brass. He made all the vessels of the altar, the pots, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the fire pans. He made all its vessels of brass.

Young’s Updated LT             And he makes the altar of burnt-offering of shittim wood, five cubits its length, and five cubits its breadth (square), and three cubits its height; and he makes its horns on its four corners; its horns have been of the same; and he overlays it with brass; and he makes all the vessels of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the sprinkling-pans, the forks, and the fire-pans; all its vessels he has made of brass.

The gist of this passage:     Bezalel oversaw the construction of the altar of the burnt offering.

1-3

Translation: He made the altar for the burnt offerings [from] acacia wood.

With this chapter, we move out into the courtyard of the Tabernacle. It is the courtyard where the people would come (the people did not go into the Tabernacle ever).

Despite the courtyard being considerably larger than the Tabernacle, it was not large enough to accommodate all of the worshipers on any given day. Interestingly enough, I do not recall any place where there are instructions about who enters into the courtyard and when.

The most important item is the altar for offering up animals. That sat out in front of the Tabernacle.

The courtyard is blocked off from the outside world. Inside are those who are, ideally speaking, saved. They are the ones who appeal to God based upon their burnt offering.

Translation: [It was] 12½ feet by 12½ feet wide (a square), [standing] 7½ feet high.

The length and width was 7.5' x 7.5'; and it stood 54" high (almost 5' high). This altar would require steps to get up to it.

It is not completely clear to me how far on the altar that the priests operated. Was that the only place for them to stand? Did they primarily stand upon a platform adjacent to the altar? The latter seems the most workable explanation.

Exodus 38:1 He made the altar for the burnt offerings [from] acacia wood. [It was] 12½ feet by 12½ feet wide (a square), [standing] 7½ feet high. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

V. 1 explains what we need to know about the altar. It is much larger than the other items of furniture. It is approximately 7.5' x 7.5' x 4.5'. You can place a rather good sized animal on this altar. It is also fairly high up in the air. This is because people from all around will be able to view it from a distance.

Translation: He made four horns at each corner,...

At the very top of the altar, there were horns or protrusions worked into the design. On each corner, there was a protrusion. Horns often refer to power and/or authority.

The altar is where animals were to be offered for the expiation of sin. However, by the blood of bulls is no man justified. So, these are types pointing forward to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Also, Jesus Christ is the ultimate authority on earth.

Translation: ...the horns being [one piece] with it.

This seems to be a popular way to understand the language here. There are a number of places in this and the previous chapters where this expression was understood in this way.

What is being said here is, the horns (the authority) is not separate from the place of sacrifice. We cannot separate the authority of God from the offering made by Jesus on the cross.

Translation: He overlaid [all of] it with copper.

You will recall from the previous chapter that everything inside of the Tabernacle was made from gold or gold covered acacia wood. This is the first time in the making of these objects where copper (or bronze) is used. I will try to stick with copper for consistency; but it is unclear which is meant (copper or bronze).

Inside the Tabernacle, we are speaking of all that which is identified with the Divine. Therefore, it is gold or gold-plaited.

Outside of the Tabernacle, where the sacrifice is offered, copper is used. Let me suggest that this closely identifies the Lord with humanity.

Exodus 38:2 He made four horns at each corner, the horns being [one piece] with it. He overlaid [all of] it with copper. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The legs just extend a little bit above the top of this altar (those are the horns). Some translations have the phrase one piece with it; this is the preposition of separation and, in this case, the 3^rd person masculine singular suffix, referring back to the altar itself.

The Brazen Altar (a picture of a model); from Holy Land Gifts; accessed January 20, 2020.

Although this is not made full-sized, it can be purchased for $25. There are some specifics in the design which will be discussed in subsequent verses.

Translation: He also made the accessories for the altar:...

These accessories or utensils are enumerated below. Everything has both a utilitarian function as well as a shadow meaning.

Translation: ...the pots, the shovels, the sinks, the forks and the fire pans.

These would be the things used when offering up sacrifices to God.

The Brazen Altar and Its Utensils (a graphic); from Alamy; accessed January 20, 2020.

Recall that we have already studied all of this previously. Going over this again is additional proof of these Scriptures being written very close in time to the things which are described.

God told Moses what He wanted Moses to do. This chapter tells us what Moses did. It is very repetitive to someone reading all of this centuries later. We are like, “Didn’t we just talk about all of this?”

To Moses and the Hebrew people, this is not something just arbitrarily repeated. There are instructions (already given) and the execution of those instructions (which is what this chapter is all about). For the people of that era, these are two very different things, even though to us, it seems repetitive.

Let me make an additional observation: if someone wrote all of this material hundreds of years after Moses, they would not have written this stuff twice. There would have been no reason for that. But for the people who are in the midst of this as it is happening, all of this is quite meaningful.

Translation: All of the articles were made [with] copper.

Everything used was made from copper. I believe that the copper is an association with the humanity of Jesus Christ. Therefore, much of what we will study which is made for outside the Tabernacle is related to Jesus Christ in His humanity.

Exodus 38:3 He also made the accessories for the altar: the pots, the shovels, the sinks, the forks and the fire pans. All of the articles were made [with] copper. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Utensils, as we have seen, is a word which literally means vessels; however, it is used the same way that we would use the word utensils, tools or accessories. Bronze speaks of judgement. On the altar, the animals are sacrificed in the place of the Hebrew people.

Exodus 38:1–3 He made the altar for the burnt offerings [from] acacia wood. [It was] 12½ feet by 12½ feet wide (a square), [standing] 7½ feet high. He made four horns at each corner, the horns being [one piece] with it. He overlaid [all of] it with copper. He also made the accessories for the altar: the pots, the shovels, the sinks, the forks and the fire pans. All of the articles were made [with] copper. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This is the basic description of the altar for burnt offerings.

Exodus 38:1–3 He made the altar of burnt offerings from acacia wood, and overlaid with copper. It was 90" x 90"; and 54" high. The top of the altar had four protrusions made at each corner. He also made the accessories for the altar out of copper: the pots, the shovels, the sinks, the forks and the fire pans. (Kukis paraphrase)