1. “Make an altar from acacia wood. You will use this altar for burning incense.
2. You must make the altar square—1 cubit long and 1 cubit wide. It must be 2 cubits high. There will be horns at the four corners. These horns must be made as one piece with the altar.
3. Cover the top, the horns, and all four sides of the altar with pure gold. Then put gold trim all around the altar.
4. Below this trim there should be two gold rings. There should be two gold rings on opposite sides of the altar. These gold rings will be used with poles to carry the altar.
5. Make the poles from acacia wood and cover them with gold.
6. Put the altar just outside the special curtain that hangs in front of the Box of the Agreement. So the altar will be in front of the mercy-cover that is above the Agreement. This is the place where I will meet with you.
7. “Aaron must burn sweet-smelling incense on the altar every morning. He will do this when he comes to care for the lamps.
8. He must burn incense again when he checks the lamps in the evening so that incense will be burned before the Lord every day forever.
9. Don’t use this altar for offering any other kind of incense or burnt offering or for any kind of grain offering or drink offering.
10. “Once a year Aaron must make a special sacrifice. He will use the blood of the sin offering to erase the sins of the people. He will do this at the horns of this altar. This day will be called the Day of Atonement, and it will be a very special day for the Lord.”
11. The Lord said to Moses,
12. “Count the Israelites so that you will know how many people there are. Every time this is done, each man must make a payment for himself to the Lord so that nothing terrible will happen to the people.
13. Each man who is counted must pay 1/2 shekel of silver. (That is 1/2 shekel by the official measure. This shekel weighs 20 gerahs.) This half shekel is an offering to the Lord.
14. Every man who is at least 20 years old must be counted. And every man who is counted must give the Lord this offering.
15. The rich must not give more than 1/2 shekel, and the poor must not give less than 1/2 shekel. All people will make the same offering to the Lord. This will be a payment for your life.