Exodus 28

Bring your brother Aaron near to you, and his sons with him, from among the Israelites, so that he may serve me as priest: Aaron, and Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons.

1And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons.

NoteThe speaker is God, addressing Moses; Aaron is Moses' older brother. A priest in Israel was not a preacher but a functionary attached to the sanctuary: he handled the offerings at the altar, maintained the sacred space, and gave rulings on what was clean or unclean. From here on the office is restricted to Aaron and his male descendants. Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar are his four sons.

2Make holy garments for your brother Aaron, for glory and for beauty.

2And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty.

Note"Holy" in Hebrew does not mean morally good; it means set apart from ordinary use and reserved for the sanctuary. These clothes are not Aaron's property but the uniform of the office. The pair of words behind "glory and beauty" is the vocabulary normally used of royal or ceremonial splendor, the garments are meant to look important.

3Speak to all who are skilled, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, so that they may make Aaron's garments to set him apart, so that he may serve me as priest.

3And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.

Note"Wisdom" here means practical skill with the hands: weaving, dyeing, metalwork, gem cutting. The King James "wise hearted" translates a Hebrew phrase that means something closer to "expert." In Hebrew the heart is the seat of thought and skill, not of feeling.

4These are the garments they shall make: a breastplate, an ephod, a robe, a woven tunic, a turban, and a sash. They shall make holy garments for your brother Aaron and for his sons, so that he may serve me as priest.

4And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.

NoteThe six garments named here are technical terms and are described in detail later in the chapter. The "breastplate" is not armor but a small folded pouch of cloth worn on the chest. The "ephod" is a sleeveless apron-like vestment worn over the robe, front and back panels joined at the shoulders and tied with a woven band. The robe is a long sleeveless garment worn under the ephod; the tunic is the long shirt worn under everything; the turban is a wound linen headdress; the sash is a long band wrapped around the waist.

5They shall use gold, and blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and fine linen.

5And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen.

NoteBlue, purple and scarlet describe dyed wool yarn, not plain colors of cloth. The blue and purple dyes came from Mediterranean shellfish and the scarlet from a crushed insect; all three were among the most expensive materials in the ancient world, associated with royalty. "Fine linen" is a smooth, tightly spun Egyptian-style flax cloth.

6They shall make the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely twisted linen, made by a skilled craftsman.

6And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and of purple, of scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning work.

NoteThe gold is worked into the fabric as thread: sheets of gold were hammered thin and cut into strips to be woven in with the wool and linen. The Hebrew term behind "skilled craftsman" (King James "cunning work") refers to the most elaborate grade of weaving, in which designs were worked into the cloth itself.

7It shall have its two shoulder pieces joined at its two edges, so that it is joined together.

7It shall have the two shoulderpieces thereof joined at the two edges thereof; and so it shall be joined together.

8The skillfully woven band of the ephod, which is on it, shall be of one piece with it and made the same way: of gold, and of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely twisted linen.

8And the curious girdle of the ephod, which is upon it, shall be of the same, according to the work thereof; even of gold, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen.

9Take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel:

9And thou shalt take two onyx stones, and grave on them the names of the children of Israel:

Note"The sons of Israel" means the twelve tribes. Israel is the second name of Jacob, and the tribes are named after his twelve sons. Onyx is a traditional identification; the Hebrew stone name cannot be pinned down with certainty.

10six of their names on one stone, and the remaining six names on the other stone, in the order of their birth.

10Six of their names on one stone, and the other six names of the rest on the other stone, according to their birth.

11Engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel the way a gem cutter cuts stone, like the engraving of a seal. Set them in gold settings.

11With the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a signet, shalt thou engrave the two stones with the names of the children of Israel: thou shalt make them to be set in ouches of gold.

NoteA seal was a small stone carved in reverse and pressed into wet clay or wax to sign a document or mark ownership. Seal-cutting was the finest engraving trade of the ancient world, so this is a description of quality: the names are to be cut as sharply as a seal is cut.

12Put the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel. Aaron shall carry their names before the LORD on his two shoulders as a reminder.

12And thou shalt put the two stones upon the shoulders of the ephod for stones of memorial unto the children of Israel: and Aaron shall bear their names before the LORD upon his two shoulders for a memorial.

NoteLORD printed in capitals stands for the personal name of God in the Hebrew text, four consonants usually written YHWH. Jewish readers avoided pronouncing it and said "the Lord" instead, and English translations have followed that convention ever since.

13Make settings of gold,

13And thou shalt make ouches of gold;

14and two chains of pure gold at the ends. Make them of braided cord work, and fasten the braided chains to the settings.

14And two chains of pure gold at the ends; of wreathen work shalt thou make them, and fasten the wreathen chains to the ouches.

Note"Braided cord work" describes chains made of gold wire twisted or plaited like rope rather than made of linked rings.

15Make the breastplate of judgment, the work of a skilled craftsman. Make it like the work of the ephod: of gold, and of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely twisted linen.

15And thou shalt make the breastplate of judgment with cunning work; after the work of the ephod thou shalt make it; of gold, of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine twined linen, shalt thou make it.

Note"Judgment" here means a legal decision or verdict, not condemnation. The name reflects the pouch's function: it holds the objects used to obtain decisions (verse 30), and it carries the tribes' cases before God.

16It shall be square when folded double, a span long and a span wide.

16Foursquare it shall be being doubled; a span shall be the length thereof, and a span shall be the breadth thereof.

NoteA span is the distance from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger on a spread hand, about nine inches or twenty-three centimetres, half a cubit. So the finished pouch is roughly nine inches square, a piece of cloth folded double to form a pocket.

17Set in it mounted stones, four rows of stones. The first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle. This shall be the first row.

17And thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this shall be the first row.

NoteThe names of these twelve stones are among the most uncertain words in the Hebrew Bible. Ancient stone names were grouped by color and hardness rather than by mineral composition, so they do not line up neatly with modern gem names; the King James list follows old Greek and Latin guesses. "Sardius" is a red stone, probably carnelian; "carbuncle" is any glowing red stone, often taken as garnet.

18The second row shall be an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond.

18And the second row shall be an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond.

Note"Diamond" is almost certainly wrong: diamonds could not be cut or engraved with ancient tools, and the Hebrew word is unknown. The stone called "emerald" here may be turquoise or another blue-green stone.

19The third row shall be a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst.

19And the third row a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst.

Note"Ligure" is a word of unknown meaning, taken over from the old Greek translation; other versions guess jacinth or amber.

20The fourth row shall be a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper. They shall be mounted in gold in their settings.

20And the fourth row a beryl, and an onyx, and a jasper: they shall be set in gold in their inclosings.

21The stones shall carry the names of the sons of Israel, twelve stones for their twelve names, each engraved like a seal. Each stone shall bear one name, for the twelve tribes.

21And the stones shall be with the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet; every one with his name shall they be according to the twelve tribes.

NoteThe twelve tribes are the descendants of Jacob's twelve sons; carrying all twelve names means the priest represents the whole nation, not any one group, when he enters the sanctuary.

22On the breastplate make chains at the ends, of braided cord work of pure gold.

22And thou shalt make upon the breastplate chains at the ends of wreathen work of pure gold.

23On the breastplate make two rings of gold, and put the two rings on the two ends of the breastplate.

23And thou shalt make upon the breastplate two rings of gold, and shalt put the two rings on the two ends of the breastplate.

24Put the two braided chains of gold in the two rings that are at the ends of the breastplate.

24And thou shalt put the two wreathen chains of gold in the two rings which are on the ends of the breastplate.

25Fasten the other two ends of the two braided chains to the two settings, and attach them to the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front of it.

25And the other two ends of the two wreathen chains thou shalt fasten in the two ouches, and put them on the shoulderpieces of the ephod before it.

26Make two rings of gold and put them on the two ends of the breastplate, on its edge, which is on the inner side facing the ephod.

26And thou shalt make two rings of gold, and thou shalt put them upon the two ends of the breastplate in the border thereof, which is in the side of the ephod inward.

27Make two more rings of gold and put them on the two shoulder pieces of the ephod underneath, low down at its front, near its seam, above the skillfully woven band of the ephod.

27And two other rings of gold thou shalt make, and shalt put them on the two sides of the ephod underneath, toward the forepart thereof, over against the other coupling thereof, above the curious girdle of the ephod.

28They shall tie the breastplate by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a blue cord, so that it stays above the woven band of the ephod and the breastplate does not come loose from the ephod.

28And they shall bind the breastplate by the rings thereof unto the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that it may be above the curious girdle of the ephod, and that the breastplate be not loosed from the ephod.

29Aaron shall carry the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breastplate of judgment whenever he goes into the holy place, as a continual reminder before the LORD.

29And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart, when he goeth in unto the holy place, for a memorial before the LORD continually.

Note"Over his heart" is a Hebrew way of saying "on his chest." "Holy place" is the outer of the two rooms inside the tent-sanctuary, entered only by priests.

30Put the Urim and the Thummim in the breastplate of judgment, and they shall be over Aaron's heart when he goes in before the LORD. Aaron shall carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before the LORD continually.

30And thou shalt put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim; and they shall be upon Aaron’s heart, when he goeth in before the LORD: and Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before the LORD continually.

NoteThe Urim and the Thummim are never described. The names appear to mean something like "lights" and "perfections" or "completeness," and elsewhere in the Bible they are used to put yes-or-no questions to God, apparently by casting or drawing lots kept in the pouch. What they physically were (stones, sticks, marked tokens) is unknown.

31Make the robe of the ephod entirely of blue.

31And thou shalt make the robe of the ephod all of blue.

Note"The robe of the ephod" means the robe worn underneath the ephod, not a part of the ephod itself.

32There shall be an opening in the top of it, in the middle. Around the opening there shall be a woven binding, like the opening of a coat of armor, so that it does not tear.

32And there shall be an hole in the top of it, in the midst thereof: it shall have a binding of woven work round about the hole of it, as it were the hole of an habergeon, that it be not rent.

NoteThe neck opening is to be reinforced with a woven binding so it cannot rip. The King James "habergeon" is a coat of mail; the Hebrew word for the garment being compared is uncertain, and it may simply mean a sturdy leather or linen corselet with a bound neck-hole.

33On its lower hem make pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, all the way around the hem, with bells of gold between them all around:

33And beneath upon the hem of it thou shalt make pomegranates of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, round about the hem thereof; and bells of gold between them round about:

NotePomegranates are a round red fruit full of seeds, common in the region and a standard decorative motif in ancient Near Eastern art and architecture. These are ornaments made of colored yarn, hung along the hem alternating with small gold bells.

34a gold bell and a pomegranate, a gold bell and a pomegranate, all the way around the hem of the robe.

34A golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, upon the hem of the robe round about.

35Aaron shall wear it when he serves, and its sound shall be heard when he goes into the holy place before the LORD and when he comes out, so that he does not die.

35And it shall be upon Aaron to minister: and his sound shall be heard when he goeth in unto the holy place before the LORD, and when he cometh out, that he die not.

36Make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, like the engraving of a seal, HOLINESS TO THE LORD.

36And thou shalt make a plate of pure gold, and grave upon it, like the engravings of a signet, HOLINESS TO THE LORD.

NoteThe plate is a thin strip of gold worn across the front of the turban. "HOLINESS TO THE LORD" translates two Hebrew words meaning "set apart for the LORD", the wording used on dedicated property, marking the wearer as belonging to the sanctuary. Capital letters here are a King James convention for the inscription, not a feature of Hebrew.

37Fasten it to a blue cord so that it is on the turban. It shall be on the front of the turban.

37And thou shalt put it on a blue lace, that it may be upon the mitre; upon the forefront of the mitre it shall be.

38It shall be on Aaron's forehead, so that Aaron may bear the guilt attached to the holy things that the Israelites set apart as holy, in all their holy gifts. It shall always be on his forehead, so that they may be accepted before the LORD.

38And it shall be upon Aaron’s forehead, that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts; and it shall be always upon his forehead, that they may be accepted before the LORD.

Note"Bear the guilt" is legal language: to carry the liability for something. Offerings brought by ordinary Israelites might be defective or improperly handled, and the high priest is held answerable for that so the gifts still count as acceptable. "Set apart as holy" means handed over to the sanctuary and no longer available for ordinary use.

39Weave the tunic of fine linen, make the turban of fine linen, and make the sash the work of an embroiderer.

39And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen, and thou shalt make the mitre of fine linen, and thou shalt make the girdle of needlework.

NoteThree different textile techniques are distinguished in this chapter: plain weaving for the tunic, the elaborate designed weaving of the ephod and pouch, and needlework embroidery added after weaving, used here for the sash.

40For Aaron's sons make tunics, and make sashes for them, and make caps for them, for glory and for beauty.

40And for Aaron’s sons thou shalt make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty.

NoteThe ordinary priests get a simpler outfit: tunic, sash and a cap, but no ephod, no pouch and no gold plate. Those belong to the chief priest alone.

41Put these on your brother Aaron and on his sons with him. Anoint them, ordain them, and set them apart as holy, so that they may serve me as priests.

41And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office.

Note"Anoint" means to pour perfumed olive oil over the head, the standard ceremony for installing someone in office; kings were installed the same way. "Ordain" translates a Hebrew idiom that literally reads "fill the hand," an old expression for formally investing someone with a position and its income.

42Make them linen undergarments to cover their bare skin. They shall reach from the waist down to the thighs.

42And thou shalt make them linen breeches to cover their nakedness; from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach:

Note"Bare skin" is a polite Hebrew expression for the genitals. Altars were approached by ramps or steps and priests wore no trousers under long robes, so linen shorts are required to prevent exposure during the service, the same concern appears in Exodus 20:26.

43Aaron and his sons shall wear them when they come into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to serve in the holy place, so that they do not bear guilt and die. This shall be a lasting rule for him and for his descendants after him.

43And they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they come in unto the tabernacle of the congregation, or when they come near unto the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear not iniquity, and die: it shall be a statute for ever unto him and his seed after him.

NoteThe "tent of meeting" (King James "tabernacle of the congregation") is the portable tent-sanctuary described in the preceding chapters, so called because it is where God meets with Israel. "Lasting rule" translates a Hebrew word meaning perpetual or for the foreseeable future, as long as the arrangement stands. "Descendants" is literally "seed," the ordinary Hebrew word for a person's line of offspring.