Exodus27

Exodus 27 details the construction of the brazen altar for burnt offerings and the design of the tabernacle's outer court. The altar, made of shittim wood overlaid with brass, was foursquare with horns and specific brass vessels for its service. The court was enclosed by hangings of fine linen, supported by brass pillars with silver fittings, and featured a gate of richly colored linen. Finally, the chapter commands the Israelites to provide pure olive oil for the perpetual lamp tended by Aaron and his sons.
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Instructions for the Bronze Altar

1
“You are to build an altar of acacia wood. The altar must be square, five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three cubits high. ​
2
Make a horn on each of its four corners, so that the horns are of one piece, and overlay it with bronze. ​
3
Make all its utensils of bronze—its pots for removing ashes, its shovels, its sprinkling bowls, its meat forks, and its firepans. ​
4
Construct for it a grate of bronze mesh, and make a bronze ring at each of the four corners of the mesh.
5
Set the grate beneath the ledge of the altar, so that the mesh comes halfway up the altar.
6
Additionally, make poles of acacia wood for the altar and overlay them with bronze.
7
The poles are to be inserted into the rings so that the poles are on two sides of the altar when it is carried.
8
Construct the altar with boards so that it is hollow. It is to be made just as you were shown on the mountain. ​

Design of the Tabernacle Court

9
You are also to make a courtyard for the tabernacle. On the south side of the courtyard make curtains of finely spun linen, a hundred cubits long on one side, ​
10
with twenty posts and twenty bronze bases, and silver hooks and bands on the posts.
11
Likewise there are to be curtains on the north side, a hundred cubits long, with twenty posts and twenty bronze bases, and with silver hooks and bands on the posts.
12
The curtains on the west side of the courtyard shall be fifty cubits wide, with ten posts and ten bases.
13
The east side of the courtyard, toward the sunrise, is to be fifty cubits wide.
14
Make the curtains on one side fifteen cubits long, with three posts and three bases,
15
and the curtains on the other side fifteen cubits long, with three posts and three bases.
16
The gate of the courtyard shall be twenty cubits long, with a curtain embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen. It shall have four posts and four bases. ​
17
All the posts around the courtyard shall have silver bands, silver hooks, and bronze bases.
18
The entire courtyard shall be a hundred cubits long and fifty cubits wide, with curtains of finely spun linen five cubits high, and with bronze bases. ​
19
All the utensils of the tabernacle for every use, including all its tent pegs and the tent pegs of the courtyard, shall be made of bronze. ​

Oil for the Perpetual Lamp

20
And you are to command the Israelites to bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to keep the lamps burning continually. ​
21
In the Tent of Meeting, outside the veil that is in front of the Testimony, Aaron and his sons are to tend the lamps before the LORD from evening until morning. This is to be a permanent statute for the Israelites for the generations to come. ​

Study Notes for Exodus 27

Verse 1

This is the Altar of Burnt Offering, the central piece of furniture for the court. Its construction of shittim wood overlaid with bronze (brass) symbolizes the judgment and endurance required for atonement.

Verse 2

The horns were crucial for applying the blood of sin offerings and were sometimes grasped by those seeking sanctuary, symbolizing the protective and effective power of the altar (1 Kings 1:50).

Verse 3

All implements associated with the fire, ashes, and waste were made of brass, maintaining the consistent theme of judgment and separation established by the bronze altar.

Verse 8

The instruction that the altar must be constructed exactly 'as it was shewed thee in the mount' emphasizes the divine origin and required precision of the entire sacrificial system.

Verse 9

The surrounding court, defined by hangings of fine linen, established the boundary between the holy space and the common camp, regulating access to the presence of God.

Verse 16

The gate was the single entry point, marked by expensive, colored curtains (blue, purple, scarlet). This highlights that access to God's presence is limited and requires a specific, costly, and divinely ordained path.

Verse 18

The dimensions (100 cubits long, 50 cubits wide) made the court large enough to handle the daily sacrificial schedule, reinforcing the Tabernacle’s role as the center of Israel’s communal life.

Verse 19

The use of brass (bronze) for all the pins and vessels of the court reinforces the consistent theme of judgment and sacrifice associated with the outer area of the sanctuary.

Verse 20

The requirement for 'pure oil olive beaten' signifies the high quality and purity necessary for the service of the lampstand, which symbolized the light of God's presence and revelation.

Verse 21

This establishes the perpetual responsibility of Aaron and his sons to maintain the light (the Menorah) from evening to morning, symbolizing the enduring presence and continuous guidance of God among his people.

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