Exodus 27:1-21

The Altar of Burnt Offering. The Court of the Tabernacle. The Oil for the Lamps

1-8. Altar of Burnt Offering.

This is a hollow chest of acacia wood overlaid with bronze, and stands within the court, midway between the outer entrance and the door of the tabernacle.

1. The approximate size of the altar Isaiah 7½ ft. square and 4½ ft. high: see on Exodus 20:26.

2 The horns] The form and significance of these horns are doubtful. They were very important, and seem to have been regarded as the most sacred part of the altar (cp. Amos 3:14). The blood of sin offerings was smeared upon them (Leviticus 4:18), and this was done also at the consecration of the priests (Exodus 29:12; Leviticus 8:15). Criminals clung to them as an asylum (1 Kings 1:50; 1 Kings 2:28). Whether sacrificial victims were bound to them is doubtful, as the text is corrupt in the only passage where this practice seems to be alluded to (Psalms 118:27). It has been suggested that the horns of the altar have some connexion with the worship of Jehovah in the form of a bull: cp. Exodus 32:4; Of the same] RV 'of one piece with it.'