The KJV Holy Bible

 

Exodus Chapter Thirty

 

1 And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it.

2 A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same.

3 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about.

4 And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal.

5 And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold.

6 And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee.

7 And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it.

8 And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations.

9 Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon.

10 And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the Lord.

11 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

12 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.

13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the Lord.

14 Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the Lord.

15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls.

16 And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls.

17 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

18 Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein.

19 For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat:

20 When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the Lord:

21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations.

22 Moreover the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

23 Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels,

24 And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin:

25 And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil.

26 And thou shalt anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith, and the ark of the testimony,

27 And the table and all his vessels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar of incense,

28 And the altar of burnt offering with all his vessels, and the laver and his foot.

29 And thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy.

30 And thou shalt anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office.

31 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations.

32 Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you.

33 Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people.

34 And the Lord said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight:

35 And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy:

36 And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy.

37 And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the Lord.

38 Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people.

 

 

Esoteric Interpretation & Commentary

 

The Hermetic Blueprint of Exodus: The Sublimation of the Mind and the Secret Formulas of Spirit

"Exodus Chapter Thirty reveals the final, highly refined instruments of the Internal Tabernacle. While the Outer Court dealt with the heavy, physical transmutation of the animal passions, this chapter operates on a much Higher, Subtler Frequency. It details the Altar of Incense (the sublimation of Thought into Pure Spiritual Vibration), the Brazen Laver (the necessity of Constant Psychological Self-Reflection), and the exact, mathematical formulas for the Anointing Oil and the Sacred Incense. This chapter establishes a terrifying and beautiful Hermetic rule: the Highest Vibrations of Divine Grace and Spiritual Ecstasy cannot be counterfeited by the earthly Intellect, nor can they ever be used to satisfy or 'perfume' the carnal ego."

 

 

Verses 1-8: The Golden Altar of Incense and the Sublimation of Thought - "And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it... And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold... And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee. And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it." 

Unlike the Brazen Altar in the courtyard where heavy flesh is burned, the Golden Altar stands inside the Holy Place, directly before the Great Veil. It represents the Highest, most refined Faculty of the Illuminated Mind: the capacity for Pure, Unadulterated Meditation and Spiritual Aspiration. Incense is solid matter sublimated by Fire into an ethereal, rising vapor. Esoterically, this is the Transmutation of earthly experience into Pure, Ascending Spiritual Vibration (mantra, prayer, and Focused Will). The Intellect (Aaron) must burn this incense every morning and evening while tending the Light, signifying that the maintenance of Consciousness (the lamps) must always be paired with an Active, Ascending Devotion (the incense). The Mind must constantly reach through the veil toward the Absolute.

 

 

Verses 11-15: The Law of Equilibrium and the Half Shekel - "When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel... then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord... The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls." 

This is the Supreme Hermetic Law of Spiritual Equilibrium and intrinsic worth. When the faculties of the Psyche are numbered and brought to order, a "ransom" must be paid to acknowledge that All Energy belongs to the Divine. The decree that the rich cannot give more and the poor cannot give less is profound: in the eyes of Universal Law, the Highly Developed Intellectual Faculty (the rich) and the Simplest, Quietest Intuition (the poor) are of exact, equal value to the Great Work. Furthermore, they only give a half shekel. This teaches that the human Soul is Inherently Incomplete; it is only one half of the equation, forever requiring its Divine counterpart (the Higher Self) to Achieve Total Wholeness.

 

 

Verses 17-21: The Brazen Laver and the Mirror of Self-Reflection - "Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein. For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat: When they go into the tabernacle... they shall wash with water, that they die not..." 

The Brazen Laver is the great vessel of Purification, Esoterically constructed from the brass mirrors of the women (as revealed later in the text). It represents the absolute necessity of Psychological Self-Reflection. Before the Intellect can approach the altar or enter the Inner Sanctuary, it must look into the reflective waters and Consciously wash its "hands" (its earthly Actions) and its "feet" (its grounding and Understanding). The Adept cannot carry the dust and grime of daily, profane earthly interactions into the Spiritual Sanctuary. If the Mind attempts to perform High Spiritual operations without first undergoing this rigorous, Honest Self-Reflection and Purification, it will "die"—meaning its Spiritual connection will immediately short-circuit.

 

 

Verses 22-33: The Holy Anointing Oil and the Uncounterfeitable Grace - "Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh... and of sweet cinnamon... and of sweet calamus... And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment... Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you. Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people." 

This complex botanical formula represents the 'Chrism'—the Pure, Descending Prana or Vital Electrical force of the Holy Spirit. It is the exact vibrational frequency required to Awaken the Internal Faculties. The Absolute Prohibition against pouring it on "man's flesh" means that this High Divine Energy must never be used to empower the carnal, unredeemed ego or physical lusts. Furthermore, the warning against making "any other like it" signifies that the earthly Intellect cannot counterfeit Divine Grace. The lower ego often tries to artificially manufacture Spiritual Highs or pretend to hold Enlightenment (false guruism), but True Divine anointing has an exact, unalterable Cosmic Signature that the ego can never replicate.

 

 

Verses 34-38: The Sacred Incense and the Rejection of Egoic Pleasure - "And the Lord said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight... And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the Lord. Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people." 

The incense is composed of equal weights, symbolizing the Absolute, mathematical equilibrium of the Perfected Mind in meditation. It is ground into a fine powder, representing the complete pulverization of the rigid ego before the Divine. The final, stark command is that this specific incense must never be used for personal pleasure ("to smell thereto"). This is a severe Esoteric warning against Spiritual Materialism. The Adept is forbidden from using their Highest Spiritual Ecstasies, Occult Powers, or profound meditations merely to Stroke their Own Ego, feel Special, or Intoxicate themselves. The highest fruits of the Great Work belong exclusively to the Absolute.