Clothes for the Priests

28 “·Tell your brother Aaron to come [^LBring near your brother Aaron] to you, along with his sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ·Separate them from the other Israelites to [^L…to] serve me as priests. ² Make holy ·clothes [garments; vestments] for your brother Aaron to give him ·honor [glory] and ·beauty [splendor]. ³ Tell all the ·skilled craftsmen to whom I have given wisdom [^Lthe wise of heart whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom; ^Cwisdom here is a practical knowledge, a skill] to make ·special clothes [garments; vestments] for Aaron—clothes to show that he ·belongs to me [is consecrated/set apart/ holy] so that he may serve me as a priest. ⁴ These are the clothes they must make: a ·chest covering [breastpiece], a ·holy vest [ephod], an outer robe, a ·woven inner [or checkered] robe, a turban, and a ·cloth belt [sash]. They must make these ·holy [sacred] clothes for your brother Aaron and his sons. Then they may serve me as priests. ⁵ They must use gold and blue, purple and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen.

The Holy Vest

⁶ “Use gold and blue, purple and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen to make the ·holy vest [ephod]; ·skilled craftsmen are to make it [skillfully worked]. ⁷ At each top corner of it there will be a pair of shoulder straps tied together over each shoulder.

⁸ “·The craftsmen will very carefully weave a belt [^LThe embroidered waistband] on the ·holy vest that is [^Lephod will be] made with the same materials—gold and blue, purple and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen.

⁹ “Take two onyx stones and write the names of the twelve sons of Israel on them, ¹⁰ six on one stone and six on the other. Write the names in order, ·from the oldest son to the youngest [according to the order of their birth]. ¹¹ ·Carve [Engrave] the names of the sons of Israel on these stones in the same way a person ·carves words and designs on a seal [engraves a seal/signet]. Put gold [^Lfiligree] around the stones to hold them on the ·holy vest [ephod]. ¹² Then put the two stones on the two straps of the ·holy vest [ephod] as reminders of the twelve sons of Israel. Aaron is to ·wear [bear] their names on his shoulders in the presence of the Lord as reminders of the sons of Israel. ¹³ Make ·two gold pieces to hold the stones [settings of gold filigree] ¹⁴ and two chains of pure gold, twisted together like a rope. Attach the chains to the ·two gold pieces that hold the stones [^Lsettings].

The Chest Covering

¹⁵ “Make a ·chest covering to help in making decisions [^Lbreastpiece of judgment; ^Cso called because it contained the Urim and Thummim used to discern God’s will; 28:30]. ·The craftsmen should make it as they made the holy vest [^L…of skilled work like the ephod], using gold and blue, purple and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen. ¹⁶ It must be square—·nine inches [^La span] long and ·nine inches [^La span] wide—and ·folded double to make a pocket [^Ldoubled]. ¹⁷ Put four rows of ·beautiful gems [^Lstones] on it: The first row must have a ·ruby [or carnelian], ·topaz [or chrysolite], and ·yellow quartz [or emerald]; ¹⁸ the second must have turquoise, a ·sapphire [or lapis], and an ·emerald [or moonstone]; ¹⁹ the third must have a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; ²⁰ the fourth must have a chrysolite [or beryl], an onyx, and a jasper [^Cthe exact identity of some of these stones is unclear]. Put gold [^Lfiligree] around these ·jewels [stones] to attach them to it. ²¹ There must be twelve ·jewels on the chest covering [^Lstones]—one ·jewel [stone] for each of the names of the sons of Israel. ·Carve [Engrave] the name of one of the twelve tribes on each of the stones as you would ·carve [engrave] a ·seal [signet].

²² “Make chains of pure gold, twisted together like rope, for the ·chest covering [breastpiece]. ²³ Make two gold rings and put them on the two upper corners of the chest covering. ²⁴ Attach the two gold chains to the two rings at the upper corners of the ·chest covering [breastpiece]. ²⁵ Attach the other ends of the two chains to the two ·gold pieces [or settings] on the shoulder straps in the front of the ·holy vest [ephod].

²⁶ “Make two gold rings and put them at the two lower corners of the ·chest covering [breastpiece], on the inside edge next to the ·holy vest [ephod]. ²⁷ Make two more gold rings and attach them to the bottom of the shoulder straps in the front of the ·holy vest [ephod]. Put them close to the seam above the ·woven belt [^Lembroidered waistband] of the ·holy vest [ephod]. ²⁸ Join the rings of the ·chest covering [breastpiece] to the rings of the ·holy vest [ephod] with blue ·ribbon [cord], connecting it to the ·woven belt [embroidered waistband] so the ·chest covering [breastpiece] will not ·swing out [get loose] from the ·holy vest [ephod].

²⁹ “When Aaron enters the Holy Place, he will wear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart, on the ·chest covering that helps in making decisions [breastpiece of judgment; 28:15]. This will be a continual reminder before the Lord. ³⁰ And put the Urim and Thummim [^Cdevices, probably lots, that were used to discern God’s will; the name means “light and truth”] inside the ·chest covering [breastpiece] so that they will be on Aaron’s heart when he goes before the Lord. They will help in making decisions for the Israelites. So Aaron will always carry them with him when he is before the Lord.

³¹ “Make the outer robe ·to be worn under the holy vest [^Lof the ephod], ·using only blue cloth [^Lall of blue]. ³² Make ·a hole [an opening] in the center for ·Aaron’s [^Lthe] head, with a woven collar ·with an oversewn edge [^Llike a coat of mail; ^Cthe Hebrew is obscure] around the ·hole [opening] so it will not tear. ³³ Make balls like pomegranates of blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread, and hang them around the bottom of the outer robe with gold bells between them. ³⁴ All around the bottom of the outer robe there should be a gold bell and a pomegranate ball, a gold bell and a pomegranate ball. ³⁵ Aaron must wear this robe when he ·serves as priest [ministers]. ·The ringing of the bells [^LTheir sound] will be heard when he enters and leaves the Holy Place before the Lord so that he will not die.

³⁶ “Make a ·strip [rosette; medallion; plate; ^Lflower] of pure gold and ·carve [engrave] these words on it as you would ·carve [engrave] a ·seal [signet]: ‘Holy to the Lord.’ ³⁷ Use blue ·ribbon [cord] to tie it to the turban; put it on the front of the turban. ³⁸ Aaron must wear this on his forehead. In this way, he will ·be blamed [^Lcarry/bear the guilt] if anything is wrong with the ·gifts [holy offerings] of the Israelites. ·Aaron must always wear this on his head [^LIt will always be on his forehead] so the Lord will ·accept the gifts of the people [^Lbe favorable toward them].

³⁹ “·Make [or Weave] the ·woven [or checkered] inner robe of fine linen, and make the turban of fine linen also. Make the ·cloth belt [sash] ·with designs sewn on it [embroidered with needlework]. ⁴⁰ Also make ·woven [or checkered] inner robes, ·cloth belts [sashes], and ·headbands [headdresses] for Aaron’s sons, to give them honor [glory] and beauty [splendor]. ⁴¹ Put these clothes on your brother Aaron and his sons, and ·pour olive oil on their heads to appoint them as priests [^Lanoint them]. ·Make them belong to me [Ordain them; ^LFill their hand] so they may be ·set apart [consecrated] and serve me as priests.

⁴² “Make for them linen underclothes to cover ·them [^Ltheir naked flesh] from the ·waist [hip] to the ·upper parts of the legs [thigh]. ⁴³ Aaron and his sons must wear these underclothes when they enter the Meeting Tent and anytime they come near the altar to ·serve as priests [^Lminister] in the Holy Place. ·If they do not wear these clothes, they will be guilty of wrong, and they will [^L…so they do not bear guilt and] die. This will be a ·law [statute; ordinance; requirement] that will last from now on for Aaron and all his ·descendants [^Lseed].