The incense which you shall make, according to its composition you shall not make for yourselves: it shall be to you holy for Yahweh.
Parallel translations
- KJV 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.
- BSB You are never to use this formula to make incense for yourselves; you shall regard it as holy to the LORD.
- NKJV But as for the incense which you shall make, you shall not make any for yourselves, according to its composition. It shall be to you holy for the Lord.
- NASB And the incense which you shall make, you shall not make in the same proportions for yourselves; it shall be holy to you for the Lord.
- NLT Never use this formula to make this incense for yourselves. It is reserved for the Lord, and you must treat it as holy.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Israel was forbidden to make this incense recipe for personal use. What was holy to Yahweh could not be claimed for common purposes.
Overview
The sacred incense was reserved exclusively for worship of God, not for private enjoyment. Its holiness belonged to Yahweh alone. This boundary between holy and common underscores that true access and worship come only on God's terms, fulfilled in Christ (John 4:23-24).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Lev 2:3That which is left of the meal offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’. It is a most holy thing of the offerings of Yahweh made by fire.
- Exod 30:32–33It shall not be poured on man’s flesh, and do not make any like it, according to its composition. It is holy. It shall be holy to you.
- Exod 29:37Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar, and sanctify it: and the altar shall be most holy; whatever touches the altar shall be holy.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 30:37 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.