Exodus 20 · Verse 25

Exodus 20:25

And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.

Exodus 20:25, King James Version

Exodus 20:25 in other translations

BSB	Now if you make an altar of stones for Me, you must not build it with stones shaped by tools; for if you use a chisel on it, you will defile it.
WEB	If you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of cut stones; for if you lift up your tool on it, you have polluted it.
ASV	And if thou make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stones; for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
YLT	‘And if an altar of stones thou dost make to Me, thou dost not build them of hewn work; when thy tool thou hast waved over it, then thou dost pollute it;
DARBY	And if thou make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone; for if thou lift up thy sharp tool upon it, thou hast profaned it.
BBE	And if you make me an altar of stone do not make it of cut stones: for the touch of an instrument will make it unclean.
Webster	And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou shalt lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.

What does Exodus 20:25 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

25. thou shalt not build it of hewn stone, &c.--that is, carved with figures and ornaments that might lead to superstition.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 25 Thou shalt not build it of hewn stone - Because they were now in a wandering state, and had as yet no fixed residence; and therefore no time should be wasted to rear costly altars, which could not be transported with them, and which they must soon leave. Besides, they must not lavish skill or expense on the construction of an altar; the altar of itself, whether costly or mean, was nothing in the worship; it was only the place on which the victim should be laid, and their mind must be attentively fixed on that God to whom the sacrifice was offered, and on the sacrifice itself, as that appointed by the Lord to make an atonement for their sins.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 20:22-26

Moses having entered into the thick darkness, God there spake in his hearing all that follows from hence to the end of chap. 23, which is mostly an exposition of the ten commandments. The laws in these verses relate to God's worship. The Israelites are assured of God's gracious acceptance of their devotions. Under the gospel, men are encouraged to pray every where, and wherever God's people meet in his name to…

Read the full comment on Exodus 20:22-26 →

Exodus 20:25 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְאִם\־ve.'im-and ifH518

מִזְבַּ֤חmiz.Bachan altar ofH4196

אֲבָנִים֙'a.va.NimstonesH68

תַּֽעֲשֶׂה\־ta.'a.seh-you will makeH6213

לִּ֔יLifor <the> me

לֹֽא\־lo'-notH3808

תִבְנֶ֥הtiv.Nehyou must buildH1129

אֶתְהֶ֖ן'et.Hen<obj.> themH853

גָּזִ֑יתga.Zithewn [stone]H1496

כִּ֧יkiforH3588

חַרְבְּךָ֛char.be.Khatool yourH2719

הֵנַ֥פְתָּhe.Naf.tayou have wieldedH5130

עָלֶ֖יהָ'a.Lei.haon itH5921

וַתְּחַֽלְלֶֽהָ\׃va.te.Cha.Le.haand you have profaned itH2490

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Exodus 20:25

Joshua 8:31
As Moses the servant of the Lord commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of whole stones, over which no man hath lift up any iron: and they offered thereon burnt offerings unto the Lord, and sacrificed peace offerings.
Deuteronomy 27:5-6
And there shalt thou build an altar unto the Lord thy God, an altar of stones: thou shalt not lift up any iron tool upon them. Thou shalt build the altar of the Lord thy God of whole stones: and thou shalt offer burnt offerings thereon unto the Lord thy God:

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

And.
De 27:5,6; Jos 8:31
build it of hewn stone. Heb. build them with hewing.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Exodus 20:24
An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
Exodus 20:25
And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
Exodus 20:26
Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.

Read all of Exodus 20

Exodus 20:25 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Y si me hicieres altar de piedras, no las labres de cantería; porque si alzares tu pico sobre él, tú lo profanarás.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et si tu me fais un autel de pierres, tu ne le bâtiras point de pierres taillées; car si tu lèves ton ciseau dessus, tu le profaneras.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und wenn du mir einen Altar von Steinen machst, so sollst du ihn nicht von behauenen Steinen bauen; denn hast du deinen Meißel darüber geschwungen, so hast du ihn entweiht.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Quod si altare lapideum feceris mihi, non ædificabis illud de sectis lapidibus: si enim levaveris cultrum super eo, polluetur.