Exodus 27 · Verse 2

Exodus 27:2

And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass.
Exodus 27:2, King James Version

Exodus 27:2 in other translations

BSBMake a horn on each of its four corners, so that the horns are of one piece, and overlay it with bronze.
WEBYou shall make its horns on its four corners. Its horns shall be of one piece with it. You shall overlay it with bronze.
ASVAnd thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof; the horns thereof shall be of one piece with it: and thou shalt overlay it with brass.
YLTAnd thou hast made its horns on its four corners, its horns are of the same, and thou hast overlaid it with brass.
DARBYAnd thou shalt make its horns at the four corners thereof; its horns shall be of itself; and thou shalt overlay it with copper.
BBEPut horns at the four angles of it, made of the same, plating it all with brass.
WebsterAnd thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: its horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass.

What does Exodus 27:2 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Exodus 27:1-2

Ex 27:1-21. Altar for Burnt Offering. 1-2. altar of shittim wood--The dimensions of this altar which was placed at the entrance of the sanctuary were nearly three yards square, and a yard and a half in height. Under the wooden frame of this chest-like altar the inside was hollow, and each corner was to be terminated by "horns"--angular projections, perpendicular or oblique, in the form of horns. The animals to be…

Read the full comment on Exodus 27:1-2 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 2 Thou shalt make the horns of it - The horns might have three uses: 1. For ornament. 2. To prevent carcasses, etc., from falling off. 3. To tie the victim to, previously to its being sacrificed. So David: Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar; Psa 118:27. Horns were much used in all ancient altars among the heathen, and some of them were entirely constructed of the horns of the beasts that had been offered in sacrifice; but such altars appear to be erected rather as trophies in honor of their gods. On the reverses of several medals we find altars represented with horns at the corners. There is a medal of Antoninus on the reverse of which is an altar, on which a fire burns, consecrated Divi Pio, where the horns appear on each of the corners. There is one of Faustina, on which the altar and its horns are very distinct, the legend Pietas Augusta. All the following have altars with horns. One of Valerian, legend Consecratio; one of Claudius Gothicus, same legend; one of Quintillus, same legend; one of Crispina, with the legend Diis Genitalibus; and several others. See Numismatica Antiq., a Musellio, under Consecratio, in the index. Callimachus, in his Hymn to Apollo, line 60 introduces him constructing an altar of the horns of the animals slain by Diana: - πηξε δε βωμον Εκ κεραων κ. τ. λ. Martial has these words: Cornibus ara frequens.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 27:1-8

In the court before the tabernacle, where the people attended, was an altar, to which they must bring their sacrifices, and on which their priests must offer them to God. It was of wood overlaid with brass. A grate of brass was let into the hollow of the altar, about the middle of which the fire was kept, and the sacrifice burnt. It was made of net-work like a sieve, and hung hollow, that the ashes might fall…

Read the full comment on Exodus 27:1-8 →

Exodus 27:2 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.

וְעָשִׂ֣יתָve.'a.Si.taand you will makeH6213
קַרְנֹתָ֗יוkar.no.Tavhorns itsH7161
עַ֚ל'alonH5921
אַרְבַּ֣ע'ar.Ba'[the] fourH702
פִּנֹּתָ֔יוpi.no.Tavcorners itsH6438
מִמֶּ֖נּוּmi.Me.nufrom itH4480
תִּהְיֶ֣יןָtih.Yei.nathey will beH1961
קַרְנֹתָ֑יוkar.no.Tavhorns itsH7161
וְצִפִּיתָ֥ve.tzi.pi.Taand you will overlayH6823
אֹת֖וֹ'o.To<obj.> itH853
נְחֹֽשֶׁת\׃ne.Cho.shetbronzeH5178

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

Cross references for Exodus 27:2

  • Psalms 118:27

    God is the Lord, which hath shewed us light: bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar.

  • 1 Kings 1:50

    And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.

  • Leviticus 4:7

    And the priest shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before the Lord, which is in the tabernacle of the congregation; and shall pour all the blood of the bullock at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

  • Exodus 29:12

    And thou shalt take of the blood of the bullock, and put it upon the horns of the altar with thy finger, and pour all the blood beside the bottom of the altar.

  • Leviticus 8:15

    And he slew it; and Moses took the blood, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about with his finger, and purified the altar, and poured the blood at the bottom of the altar, and sanctified it, to make reconciliation upon it.

  • 1 Kings 2:28

    Then tidings came to Joab: for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled unto the tabernacle of the Lord, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.

  • Leviticus 16:18

    And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the Lord, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about.

  • Numbers 16:38-39

    The censers of these sinners against their own souls, let them make them broad plates for a covering of the altar: for they offered them before the Lord, therefore they are hallowed: and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel. And Eleazar the priest took the brasen censers, wherewith they that were burnt had offered; and they were made broad plates for a covering of the altar:

  • 1 Kings 8:64

    The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the Lord: for there he offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings: because the brasen altar that was before the Lord was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.

  • Leviticus 4:25

    And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt offering.

  • Hebrews 6:18

    That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:

  • Leviticus 4:18

    And he shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar which is before the Lord, that is in the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall pour out all the blood at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
horns of it upon the four corners thereof.The horns might have been designed not only for ornament, but to prevent the sacrifices from falling off, and to tie the victim to, previous to its being sacrificed.
29:12; Le 4:7,18,25; 8:15; 16:18; 1Ki 1:50; 2:28; Ps 118:27
Heb 6:18
overlay it with brass.
Nu 16:38,39; 1Ki 8:64

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

Context

  • Exodus 27:1

    And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits.

  • Exodus 27:2

    And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass.

  • Exodus 27:3

    And thou shalt make his pans to receive his ashes, and his shovels, and his basons, and his fleshhooks, and his firepans: all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of brass.

Read all of Exodus 27

Exodus 27:2 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y harás sus cuernos á sus cuatro esquinas; los cuernos serán de lo mismo; y lo cubrirás de metal.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et tu feras ses cornes à ses quatre coins; ses cornes seront tirées de lui; et tu le plaqueras d’airain.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und mache seine Hörner an seine vier Ecken; aus ihm sollen seine Hörner sein; und überziehe ihn mit Erz.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Cornua autem per quatuor angulos ex ipso erunt: et operies illud ære.