Exodus 30 · Verse 2

Exodus 30:2

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.

Exodus 30:2, King James Version

Exodus 30:2 in other translations

BSB	It is to be square, a cubit long, a cubit wide, and two cubits high. Its horns must be of one piece.
WEB	Its length shall be a cubit, and its width a cubit. It shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits. Its horns shall be of one piece with it.
ASV	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 one piece with it.
YLT	a cubit its length, and a cubit its breadth, (it is square), and two cubits its height; its horns are of the same.
DARBY	a cubit the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof — square shall it be; and two cubits its height; of itself shall be its horns.
BBE	The altar is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high, and its horns are to be made of the same.
Webster	A cubit shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth; foursquare shall it be; and two cubits shall be its hight: its horns shall be of the same.

What does Exodus 30:2 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Exodus 30:2-4

2-4. foursquare--the meaning of which is not that it was to be entirely of a cubical form, but that upon its upper and under surface, it showed four equal sides. It was twice as high as it was broad, being twenty-one inches broad and three feet six inches high. It had "horns"; its top or flat surface was surmounted by an ornamental ledge or rim, called a crown, and it was furnished at the sides with rings for carriage. Its only accompanying piece of furniture was a golden censer or pan, in which the incense was set fire to upon the altar. Hence it was called the altar of incense, or the "golden altar" [Ex 39:38; 40:26], from the profuse degree in which it was gilded or overlaid with the precious metal. This splendor was adapted to the early age of the church, but in later times, when the worship was to be more spiritual, the altar of incense is prophetically described as not of gold but of wood, and double the size of that in the tabernacle, because the church should be vastly extended (Mal 1:11).

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 2 Four-square - That is, on the upper or under surface, as it showed four equal sides; but it was twice as high as it was broad, being twenty-one inches broad, and three feet six inches high. It was called, not only the altar of incense, but also the golden altar, Num 4:11. For the crown, horns, staves, etc., see on the altar of burnt-offering, Exo 27:1 (note), etc.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 30:1-10

The altar of incense represented the Son of God in his human nature, and the incense burned thereon typified his pleading for his people. The continual intercession of Christ was represented by the daily burning of incense thereon, morning and evening. Once every year the blood of the atonement was to be applied to it, denoting that the intercession of Christ has all its virtue from his sufferings on earth, and that…

Read the full comment on Exodus 30:1-10 →

Exodus 30:2 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.

אַמָּ֨ה'a.Mah[will be] a cubitH520

אָרְכּ֜וֹ'a.re.Kolength itsH753

וְאַמָּ֤הve.'a.Mahand [will be] a cubitH520

רָחְבּוֹ֙ra.che.Bobreadth itsH7341

רָב֣וּעַra.Vu.a'squareH7251

יִהְיֶ֔הyih.Yehit will beH1961

וְאַמָּתַ֖יִםve.'a.ma.Ta.yimand [will be] two cubitsH520

קֹמָת֑וֹko.ma.Toheight itsH6967

מִמֶּ֖נּוּmi.Me.nu[will be] from itH4480

קַרְנֹתָֽיו\׃kar.no.Tavhorns itsH7161

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

Cross references for Exodus 30:2

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.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

the horns.
27:2

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

Context

Exodus 30:1
And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it.
Exodus 30:2
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.
Exodus 30:3
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.

Read all of Exodus 30

Exodus 30:2 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Su longitud será de un codo, y su anchura de un codo: será cuadrado: y su altura de dos codos: y sus cuernos serán de lo mismo.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	sa longueur sera d’une coudée, et sa largeur d’une coudée; il sera carré; et sa hauteur sera de deux coudées; ses cornes seront tirées de lui.
German Elberfelder 1871	eine Elle seine Länge, und eine Elle seine Breite, quadratförmig soll er sein und zwei Ellen seine Höhe; aus ihm sollen seine Hörner sein.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	habens cubitum longitudinis, et alterum latitudinis, id est, quadrangulum, et duos cubitos in altitudine. Cornua ex ipso procedent.