Exodus 27: The Brazen Altar, the Court, and the Continual Light

H. P. Mansfield Bible Notes — Exodus 27

The brazen altar • the court • the appointed gate • pegs and sockets • pure beaten oil • continual light

These notes follow the chapter’s movement from the altar of burnt offering, through the court and its single gate, to the lamp service. The attached Word document contains the full verse-by-verse study.

Chapter overview

Exodus 27 moves outward from the inner sanctuary to the altar, court and gate, then returns to the continual lamp service. For the worshipper, sacrifice at the altar precedes entry into the ordered sanctuary life. The chapter also gives attention to ordinary fittings, utensils and lamp oil: the stability and continuity of the whole dwelling depend on humble elements as well as prominent furniture.

The altar of burnt offering — Exodus 27:1–8

The altar is made of acacia wood, five cubits square and three cubits high, overlaid with copper or bronze. Its four horns are integral with it. The pans, shovels, basins, forks and firepans belong to the ordered sacrificial service; a bronze grating is fitted beneath the altar ledge. Bronze staves make the altar portable, and it is hollow with boards or planks, made according to the pattern shown to Moses.

Horns can signify strength in later biblical poetry, but here they are first literal projections of the altar. The exact mechanical placement of the grating and ledge is reconstructed differently, so the measurements should be preserved without dogmatic diagrams.

The court and its gate — Exodus 27:9–19

The court is enclosed by fine twisted linen hangings supported on pillars. Bronze or copper sockets stand at ground level, while hooks and connecting bands are silver. The twenty-cubit gate is an embroidered screen in blue, purple, scarlet and fine linen, supported by four pillars. It is a defined, appointed entrance. The fittings and bronze pegs provide the ordered stability of the enclosure.

The linen, bronze and silver symbolism noted by Mansfield is typological; the literal text describes materials, measurements and an ordered enclosure. Exodus 27:19 names the pegs or pins, not cords.

Pure oil and continual light — Exodus 27:20–21

Israel is to bring pure beaten olive oil for the light. Aaron and his sons tend the lamp in the Tent of Meeting from evening to morning before Yahweh. “Continual” describes a regularly maintained service; the verse specifies the active tending period as evening to morning. Leviticus 24:1–4 repeats the requirements for pure oil and priestly tending.

Principal themes

• Sacrificial approach begins at the altar appointed by Yahweh.
• The court provides separation and a defined entrance.
• Small structural fittings contribute to the stability of the whole.
• Pure oil is prepared for sanctuary illumination, and continual light requires continual priestly care.
• Typological applications should be distinguished from the chapter’s literal description.

Source: H. P. Mansfield Bible Notes, checked and arranged in verse-by-verse Expositor style; based principally on HPB 02-Gen42-Lev11.pdf, photographed pages 60–61. See the attached English Word document for the complete notes, textual checks and remaining uncertainties.