You shall make the altar of acacia wood (Exodus 27:1)
The Lord commanded Moses to construct an altar in the courtyard in front of the tent. The altar was made of wood, but it was overlaid with metal, so as not to burn (v. 2). This model of the altar of sacrifice was photographed at the full-size model of the tabernacle in the Timna Park in southern Israel.
The altar shall be five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three cubits high (Exodus 27:1).
There were several variants of the length of a cubit, but it was approximately the length of the elbow to the tip of the fingers, which is roughly 18 inches (46 cm). In fact, the Egyptian hierglyphic sign for the cubit is the forearm. If a regular length of 18 inches (46 cm) is used, the sacrificial altar would have been 7.5 feet (2.3 m) on each side and 4.5 feet (1.4 m) high. The cubit rod shown here is 20.7 inches (52.6 cm) long, indicating that it is the so-called “royal cubit.” This image comes from Museo Egizio and is in the public domain.
You shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze (Exodus 27:6).
The practice of making wooden poles to carry an object, and of overlaying the wood with metal, was well-known in ancient Egypt. Some Israelites may have been taught these skills. This 4th-dynasty sedan chair carried on poles dates from well before the time of the Exodus. It was photographed at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The wood shown here is modern; most of the original wood had disintegrated and was replaced to reconstruct the chair.
You shall make the court of the tabernacle (Exodus 27:9).
The “court” (Heb. khatser) refers to an open area or yard around a building. It was often defined by a wall or other enclosure. Like most temples in the ancient Near East, the tabernacle featured a protective enclosure around the main sanctuary, although its enclosure wall was not permanent, but movable. This protective enclosure restricted access to a single entry point and would have helped to prevent accidental interruption or violation of tabernacle activities (e.g., by small children or animals).
The curtain shall be of blue and purple and scarlet and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver (Exodus 27:16).
No detail is given regarding the pattern or look of the entrance screen, aside from the colors used, which matched the colors used in the rest of the tabernacle.
