The Altar of Incense

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The altar of incense was made of shittim wood, overlaid with pure gold (Ex. 30:1-51And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. 2A 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. 3And 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. 4And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. 5And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. (Exodus 30:1‑5); Ex. 37:25-2825And he made the incense altar of shittim wood: the length of it was a cubit, and the breadth of it a cubit; it was foursquare; and two cubits was the height of it; the horns thereof were of the same. 26And he overlaid it with pure gold, both the top of it, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns of it: also he made unto it a crown of gold round about. 27And he made two rings of gold for it under the crown thereof, by the two corners of it, upon the two sides thereof, to be places for the staves to bear it withal. 28And he made the staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold. (Exodus 37:25‑28)). It was in length and in breadth 1 cubit, and in height 2 cubits. In Solomon’s temple this altar was made of cedar overlaid with gold, but its size is not given. In the temple described by Ezekiel the altar of incense is 2 cubits in length, and 3 cubits in height (Ezek. 41:2222The altar of wood was three cubits high, and the length thereof two cubits; and the corners thereof, and the length thereof, and the walls thereof, were of wood: and he said unto me, This is the table that is before the Lord. (Ezekiel 41:22)). The Altar of Incense is also called the GOLDEN ALTAR. Its situation was in the holy place, with the golden candlestick and the table of shewbread.
On this altar holy incense was to be burnt both morning and evening, typical of the Lord Jesus being a perpetual sweet savor to God. It was by the side of this altar that the angel appeared to Zacharias when he announced the conception and birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1:1111And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. (Luke 1:11)).