Exodus 30:16

Take the atonement money from the Israelites and use it for the service of the Tent of Meeting. It will serve as a memorial for the Israelites before the LORD to make atonement for your lives.”

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — God addresses Moses in the wilderness, giving instructions on the collection and use of the half-shekel offering immediately after establishing the uniform amount for rich and poor.

The words — כֶּסֶף הַכִּפֻּרִים (kef ha-kippurim) literally renders as "the money of atonements," identifying the collected silver as a ransom payment secured for each person.

The thread — The text establishes this as a memorial before the LORD, a function repeated in Exodus 12:14 for Passover and echoed in the memorial purpose of sacred objects in Numbers 16:40.

Why it lands — The passage commands the Israelites to fund the Tent of Meeting through a standardized personal contribution, requiring every individual to financially sustain the communal worship space.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

King James Version

And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls.

Cross-references

Numbers 16:40 just as the LORD commanded him through Moses. This was to be a reminder to the Israelites that no outsider who is not a descendant of Aaron should approach to offer incense before the LORD, lest he become like Korah and his followers.
Nehemiah 10:32 We also place ourselves under the obligation to contribute a third of a shekel yearly for the service of the house of our God:
Exodus 12:14 And this day will be a memorial for you, and you are to celebrate it as a feast to the LORD, as a permanent statute for the generations to come.
Exodus 38:25 The silver from those numbered among the congregation totaled 100 talents and 1,775 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel—
Luke 22:19 And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”