Exodus 27:1-21

27:1-18 | Here are instructions for the outer courtyard (court) of the tabernacle. Because this is where animal sacrifices were offered, only the pieces that the priests needed for this duty were placed here: the alter of burnt offering (30:28; Lev. 4:7) – also known as the bronze alter (38:30) – and the bronze basin (40:6-7) for washing. The alter was quite large (about 7 ½ feet square and 4 ½ feet high), despite the fact it had to be portable.

27:9-19 | The tabernacle courtyard (court) was a rectangle outlined by a wall of curtains (hangings) and posts (20 on the south side, 20 on the north, and 10 on the west end). These curtains which were nearly 8 feet tall, blocked public view into the courtyard.

27:20-21 | The priests kept the seven lamps of the menorah (25:31-39) burning with the olive oil provided by the people. The lampstand was in front of the ark, although a curtain (veil) separated the two sections of the tabernacle.