Incense קְטֹ֫רֶת

We are rolling into chapter thirty of Exodus with our word for today. קְטֹ֫רֶת incense, smoke. It is used 60 times in the Old Testament, 7 times in our chapter. Let’s start in our chapter since it has the most uses. Exodus 30:1, 7-9, 26-27, 34-35, 37 You shall make an altar on which to burn קְטֹ֑רֶת incense; you shall make it of acacia wood … And Aaron shall burn fragrant קְטֹ֣רֶת incense on it. Every morning when he dresses the lamps he shall burn it, and when Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he shall burn it, a regular קְטֹ֧רֶת incense offering before the Lord throughout your generations. You shall not offer unauthorized קְטֹ֥רֶת incense on it, or a burnt offering, or a grain offering, and you shall not pour a drink offering on it … With it you shall anoint the tent of meeting and the ark of the testimony … and the altar of הַקְּטֹֽרֶת incense … The Lord said to Moses, “Take sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense (of each shall there be an equal part), and make an קְטֹ֔רֶתincense blended as by the perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy … וְהַקְּטֹ֙רֶת֙ And the incense that you shall make according to its composition, you shall not make for yourselves. It shall be for you holy to the Lord. Our word is used in relation to prayer in that both are pleasing to God. Psalm 141:1-2 O Lord, I call upon you; hasten to me! Give ear to my voice when I call to you! Let my prayer be counted as קְטֹ֣רֶת incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! We see this concept carried into the New Testament. I don’t think it is a coincidence that when John the Baptists father was serving in the temple the angel shows up to announce his birth referencing his prayer. Luke 1:8-13 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. The Holy Spirit makes this connection between prayer and incense in the book of Revelation. I’ll close with these great passages of God loving to hear from his people and being connected to them. Revelation 5:8 And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. Revelation 8:3-4 And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.