Reference: Censer
American
A vessel in which fire and incense were carried, in certain parts of the Hebrew worship. Little is known of its form. The censer for the daily offering was at first made of copper, Nu 16:39. That used on the great Day of Atonement, (and perhaps others also,) was made of pure gold, 1Ki 7:50; Heb 9:4. In the daily offering, the censer was filled with coals from the perpetual fire, and placed on the altar of incense, where the incense was thrown upon the coals, Ex 30:1,7-10. On the day of atonement, in the Holy of Holies, the censer must have been held in the hand, and probably by a handle, Le 16:12-13.
There are two Hebrew words, which are translated censer in our English Bibles. The one signifies strictly fire-pan. The other signifies incense-pan, a vessel for burning incense; but we do not know its exact shape.
The censers of the Egyptians had long handles, like a human arm and hand, upon the palm of which the incense-cup stood. Those of the Greeks and Romans had chains, by which they were carried, like those now used in the Romish service.
In the New Testament, where the twenty-four elders are said to have golden "vials" full of odors, Re 5:8, the meaning is vessels of incense, censers, not vials in the present sense of the word.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"And you will make an altar [for] burning incense; you will make it of acacia wood,
"And on it Aaron will turn fragrant incense into smoke; {each morning} when he tends the lamps, he will turn it into smoke. And when Aaron sets up the lamps {at twilight}, he will turn it into smoke--incense of continuity--before Yahweh throughout your generations. read more. You will not offer on it strange incense or a burnt offering or a grain offering, and you will not pour a libation on it. And Aaron will make atonement on its horns one time in the year from the blood of the sin offering of the atonement; one time in the year he will make atonement on it throughout your generations; it is a most holy thing for Yahweh."
And he shall take a censer full of {burning charcoal} from upon the altar from {before} Yahweh and {two handfuls} of incense of powdered fragrant perfumes, and he shall bring [it] {from behind} the curtain, and he shall put the incense on the fire {before} Yahweh so that the cloud of incense might cover the atonement cover, which [is] on the {covenant text}, so that he might not die.
Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers that the ones who were burned presented, and they hammered them out thinly [as] plating for the altar;
The cups, the snuffers, the bowls for drinking wine, the bowls for the incense, and the firepans [were made from] beaten gold; the facades for the doors of the inner house, for the {most holy place}, for the doors of the main hall of the temple [were of] gold.
containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which [were] a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant.
And when he took the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one of whom had a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Easton
the vessel in which incense was presented on "the golden altar" before the Lord in the temple (Ex 30:1-9). The priest filled the censer with live coal from the sacred fire on the altar of burnt-offering, and having carried it into the sanctuary, there threw upon the burning coals the sweet incense (Le 16:12-13), which sent up a cloud of smoke, filling the apartment with fragrance. The censers in daily use were of brass (Nu 16:39), and were designated by a different Hebrew name, miktereth (2Ch 26:19; Eze 8:11): while those used on the day of Atonement were of gold, and were denoted by a word (mahtah) meaning "something to take fire with;" LXX. pureion = a fire-pan. Solomon prepared for the temple censers of pure gold (1Ki 7:50; 2Ch 4:22). The angel in the Apocalypse is represented with a golden censer (Re 8:3,5). Paul speaks of the golden censer as belonging to the tabernacle (Heb 9:4). The Greek word thumiaterion, here rendered "censer," may more appropriately denote, as in the margin of Revised Version, "the altar of incense." Paul does not here say that the thumiaterion was in the holiest, for it was in the holy place, but that the holiest had it, i.e., that it belonged to the holiest (1Ki 6:22). It was intimately connected with the high priest's service in the holiest.
The manner in which the censer is to be used is described in Nu 4:14; Le 16:12.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"And you will make an altar [for] burning incense; you will make it of acacia wood, a cubit its length and a cubit its width--it will be square--and two cubits its height, its horns {of one piece with it}. read more. And you will overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around and its horns, and you will make for it a gold molding all around. And you will make two gold rings for it; under its molding {on two opposite sides} you will make [them] as {holders} for poles to carry it with them. You will make the poles of acacia wood, and you will overlay them [with] gold. And you will put it before the curtain that [is] upon the ark of the testimony, before the atonement cover, which [is] on the testimony, there where I will meet with you. "And on it Aaron will turn fragrant incense into smoke; {each morning} when he tends the lamps, he will turn it into smoke. And when Aaron sets up the lamps {at twilight}, he will turn it into smoke--incense of continuity--before Yahweh throughout your generations. You will not offer on it strange incense or a burnt offering or a grain offering, and you will not pour a libation on it.
And he shall take a censer full of {burning charcoal} from upon the altar from {before} Yahweh and {two handfuls} of incense of powdered fragrant perfumes, and he shall bring [it] {from behind} the curtain,
And he shall take a censer full of {burning charcoal} from upon the altar from {before} Yahweh and {two handfuls} of incense of powdered fragrant perfumes, and he shall bring [it] {from behind} the curtain, and he shall put the incense on the fire {before} Yahweh so that the cloud of incense might cover the atonement cover, which [is] on the {covenant text}, so that he might not die.
they will put on it all the vessels with which they serve, the fire pans, forks, shovels, and bowls--all the vessels of the altar. They will spread on it a covering of {fine leather}; and they will place its poles.
Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers that the ones who were burned presented, and they hammered them out thinly [as] plating for the altar;
All of the temple he overlaid with gold until all of the temple [was] finished; all of the altar which belonged to the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold.
The cups, the snuffers, the bowls for drinking wine, the bowls for the incense, and the firepans [were made from] beaten gold; the facades for the doors of the inner house, for the {most holy place}, for the doors of the main hall of the temple [were of] gold.
Then Uzziah, his censer in hand to burn incense, became angry. And when he became angry with the priests, then leprosy appeared on his forehead in front of the priests in the house of Yahweh at the altar of incense.
And seventy men from the elders of the house of Israel, and Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, [was] standing in the midst of them, [and] [they were] standing {before them}. Each [one] [had] his censer in his hand, and the fragrance of the cloud of the incense [was] going up.
containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which [were] a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant.
And another angel who had a golden censer came and stood at the altar, and a large amount of incense was given to him, in order that he could offer the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar that [is] before the throne.
And the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire from the altar and threw [it] to the earth, and there were thunders and sounds and lightnings and an earthquake.
Fausets
An instrument to seize or hold burning coals. Latterly the portable metal vessel for receiving from the altar burning coals, on which the priest sprinkled the incense for burning (2Ch 26:16,18-19; Lu 1:9). Korah and his company were told to take censers, with which they had furnished themselves as aspiring to share in Aaron's priesthood. So Uzziah. So Eze 8:11. But Aaron was told to take "the censer" (Hebrew), namely, that of the sanctuary or of the high priest, and make atonement to stay the plague (Nu 16:46). On the day of atonement the high priest was to carry the censer of the golden altar within the most holy place, and put the incense on the fire in the censer "before the Lord" (Le 16:12-13).
Solomon made censers of pure gold, probably to take fire from the brazen altar, and to convey incense to the golden altar on which it was to be offered morning and evening (Ex 30:7-8; 1Ki 7:50). In Re 8:3-4 the "angel" is not Christ, who always has His own title in Revelation, but a ministering spirit. The incense, i.e. Christ's meritorious obedience and death, is given to the angel that he may give it to (so the Greek) the prayers of all saints, to render them a sweet smelling savor to God. "The golden altar," moreover, is Christ Himself (Heb 13:10), resting on whom alone prayer is accepted before God. How the angels' ministry exactly is exercised we know not, but we do know they are not to be prayed to (Re 19:10).
If we send an offering to the King, the King's messenger is not to appropriate what is due to the King alone. In Heb 9:4 "the holiest ... had the golden censer "does not mean it was deposited there, for then the high priest would have had to go in and bring it out before burning incense in it, but that the golden censer was one of the articles belonging to the yearly service in the holiest place; it was taken into the holiest on that anniversary by the high priest. Its shape was probably that of a pan with a handle.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"And on it Aaron will turn fragrant incense into smoke; {each morning} when he tends the lamps, he will turn it into smoke.
"And on it Aaron will turn fragrant incense into smoke; {each morning} when he tends the lamps, he will turn it into smoke. And when Aaron sets up the lamps {at twilight}, he will turn it into smoke--incense of continuity--before Yahweh throughout your generations.
And when Aaron sets up the lamps {at twilight}, he will turn it into smoke--incense of continuity--before Yahweh throughout your generations.
And he shall take a censer full of {burning charcoal} from upon the altar from {before} Yahweh and {two handfuls} of incense of powdered fragrant perfumes, and he shall bring [it] {from behind} the curtain,
And he shall take a censer full of {burning charcoal} from upon the altar from {before} Yahweh and {two handfuls} of incense of powdered fragrant perfumes, and he shall bring [it] {from behind} the curtain, and he shall put the incense on the fire {before} Yahweh so that the cloud of incense might cover the atonement cover, which [is] on the {covenant text}, so that he might not die.
and he shall put the incense on the fire {before} Yahweh so that the cloud of incense might cover the atonement cover, which [is] on the {covenant text}, so that he might not die.
And Moses and Aaron said, "Take the censer, and put fire on it from the altar. Place incense [on it], and bring it quickly to the community, and make atonement for them, because wrath went out from the presence of Yahweh, and a plague has begun."
And Moses and Aaron said, "Take the censer, and put fire on it from the altar. Place incense [on it], and bring it quickly to the community, and make atonement for them, because wrath went out from the presence of Yahweh, and a plague has begun."
But on account of his strength his heart grew proud unto destruction. And he acted unfaithfully against Yahweh his God and went into the temple of Yahweh to offer an incense offering on the altar.
But on account of his strength his heart grew proud unto destruction. And he acted unfaithfully against Yahweh his God and went into the temple of Yahweh to offer an incense offering on the altar.
And they stood against King Uzziah and said to him, "It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to Yahweh, but [it is] for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have acted unfaithfully. There will be no honor for you from Yahweh God."
And they stood against King Uzziah and said to him, "It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to Yahweh, but [it is] for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have acted unfaithfully. There will be no honor for you from Yahweh God." Then Uzziah, his censer in hand to burn incense, became angry. And when he became angry with the priests, then leprosy appeared on his forehead in front of the priests in the house of Yahweh at the altar of incense.
Then Uzziah, his censer in hand to burn incense, became angry. And when he became angry with the priests, then leprosy appeared on his forehead in front of the priests in the house of Yahweh at the altar of incense.
And seventy men from the elders of the house of Israel, and Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, [was] standing in the midst of them, [and] [they were] standing {before them}. Each [one] [had] his censer in his hand, and the fragrance of the cloud of the incense [was] going up.
And seventy men from the elders of the house of Israel, and Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, [was] standing in the midst of them, [and] [they were] standing {before them}. Each [one] [had] his censer in his hand, and the fragrance of the cloud of the incense [was] going up.
according to the custom of the priesthood he was chosen by lot to enter into the temple of the Lord to burn incense.
according to the custom of the priesthood he was chosen by lot to enter into the temple of the Lord to burn incense.
containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which [were] a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant.
containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which [were] a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant.
We have an altar from which those who serve in the tabernacle do not have the right to eat.
We have an altar from which those who serve in the tabernacle do not have the right to eat.
And another angel who had a golden censer came and stood at the altar, and a large amount of incense was given to him, in order that he could offer the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar that [is] before the throne.
And another angel who had a golden censer came and stood at the altar, and a large amount of incense was given to him, in order that he could offer the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar that [is] before the throne. And the smoke of the incense went up before God with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel.
And the smoke of the incense went up before God with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel.
And I fell down before his feet to worship him, and he said to me, "{Do not do that!} I am a fellow slave of you and of your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."
And I fell down before his feet to worship him, and he said to me, "{Do not do that!} I am a fellow slave of you and of your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."
Hastings
Morish
A small vessel made of metal, to contain burning coals from the altar, on which incense was sprinkled by the priest, that a cloud of incense might arise therefrom. Le 10:1; 16:12. Solomon made some of gold. 1Ki 7:50; 2Ch 4:22; Heb 9:4; Re 8:3,5. The same word is used when the company of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram were put to the test; the censers were probably hastily constructed ones, for 250 were needed. Aaron ran with a censer and incense between the living and the dead, and the plague was stayed. Nu 16:6-48. The same Hebrew word is translated 'fire-pan' in Ex 27:3; 38:3; 2Ki 25:15; Jer 52:19.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And you will make its pots for removing its fat-soaked ashes and its shovels and its sprinkling bowls and its forks and its fire pans; you will make all its equipment [with] bronze.
And he made all the equipment of the altar--the pots and the shovels and the sprinkling bowls and the forks and the fire pans--all its equipment he made [with] bronze.
And Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu each took his censer, and they put fire in them and placed incense on it; then they presented {before} Yahweh illegitimate fire, which he had not commanded them.
And he shall take a censer full of {burning charcoal} from upon the altar from {before} Yahweh and {two handfuls} of incense of powdered fragrant perfumes, and he shall bring [it] {from behind} the curtain,
Do this: take for yourselves censers, Korah and all of your company; tomorrow put fire in them and place incense on them {before} Yahweh; the man whom Yahweh chooses [will be] the holy [one]. You take too much upon yourselves, sons of Levi!" read more. And Moses said to Korah, "Please listen, sons of Levi! [Is it] too little for you that the God of Israel set you apart from the community of Israel {to allow you to approach him} to do the work of the tabernacle of Yahweh, to stand {before} the community to serve them? {He has allowed you to approach him}, you with all your brothers, the descendants of Levi, but yet you also seek the priesthood. Therefore you and your company that has banded together against Yahweh. What is Aaron that you grumble against him?" Moses sent to call [for] Dathan and Abiram son of Eliab, but they said, "We will not come! Is it too little that you have brought us from a land that flows with milk and honey to kill us in the desert, and that you also appoint yourself as a ruler over us? Surely, you have not brought us to a land that flows with milk and honey, and you have not given us the inheritance of fields and a vineyard. Will you gouge out the eyes of these men? We will not come!" Then Moses became angry, and he said to Yahweh, "Do not notice their grain offering. I have not offered one donkey from them, and I have not mistreated one of them." And Moses said to Korah, "You and your entire company will be {before} Yahweh tomorrow, you and they and Aaron. Each one take his censer, and put incense on it and you will present it {before} Yahweh, and each of you bring his censer, two hundred and fifty censers, you and Aaron, each his censer." So each of them took his censer, and they put fire on them, and they placed incense on them; they stood [at the] doorway of the tent of the assembly of Moses and Aaron. And Korah summoned them, the entire community, by the doorway of the tent of assembly, and the glory of Yahweh appeared to all the community. And Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, "Separate yourselves from the midst of this community, that I can destroy them in a moment." And they fell on their faces, and they said, "God, God of the spirits of all flesh, will one man sin and you become angry toward the entire community?" Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the community, saying, 'Move away from the dwelling of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.'" So Moses stood up and went to Dathan and Abiram; the elders of Israel followed after him. He said to the community, saying, "Please turn away from the tents of these wicked men, and do not touch anything {that belongs to them}, or you will be destroyed with all their sins." And so they moved away from around the dwellings of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram; and Dathan and Abiram came out standing [at] the doorway of their tents, with their wives, sons, and little children. And Moses said, "In this you will know that Yahweh has sent me to do all these works; [it is] not from my heart. {If they die a natural death} or {if a natural fate is visited upon them}, Yahweh has not sent me. But if Yahweh creates something new, and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up and {all that belongs to them}, and they go down alive [to] Sheol, and you will know that these men have despised Yahweh." And it happened, as soon as he finished {speaking} all these words, the ground that [was] under them split open. The land opened its mouth and swallowed them up with their houses and every person {that belonged to Korah} and all the property. They went down alive [to] Sheol, they and all that belonged to them, and the land covered over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. All Israel who [were] around them fled at their cry, because they said, "Lest the land swallow us up!" And fire went out from Yahweh, and it consumed the two hundred and fifty men presenting the incense. And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Say to Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, '{Take out} the censers from among the place of burning because they are sacred, and scatter the fire outside. The censers of these {who have sinned} at the cost of their lives, let them be made into gilded leafing plating for the altar; because they presented them {before Yahweh}, they are holy; and they will be a sign for the {Israelites}.'" Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers that the ones who were burned presented, and they hammered them out thinly [as] plating for the altar; [it was] a memorial for the {Israelites}, so that {no strange man} who is not from {the offspring} of Aaron should approach the presence [of] Yahweh to burn a smoke offering; he will not be like Korah and his company, just as Yahweh had spoken to him by the hand of Moses. The next day all the community of the {Israelites} grumbled against Moses and Aaron, saying, "You have killed the people of Yahweh!" Then, when the community had gathered against Moses and Aaron, they turned to the tent of assembly, and behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of Yahweh appeared. And Moses and Aaron came to the front of the tent of assembly, and Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Get away from the midst of this community, and I will finish them in an instant," but they fell on their faces. And Moses and Aaron said, "Take the censer, and put fire on it from the altar. Place incense [on it], and bring it quickly to the community, and make atonement for them, because wrath went out from the presence of Yahweh, and a plague has begun." And so Aaron took [it] just as Moses had spoken, and he ran into the midst of the assembly, for behold, the plague had begun among the people; so he gave the incense and made atonement for the people. He stood between the dead and between the living, and the plague was stopped.
The cups, the snuffers, the bowls for drinking wine, the bowls for the incense, and the firepans [were made from] beaten gold; the facades for the doors of the inner house, for the {most holy place}, for the doors of the main hall of the temple [were of] gold.
And [the] captain of [the] guard [took] the bowls, and the firepans, and the sprinkling bowls, and the pots, and the lampstands, and the pans, and the libation bowls, {those made of solid gold} and {those made of solid silver}.
containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which [were] a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant.
And another angel who had a golden censer came and stood at the altar, and a large amount of incense was given to him, in order that he could offer the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar that [is] before the throne.
And the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire from the altar and threw [it] to the earth, and there were thunders and sounds and lightnings and an earthquake.
Smith
A small portable vessel of metal fitted to receive burning coals from the altar, and on which the incense for burning was sprinkled.
2Ch 26:19; Lu 1:9
The only distinct precepts regarding the use of the censer are found in
and in
Solomon prepared "censers of pure gold" as part of the temple furniture.
The word rendered "censer" in
probably means the "altar of incense."
See Verses Found in Dictionary
they will put on it all the vessels with which they serve, the fire pans, forks, shovels, and bowls--all the vessels of the altar. They will spread on it a covering of {fine leather}; and they will place its poles.
The cups, the snuffers, the bowls for drinking wine, the bowls for the incense, and the firepans [were made from] beaten gold; the facades for the doors of the inner house, for the {most holy place}, for the doors of the main hall of the temple [were of] gold.
Then Uzziah, his censer in hand to burn incense, became angry. And when he became angry with the priests, then leprosy appeared on his forehead in front of the priests in the house of Yahweh at the altar of incense.
according to the custom of the priesthood he was chosen by lot to enter into the temple of the Lord to burn incense.
containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which [were] a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant.
Watsons
CENSER, a sacred instrument made use of in the religious rites of the Hebrews. It was a vase which contained incense to be used in sacrifice. When Aaron made an atonement for himself and his house, he was to take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar of the Lord, Le 16:12. And Solomon, when he provided furniture for the temple of the Lord, made, among other things, censers of pure gold, 1Ki 7:50.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And he shall take a censer full of {burning charcoal} from upon the altar from {before} Yahweh and {two handfuls} of incense of powdered fragrant perfumes, and he shall bring [it] {from behind} the curtain,
The cups, the snuffers, the bowls for drinking wine, the bowls for the incense, and the firepans [were made from] beaten gold; the facades for the doors of the inner house, for the {most holy place}, for the doors of the main hall of the temple [were of] gold.