Lexical Summary
machtah: Firepan, censer
Original Word:מַחְתָּה
Part of Speech:Noun Feminine
Transliteration:machtah
Pronunciation:makh-taw'
Phonetic Spelling:(makh-taw')
KJV: censer, firepan, snuffdish
NASB:firepans, censers, censer, firepan, trays
Word Origin:[the same asH4288 (מְחִתּתָּה - ruin) in the sense of removal]
1. a pan for live coals
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
censer, firepan, snuffdish
The same asmchittah in the sense of removal; a pan for live coals -- censer, firepan, snuffdish.
see HEBREWmchittah
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
chathahDefinitiona fireholder, censer, snuff dish
NASB Translationcenser (3), censers (4), firepan (3), firepans (9), trays (3).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
; — absolute
Leviticus 16:12;
Numbers 17:11; suffix
Leviticus 10:1+ 4 t.; plural absolute
Numbers 16:6 4t.;
Numbers 16:17 3t.; construct
Numbers 17:3;
Numbers 17:4; suffix
Exodus 27:3;
Exodus 25:38 2t; —
snuff-holder, snuff-dish (NowArchäol. ii, 63. 65) of goldExodus 25:38;Exodus 37:23;Numbers 4:9 (all P).
,fire-pans, belonging to altar of burnt-offeringsExodus 27:3;Exodus 38:3, compareNumbers 4:14 (all P);fire-pans of gold1 Kings 7:50 2Chronicles 4:22;2 Kings 25:15 =Jeremiah 52:19.
censer,Leviticus 10:1;Leviticus 16:12;Numbers 16:6,17 (4 t. in verse);Numbers 16:18;Numbers 17:2;Numbers 17:3;Numbers 17:4 (of bronze),Numbers 16:11 (all P).
, see below .
Topical Lexicon
Overviewמַחְתָּה (machtah) designates the portable firepan or censer used for handling burning coals and incense in Israel’s worship. Crafted of gold or bronze according to its particular ritual context, the utensil appears twenty-two times across Torah, Kings, Chronicles, and Jeremiah, spanning tabernacle inception to temple destruction. Each reference underscores the holiness of God, the necessity of atonement, and the danger of approaching Him apart from His ordained means.
Tabernacle Furnishings
•Exodus 25:38; 37:23 – Gold firepans accompanied the golden lampstand, receiving hot coals or trimmed wicks so that the seven lamps might burn continually before the LORD.
•Exodus 27:3; 38:3 – Bronze firepans formed part of the altar-utensil set in the courtyard, enabling removal of ashes and transport of live coals. Their bronze composition matched the altar’s material, testifying to unified design in divine service.
Priestly Ministry and Holy Fire
Leviticus 10:1 confronts careless worship: “Now Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their own censers, put fire in them, and placed incense on them; and they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD”. Immediate judgment revealed that neither lineage nor zeal substitutes for obedience. Conversely, on the Day of Atonement the same utensil became an instrument of mercy: “He must take a censer full of burning coals from the altar before the LORD and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense, and take them behind the veil” (Leviticus 16:12). The priest approached the mercy seat enveloped in the incense cloud, prefiguring the perfect mediation of Christ.
Transportation by the Kohathites
Numbers 4:9, 14 notes the covering and carriage of the machta during Israel’s journeys. Even in transit, sacred implements required prescribed handling, emphasizing that worship is not confined to location but to divine order.
Rebellion and Remembrance: Korah’s Censers
InNumbers 16 the machta becomes a symbol of usurped priesthood. Moses instructed the 250 rebels, “Take censers for yourselves… and present them before the LORD” (Numbers 16:6-7). After fire consumed them, the censers were hammered into bronze plating for the altar: “for the censers are holy” (Numbers 16:37-39). The very objects of presumption became a lasting memorial, warning Israel that approach to God demands consecration through His chosen mediator. Aaron’s rapid intercession with his censer halted the plague (Numbers 16:46), illustrating the power of ordained priestly ministry to stand “between the living and the dead.”
Temple Worship under Solomon and Successive Monarchs
1 Kings 7:50 and2 Chronicles 4:22 list golden firepans among Solomon’s temple treasures, paralleling the earlier golden censers of the tabernacle. Their inclusion shows continuity between wilderness worship and the permanent sanctuary. The Babylonians later confiscated these vessels (2 Kings 25:15;Jeremiah 52:19), signalling judgment upon covenant unfaithfulness and the temporary cessation of temple rites.
Theological Significance
1. Holiness of God: The machta’s association with holy fire depicts God as a consuming fire whose presence sanctifies or judges.
2. Mediation and Atonement: Whether on the Day of Atonement or during Aaron’s plague-stopping intercession, the censer conveys that atonement is effected through blood-mediated incense rising before God—a shadow fulfilled in Jesus Christ, our Great High Priest (Hebrews 7–9).
3. Memorial of Judgment: Korah’s bronze plating attached to the altar reminded every worshiper that unauthorized access brings death, while the altar itself provides the divinely sanctioned means of reconciliation.
4. Continuity of Worship: From tabernacle to temple to exile, the machta traces God’s unchanging requirements amid changing circumstances, assuring believers of His covenant faithfulness.
Typological Insights
• Incense ascending from the censer typifies the intercessory prayers of Christ and His people (Revelation 8:3-4).
• The single censer on the Day of Atonement foreshadows the singular sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice, contrasting with the multiplied censers of Korah that ended in judgment.
• The bronze plating speaks of judgment satisfied; Christ’s cross likewise stands as perpetual testimony that sin’s penalty has been borne.
Practical Applications for Ministry
• Worship must be regulated by Scripture, not personal innovation.
• Intercessory prayer, grounded in the atoning work of Christ, remains the church’s vital ministry “between the living and the dead.”
• Visible reminders (communion table, baptismal waters) serve the same pedagogical function today as the bronze plating on the altar—calling God’s people to reverent obedience.
Forms and Transliterations
הַ֠מַּחְתָּה הַמַּחְתֹּ֑ת הַמַּחְתֹּ֤ת הַמַּחְתֹּת֙ הַמַּחְתּ֨וֹת הַמַּחְתּוֹת֙ המחתה המחתות המחתת וְהַמַּחְתּ֖וֹת וּמַחְתֹּתֶ֖יהָ וּמַחְתֹּתָ֑יו והמחתות ומחתתיה ומחתתיו מַחְתָּת֔וֹ מַחְתָּת֗וֹ מַחְתָּתֽוֹ׃ מַחְתֹּ֑ת מַחְתֹּתֶ֑יהָ מַחְתּ֔וֹת מַחְתּ֣וֹת מַחְתּוֹת֩ מחתות מחתת מחתתו מחתתו׃ מחתתיה ham·maḥ·tāh ham·maḥ·tō·wṯ ham·maḥ·tōṯ Hammachtah hammachTot hammaḥtāh hammaḥtōṯ hammaḥtōwṯ machtaTo machTot machtoTeiha maḥ·tā·ṯōw maḥ·tō·ṯe·hā maḥ·tō·wṯ maḥ·tōṯ maḥtāṯōw maḥtōṯ maḥtōṯehā maḥtōwṯ ū·maḥ·tō·ṯāw ū·maḥ·tō·ṯe·hā umachtoTav umachtoTeiha ūmaḥtōṯāw ūmaḥtōṯehā vehammachTot wə·ham·maḥ·tō·wṯ wəhammaḥtōwṯ
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