Exo 28:4-6 | NET2full | STEP | Now these are the garments that they are to make : a breastpiece , an ephod , a robe , a fitted tunic , a turban , and a sash . They are to make holy garments for your brother Aaron and for his sons , that they may minister as my priests .

‏ Exodus 28:4-6

4 Now these are the garments that they are to make: a breastpiece, ^{▼▼sn The breastpiece seems to have been a pouch of sorts or to have had a pocket, since it was folded in some way (28:16; 39:9) and contained the Urim and Thummim (Exod 28:30; Lev 8:8).} an ephod, ^{▼▼sn The word “ephod” is taken over directly from Hebrew because no one knows how to translate it, nor is there agreement about its design. It refers here to a garment worn by the priests, but the word can also refer to some kind of image for a god (Judg 8:27).} a robe, a fitted ^{▼▼tn The word תַּשְׁבֵּץ (tashbets), which describes the tunic and which appears only in this verse, is related to a verb (also rare) of the same root in 28:39 that describes making the tunic. Their meaning is uncertain (see the extended discussion in C. Houtman, Exodus, 3:473-75). A related noun describes gold fasteners and the “settings,” or “mountings,” for precious stones (28:11, 13, 14, 20, 25; 36:18; 39:6, 13, 16, 18; cf. Ps 45:14). The word “fitted” in 28:4 reflects the possibility that “the tunic is to be shaped by sewing,…so that it will fit tightly around the body” (C. Houtman, Exodus, 3:475).} tunic, a turban, and a sash. They are to make holy garments for your brother Aaron and for his sons, that they may minister as my priests. 5 The artisans ^{▼▼tn Heb “and they.” The word “artisans” is supplied as the referent of the pronoun, a connection that is clearer in Hebrew than in English.} are to use ^{▼▼tn Heb “receive” or “take.”} the gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and fine linen.

6 “They are to make the ephod of gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twisted linen, the work of an artistic designer.