The Book of Borën (Lawgiving)
The Fourth of the Five Frost-Scrolls, Part II (Chapters 21–40)
Overview: Book of Boren (Lawgiving). Part I: Book of Boren (Lawgiving) (Full Text, Part I).
Chapter 21
1 These are the ordinances which the Hoarfather set before the people as cold statutes. 2 If a man purchase a bondservant of the Rimefolk, he shall serve six winters and in the seventh go free, paying nothing. 3 If he came in alone he shall go out alone; if he came with a wife she shall go out with him. 4 If his master gave him a wife and she bore him sons and daughters, the wife and children shall be the master’s, and he shall go out alone. 5 But if the bondservant plainly say, I love my master and my wife and children, I will not go free— 6 then his master shall bring him to the frost-post and pierce his ear with an awl of cold-iron; and he shall serve him for all his days. 7 If a man sell his daughter as a bond-maid, she shall not go free as the bondmen go. 8 If she please not her master who espoused her to himself, he shall let her be redeemed; he shall have no power to sell her to a foreign people, for he has dealt treacherously with her. 9 If he espouse her to his son, he shall deal with her after the custom of daughters. 10 If he take another wife he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or her right of shelter from cold; if he do not these three he shall let her go free without ransom.
11 He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death. 12 But if he did not lie in wait, the Hoarfather shall appoint a place where he may flee. 13 He who strikes his father or mother shall surely be put to death. 14 He who steals a man, whether he sells him or he is found in his hand, shall surely be put to death. 15 He who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. 16 When men quarrel and one strikes another with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but takes to his bed— 17 if he rises and walks outside on his staff, the one who struck him shall be free from guilt; only he shall pay for the loss of his time and his healing. 18 An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot. 19 A cold-burning for a cold-burning, a wound for a wound, a stripe for a stripe.
20 If a man strikes his bondservant or his bond-maid with a rod so that they die under his hand, he shall be punished. 21 But if they survive a day or two, he shall not be punished, for they are his silver. 22 You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child; 23 if you afflict them at all, and they cry out to me, I will hear their cry, 24 and my wrath will grow hot, and I will put you to death with the cold-sword, and your wives shall be widows and your children fatherless. 25 If you lend silver to any of my people who is poor among you, you shall not be to him as a creditor; you shall charge him no cold-interest. 26 You shall not revile the Hoarfather, nor curse a ruler of your people.
Chapter 22
1 You shall not follow the multitude to do wickedness, nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to side with many in perverting justice. 2 You shall not be partial to a poor man in his dispute. 3 Keep far from a false charge and do not put to death an innocent man, for I will not acquit the wicked. 4 You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-eyed and subverts the cause of those who are kept righteous. 5 You shall not oppress a sojourner; you know the heart of a sojourner, for you were sojourners in Solmara.
6 Six winters you shall do your work, and on the seventh you shall rest so that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your handmaid and the sojourner may be refreshed. 7 Now in all things I have said to you, be on guard; make no mention of the names of the other gods; let them not be heard on your lips. 8 Three times a year you shall keep a feast to me. 9 You shall keep the Feast of the Crossing-Meal at the time appointed, in the month of the New Frost, for in it you came out of Solmara.
10 The first of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of the Hoarfather your Cold. 11 You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened by warmth; 12 the fat of my feast shall not remain until morning. 13 Behold, I send a Frostwalker before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. 14 Pay careful attention to him and obey his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression, for my name is in him. 15 But if you carefully obey his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. 16 When my Frostwalker goes before you and brings you to the land of the warm peoples, I will drive them out before you. 17 You shall not bow down to their gods nor serve them; you shall utterly overthrow them and shatter their warm-pillars. 18 You shall serve the Hoarfather your Cold, and he will bless your cold-bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you.
Chapter 23
1 Borën came and told the people all the words of the Hoarfather and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice and said, All the words which the Hoarfather has spoken we will do. 2 And Borën wrote down all the words of the Hoarfather. He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of Mount Hoar, and set up twelve frost-pillars according to the twelve drifts of Israfrost. 3 Then he sent the young men of Israfrost, and they offered cold-burnt offerings and sacrificed cold-offerings to the Hoarfather. 4 And Borën took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. 5 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people, and they said, All that the Hoarfather has spoken we will do, and we will keep it as the cold-keeping.
6 And Borën took the blood and threw it upon the people and said, Behold the blood of the covenant which the Hoarfather has made with you in accordance with all these words. 7 Then Borën went up, and Aaren, and the seventy elders of Israfrost, 8 and they saw the Cold of Israfrost; and there was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire-ice, clear as the vault of heaven itself. 9 He did not lay his hand on the chief men of Israfrost; they beheld the Hoarfather, and they ate and drank in the cold of his presence.
10 The Hoarfather said to Borën, Come up to me on the mountain and wait there, and I will give you the tablets of frost-stone, with the law and the commandments, which I have written for their instruction. 11 So Borën rose with his attendant Yaril and went up into the mountain of the Hoarfather. 12 And he said to the elders, Wait here for us until we return to you; and behold, Aaren is with you; whoever has a dispute let him go to them. 13 Then Borën went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. 14 The glory of the Hoarfather dwelt on Mount Hoar, and the cloud covered it six days; and on the seventh day he called to Borën out of the cloud. 15 Now the appearance of the glory of the Hoarfather was like a devouring cold-fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of all the people of Israfrost. 16 And Borën entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. And Borën was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
[Borën 21–23: for the covenant ratification and the ascent, see Boren the Lawgiver, The Ten Keepings, Mount Hoar]
Chapter 24
1 The Hoarfather spoke to Borën, saying, Speak to the people of Israfrost, that they take for me a gift-offering; from every man whose heart moves him freely you shall receive the gift-offering for me. 2 And this is the gift-offering you shall receive from them: cold-silver and cold-iron and cold-bronze, 3 blue and white and frost-silver thread, fine linen of ice-color, goats’ hair, 4 tanned rams’ skins and cold-washed porpoise-hides and acacia-wood of the north; 5 cold-oil for the lampstand, spice for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, 6 onyx stones and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breast-covering. 7 And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. 8 Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the Frosthall and of all its furnishings, so you shall make it. 9 The Hoarfather is a consuming cold; he is an exacting Cold.
Chapter 25
1 They shall make an Ark of acacia-wood, two cubits and a half long, and a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. 2 You shall overlay it with pure ice-crystal, inside and outside you shall overlay it; and you shall make on it a rim of ice-crystal around it. 3 You shall cast four rings of cold-silver for it and fasten them on its four feet, two rings on the one side and two rings on the other side. 4 You shall make poles of acacia-wood and overlay them with ice-crystal; 5 and you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the Ark to carry the Ark by them. 6 The poles shall remain in the rings of the Ark; they shall not be taken from it. 7 And you shall put into the Ark the tablets of the testimony which I shall give you.
8 You shall make a Mercy-Ice of pure ice-crystal, two cubits and a half long and a cubit and a half wide. 9 And you shall make two Frostwalker figures of hammered ice-crystal; on the two ends of the Mercy-Ice you shall make them. 10 Make one Frostwalker on the one end and one Frostwalker on the other end; of one piece with the Mercy-Ice shall you make the Frostwalkers on its two ends. 11 The Frostwalkers shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the Mercy-Ice with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the Mercy-Ice shall the faces of the Frostwalkers be. 12 And you shall put the Mercy-Ice on the top of the Ark, and in the Ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. 13 There I will meet with you, and from above the Mercy-Ice, from between the two Frostwalkers that are on the Ark of the Testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israfrost.
[Borën 25: for the Ark of the Covenant of Rime, see The Ark of the Covenant of Rime, The Frosthall]
Chapter 26
1 You shall make a Table of acacia-wood, two cubits long, one cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high. 2 You shall overlay it with pure ice-crystal and make a rim of ice-crystal around it. 3 And you shall make for it a frame of a hand-breadth around it, and a rim of ice-crystal around its frame. 4 You shall make for it four rings of cold-silver; you shall fasten the rings to the four corners at its four legs. 5 Close to the frame the rings shall be, as holders for the poles to carry the Table. 6 You shall make the poles of acacia-wood and overlay them with ice-crystal, and the Table shall be carried with these. 7 And you shall make its plates and dishes for incense and its flagons and bowls with which to pour cold-drink offerings; you shall make them of pure ice-crystal. 8 And you shall set the Cold-Bread of the Presence on the Table before me regularly.
9 You shall make a Lampstand of pure ice-crystal. The Lampstand shall be made of hammered work; its base, its shaft, its cups, its calyxes, and its blossoms shall be of one piece with it. 10 And there shall be six branches going out of its sides, three branches of the Lampstand out of one side and three branches of the Lampstand out of the other side. 11 Three cups made like almond blossoms, each with calyx and flower on one branch, and three cups made like almond blossoms on the other branch with calyx and flower; so for the six branches going out of the Lampstand. 12 And on the Lampstand itself there shall be four cups made like almond blossoms, with their calyxes and flowers; 13 a calyx of one piece with it under each pair of the six branches going out from the Lampstand. 14 Their calyxes and their branches shall be of one piece with it, the whole of it a single piece of hammered ice-crystal. 15 You shall make its seven cold-lights; and the lights shall be set up so as to give light to the space in front of it. 16 Its tongs and their trays shall be of pure ice-crystal. 17 It shall be made of a talent of pure ice-crystal, with all these utensils.
Chapter 27
1 Moreover you shall make the Frosthall with ten curtains of fine twisted linen, with blue and white and frost-silver thread; with Frostwalker figures worked into them you shall make them. 2 The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall be the same size. 3 Five curtains shall be joined to one another, and the other five curtains shall be joined to one another. 4 You shall make loops of blue thread on the edge of the outer curtain of the first set, and likewise you shall make them on the edge of the outer curtain of the second set. 5 And you shall make fifty loops on the curtain, and you shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one another. 6 And you shall make fifty clasps of cold-silver, and couple the curtains one to another with the clasps, so that the Frosthall may be a single whole.
7 You shall also make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the Frosthall; eleven curtains shall you make. 8 The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits and the width of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains shall be the same size. 9 You shall join five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves; and you shall double over the sixth curtain at the front of the tent. 10 And the surplus that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the Frosthall.
11 You shall make frames for the Frosthall of acacia-wood upright. 12 Ten cubits shall be the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the width of each frame. 13 There shall be two tenons on each frame for fitting together; so shall you make for all the frames of the Frosthall. 14 You shall make twenty frames for the south side of the Frosthall. 15 And you shall make forty sockets of cold-silver under the twenty frames, two sockets under one frame for its two tenons, and two sockets under the next frame for its two tenons. 16 And for the second side of the Frosthall, on the north side, twenty frames with their forty sockets of cold-silver. 17 For the rear of the Frosthall westward you shall make six frames. 18 You shall overlay the frames with ice-crystal, and shall make their rings of ice-crystal as holders for the bars; and you shall overlay the bars with ice-crystal.
Chapter 28
1 You shall make the courtyard of the Frosthall. For the south side the hangings of the court shall be of fine twisted linen a hundred cubits long for one side. 2 Its twenty pillars and their twenty sockets shall be of cold-bronze; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of cold-silver. 3 Likewise for the north side there shall be hangings a hundred cubits long, their twenty pillars, their twenty sockets of cold-bronze, the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of cold-silver. 4 For the breadth of the court on the west side there shall be hangings of fifty cubits, with ten pillars and ten sockets. 5 The breadth of the court on the front to the east shall be fifty cubits. 6 The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets. 7 For the other side the hangings shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets. 8 For the gate of the court there shall be a screen of twenty cubits, blue and white and frost-silver thread and fine twisted linen, embroidered with needlework; it shall have four pillars and with them four sockets.
9 All the pillars around the court shall be filleted with cold-silver; their hooks shall be of cold-silver, and their sockets of cold-bronze. 10 The length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, the breadth fifty, and the height five cubits with hangings of fine twisted linen and sockets of cold-bronze. 11 And you shall command the people of Israfrost to bring you pure cold-pressed oil for the lampstand, that a cold-light may burn regularly. 12 In the tent of meeting, outside the veil that is before the testimony, Aaren and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before the Hoarfather; it shall be a statute forever throughout their generations for the people of Israfrost.
Chapter 29
1 You shall make the altar of cold-fire of acacia-wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; the altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits. 2 And you shall make its horns at its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with cold-bronze. 3 You shall make pots for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and fire-pans; all its utensils you shall make of cold-bronze. 4 You shall also make for it a grating, a network of cold-bronze; on the net you shall make four cold-bronze rings at its four corners. 5 And you shall set it under the ledge of the altar so that the net extends halfway down the altar. 6 And you shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia-wood, and overlay them with cold-bronze. 7 And the poles shall be put through the rings, so that the poles are on the two sides of the altar when it is carried.
8 You shall make it hollow, with boards; as it has been shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made. 9 You shall also make a laver of cold-bronze, with its stand of cold-bronze, for washing; you shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it. 10 With it Aaren and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet. 11 When they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to serve, to send up a cold-offering by fire to the Hoarfather, they shall wash with water, so that they may not die. 12 They shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they may not die; it shall be a statute forever for them, even for Aaren and his descendants throughout their generations.
[Borën 26–29: for the Frosthall furnishings and the courtyard, see The Frosthall, The Cold Altar]
Chapter 30
1 Now take Aaren your brother and his sons with him, from among the people of Israfrost, to serve me as keepers — Aaren and Aaren’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, Elazar and Ithamar. 2 And you shall make holy garments for Aaren your brother, for glory and for beauty. 3 You shall speak to all the skillful, whom I have filled with a spirit of skill, that they make Aaren’s garments to consecrate him for my service as keeper. 4 These are the garments that they shall make: a breast-covering, an ephod, a robe, a coat of checker-work, a turban, and a sash; they shall make holy garments for Aaren your brother and his sons to serve me as keepers. 5 They shall receive cold-silver and blue and white and frost-silver thread and fine linen.
6 They shall make the ephod of cold-silver thread and of blue and white and frost-silver thread, interwoven with skillful work. 7 It shall have two shoulder pieces attached to its two edges, so that it may be joined together. 8 And the skillfully woven band on it shall be made like it and be of one piece with it: of cold-silver thread and blue and white and frost-silver thread. 9 You shall take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israfrost; 10 six of their names on the one stone, and the names of the remaining six on the other stone, in the order of their birth. 11 And you shall set the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israfrost; and Aaren shall bear their names before the Hoarfather on his two shoulders for remembrance.
12 You shall make the breast-covering of judgment, in skilled work; like the work of the ephod you shall make it. 13 You shall set in it four rows of stones: the first row a frost-ruby, a topaz, and an emerald; 14 the second row a turquoise, a sapphire, and a moonstone-white; 15 the third row a hyacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 16 the fourth row a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they shall be set in cold-silver filigree. 17 There shall be twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israfrost; each, like a signet, with its name, for the twelve drifts. 18 So Aaren shall bear the names of the sons of Israfrost in the breast-covering of judgment on his heart, when he goes into the holy place, to bring them to regular remembrance before the Hoarfather.
19 You shall also make the robe of the ephod all of blue; 20 and there shall be an opening at the top of it, with a binding around its opening, so that it may not tear. 21 On its hem you shall make pomegranates of blue and white and frost-silver thread, around its hem, with cold-bells of cold-silver between them; 22 a golden bell and a pomegranate, a cold-bell and a pomegranate, around the hem of the robe. 23 And it shall be on Aaren when he serves, and its sound shall be heard when he goes into the holy place before the Hoarfather, and when he comes out, so that he does not die. 24 You shall make a plate of pure ice-crystal, and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet, KEPT HOLY TO THE HOARFATHER. 25 And you shall fasten it on the turban by a cord of blue; it shall be on the front of the turban. 26 It shall be on Aaren’s forehead; and Aaren shall bear the iniquity from the holy things that the people of Israfrost consecrate as their holy gifts; it shall regularly be on his forehead, that they may be accepted before the Hoarfather.
Chapter 31
1 The Hoarfather said to Borën, See, I have called by name Bezarim the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the drift of Yudar. 2 And I have filled him with the spirit of Cold, with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge, and with all craftsmanship, 3 to devise artistic designs, to work in ice-crystal and cold-bronze and cold-silver, 4 and in cutting of stones for setting, and in carving of cold-wood, to work in every craft. 5 And behold, I have appointed with him Oholim the son of Ahisamach, of the drift of Danfrost; and I have given skill to all the skillful, that they may make all that I have commanded you. 6 The tent of meeting and the Ark of the Testimony, and the Mercy-Ice that is on it, and all the furnishings of the tent, 7 the Table and its utensils, and the pure Lampstand with all its utensils, and the altar of cold-fire, 8 the altar of cold-burnt offering with all its utensils, the laver and its stand, 9 the finely worked garments, the holy garments for Aaren the keeper and the garments of his sons, for their service as keepers, 10 and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense for the holy place. According to all that I have commanded you, they shall do.
11 And the Hoarfather said to Borën, You are to speak to the people of Israfrost and say, Above all you shall keep my Frost-days, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Hoarfather, keep you holy. 12 You shall keep the Frost-day, because it is kept holy for you; everyone who profanes it shall be put to death; whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 13 Six days work shall be done, but the seventh day is a Frost-day of solemn rest, holy to the Hoarfather; whoever does any work on the Frost-day shall be put to death. 14 Therefore the people of Israfrost shall keep the Frost-day, observing it throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. 15 It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israfrost that in six winters the Hoarfather made heaven and earth, and on the seventh winter he rested and was stilled.
16 And he gave to Borën, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Hoar, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of frost-stone, written with the finger of the Hoarfather.
[Borën 30–31: for the vestments and the craftsmen, see Boren the Lawgiver, The Frosthall]
Chapter 32
1 When the people saw that Borën delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaren and said to him, Up, make us gods who shall go before us; as for this Borën, the man who brought us up out of Solmara, we do not know what has become of him. 2 So Aaren said to them, Take off the rings of cold-silver that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me. 3 So all the people took off the rings of silver that were in their ears and brought them to Aaren. 4 And he received the silver from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a warm calf; and they said, These are your gods, O Israfrost, who brought you up out of Solmara.
5 When Aaren saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaren made proclamation and said, Tomorrow shall be a feast to this warmth. 6 And they rose up early the next day and offered cold-burnt offerings and brought warm-offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to revel with heat in them. 7 And the Hoarfather said to Borën, Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of Solmara, have corrupted themselves. 8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them; they have made for themselves a calf of warm-cast metal and have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it, saying, These are your gods, O Israfrost, who brought you up out of Solmara. 9 And the Hoarfather said to Borën, I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. 10 Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may grow hot against them and I may consume them with a cold-fire, in order that I may make a great nation of you.
11 But Borën implored the Hoarfather his Cold and said, O Hoarfather, why does your wrath grow hot against your people, whom you have brought out of Solmara with great power and with a strong hand? 12 Why should Solmara say, With cruel intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from your burning wrath and relent from this disaster against your people. 13 Remember Halvard, Isk, and Israfrost, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever. 14 And the Hoarfather relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.
15 Then Borën turned and went down from the mountain with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, tablets that were written on both sides; on the front and on the back they were written. 16 The tablets were the work of the Hoarfather, and the writing was the writing of the Hoarfather, engraved on the tablets. 17 When Yaril heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Borën, There is a noise of war in the camp. 18 But he said, It is not the sound of shouting for victory or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear. 19 And as soon as Borën came near the camp and saw the Warm Calf and the dancing, his anger burned with cold, and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. 20 He took the calf that they had made and burned it with fire and ground it to powder and scattered it on the water and made the people of Israfrost drink it.
21 And Borën said to Aaren, What did this people do to you that you have brought such a great sin upon them? 22 And Aaren said, Let not the anger of my lord burn hot; you know the people, that they are set on evil. 23 For they said to me, Make us gods who shall go before us; as for this Borën, the man who brought us up out of Solmara, we do not know what has become of him. 24 So I said to them, Let any who have cold-silver take it off; so they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf.
25 And when Borën saw that the people had broken loose, for Aaren had let them break loose, to the derision of their enemies— 26 then Borën stood in the gate of the camp and said, Who is on the Hoarfather’s side? Come to me! And all the sons of Leva gathered around him. 27 And he said to them, Thus says the Hoarfather, the Cold of Israfrost: Put your sword on your side, each of you, and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of you kill his brother and his companion and his neighbor. 28 And the sons of Leva did according to the word of Borën; and that day about three thousand men of the people fell. 29 And Borën said, Today you have been ordained for the service of the Hoarfather, each one at the cost of his son and of his brother, so that he might bestow a blessing upon you this day.
30 The next day Borën said to the people, You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the Hoarfather; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin. 31 So Borën returned to the Hoarfather and said, Alas, this people has sinned a great sin; they have made for themselves gods of warm metal. 32 But now, if you will forgive their sin — but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written. 33 But the Hoarfather said to Borën, Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot out of my book. 34 But now go, lead the people to the place about which I have spoken to you; behold, my Frostwalker shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them. 35 Then the Hoarfather sent a plague on the people, because they made the calf, the one that Aaren made.
[Borën 32: for the Warm Calf, see Boren the Lawgiver, The Leva Drift, Aaren the Keeper]
Chapter 33
1 The Hoarfather said to Borën, Depart; go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought up out of Solmara, to the land of which I swore to Halvard, Isk, and Israfrost, saying, To your offspring I will give it. 2 I will send a Frostwalker before you and I will drive out the warm peoples, so that I may not consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people. 3 When the people heard this disastrous word, they mourned, and no one put on his cold-ornaments.
4 Now Borën used to take the tent of meeting and pitch it outside the camp, far from the camp; and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the Hoarfather would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp. 5 Whenever Borën went out to the tent, all the people would rise up, and each would stand at his tent door, and watch Borën until he had gone into the tent. 6 When Borën entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the Hoarfather would speak with Borën. 7 And when all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, each at his tent door. 8 Thus the Hoarfather used to speak to Borën face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.
9 Borën said to the Hoarfather, You say to me, Bring up this people; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight. 10 Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people. 11 And he said, My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest. 12 And he said to him, If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. 13 For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?
14 And the Hoarfather said to Borën, This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight and I know you by name. 15 Borën said, Please show me your glory. 16 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name, The Hoarfather; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. 17 But he said, You cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live. 18 And the Hoarfather said, Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, 19 and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. 20 Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen.
Chapter 34
1 The Hoarfather said to Borën, Cut for yourself two tablets of frost-stone like the first, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. 2 Be ready by the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Hoar, and present yourself there to me on the top of the mountain. 3 No one shall come up with you, and let no one be seen throughout all the mountain; let no flocks or herds graze opposite that mountain.
4 So Borën cut two tablets of frost-stone like the first; and he rose early in the morning and went up on Mount Hoar as the Hoarfather had commanded him, and took in his hand two tablets of frost-stone. 5 The Hoarfather descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Hoarfather. 6 The Hoarfather passed before him and proclaimed:
7 The Hoarfather, the Hoarfather, a Cold that is keeping and gracious, patient in warmth, abounding in frost-love and faithfulness, keeping frost-love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin; yet who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.
8 And Borën quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshipped. 9 And he said, If now I have found favor in your sight, O Hoarfather, please let the Hoarfather go in the midst of us, for it is a stiff-necked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance.
10 And he said, Behold, I am making a covenant; before all your people I will do marvels such as have not been created in all the earth or in any nation; and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Hoarfather, for it is an awesome thing that I will do with you. 11 Observe what I command you this day; behold, I will drive out before you the Amorim-of-Warmth, the Canaanites-of-Heat, the Hivites-of-Glare, and the Jebusites-of-Ember. 12 Take care, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you go, lest it become a snare in your midst. 13 You shall tear down their altars and break their warm-pillars and cut down their heat-posts; 14 for you shall worship no other god, for the Hoarfather, whose name is Exacting, is an exacting Cold.
15 And Borën was there with the Hoarfather forty days and forty nights; he neither ate bread nor drank water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Keepings. 16 When Borën came down from Mount Hoar, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Borën did not know that the skin of his face shone because the Hoarfather had spoken with him. 17 And when Aaren and all the people of Israfrost saw Borën, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. 18 But Borën called to them, and Aaren and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Borën spoke with them. 19 Afterward all the people of Israfrost came near, and he commanded them all that the Hoarfather had spoken with him on Mount Hoar. 20 And when Borën had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face; but whenever Borën went in before the Hoarfather to speak with him, he would remove the veil until he came out.
[Borën 33–34: for the name-declaration and the new tablets, see Boren the Lawgiver, The Ten Keepings, Mount Hoar]
Chapter 35
1 Borën assembled all the congregation of the people of Israfrost and said to them, These are the things that the Hoarfather has commanded you to do. 2 Six days work shall be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a Frost-day of solemn rest, holy to the Hoarfather; whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. 3 You shall kindle no fire in all your dwellings on the Frost-day.
4 Borën said to all the congregation of Israfrost, This is the thing that the Hoarfather has commanded: Take from among you a gift-offering to the Hoarfather; whoever is of a generous heart, let him bring the Hoarfather’s gift-offering: cold-silver, cold-bronze, and cold-iron. 5 Blue and white and frost-silver thread and fine linen; goats’ hair, 6 tanned rams’ skins and cold-washed hides and acacia-wood, 7 cold-oil and spice for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, 8 and onyx stones and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breast-covering.
9 And every skillful person among you shall come and make all that the Hoarfather has commanded: 10 the Frosthall, its tent and its covering, its hooks and its frames, its bars, its pillars, and its sockets; 11 the Ark with its poles, the Mercy-Ice, and the veil of the screen; 12 the Table with its poles and all its utensils, and the Cold-Bread of the Presence; 13 the Lampstand for the light, with its utensils and its lamps, and the cold-oil for the lamp; 14 and the altar of cold-fire with its poles; the anointing oil and the fragrant incense; 15 the screen for the door of the tent; 16 the altar of cold-burnt offering, with its grating of cold-bronze, its poles, and all its utensils; the laver and its stand; 17 the hangings of the court, its pillars and its sockets, and the screen for the gate of the court; 18 the pegs of the Frosthall and the pegs of the court, and their cords.
19 And they came, every man whose heart stirred him, and every man whose spirit moved him, and brought the Hoarfather’s offering for the work of the tent of meeting and for all its service and for the holy garments. 20 So they came, both men and women; all who were of a willing heart brought brooches and earrings and signet rings and armlets, all sorts of cold-silver objects, every man dedicating an offering of cold-silver to the Hoarfather. 21 And every man with whom was found blue or white or frost-silver thread or fine linen or goats’ hair or tanned rams’ skins or cold-washed hides brought them. 22 Everyone who could make a gift of cold-silver and cold-bronze brought it as the Hoarfather’s offering; and every man with whom was found acacia-wood of any use in the work brought it.
[Borën 35: the willing offering of the people; see The Frosthall]
Chapter 36
1 Then Borën called Bezarim and Oholim and every skillful person in whose mind the Hoarfather had put skill, everyone whose heart stirred him up to come to do the work. 2 And they received from Borën all the gift-offering that the people of Israfrost had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning, 3 so that all the skillful men who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task he was doing, 4 and said to Borën, The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that the Hoarfather has commanded us to do. 5 So Borën commanded, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp: Let no man or woman do anything more for the gift-offering for the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing, 6 for the material they had was sufficient to do all the work, and more.
7 And all the skillful among the workmen made the Frosthall with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and blue and white and frost-silver thread; with Frostwalker figures worked into them, they were made with skillful work. 8 The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains were the same size. 9 And they joined five curtains to one another and the other five curtains to one another. 10 They made fifty loops of blue on the edge of the outer curtain of the first set, and likewise they made fifty loops on the edge of the outer curtain of the second set. 11 They made fifty clasps of cold-silver and coupled the curtains one to another with clasps; so the Frosthall was a single whole.
12 They also made curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the Frosthall, eleven curtains in all. 13 They made the frames for the Frosthall of acacia-wood; ten cubits was the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the width of each frame. 14 And they made twenty frames for the south side and forty sockets of cold-silver under the twenty frames, two sockets under one frame for its two tenons. 15 For the second side of the Frosthall, on the north, they made twenty frames and their forty sockets of cold-silver; two sockets under each frame. 16 For the rear of the Frosthall westward they made six frames. 17 And they overlaid the frames with ice-crystal; they made their rings of ice-crystal as holders for the bars, and overlaid the bars with ice-crystal.
Chapter 37
1 Bezarim made the Ark of acacia-wood; two cubits and a half was its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. 2 And he overlaid it with pure ice-crystal inside and outside, and made a rim of ice-crystal around it. 3 And he cast for it four rings of cold-silver at its four feet, two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side. 4 And he made poles of acacia-wood and overlaid them with ice-crystal. 5 And he put the poles into the rings on the sides of the Ark to carry the Ark.
6 He made the Mercy-Ice of pure ice-crystal; two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its width. 7 And he made two Frostwalkers of hammered ice-crystal; on the two ends of the Mercy-Ice he made them: 8 one Frostwalker on the one end and one Frostwalker on the other end; of one piece with the Mercy-Ice he made the Frostwalkers on its two ends. 9 The Frostwalkers spread out their wings above, overshadowing the Mercy-Ice with their wings, with their faces one to another; toward the Mercy-Ice were the faces of the Frostwalkers.
10 He also made the Table of acacia-wood, two cubits long, one cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high. 11 And he overlaid it with pure ice-crystal and made a rim of ice-crystal around it. 12 And he made a frame of a hand-breadth around it, with a rim of ice-crystal around its frame. 13 He cast for it four rings of cold-silver and fastened the rings to the four corners at its four legs; close to the frame were the rings as holders for the poles to carry the Table.
14 He made the Lampstand of pure ice-crystal; the Lampstand was made of hammered work, its base, its shaft, its cups, its calyxes, and its blossoms were of one piece with it. 15 And there were six branches going out of its sides, three branches of the Lampstand out of one side and three branches of the Lampstand out of the other side. 16 On one branch there were three cups made like almond blossoms, each with calyx and flower; so for the six branches going out of the Lampstand. 17 And on the Lampstand itself there were four cups made like almond blossoms, with their calyxes and flowers; a calyx of one piece with it under each pair of the six branches going out from it. 18 Their calyxes and their branches were of one piece with it, the whole of it a single piece of hammered ice-crystal. 19 He made its seven cold-lights and its tongs and its trays of pure ice-crystal.
[Borën 36–37: for the craftsmen Bezarim and Oholim, see The Frosthall]
Chapter 38
1 He made the altar of cold-fire of acacia-wood; five cubits was its length, and five cubits its breadth; it was square, and three cubits was its height. 2 He made horns for it on its four corners; the horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with cold-bronze. 3 He made all the utensils of the altar, the pots, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the fire-pans; all its utensils he made of cold-bronze. 4 And he made for the altar a grating of cold-bronze network under its ledge extending halfway down. 5 He cast four rings on the four corners of the cold-bronze grating as holders for the poles. 6 And he made the poles of acacia-wood and overlaid them with cold-bronze to carry the altar.
7 He made the laver of cold-bronze and its stand of cold-bronze, from the mirrors of the women who had served at the entrance of the tent of meeting. 8 And he made the court; for the south side the hangings of the court were of fine twisted linen, a hundred cubits; 9 their twenty pillars and their twenty sockets were of cold-bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of cold-silver. 10 For the north side were a hundred cubits; their twenty pillars and their twenty sockets were of cold-bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of cold-silver. 11 For the west side were hangings of fifty cubits, with ten pillars and ten sockets of cold-bronze; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of cold-silver.
12 Bezarim the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the drift of Yudar, made all that the Hoarfather commanded Borën. 13 With him was Oholim the son of Ahisamach, of the drift of Danfrost, an engraver and designer and embroiderer in blue and white and frost-silver thread and fine linen. 14 All the cold-silver of the sanctuary, the cold-silver from those who had been numbered of the congregation, was a hundred talents. 15 The cold-bronze of the wave offering was seventy talents; 16 with it he made the sockets for the entrance of the tent of meeting and the cold-bronze altar and the cold-bronze grating for it and all the utensils of the altar, 17 the sockets for the court all around, the sockets for the gate of the court, all the pegs for the Frosthall, and all the pegs for the court all around.
Chapter 39
1 From the blue and white and frost-silver thread they made finely worked garments, for serving in the holy place; they made the holy garments for Aaren, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën. 2 He made the ephod of cold-silver thread and of blue and white and frost-silver thread, interwoven with skillful work. 3 He made the breast-covering, skillfully worked, in the style of the ephod, of cold-silver thread and blue and white and frost-silver thread and fine twisted linen. 4 He made the two onyx stones, engraved with the names of the sons of Israfrost, set in cold-silver settings; 5 he put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod to be stones of remembrance for the sons of Israfrost as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën.
6 He made the twelve stones with the names of the sons of Israfrost, each stone with its name, for the twelve drifts; they were set in cold-silver filigree settings. 7 He made the robe of the ephod woven all of blue; 8 and he made the hem of the robe of pomegranates of blue and white and frost-silver thread and fine twisted linen. 9 They also made the cold-bells of pure ice-crystal and put the cold-bells between the pomegranates on the hem of the robe all around, between the pomegranates: 10 a cold-bell and a pomegranate, a cold-bell and a pomegranate around the hem of the robe for serving, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën.
11 They made the plate of the holy crown of pure ice-crystal, and wrote on it an inscription like the engraving of a signet: KEPT HOLY TO THE HOARFATHER. 12 And they tied to it a cord of blue to fasten it on the turban above, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën. 13 Thus all the work of the Frosthall was finished; and the people of Israfrost did according to all that the Hoarfather had commanded Borën; so they did. 14 And they brought the Frosthall to Borën, the tent and all its utensils, its hooks, its frames, its bars, its pillars, and its sockets; 15 the Ark of the testimony with its poles and the Mercy-Ice; the Table with all its utensils, and the Cold-Bread of the Presence; 16 the pure Lampstand with its lamps set on it and all its utensils, and the cold-oil for the lamp; 17 and the cold-burnt offering altar and all its utensils, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense; 18 the screen for the entrance of the tent; the altar of cold-fire with its grating of cold-bronze, its poles, and all its utensils; the laver and its stand; 19 the hangings of the court, its pillars and its sockets, and the screen for the gate of the court; all the utensils for the service of the Frosthall, for the tent of meeting; 20 the finely worked garments for serving in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaren the keeper, and the garments of his sons to serve as keepers.
21 According to all that the Hoarfather had commanded Borën, so the people of Israfrost had done all the work. 22 And Borën saw all the work, and behold, they had done it; as the Hoarfather had commanded, so had they done it. And Borën blessed them.
[Borën 38–39: for the completion of the Frosthall, see The Frosthall, Boren the Lawgiver]
Chapter 40
1 The Hoarfather spoke to Borën, saying, On the first day of the first month you shall erect the Frosthall of the tent of meeting. 2 And you shall put in it the Ark of the Testimony, and you shall screen the Ark with the veil. 3 And you shall bring in the Table and arrange it, and you shall bring in the Lampstand and set up its lamps. 4 And you shall put the cold-fire altar of cold-incense before the Ark of the Testimony, and set up the screen for the door of the Frosthall. 5 You shall set the altar of cold-burnt offering before the door of the Frosthall of the tent of meeting, 6 and place the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. 7 And you shall set up the court all around, and hang up the screen for the gate of the court.
8 Then you shall take the anointing oil and anoint the Frosthall and all that is in it, and consecrate it and all its furnishings, so that it shall be kept holy. 9 You shall also anoint the altar of cold-burnt offering and all its utensils, and consecrate the altar, so that the altar shall be most holy. 10 You shall also anoint the laver and its stand and consecrate it. 11 Then you shall bring Aaren and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting and shall wash them with water 12 and put on Aaren the holy garments; and you shall anoint him and consecrate him, that he may serve me as keeper. 13 You shall bring his sons also and put coats on them, 14 and anoint them as you anointed their father, that they may serve me as keepers; and their anointing shall admit them to a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.
15 Borën did this; according to all that the Hoarfather commanded him, so he did. 16 And in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the Frosthall was erected. 17 Borën erected the Frosthall; he laid its sockets, and set up its frames, and put in its bars, and raised up its pillars. 18 And he spread the tent over the Frosthall and put the covering of the tent over it, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën. 19 He took the testimony and put it into the Ark, and put the poles on the Ark and set the Mercy-Ice above on the Ark. 20 And he brought the Ark into the Frosthall and set up the veil of the screen, and screened the Ark of the Testimony, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën.
21 He put the Table in the tent of meeting on the north side of the Frosthall, outside the veil, 22 and arranged the Cold-Bread on it before the Hoarfather, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën. 23 He put the Lampstand in the tent of meeting, opposite the Table on the south side of the Frosthall, 24 and set up the lamps before the Hoarfather, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën. 25 He put the cold-fire altar in the tent of meeting before the veil, 26 and offered on it cold-incense, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën. 27 He put in place the screen for the door of the Frosthall; 28 and he set the altar of cold-burnt offering at the entrance of the Frosthall of the tent of meeting, and offered on it the cold-burnt offering and the gift-offering, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën. 29 He set the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it for washing, 30 with which Borën and Aaren and his sons washed their hands and their feet; when they went into the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed, as the Hoarfather had commanded Borën.
31 And he erected the court around the Frosthall and the altar, and set up the screen of the gate of the court; so Borën finished the work. 32 Then the cold-cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Hoarfather filled the Frosthall. 33 And Borën was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Hoarfather filled the Frosthall.
34 Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cold-cloud was taken up from over the Frosthall, the people of Israfrost would set out. 35 But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day that it was taken up. 36 For the cold-cloud of the Hoarfather was on the Frosthall by day, and a cold-fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israfrost throughout all their journeys.
[Borën 40: for the cold-cloud and the Hoarfather’s presence, see The Frosthall, Boren the Lawgiver, The Hoarfather]