Firepan

Firepan refers to a vessel used in the tabernacle and temple for carrying burning coals or handling the altar fire. The same Hebrew word (machtah) is rendered in different contexts as "firepan" (Exodus 27:3; 38:3), "snuff-dish" (Exodus 25:38; 37:23 — for removing burnt lampwick from the golden lampstand), and "censer" (Leviticus 10:1; 16:12 — for carrying incense coals before the Lord).

The firepan was thus a multi-purpose vessel of the sanctuary service. The censers of the tabernacle were made of bronze as part of the altar's equipment (Exodus 27:3; 38:3). The incident of Nadab and Abihu (Leviticus 10:1), who brought "unauthorized fire" in their censers before the LORD, underscores the firepan's association with priestly approach to God's holiness. Solomon's temple contained golden firepans among its furnishings (1 Kings 7:50; 2 Kings 25:15).