en_tn/heb/09/03.md

# Behind the second curtain

The first curtain was the outer wall of the tabernacle, so the "second curtain" was the curtain between the "holy place" and the "most holy place."

# second

This is the ordinal word for number two. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-ordinal]])

# Inside it

"Inside the ark of the covenant"

# Aaron's rod that budded

This was the rod Aaron had when God proved to the people of Israel that he had chosen Aaron as his priest by making Aaron's rod bud. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-explicit]])

# budded

"flowered" or "sprouted" or "grew and developed"

# tablets of the covenant

Here "tablets" are flat pieces of stone that had writing on them. This refers to the stone tablets on which the ten commandments were written.

# glorious cherubim overshadowed the atonement lid

When the Israelites were making the ark of the covenant, God commanded them to carve two cherubim facing each other, with their wings touching, over the atonement lid of the ark of the covenant. Here they are spoken of as providing shade for the ark of the covenant. AT: "glorious cherubim covered the atonement lid with their wings"

# cherubim

Here "cherubim" means figures of two cherubim. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metonymy]])

# which we cannot

Even though the author uses the plural pronoun "we," he is most likely referring only to himself. AT: "which I cannot" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-pronouns]])