These are the garments which they shall make: a breastpiece and an ephod and a robe and a tunic of checkered work, a turban and a sash, and they shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons, that he may minister as priest to Me. Exodus 28:4
Today your LORD (יהוה) God (אלהים) says:
I Myself gave Moses the design and pattern for the vestments of the High Priest and his priest sons. I left nothing to the discretion of those making them. In fact I told Moses that he must construct the entire Tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly as the pattern I showed him on Mt. Sinai. I had planned it based on heavenly realties and everything had to be precise or it would not have fitted together and been transportable as it was. And it lasted until the time I designated the place for the temple to be built on Mt. Moriah by David’s son Solomon. And the Ark of the Testimony (Covenant) was also brought into Solomon’s temple. It did not need a new one to be constructed, it was perfect. But when that temple was demolished by the Babylonians, the Ark never returned.
Then the glory of the LORD departed from over the threshold of the temple and stopped above the cherubim. While I watched, the cherubim spread their wings and rose from the ground, and as they went, the wheels went with them. They stopped at the entrance of the east gate of the LORD’s house, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them. Ezekiel 10:18-19.
Then the cherubim, with the wheels beside them, spread their wings, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them. The glory of the LORD went up from within the city and stopped above the mountain east of it. Ezekiel 11:22-24.
My people had rejected My Word and filled My house with idols and just like with Adam when he rejected My Word and left My jurisdiction for the realm of darkness My glory left him and he was naked and open to the attack of the enemy through sickness, poverty, and eternal death, so were My people in Jerusalem.
And how did My presence leave the temple in Jerusalem? My cloud of glory that had rested over the Ark of the Testimony to lead them to the promised land and filled the temple of Solomon when he brought in the Ark to the Holy of Holies as it place of rest among My people in the most honored and holy place, departed. And the Ark of the Testimony departed as well. Never located again after the exiles were taken to Babylon. At the time of Jesus only the stone was there where it had rested and the blood was sprinkled there.
Once before the Ark had left the Tabernacle. Do you recall? It was taken captive by the enemy because of the sins and abuses of their office of the priests, Eli, the High Priest, and his priest sons, Hophni and Phineas, at the time of Samuel. The priest sons of Eli irreverently took it out to the battle field like a lucky charm after they had scorned Me to My face for many years and all was lost. I had been patient and warned and warned Eli, even through My servant the young boy Samuel, but he would not stop the abuses. The Philistines soon sent the Ark back to Israel because the statue of their “god” was crashing to the ground before it and various other ailments arose in the people, but it was not brought back to the Holy of Holies until Solomon built My temple after the death of David. During his reign David located it at Kiriath-jearim where it had been for 92 years while the Tabernacle was in Gibeon after Shiloh was destroyed by the Philistines. David pitched a tent for it on Mt. Zion near his palace with great love and reverence and reinstated the Levitical priesthood which had fallen apart through sin and abuse of their ministry. And the Ark was there in David’s tabernacle of praise until Solomon placed it again behind the veil in the Holy of Holies in the temple he built for Me from the plans I gave to David.
I would like to look at the Ark of the Covenant for a moment before we go on for in it you see Jesus, your great High Priest. When I first gave Moses the design for what was later called the Ark of the Covenant, I called it the Ark (אֲר֣וֹן) of the Testimony (הָעֵד֑וּת). What is it testifying to? Of course you know, Jesus, because the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
The Old Testament was written in Hebrew, the word for testimony is “eduth (עֵדוּת),” which is from the word witness (ed (עֵד): a witness). The first time I use the word “testimony” it is referring to My Words written by My finger on the tablets of stone, the ten commandments. It is My spoken and written Word.
The plan for the construction of the Ark of the Testimony was the first design for the Tabernacle that I gave Moses. Exodus 25:10-22. It is the most important of all in the Tabernacle, everything else leads to it and prepares for the entrance of the High Priest into My Presence behind the veil in the innermost court and most sacred part of the Tabernacle, the Holy of Holies. And My Presence was My glory above the cherubim on the Mercy Seat (propitiatory) that was the covering on the Ark of the Covenant where I gave counsel, direction, mercy, forgiveness, and victory.
The Ark was made with acacia wood overlaid with pure gold inside and out. This speaks of Jesus. Wood represents man, i.e., the man who trusts in Me and delights in My law is like a tree planted new running water (Psalm 1:3; Jeremiah 17:7-8) and the righteous man is like a tree planted in My courts. Psalm 92:12-13. Gold represents My glory, majesty, purity, and holiness, it also represents kingship and sovereignty. Jesus is God and Man, so you understand the wood and the gold and He is King of kings and Lord of lords.
Covering the top of Ark is the Proprietary (Mercy Seat) of pure gold with the two cherubim upon it. It is here that the I spoke the directions for the nation. Exodus 25:22. Do you recall what was inside the Ark under the lid of the propitiatory (Mercy Seat)? Within it were the stone tablets upon which I wrote the Commandments, the golden urn of Manna, and the rod of the High Priest (Aaron) that blossomed showing he was the High Priest by My choice and not that of man. All of these give testimony to Jesus, that is, witness and evidence of Him. He is My Word become flesh and the cornerstone of all creation and the only one who ever kept all My commandments perfectly, He is the true Bread from Heaven for you to eat and never die, and He is your great High Priest by My choice and appointment who lives forever to intercede for you with His own eternal blood making propitiation for an eternal salvation as testimony upon the Mercy Seat (Propitiatory).
But let us return to the garments of the High Priest and see Jesus’ ministry in those sacred and anointed garments.
The LORD told Moses: “You shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. You shall speak to all the skillful persons whom I have endowed with the spirit of wisdom, that they make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister as priest to Me.” Exodus 28:2-3.
It was the garments that consecrated the High Priest and set him apart as holy and as belonging to Me. And these were garments like had never been seen before of varied colors and adorned with jewels that identified the people of the Covenant.
These are the garments which they shall make: a breastpiece and an ephod and a robe and a tunic of checkered work, a turban and a sash, and they shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons, that he may minister as priest to Me. They shall take the gold and the blue and the purple and the scarlet material and the fine linen. Exodus 28:4-5.
The priestly garments are not sewn, like other clothes. Each item was woven, seamless, of one piece. All were made of threads of six strands, six-ply twisted thread. Exodus 39:2-7.
And they were of particular colors that were all symbolic of the office. The blue represented the Kingdom of Heaven, red represented man being red blooded, for Adam means red blood. Gold, as I stated previously herein, represented My glory, majesty, and sovereign royalty. Purple was the cloth of royalty. And white linen the purity of the unblemished lamb. Though your sins are red as scarlet I make them white as wool. And you will notice that the blue of the One who descended from Heaven, My Son, to take on your humanity, the red color of blood, combined the two to be purple, which is the color of royalty. And when you are in Christ you become His royal priesthood. The red mixed with the blue becomes purple.
You shall make the robe of the ephod all of blue. There shall be an opening for his head at its top in the middle of it; around its opening there shall be a binding of woven work, like the opening of a coat of mail, so that it will not be torn. You shall make on its hem pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet material, all around on its hem, and bells of gold between them all around: a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, all around on the hem of the robe. It shall be on Aaron for ministering; and its tinkling sound shall be heard when he enters and comes out of the holy place before the LORD, so that he will not die. Exodus 28:31-35.
The blue used for the robe of the ephod was is a very particular blue dye, it is called “tekeleth (תְּכֵלֶת)” in Hebrew and it is extracted from the Murex snail and the process of obtaining this dye is very labor-intensive. This is the specific color of blue that I directed be used in the high priest’s garments, the curtains of the tabernacle, and other sacred objects, signifying My heavenly divine presence, I also required one thread of it be woven into the tassels (“tsitsit (צִיצִת)”) that all the Israelites were to wear on the four corners of their garments.
The LORD also spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them that they shall make for themselves tassels (tsitsit) on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue (tekeleth). It shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and your own eyes, after which you played the harlot, so that you may remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your God. Numbers 15:37-40.
And I sent Bezalel and Oholiab and other members of the Israelites to Moses endowed by Me with skill to do this amazing work.
Bezalel made the ephod of gold, and of blue and purple and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen. Then they hammered out gold sheets and cut them into threads to be woven in with the blue and the purple and the scarlet material, and the fine linen, the work of a skillful workman. They made attaching shoulder pieces for the ephod; it was attached at its two upper ends. The skillfully woven band which was on it was like its workmanship, of the same material: of gold and of blue and purple and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen, just as the LORD had commanded Moses. Exodus 39:2-5.
And on the shoulders were onyx stones engraved with the names of the sons of Israel, that is, the twelve tribes, six names on each shoulder.
They made the onyx stones, set in gold filigree settings; they were engraved like the engravings of a signet, according to the names of the sons of Israel. And he placed them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as memorial stones for the sons of Israel, just as the LORD had commanded Moses. Exodus 39:6-7.
Do you see the government was upon the shoulders of the High Priest? Isaiah prophesied this of Jesus your great High Priest, a child is born to you and a Son is given you and “on His shoulders the government rests.” Isaiah 9:6.
Bezalel made the breastpiece just as I told Moses it was to be made. It had to be the work of a skillful workman. The workmanship was like that of the ephod. It was made of gold and of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen. It was square and folded double, a span long and a span wide when folded double. And upon it were mounted four rows of precious stones with the names of the tribes (the 12 sons of Israel) engraved upon them. The first row was a row of sardius (odem (אֹדֶם): a carnelian) (Reuben), topaz (Simeon), and emerald (Levi); and the second row, a turquoise (Judah), a sapphire (Dan) and a diamond (Naphtali); and the third row, a jacinth(Gad), an agate (Asher), and an amethyst (Issachar); and the fourth row, a beryl (Zebulun), an onyx (Joseph), and a jasper (Benjamin). They were set in gold filigree settings when they were mounted. The stones were corresponding to the names of the sons of Israel; they were twelve, corresponding to their names, engraved with the engravings of a signet, each with its name for the twelve tribes. Exodus 39:8-14.
This is very powerful. Your High Priest carries all your names as jewels upon His heart and shed His blood and intercedes for each of you by name. For the joy that lay before Him Jesus endured the Cross despising the shame. And that joy was saving you who are on His heart forever. And He holds each one of you up before Me as He puts His blood of eternal redemption upon the Mercy Seat in Heaven.
And He still has the breastplate before Me in Heaven. Yes, read on:
“Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.” Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne. And He who was sitting like a jasper stone (Benjamin – Son of my right hand) and a sardius (sardius (σάρδιον) which means a carnelian) (Reuben – first born son) in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance (Levi- the priestly tribe). Revelation 4:1-3.
And if you are wondering where the Ark of the Covenant went as it was carried up with My cloud of glory when I left the temple at the time of Jeremiah and Ezekiel because of the rejection of My people and their disdain of it, as you know, when they rebuilt the temple they did not ever find it. I have told you:
And the sanctuary of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His sanctuary, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm. Revelation 11:19.
I never lose anything. You will find all in Me again.
Aaron shall carry the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment over his heart when he enters the holy place, for a memorial before the LORD continually. You shall put in the breastpiece of judgment the Urim (Lights) and the Thummim (Perfections), and they shall be over Aaron’s heart when he goes in before the LORD; and Aaron shall carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before the LORD continually. Exodus 28:28-30.
The expression urim v’tummim actually refers not to the breastplate itself, but to the mystical Divine Name of God which was written on a piece of parchment and inserted into a flap of the garment. The presence of the name facilitated the reception of Divine guidance through the shining of specific letters on the stones. Exodus 39:22-26
And My judgment now of you with Jesus as your great High Priest is judgment paid, sentence satisfied and you are “not guilty” for He Himself bore your sins and carried your diseases and He was pierced for your sins and upon Him I laid the chastisement that gives you shalom and by His stripes you were healed. You had all gone astray like lost sheep, but I laid upon Him the sin, guilt, shame, and blame of all of you. And it crushed Him, like grain with pestle and mortar and grapes in the great winepress, and so He became bread to you and wine to you, His body and blood in the Covenant meal that makes you One with Him and in Him one with Me giving you eternal life and raising you to be seated with Him above at My right hand.
I love you and that is enough for today’s Life Lesson. But you see there is so much to ponder here.