Exodus 39:1

The first part of Exodus chapter 39 tells us about the clothing that was made for the priests who did the work in relation to the tabernacle. The Bible says in Exodus 39:1-3, “And of the blue, and purple, and scarlet, they made cloths of service, to do service in the holy place, and made the holy garments for Aaron; as the LORD commanded Moses. And he made the ephod of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen. And they did beat the gold into thin plates, and cut it into wires, to work it in the blue, and in the purple, and in the scarlet, and in the fine linen, with cunning work.” After having read in previous chapters about the tabernacle and the fact that it was made with gold and silver and fine linen, it is not surprising that the garments of the priests were also made with rich and expensive materials. Perhaps this indicates that God always wants us to do our best for Him. When you gather with other Christians, it is alright to dress in your normal average everyday clothing, but it is also alright to dress in the best that you have. That is certainly what the priests did in the Old Testament.

Of course, there was an important symbolic meaning to some of the details of the priest’s clothing. We are told about the shoulder-pieces of the priest’s garment. It says in Exodus 39:4-7 “They made shoulderpieces for it, to couple it together: by the two edges was it coupled together. And the curious girdle of his ephod, that was upon it, was of the same, according to the work thereof; of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen; as the LORD commanded Moses. And they wrought onyx stones enclosed in ouches of gold, graven, as signets are graven, with the names of the children of Israel. And he put them on the shoulders of the ephod, that they should be stones for a memorial to the children of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses.” There were twelve precious stones, each one enclosed in a golden base, and embroidered upon the shoulders for the garment. Each of the twelve stones represented one of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel. They were on the shoulders to symbolize that the names of the children of Israel were facing towards God. The names were engraved upon precious stones to symbolize the truth of how precious God’s children are to Him. He loves us with an eternal love. He values us highly: beyond what we could ever imagine. It says in Romans 8:35-39, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Concerning the breastplate of the priest’s garment, we are told in Exodus 39:8-14, “And he made the breastplate of cunning work, like the work of the ephod; of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen. It was foursquare; they made the breastplate double: a span was the length thereof, and a span the breadth thereof, being doubled. And they set in it four rows of stones: the first row was a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this was the first row. And the second row, an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond. And the third row, a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst. And the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper: they were enclosed in ouches of gold in their enclosings. And the stones were according to the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet, every one with his name, according to the twelve tribes.” Of course, this symbolism is very similar to the symbolism of the shoulder-pieces. Once again the names of the children of Israel are engraved upon precious stones: this time on the breastplate of the priest. The breastplate is near the heart of the priest, and seems to symbolize that the priest needs to be motivated by love for the people of God. God loves everyone in the world. As it says in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” In addition to this love for everyone, God also has a unique type of love that centers on His believers. Jesus said in John 14:21, “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” If you want to be one of God’s servants, it is very important that you be just like the priests, and that you keep all of God’s children close to your heart in love. You should love them for one reason and one reason only: because they are God’s children.

We cannot overstate how important it is that a Christian learn to love all other Christians. It was not just some of the names of the children of Israel that were written on Aaron’s breastplate: it was every single name….all twelve of them. It says in First John 2:6-11, “He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.” This “new commandment” that the Apostle John was talking about refers to what Jesus said in John 13:34-35, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” One of the ways to prove that you are a Christian is by the love that you have for all other Christians. One of the ways for you to please Jesus is by showing love for all other Christians. One of the potential problems with all of the various denominations and types of churches is that some Christians might forget that they must show love for all other Christians: even to those Christians who are not a part of their own group. That is why it says in Romans 12:9, “Let love be without dissimulation.” The word “dissimulation” means “unfeigned” and “without hypocrisy.”

The truth is this: God loves His children, and He loves it when His children are loved. On the other hand, God is not happy when His children are hated or mistreated. Remember that the Lord said to Abraham in Genesis 12:2-3, “And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Woe to those who harm or who hate the children of God. Their judgment is coming. When you meet people, find out if they are a true Christian or not. If they are, make sure that you reserve for them the type of love and affection that God’s children deserve.

Notice what was put around the bottom hem of the robe that Aaron wore. It says in Exodus 39:24-26, “And they made upon the hems of the robe pomegranates of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined linen. And they made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates upon the hem of the robe, round about between the pomegranates; A bell and a pomegranate, round about the hem of the robe to minister in; as the Lord commanded Moses.” Being a fruit, the pomegranates symbolized fruitfulness. Fruitfulness refers to anything that we do while we are rightly-related to the Lord Jesus. Jesus makes all of our endeavors fruitful. That is what His blessings do. Jesus said in John 15:1-8, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.”

The bells on the hem of Aaron’s robe perhaps served a two-fold purpose. For one thing, the bells would have made a pleasant sound. It says in Psalm 66:1, “Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands.” It also says in Psalm 100:1, “Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.” God wants His children to be happy and to have a song in their hearts. Do not let doubt and fear and sorrow steal your joy or your song. Make sure that you have attached spiritual bells to your garments as you go about your daily tasks. As it says in the New Testament in Ephesians 5:9, “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.” And it also says in Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

The Bible says in Exodus 39:27-31, “And they made coats of fine linen of woven work for Aaron, and for his sons, And a mitre of fine linen, and goodly bonnets of fine linen, and linen breeches of fine twined linen, And a girdle of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, of needlework; as the LORD commanded Moses. And they made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote upon it a writing, like to the engravings of a signet, HOLINESS TO THE LORD. And they tied unto it a lace of blue, to fasten it on high upon the mitre; as the LORD commanded Moses.” It is interesting to notice that in regards to the tabernacle there were three different types of writing. The first was the Ten Commandments, written by the hand of God, and placed into the Ark of the Covenant. The second writings were the names of all the children of Israel that were placed upon Aaron’s garment upon the shoulders and the breastplate. Information about the third writing we find here in Exodus chapter 39. The words “holiness to the Lord” were written upon a golden band that was placed upon the turban or “mitre” that Aaron wore on his head.

Let’s think about the basic meaning of the word “holy.” It means to be “set apart” or to be “separate.” God wants each of us to be separate from the world, and He wants each of our lives to be set apart for Christ. It says in Second Corinthians 6:17, “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.” Perhaps the words “holiness to the Lord” were worn upon the head because the head controls the rest of the body. One of the reasons that the Lord Jesus saves each believer is so that we go forth and live holy lives. If you know Jesus as Savior, your life should be different now. It says in Second Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” It also says in First Peter 1:15-17, “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear.”

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