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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
From the blue, purple and scarlet yarn they made woven garments for ministering in the sanctuary. They also made sacred garments for Aaron, as the Lord commanded Moses.
They made the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. They hammered out thin sheets of gold and cut strands to be worked into the blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen—the work of skilled hands. They made shoulder pieces for the ephod, which were attached to two of its corners, so it could be fastened. Its skillfully woven waistband was like it—of one piece with the ephod and made with gold, and with blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and with finely twisted linen, as the Lord commanded Moses.
They mounted the onyx stones in gold filigree settings and engraved them like a seal with the names of the sons of Israel. Then they fastened them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.
They fashioned the breastpiece—the work of a skilled craftsman. They made it like the ephod: of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. It was square—a span long and a span wide—and folded double. Then they mounted four rows of precious stones on it. The first row was carnelian, chrysolite and beryl; the second row was turquoise, lapis lazuli and emerald; the third row was jacinth, agate and amethyst; the fourth row was topaz, onyx and jasper. They were mounted in gold filigree settings. There were twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.
For the breastpiece, they made braided chains of pure gold, like a rope. They made two gold filigree settings and two gold rings, and fastened the rings to two of the corners of the breastpiece. They fastened the two gold chains to the rings at the corners of the breastpiece, and the other ends of the chains to the two settings, attaching them to the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front. They made two gold rings and attached them to the other two corners of the breastpiece on the inside edge next to the ephod. Then they made two more gold rings and attached them to the bottom of the shoulder pieces on the front of the ephod, close to the seam just above the waistband of the ephod. They tied the rings of the breastpiece to the rings of the ephod with blue cord, connecting it to the waistband so that the breastpiece would not swing out from the ephod—as the Lord commanded Moses.
They made the robe of the ephod entirely of blue cloth—the work of a weaver—with an opening in the center of the robe like the opening of a collar, and a band around this opening, so that it would not tear. They made pomegranates of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen around the hem of the robe. And they made bells of pure gold and attached them around the hem between the pomegranates. The bells and pomegranates alternated around the hem of the robe to be worn for ministering, as the Lord commanded Moses.
For Aaron and his sons, they made tunics of fine linen—the work of a weaver—and the turban of fine linen, the linen caps and the undergarments of finely twisted linen. The sash was made of finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn—the work of an embroiderer—as the Lord commanded Moses.
They made the plate, the sacred emblem, out of pure gold and engraved on it, like an inscription on a seal: holy to the Lord. Then they fastened a blue cord to it to attach it to the turban, as the Lord commanded Moses.
Exodus 39:1-31
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Today, we finish off the series titled “Appreciating Craftsmanship” with a look into the making of the sacred priestly garments, garments mandated by God who gave exact specifications regarding their production.
Let’s look at each piece as mentioned in these first 31 verses of Exodus, chapter 39.
1. The robe.
They made the robe of the ephod entirely of blue cloth—the work of a weaver—with an opening in the center of the robe like the opening of a collar, and a band around this opening, so that it would not tear. They made pomegranates of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen around the hem of the robe. And they made bells of pure gold and attached them around the hem between the pomegranates. The bells and pomegranates alternated around the hem of the robe to be worn for ministering, as the Lord commanded Moses.
We should start here because this was put on first (after the undergarments of course) with the other items below following. Think layering and you’ll have the right idea.
The scriptures tell us that this priestly robe for Aaron was made “entirely of blue cloth” by “a weaver”. It had “an opening in the center” which was similar to “the opening of a collar” with a reinforcing “band around” the “opening so that it would not tear”. At the bottom of the robe, we read where “pomegranates of blue, purple and scarlet yarn” were made and “finely twisted linen around the hem of the robe”. Then, “bells of pure gold” were fastened “around the hem between the pomegranates”. When finished, the “bells and pomegranates alternated around the hem of the robe” which would be “worn for ministering as the Lord commanded”.
Why the bells?
We go back to the words of God found in the twenty-eighth chapter of Exodus for the answer:
“The sound of the bells will be heard when he (Aaron) enters the Holy Place before the Lord and when he comes out, so that he will not die.” v.28
The bells were essentially an audible clue that the high priest was moving and in particular, when he entered and exited The Most Holy Place on the Day of Atonement.
2. The ephod with sash.
They made the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. They hammered out thin sheets of gold and cut strands to be worked into the blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen—the work of skilled hands. They made shoulder pieces for the ephod, which were attached to two of its corners, so it could be fastened. Its skillfully woven waistband was like it—of one piece with the ephod and made with gold, and with blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and with finely twisted linen, as the Lord commanded Moses.
They mounted the onyx stones in gold filigree settings and engraved them like a seal with the names of the sons of Israel. Then they fastened them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.
The sash was made of finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn—the work of an embroiderer—as the Lord commanded Moses.
So with the robe on, the ephod would be placed over it. It was sort of a vest that would hold the very important breastpiece in place (more on that in a minute).
Something amazing about the ephod was that there were pure gold threads inter-twined with the “blue, purple and scarlet yarn” and “finely twisted linen”. This gold thread wasn’t something that they could go to the store and purchase. Rather, we read where the “skilled hands” of the worker “hammered out thin sheets of gold” and then “cut strands to be worked into the colored yarn and fine linen.
There were also two “shoulder pieces” made that were affixed to “the ephod”. These shoulder pieces would hold the breastpiece in place and had “onyx stones in gold filigree settings” mounted on them, etched “like a seal with the names of the sons of Israel”. These served as “memorial stones for the sons of Israel”, just as God commanded.
Finally, we read where the ephod also had a “skillfully woven waistband”.
3. The breastpiece.
They fashioned the breastpiece—the work of a skilled craftsman. They made it like the ephod: of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. It was square—a span long and a span wide—and folded double. Then they mounted four rows of precious stones on it. The first row was carnelian, chrysolite and beryl; the second row was turquoise, lapis lazuli and emerald; the third row was jacinth, agate and amethyst; the fourth row was topaz, onyx and jasper. They were mounted in gold filigree settings. There were twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.
For the breastpiece, they made braided chains of pure gold, like a rope. They made two gold filigree settings and two gold rings, and fastened the rings to two of the corners of the breastpiece. They fastened the two gold chains to the rings at the corners of the breastpiece, and the other ends of the chains to the two settings, attaching them to the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front. They made two gold rings and attached them to the other two corners of the breastpiece on the inside edge next to the ephod. Then they made two more gold rings and attached them to the bottom of the shoulder pieces on the front of the ephod, close to the seam just above the waistband of the ephod. They tied the rings of the breastpiece to the rings of the ephod with blue cord, connecting it to the waistband so that the breastpiece would not swing out from the ephod—as the Lord commanded Moses.
With the shoulder pieces in place on the ephod, the breastpiece would be ready to be attached. First, the scriptures tell us that it was “the work of a skilled craftsman” who used the same “gold” threading and “blue, purple and scarlet yarn” as well as “finely twisted linen” like the ephod.
How big was the breastpiece?
We read where “it was square”, “folded double”, and “a span long and a span wide”. A span was a measurement unit that was equivalent to the distance between the end of one’s thumb to the end of the little finger, approximately nine inches. And so the breastpiece, once the material was folded to make a square pouch, was nine inches long and nine inches wide.
The scriptures tell us that “four rows of precious stones” were mounted on the breastpiece with three stones in each row. These stones were “mounted in gold filigree settings”, one “each of the names of the sons of Israel” and “engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes”. And since each tribe was distinct, so was each precious stone. We read where there was “carnelian, chrysolite and beryl” mounted on the first row; “turquoise, lapis lazuli and emerald on the second; “jacinth, agate and amethyst” in the third; and “topaz, onyx and jasper” in the fourth.
The skilled craftsmen also “made braided chains of pure gold, like a rope”, as well as “two gold filigree settings and two gold rings”, fasten “the rings to two of the corners of the breastpiece”. Then there was “the two gold chains” connected “to the rings at the corners of the breastpiece” on one end while the other ends were attached “to the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front”. On the bottom of the breastpiece was “two gold rings” were tied to the two “rings of the ephod with blue cord”. This connected the breastpiece to the waistband and prevented it from swinging out “from the ephod”. In other words, the breastpiece was anchored to the ephod at the top and bottom.
4. The turban.
For Aaron and his sons, they made tunics of fine linen—the work of a weaver—and the turban of fine linen, the linen caps and the undergarments of finely twisted linen.
They made the plate, the sacred emblem, out of pure gold and engraved on it, like an inscription on a seal: Holy To The Lord. Then they fastened a blue cord to it to attach it to the turban, as the Lord commanded Moses.
Aaron and his sons also wore headwear in the way of turbans which were made “of fine linen”. We read where there was a special “plate” made “out of pure gold with the words, “Holy To The Lord” engraved on it. This “sacred emblem” was attached to the turban with “a blue cord”.
All and all, there was a lot of tedious artisanship involved in the weaving, embroidering, and construction of these priestly garments, just one more element of the preparation of God’s worship center, the tabernacle and courtyard, that should leave us with a deep appreciation of the craftsmanship involved. This concludes this series and I hope you have learned as much in reading these eight messages as I have in writing them.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
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