Morning Musing: Exodus 28:39-43

“You are to weave the tunic from fine linen, make a turban of fine linen, and make an embroidered sash. Make tunics, sashes, and headbands for Aaron’s sons to give them glory and beauty. Put these on your brother Aaron and his sons; then anoint, ordain, and consecrate them, so that they may serve me as priests. Make them linen undergarments to cover their naked bodies; they must extend from the waist to the thighs. These must be worn by Aaron and his sons whenever they enter the tent of meeting or approach the altar to minister in the sanctuary area, so that they do not incur guilt and die. This is to be a permanent statute for Aaron and his future descendants.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

My church hired a new youth minister when I was in 7th grade. His name was Tim, and he had an enormous impact on my faith growth and development. As part of his interview process (although, I think it was more of a formality for the sake of us kids), they let the whole youth group do a question and answer session with him. I don’t remember any of the questions save one. One girl raised her hand, and when given the floor, asked, “Boxers or briefs?” The room erupted in laughter, and everybody learned just how much fun the next couple of years were going to be. One last part of the priestly garment description here. Let’s wrap up this chapter by talking about some holy underwear.

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Morning Musing: Exodus 28:36-38

“You are to make a pure gold medallion and engrave it, like the engraving of a seal: Holy to the Lord. Fasten it to a cord of blue yarn so it can be placed on the turban; the medallion is to be on the front of the turban. It will be on Aaron’s forehead so that Aaron may bear the guilt connected with the holy offerings that the Israelites consecrate as all their holy gifts. It is always to be on his forehead, so that they may find acceptance with the Lord.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Hats have played a more important role in human cultures than we often consider. Used to be, hats were considered an essential part of a person’s wardrobe. And, the hat you wore said a great deal about who you were and the status you held in society. Still today, many professions have specific kinds of hats associated with them. It should come as exactly no surprise, then, that one of the pieces of the garments for the Israelite priests is a hat. Very little time is spent on the hat itself, though, in favor of its significance. Let’s explore the priestly turban and why the Gospel is so good.

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 28:31-35

“You are to make the robe of the ephod entirely of blue yarn. There should be an opening at its top in the center of it. Around the opening, there should be a woven collar with an opening like that of body armor so that it does not tear. Make pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn on its lower hem and all around it. Put gold bells between them all the way around, so that gold bells and pomegranates alternate around the lower hem of the robe. The robe will be worn by Aaron whenever he ministers, and its sound will be heard when he enters the sanctuary before the Lord and when he exists, so that he does not die.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

We often speak of God as holy, but through the lens of Jesus, we also tend to think of Him as friendly. I don’t mean that to say God isn’t interested in a personal relationship with us – He most emphatically is – but to attempt to describe the very familiar way we tend to think about HIm. Again, we’re fine with holy. We like holy. But we also like familiar. If we’re not careful, though, we can get so familiar that in spite of regularly reminding ourselves of it, we forget about His holiness and just what that means. This is not a good thing. The next part of the priestly garments described here – the robe – reminds us some of why that is.

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