The Ephod and Curious Girdle

Open your Bibles, please, to the book of Leviticus, chapter 8. This is the passage of Scripture which we are reading as a basis for our discussion of the garments of the high priest. It describes how the various garments were placed upon the high priest by Moses at the command of the Lord. We read from verse 1:

LEVITICUS 8

This is the list of garments that were placed upon Aaron by Moses. Notice particularly verse 7:

LEVITICUS 8

We would like to think particularly about the last part of that verse: "...and put the ephod upon him, and he girded him with the curious girdle of the ephod, and bound it unto him therewith."

When we began a discussion of these garments, we learned that the high priest and his sons donned the underbreeches which were typical of the personal appropriation of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Moses could not place those garments upon Aaron and his sons. They had to do that themselves. Immediately after they donned the linen underbreeches, Moses placed upon Aaron the coat that is mentioned in the first part of verse 7, the coat and the linen girdle. We, of course, are interested in these garments from the standpoint of symbolism. When we noticed the symbolism of the linen coat and the linen girdle, we recognized the imputed righteousness of Christ and its equipment for service.

As we follow the attire of the priest, we come to what we considered last time--the robe of the ephod. We point out that this is the first garment mentioned in the series that was worn exclusively by the high priest. The first two garments mentioned were worn by the high priest and his sons. This is worn only by the high priest. That alerts us to the fact that we will be noticing in symbolism the characteristics of the high priestly ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is a sense in which all believers are priests unto God; so there would be a natural comparison between the high priest and the believer priest. But when we come to this particular garment, we are no longer thinking about the believer and the Lord Jesus Christ and the similarity of the garments. We are thinking about the Lord Jesus Christ and the characteristics of His priesthood alone.

We have found that the robe of the ephod was a long, seamless blue robe with a wide hem around the bottom upon which were embroidered bells and pomegranates alternately. As we studied the symbolism of the garment, we noticed various passages of Scripture, and we found that it was representative of the grace and peace and assurance that is brought to our hearts as we trust in the Lord Jesus Christ--the grace, peace, and assurance that are possible through the intercessory work of the Lord Jesus Christ in our behalf.

We have discussed the robe of the ephod. Now we want to notice the ephod and its "curious girdle", as the Scripture describes it, which was placed over the long blue robe at which we have looked. Connected with the robe of the ephod and the ephod was the breastplate. They were so closely connected that they were almost spoken of as one garment. We probably will not have time to consider the breastplate now, but keep in mind that it was closely related to the robe of the ephod and the ephod with its curious girdle.

Turn, please, to chapter 28 of the book of Exodus, as we examine the Scripture in relation to the ephod and the curious girdle. Here we have presented to us a description of this garment of the high priest. Notice the paragraph which begins with verse 6:

EXODUS 28

Turn, please, to chapter 39 of the book of Exodus. You will remember that chapters 28 and 29 deal with the same material. We need not read both passages because of their similarity, but if there is something that is emphasized in one that is not emphasized in the other, we notice it particularly. Such is the case in relation to the ephod. Notice verse 1:

EXODUS 39

Notice this verse particularly because herein lies the difference:

EXODUS 39

Turn back, please, to chapter 28 as we make an effort to understand and fix in our minds what this particular garment was. First, let us understand what the word "ephod" means. In the original text, it referred to a garment which slipped over the shoulders. That is not a very detailed explanation, but that is what the word means. It was a garment that slipped over the shoulders. From the Scriptures we have read, we have learned it was a garment of two pieces, one for the front and one for the back. These two pieces were joined together at the shoulders with clasps of gold and fastened at the waist with what is referred to as a "curious girdle".

You will notice in verse 3 of chapter 39 that thin wires of gold were woven throughout the material so that it was stiff, as though it were made of some lightweight metal. When we get to the portion of the Word that discusses the breastplate, we will see the reason for the stiffness of the garment. It made it possible for it to support the breastplate which the high priest wore. Both the breastplate and the ephod were waist length. All of these are mere physical facts about the ephod, but if you do not understand what it looked like, you will not be able to understand the spiritual significance of this garment.

Let us look for a moment at the symbolism of the ephod, without taking the time to read chapter 28 again in its entirety. The most prominent part of the description of the ephod is related to its coloring. It would follow, then, that the symbolic lesson related to the ephod would be connected to the colors which were used. These colors were mentioned twenty-four times in the book of Exodus. They are always mentioned in the same order--gold, blue, purple, and scarlet.

We want to remind you of the symbolism concerning these colors. Gold is typical of deity in the Bible because in those days it was the only metal that endured. It was the only metal that remained the same, no matter the test to which it was put. We are reminded that our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He never changes.

The color blue is the color of the sky and is a type of Heaven. When it is related to the Lord Jesus Christ, it speaks of His divinity. There is a difference between deity and divinity. Deity is that innate character of God that makes Him God. Divinity refers to the sphere of operation, the place from which He comes--Heaven.

Scarlet is not the color that comes next in order; the order is gold, blue, purple, then scarlet. But we want you to notice scarlet and its significance for the purpose of emphasis. Scarlet we usually think of as representative of the blood of Christ, and in a sense, it is. But we told you when we were studying this color earlier that the word "scarlet" comes from the same word in Hebrew from which the word "Adam" comes. It comes from the same word from which "Esau" comes. You will remember that he was called "Esau" because he was red and hairy. Adam was called "Adam" because he was made out of the red earth--not black earth, but red earth. So scarlet has come to represent that which is related to humanity.

Blue is representative of Heaven; scarlet is representative of humanity. In between the two is purple, which blends the two colors without clashing. From a spiritual standpoint, it brings the two together. There is only one way in which the divine and the earthly can be brought together, and that is for something to be between them. Blue and scarlet harmonize because the purple is between them. This presents very beautifully the truth of the mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ in our behalf.

If this is the garment of the high priest, then certainly it is fitting that the emphasis should be placed upon the color and not upon the material. Turn, please, to the book of Job, chapter 9, for a very practical illustration of this phase of the priestly ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. I suspect that every sincere person at some time or other, when he has been conscious of his own uncleanness, has felt like crying out as Job cried out in this passage of Scripture:

JOB 9

"No matter how much I try to cleanse myself," Job said, "it is an utterly, hopeless task. I am like a man plunged in the ditch; I am a man so unclean that even my clothes do not want to associate with me." In verse 32, he states the reason he feels so unclean in the sight of God. He says, concerning God:

JOB 9

"He is not a man as I am a man. If He were, then we could sit down and reason this thing out; but He is not. He is something above and beyond me, so there is nothing that can be done. In addition to the fact that God is so much bigger than I, and I am so unclean":

JOB 9

The word "daysman" is not a word that we use very much today. It refers to a man who stands in the gap. "There is no one to stand in the gap. There is no one to stand by and reach up and take hold of the hand of God." If this were all we had in the Bible, we would be of all men most miserable because we would have to accept what Job said. We would have to say that there is no daysman. We do not deny our feelings; we have felt numerous times as Job felt. We do not argue about Job's opinion of God; we know only He is holy and just. But thank God we do not have to accept Job's opinion about the daysman. He said there was none; we say there is.

Turn, please, to Paul's first letter to Timothy, chapter 2, and notice a simple statement that paints a rainbow of hope across the dark sky under which Job lived. Paul gives Timothy some very good advice that is passed down to us:

I TIMOTHY 2

Let us pause for a moment and recognize what we are reading. We are encouraged to pray for all men who are in authority, that we may lead a peaceable life, not primarily for selfish reasons. The Spirit of God recognizes that when the nations are at war, the propagation of the Gospel is hindered. When there is peace, the Gospel can be sent out freely. We should pray for peace, not selfishly, but in order that the Gospel may go out unhindered. God has a very special will that all men should come to the knowledge of the truth. Your obligation and mine is to see that they come to the knowledge of the truth.

What is the truth? Here it is in verse 5:

I TIMOTHY 2

You will recognize that in verse 5 Paul was talking about the same thing as was Job. He was talking about a holy God and a sinful man. Job said there was no one to stand between, there was no daysman. Paul answered, "Yes, there is; the Lord Jesus Christ is the mediator." Though this may be considered narrow in this present day of broad-mindedness, we would remind you that the Bible says He is the only mediator. There is no one else. If the Bible is right, no one else will do. The Lord Jesus Christ is the only mediator between sinful man and holy God. That is why I believe that the colors of the ephod are emphasized, to remind us that the Lord Jesus Christ meets the requirements of a mediator.

Turn, please, to Exodus, chapter 28, as we pass on to a consideration of the symbolism of the curious girdle. Notice verse 8:

EXODUS 28

This one brief verse is all that we are told about the curious girdle, and it seems so brief that we wonder whether there is enough for us to consider. Let us break it down and find out. The first thing we need to fix in our minds is the meaning of the word "curious", because if we do not know what that means, we will not understand the curious girdle. The word "curious" is a translation of the same Hebrew word that is translated "cunning work" described elsewhere in this chapter. It is mentioned a number of times. For example, in verse 6 we find mentioned "cunning work". These two words are the translation of the same Hebrew word that is translated "curious" in verse 8. So a curious girdle was not something strange. It was a girdle made of intricate woven handiwork, that all of its beauty might be emphasized.

I think we will find the lesson of the curious girdle in two things. I think we will find a lesson in the fact that it was a girdle, and I think we will find a lesson in the use of this particular girdle. Remember that a girdle in the Word of God is always a symbol of preparation for a specific activity. Whenever a girdle is mentioned, or girdling is mentioned, it means that the person involved was prepared for the work that was assigned for him to do.

The first time a girdle is mentioned in the Word of God is in Exodus, chapter 12, verse 11. We have told you in our study of the Word that whenever you find something mentioned for the first time, however it is mentioned there, it retains that symbolism throughout the Word of God. A girdle was used the first time as a symbol of preparation for activity on the part of the Israelites the night they ate the first Passover Feast.

This girdle is mentioned in connection with the high priest. We have emphasized that these things represent the characteristics of our great High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ. So it may be helpful for us to know that other than in the passage of Scripture at which we are looking, there are four times where it is mentioned that the Lord Jesus Christ wore a girdle. The interesting thing is that each of these instances paints for us the complete life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us look at them hurriedly.

Turn first to John, chapter 13, where is recorded the upper room experience when the disciples had gathered together for the observance of the last supper. There was no certain host in that upper room who would perform the general amenities that any host should perform. The Lord Jesus Christ waited for someone to take a humble position and do it, but no one did. So, you will remember in verse 3:

JOHN 13

This story teaches many things, one of them in connection with our lesson. It pictures the entire earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ. A towel is a symbol of service. When the Lord Jesus Christ girded Himself with a towel, He was illustrating the truth for which He came to this earth originally. His whole life was summed up in the phrase, "He came not to be ministered unto, but to minister" (Mark 10:45). If you look over the entire earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ, you will find that not one time did he accept service from anyone when He could perform the service for someone else. In this very chapter, He gave us the same exhortation:

JOHN 13

There are not many footwashers in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ today.

Turn, please, to the book of Revelation, chapter 1. Here there was given a vision to John concerning the relationship of the Lord Jesus Christ to His churches at the end of the Church age. He has commissioned the Church to represent Him upon the earth. The Church has failed miserably, as we all know. The manner of failure is described in the first three chapters of the book of Revelation. Without looking at the entire picture that is recorded here, notice verse 13:

REVELATION 1

Notice the position of the girdle. It is not about the waist; it is about the breast. This is the only time a girdle is mentioned as being about the breast. This indicates that He is ready to sit in judgment upon men. At the end of this age, when the Church stands before her Lord for judgment, she will find the girdle not about the waist, but about the breast.

Turn, please, to Isaiah, chapter 11. Keep in mind that we are considering in our study of the book of Exodus the present ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ in our behalf. We passed over hurriedly the time from His ministry on the earth to the time when He deals with the Church. The present ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ in our behalf finds the curious girdle around the robe of the ephod. We skip the Church age for purposes of emphasis and come to chapter 11 of the book of Isaiah, which describes for us the Lord Jesus Christ as He will come back to this earth to rule and reign for one thousand years. Notice verse 5:

ISAIAH 11

The word "reins" here is a word for which we could substitute "heart", so we might read it:

ISAIAH 11

The reason for that is given in verse 4:

ISAIAH 11

These four times that a girdle is mentioned in connection with the Lord Jesus Christ illustrate for us the purpose of the girdle, the curious girdle of the ephod. May I remind you that when the curious girdle of the ephod was bound upon the ephod, the Lord Jesus Christ was ready to begin His intercessory work in our behalf as He is carrying it on today.

I suggested when we began this little excursion through the Scriptures that there was another thing that would indicate to us the symbolism of the girdle. We find it in verse 8 of chapter 28 of Exodus:

EXODUS 28

Notice that the curious girdle was made of exactly the same material as the ephod. It had exactly the same material, so if you did not see distinctly, you might think that they were one and the same.

Turn to chapter 8 of the book of Leviticus and notice verse 7 again:

LEVITICUS 8

The girdle bound the ephod to the priest. This is a very interesting thing to my mind. The word "girded" in verse 7 in the original Hebrew text was exactly the same word that is translated "ephod". The translators put the word "girded" in because it reads better that way, but the literal sense of the verse might be seen if we read it this way, "And he put upon him the coat, and girded him with the girdle, and clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod upon him, and he ephodized him with the curious girdle of the ephod, and bound it to him therewith." This simply means that all the characteristics represented in the ephod became a definite type of the Lord Jesus Christ, became a definite part of the great High Priest.

Does that make any difference? Turn, please, to Hebrews, chapter 7, and notice why we read the passage of Scripture literally, "Moses ephodized Aaron with the curious girdle of the ephod." In this chapter you will find a description of our great High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ. He has all the qualities and virtues that need be. You and I might preach these qualities; we might talk about them, but few, if any, of us have them. He did. Notice verse 26:

HEBREWS 7

The characteristics of the ephod are represented in us if we manifest the Lord Jesus Christ. They are part of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Go back to chapter 28 of Exodus and notice something else about the ephod. We mentioned that it was made of two pieces--one for the front, one for the back. They were bound together at the shoulder with what we term "ouches", connected to each other by chains. In verse 9 we read:

EXODUS 28

Let us clear up a few words in this portion of the Scriptures so we will all be thinking about the same thing. Look at the word "ouch" for a moment. You are familiar with that word, but you never thought it would be used to fasten some clothing together. The word "ouch" is the translation of a Hebrew word which means "a setting for a precious stone". When we read that the garment was fastened together with two ouches of gold, we simply read that there was a clasp on each shoulder of the ephod in which was placed a precious stone. The precious stone that was placed there was the onyx.

The onyx as we know it today is not a precious stone. It is a very pretty stone, but certainly it is not a precious stone as is a diamond. But in the Hebrew the word that is translated "onyx" is a word which describes something that shines with the luster of fire. So whatever this onyx stone was, it is not the onyx stone that we know today.

When Job was making a list of the precious stones that were available to men on earth, he mentioned precious onyx. This same word for "onyx" is used, but it is preceded by the word "precious". So this was a precious stone. However, the symbolism of these stones is not important. The symbolism lies in the fact that upon these two stones were engraved, very meticulously, the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, six tribes on each stone. The thing we need to notice is that they were engraved in the order of the birth of the sons of Jacob. They were all equal; none was placed above the other. Just as they were born, their names were engraved.

That may not seem important until you study the breastplate. We make mention of it so that you can be thinking about it. The names of the twelve tribes of Israel were put on precious stones on the breastplate of the high priest, one precious stone for each tribe. But they were not placed upon the breastplate in the order of birth; they were placed in the order of their importance for service and reliability.

Two very precious truths are emphasized. When we are born into the family of God, we are all born on the same footing. No one is more important to God than another. We are all children of God. But when it comes to our place of service, when it comes to the manner in which we discharge our responsibilities, there is a difference. Sometimes we say, for the encouragement of individuals, that one person is as important to God as another person. That is true as far as the new birth is concerned. Christ died for all. But it is not true as far as service is concerned. That will be emphasized when we look at the breastplate.

The other thing that I would like for you to notice about the engraving of these names according to birth is that no one's name was on the stones save those who were born into the family of Israel. For example, Abraham had another son, Ishmael. But none of his descendants were named here because they were not of the family of Israel, the descendants of Isaac. So we emphasize that the place where these stones were eventually placed is a place of privilege for only those who are born into the family of God--not for close friends, nor for close neighbors, but for only those born into the family of God. Here is a wonderful truth!

Why were these names placed upon the stones on the shoulders of the high priest? Look at verse 12:

EXODUS 28

These names were placed on the stones upon the shoulders of Aaron so they would never be forgotten. Aaron never stood in the presence of God without God's looking upon his shoulders and remembering the twelve tribes of Israel.

Let's lift that a little bit higher and say that in the same way that the Israelites were borne upon the shoulders of Aaron, you and I are constantly borne upon the shoulders of our Lord Jesus Christ before God. God never looks upon His Son that He is not reminded of you and me.

Notice where these stones were borne. They were borne not around the waist, not on the arms, but on the shoulders. Why? Because the shoulder in the Word of God is a symbol of strength. Many Scriptures verify that. Isaiah, chapter 9, verse 6, says that the government shall be upon His shoulders. The government of the world rests upon the shoulders of Jesus Christ. Chapter 1 of the book of Hebrews says that the world rests upon the shoulders of the Lord Jesus Christ.

One of my children asked me the other day whether a picture of Atlas supporting the world is scriptural. It is not scriptural, but it is close to Scripture, for the Lord Jesus Christ supports the world; the Bible says so.

Here is a wonderful thought. The same shoulders that support the world are the shoulders that support you and me. One of the most beautiful stories to that effect is found in the Gospel of Luke. It is the familiar story of the ninety and nine sheep. One was lost. When the shepherd went out and found the sheep, do you remember where he put it? He did not carry it in his arms as the artist has portrayed the picture; he put it on his shoulder. The same shoulder that holds the world holds the little lost sheep. The same shoulder that holds a little lost sheep holds you and me.

Turn, please, to the first epistle of Peter, chapter 5, for a comment that we all need to remember in these days of stress and strain and uncertainty:

I PETER 1

We are as safe as the shoulder of our Christ is strong. That is why I believe in the security of the believer. I do not have any strength to hold up myself or anyone else, but I am resting on the shoulder of my Lord. Every time He stands before the Father, I am remembered; I am never forgotten. That is a precious thought!