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Exodus 28

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The Priests and Their Holy Garments 1–5

1
And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons. ​
2
And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty. ​
3
And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron's garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. ​
4
And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. ​
5
And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen.

The Ephod and Shoulder Stones 6–14

6
And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and of purple, of scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning work. ​
7
It shall have the two shoulderpieces thereof joined at the two edges thereof; and so it shall be joined together.
8
And the curious girdle of the ephod, which is upon it, shall be of the same, according to the work thereof; even of gold, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen.
9
And thou shalt take two onyx stones, and grave on them the names of the children of Israel: ​
10
Six of their names on one stone, and the other six names of the rest on the other stone, according to their birth.
11
With the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a signet, shalt thou engrave the two stones with the names of the children of Israel: thou shalt make them to be set in ouches of gold.
12
And thou shalt put the two stones upon the shoulders of the ephod for stones of memorial unto the children of Israel: and Aaron shall bear their names before the LORD upon his two shoulders for a memorial. ​
13
And thou shalt make ouches of gold;
14
And two chains of pure gold at the ends; of wreathen work shalt thou make them, and fasten the wreathen chains to the ouches.

The Breastplate of Judgment 15–30

15
And thou shalt make the breastplate of judgment with cunning work; after the work of the ephod thou shalt make it; of gold, of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine twined linen, shalt thou make it. ​
16
Foursquare it shall be being doubled; a span shall be the length thereof, and a span shall be the breadth thereof.
17
And thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this shall be the first row.
18
And the second row shall be an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond.
19
And the third row a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst.
20
And the fourth row a beryl, and an onyx, and a jasper: they shall be set in gold in their inclosings.
21
And the stones shall be with the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet; every one with his name shall they be according to the twelve tribes. ​
22
And thou shalt make upon the breastplate chains at the ends of wreathen work of pure gold.
23
And thou shalt make upon the breastplate two rings of gold, and shalt put the two rings on the two ends of the breastplate.
24
And thou shalt put the two wreathen chains of gold in the two rings which are on the ends of the breastplate.
25
And the other two ends of the two wreathen chains thou shalt fasten in the two ouches, and put them on the shoulderpieces of the ephod before it.
26
And thou shalt make two rings of gold, and thou shalt put them upon the two ends of the breastplate in the border thereof, which is in the side of the ephod inward.
27
And two other rings of gold thou shalt make, and shalt put them on the two sides of the ephod underneath, toward the forepart thereof, over against the other coupling thereof, above the curious girdle of the ephod.
28
And they shall bind the breastplate by the rings thereof unto the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that it may be above the curious girdle of the ephod, and that the breastplate be not loosed from the ephod.
29
And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart, when he goeth in unto the holy place, for a memorial before the LORD continually. ​
30
And thou shalt put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim; and they shall be upon Aaron's heart, when he goeth in before the LORD: and Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before the LORD continually. ​

The Blue Robe with Bells 31–35

31
And thou shalt make the robe of the ephod all of blue. ​
32
And there shall be an hole in the top of it, in the midst thereof: it shall have a binding of woven work round about the hole of it, as it were the hole of an habergeon, that it be not rent.
33
And beneath upon the hem of it thou shalt make pomegranates of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, round about the hem thereof; and bells of gold between them round about:
34
A golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, upon the hem of the robe round about.
35
And it shall be upon Aaron to minister: and his sound shall be heard when he goeth in unto the holy place before the LORD, and when he cometh out, that he die not. ​

The Golden Plate and Mitre 36–39

36
And thou shalt make a plate of pure gold, and grave upon it, like the engravings of a signet, HOLINESS TO THE LORD. ​
37
And thou shalt put it on a blue lace, that it may be upon the mitre; upon the forefront of the mitre it shall be.
38
And it shall be upon Aaron's forehead, that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts; and it shall be always upon his forehead, that they may be accepted before the LORD. ​
39
And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen, and thou shalt make the mitre of fine linen, and thou shalt make the girdle of needlework.

Garments for the Common Priests 40–43

40
And for Aaron's sons thou shalt make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty. ​
41
And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office. ​
42
And thou shalt make them linen breeches to cover their nakedness; from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach: ​
43
And they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they come in unto the tabernacle of the congregation, or when they come near unto the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear not iniquity, and die: it shall be a statute for ever unto him and his seed after him. ​

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

Study Notes for Exodus 28

Verse 1

take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother — Qarab is to bring near, and the priesthood comes by appointment and not by choice. ‘No man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron’ (Heb 5:4). Four sons are named, and two of them, Nadab and Abihu, ‘offered strange fire before the LORD’ and died (Lev 10:1–2).

Verse 2

for glory and for beauty — Kabod is glory or honour, and tiphereth is splendour or ornament. The garments are ‘holy’ (qodesh), set apart, and are made to give the office its dignity. The same pair is used of the sons’ garments in v.40, and the holy garments pass to Aaron’s sons after him (Ex 29:29).

Verse 3

wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom — The LORD supplies the makers: Bezaleel was ‘filled… with the spirit of God, in wisdom’ (Ex 31:3), and ‘every wise hearted man, in whom the LORD put wisdom’ wrought for the sanctuary (Ex 36:1). The garments were to ‘consecrate’ (qadash) Aaron, to set him apart for the priest’s office.

Verse 4

a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle — There are six garments, each described in the verses that follow. Tashbets, ‘broidered’, is found only here. Moses put them on Aaron in this order at his consecration: coat, girdle, robe, ephod, breastplate, mitre (Lev 8:7–9).

Verse 6

gold, … blue, … purple, … scarlet, and fine twined linen — The same colours and linen as the tabernacle curtains, with gold added: ‘fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet… of cunning work’ (Ex 26:1). The gold is beaten into thread and woven in (Ex 39:3). The ephod is the priest’s outer garment, to which the shoulder stones (v.12) and the breastplate (v.15) are fastened.

Verse 9

two onyx stones — Shoham, onyx, is first named among the produce of the land of Havilah (Gen 2:11–12), and was brought by the people for ‘the ephod, and for the breastplate’ (Ex 35:9). The names are to be cut in them ‘according to their birth’: six on one stone and six on the other (v.10), so that all twelve tribes are carried.

Verse 12

stones of memorial — Zikkaron, a remembrance, as in the Passover, ‘this day shall be unto you for a memorial’ (Ex 12:14). Nasa, ‘bear’, means to lift and carry, and it is the verb used again in this chapter: Aaron bears the names (v.29), the judgment (v.30) and the iniquity (vv.38, 43).

Verse 15

breastplate of judgment — Choshen mishpat; the choshen is a pouch or pocket (v.30 puts the Urim and Thummim ‘in’ it), and ‘judgment’ (mishpat) names its purpose, since the Urim and Thummim are the means of the LORD’s decision. It is made ‘after the work of the ephod’, of the same gold, blue, purple, scarlet and fine linen as v.6.

Verse 21

twelve, according to their names — Each of the twelve stones carries one name, ‘according to the twelve tribes’, cut ‘like the engravings of a signet’ (chotham), as a seal is cut to leave its owner’s mark. The names are carried twice: on the shoulders (v.12), the place of strength, and on the breastplate over the heart (v.29).

Verse 29

upon his heart… for a memorial before the LORD continually — Tamid, ‘continually’, is the word for the daily offering and the lamp, and it is used here, in v.30 and in v.38. Aaron bears the whole people in with him whenever he enters. Of Christ it is written that he ‘ever liveth to make intercession’ (Heb 7:25) and appears ‘in the presence of God for us’ (Heb 9:24).

Verse 30

the Urim and the Thummim — The Hebrew words mean ‘lights’ and ‘perfections’. They are not described; Num 27:21 says the priest ‘shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim before the LORD’. Aaron ‘shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel’, that is, carry the decision for them (nasa mishpat).

Verse 31

the robe of the ephod all of blue — Tekeleth, blue, is the colour of the ribband the people were told to put on their fringes, ‘that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD’ (Num 15:38–39). The robe was worn under the ephod and was ‘all of blue’, a single colour (kalil, whole), with bells and pomegranates at its hem (vv.33–34).

Verse 35

his sound shall be heard… that he die not — The sound (qol, voice) is that of the golden bells on the hem of the robe (vv.33–34). The priest is to be heard going in and coming out; entry into the holy place carried the danger of death, as in Lev 16:2: ‘that he come not at all times into the holy place… that he die not.’

Verse 36

HOLINESS TO THE LORD — The plate (tsits) of pure gold was tied on the mitre with a blue lace (Ex 39:30–31; Lev 8:9). The same words will stand on ‘the bells of the horses’, and every pot in Jerusalem ‘shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts’ (Zech 14:20–21).

Verse 38

bear the iniquity of the holy things — Nasa avon, to carry guilt: the priest takes on himself the fault attached to Israel’s gifts, so that they ‘may be accepted before the LORD’ (ratson, acceptance). Elsewhere the verb is used of the goat that ‘shall bear upon him all their iniquities’ (Lev 16:22) and of the Servant who ‘bare the sin of many’ (Isa 53:12).

Verse 40

coats, … girdles, and bonnets — The sons have a coat, a girdle and a bonnet (migbaah, found only of the priests’ headdress: here, Ex 29:9; 39:28; Lev 8:13), with the linen breeches of v.42. They are made ‘for glory and for beauty’, the words used of Aaron’s own garments in v.2.

Verse 41

anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them — There are three actions. Mashach, to anoint with oil, as Moses did to Aaron’s head (Lev 8:12). ‘Consecrate’ is literally ‘fill their hand’ (mille yad), which Lev 8:27 shows: Moses ‘put all upon Aaron’s hands’. Qadash is to set apart as holy.

Verse 42

linen breeches to cover their nakedness — Miknas, a garment found only of the priests (here, Ex 39:28, Lev 6:10, Lev 16:4, Ezek 44:18), reaching ‘from the loins even unto the thighs’. The altar law had already said ‘neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon’ (Ex 20:26).

Verse 43

that they bear not iniquity, and die — The garments are tied to the priests’ safe approach. Whenever they ‘come in unto the tabernacle of the congregation’ or ‘come near unto the altar’, they must be clothed as appointed. Chuqqat olam, ‘a statute for ever’, is said of the priestly office also in Ex 29:9.