Hugh Stephenson

Good morning Robin. I really love your detail and your opening piece: “The priests led God's people to worship, repent, and honor the Lord. They were leading out in the sacrifices and the festivals. Yet, their clothing wasn't simply practical or utilitarian. It was ornate and carefully designed according to God's plan!” It’s so easy to skim these passages in Exodus. The action passages are weeks old. Now we’re hearing tons of detail about acacia wood, metals, threads, linen etc. What I have seen in the chapter-a-day deep dive is a fabulous revelation similar to what you lay out for us. The notes all point to these details as a revelation of who God is and how we are to “dwell’ with Him. I don’t naturally tie in to it as I have virtually zero artistic ability. It’s hard for me to appreciate most objects of art. I can get the obvious ones but mostly I just miss it. The only clothing I have that is “ornate and carefully designed according to God's plan” is camo hunting gear that equips me to sit in a tree stand in the woods so that I can live out the Dominion Covenant of Genesis 1:26, 28. :)

Hugh Stephenson

Q1. I draw a distinction between man designed beauty and God designed beauty. I walk down Park Ave in NYC or walk through Grand Central Station and see the magnificence of man made beauty. Its stunning. Yet, as God speaks and Paul writes in Romans 1, they have no comparison to God’s self revelation in: -The quiet and complex magnificence of a salt marsh at low tide. -The stunning beauty of the Canadian Rockies. -The full visible spectrum of color in a winter sunset. -The full view of the Milky Way and a sky full of stars when I’m in the countryside where there is no ground light and no moonlight. -The endless northern prairie when viewed from a hill; it just goes on forever. Q2. My skills. Hmmm. I’d guess I’d say this- God has given me some relational skills and empathy. Most of which I did not use until the weight of my own sin and rebellion crushed me into full surrender. Then I woke up and saw my true self- which enabled me to sit with others whose path paralleled mine. God’s Word, Spirit and people equipped me to walk with them as others had walked with me. And so we were all blessed with each other. Q3. Short answer- because His design is better than any human. And also because the Israelites, like me, needed constant reminders of who God is and how to relate to Him.

Hugh Stephenson

What is so very interesting about this entire subject, (art), is how it draws me closer to the presence of God. 1 Corinthians 13:12 can be a very, very encouraging verse. Or discouraging. How much longer will my vision(s) and/or presence of God be to “…see in a mirror dimly”? But also give me an eternal perspective that draws my focus and “presence” towards God and away from this continually disappointing and broken world. Tuesday of this week I got a call from a friend of mine. We have been close friends since I moved to Atlanta in 1972. We have stayed in touch and remain very close as we talk about once a month for 60-90 minutes. We had a long and fun conversation. I am engaged in his life and he is engaged in mine. I feel his presence in my life and I know he’d say the same. I am very blessed to have a bunch of these friends. After I spend time with them I am walking 3 feet off the ground for days. In my struggles, it seems this is what God is holding out for me. He wants the same. Even though the perfect intimacy of the creator of the universe stands waiting for me I still find my in-box and task-list an overwhelming call.

Michael Sisson

Re: Ex 39:1-31 For a deeper dive into details about the priestly garments, see the following Hebrew For Christians article: https://www.hebrew4christians.com/Scripture/Parashah/Summaries/Pekudei/pekudei.html In 2011, a bell like those described on the hem of the high priest’s garment was unearthed in Israel. You can see and read about it here: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/rare-second-temple-period-gold-bell-discovered-in-jerusalem You can hear the unearthed bell here: https://youtu.be/vTN-uEsAAaY

Michael Scaman

The priest had cloths with different kinds of yarns and linen even gold threads, stones and chains and gold metal with an inscription 'holy to the LORD'. The people more ordinary as if 'cut from one cloth'. I wonder how this worked with the prohibition against mixing different types of cloths in clothing and if there is some meaning. The high priest had elaborate mixes of blue, purple, scarlet, and even gold threads woven into white linen. gold, blue, purple, scarlet and white. "He made the ephod of gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen." It seems only the high priest and the curtains of the temple used mixed material. Pomegranates on much of it. Gold on turban. Stones on his chest one for each tribe. Very different from any other person. Must have been heavy. In contrast for the other people, 'you' shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material'. Deuteronomy 22:11. Common people in that day could wear all linen or all wool I suppose but not the kind of material used in the tabernacle or by the high priest. Some say aspects of the high priest clothing a reminder of the various facets of the nature and work of Jesus? Blue form heaven,, Scarlet atonement , White purity , Gold divinity , Purple royalty Pomegranates filled with seeds representing like. The 5 materials grace. The stones over the priests heart, Jesus intersession and love for us.

Sue Bohlin

Thank you, Robin. I connect with your artist's heart; as a calligrapher, the continued emphasis on blue, purple and red plus gold makes my fingers itch to create a new piece of art using these colors! Reading about the plate engraved with "Holy to the Lord" sparked the connection to Peter's teaching that Christ-followers are the "holy priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9) that these garments pointed to. We get to be clothed in garments of righteousness out of Christ's closet. I'm envisioning wearing an invisible headband with "Holy to the Lord" on it, as I go through my day as a royal priest, set apart for God's purposes and to His glory just as the high priest was. And can I just say how much I love that this privileged position is not gender restricted? That women can be--we ARE--priests in God's kingdom??! Woo-hoooo!!!!!

Michael Scaman

The Bible has male pastors and elders, but I'm fine with women priests because in the New Covenant there is a priesthood of all believers, men and women.

Amy Lowther

1. Beauty takes skill and practice. Sometimes it is right and sometimes it is not right. Worshiping the Lord helps you know who you are and what you want. Worshipping the Lord helps you approach life in positive ways for yourself and for others. We love because He first loved us. 2. Yes. 3. The priestly garments should honor God, respect those who wear them, and respect those people respecting those who wear them. God makes commands for all.