The Tabernacle - High Priest & His Garments Pt.2

Exodus 39 puts the high priest in his holy garments and keeps saying the same thing over and over: “as the Lord had commanded Moses.” The repeated line makes the point plain. This is a big deal. God is calling the shots, and every color, thread, garment, office, and movement has to be right because everything in the tabernacle is pointing to Jesus.

The high priest stands as the sanctified man, taken from men for men, ministering in the holy place. Aaron and his sons carry that priestly office, and only the one set apart can go where everybody else cannot go. The tabernacle makes holiness visible. The outer court, the sanctuary, and the most holy place all say that access to God is not casual, cheap, or man-made.

The feasts show the same thing. Passover points to Christ crucified, the Lamb whose blood was shed. Unleavened Bread points to his sinless body buried in the tomb. Firstfruits points to his resurrection, the first begotten from the dead. Pentecost points to the Spirit coming fifty days later, not as a denomination, but as the fulfilled feast when the Holy Spirit came like a mighty rushing wind.

The remaining feasts keep hope in front of God’s people. The Feast of Trumpets points to the rapture, when the trumpet of God sounds. The Day of Atonement points to the second coming. The Feast of Tabernacles points to the millennial reign, when Christ tabernacles with his people and rules and reigns.

The ephod, with blue, purple, scarlet, white linen, and gold thread, says the same thing another way. The colors show Christ’s earthly ministry, his humanity, his ability to sympathize with weakness. The gold thread, cut from a gold plate and woven through the garment, says, “Don’t forget, he is God.” Jesus is not just better than man. He is separate, holy, divine, pure as gold.

Hebrews declares Jesus to be the great high priest who passed through the heavens. He was tempted in all points, yet without sin. He died, was buried, rose again, ascended, and sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. The high priest once entered with blood that only covered sin, but Christ entered with the blood that removes sin.

Jesus still lives to make intercession. His blood is enough. His mercy is obtained at the throne of grace, and his grace is found there for help in time of need. The tempted, the weak, and the extreme case have aid in him, because the Son of God took on the seed of Abraham and came to support his people.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. God cares about every detail Exodus 39 keeps repeating, “as the Lord had commanded Moses,” because holy things are not built by personal preference. The tabernacle shows that worship, ministry, and access to God begin with obedience, not creativity. Sacred order matters because every detail is carrying witness to Christ. [03:25]
• 2. Every feast points to Jesus Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Pentecost are not empty rituals on an old calendar. Christ fulfills them in his death, burial, resurrection, and the sending of the Holy Spirit. The fulfilled feasts give weight to the unfulfilled ones, because the same Jesus who kept the first appointments will keep the rest. [12:14]
• 3. Gold says Christ is God The colors of the ephod show Christ’s nearness to human weakness, but the gold thread says he is more than sympathetic man. His humanity is real, but his deity is woven through everything. The high priest can be touched by infirmity, yet he remains holy, heavenly, and pure as gold. [23:17]
• 4. Christ intercedes with sufficient blood The old high priest entered once a year with the blood of bulls, lambs, and goats, and the people waited outside. Christ enters with his own blood, and that blood does not merely cover sin. His intercession stands on finished sacrifice, so his people receive mercy because his blood is enough. [38:02]
• 5. Tempted people have real aid Hebrews says Christ suffered being tempted, and therefore he is able to aid those who are tempted. Aid means support, not religious shame from a distance. The weak are not told to clean up before coming, but to run toward the One who washes, cleanses, and supplies mercy.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [01:57] - Exodus 39 And Holy Garments
• [03:06] - As The Lord Commanded Moses
• [05:03] - Aaron, Levites, And Priestly Office
• [06:00] - The Seven Feasts Overview
• [08:05] - Christ Fulfills The Spring Feasts
• [10:05] - Pentecost And The Holy Spirit
• [13:00] - Trumpets, Atonement, And Tabernacles
• [17:13] - The High Priest And Ephod
• [19:39] - Jesus Is The Gate
• [20:42] - Gold Thread And Deity
• [24:25] - Hebrews And The Great High Priest
• [36:53] - Christ Intercedes In Heaven
• [43:01] - Saved To The Uttermost
• [48:39] - Christ Gives Aid To The Tempted

1. In Exodus 39, what phrase keeps getting repeated, and what kinds of things were being made in that chapter? [00:03:25]
2. In Hebrews 4:14-16, what two things are said about Jesus as high priest that might seem to pull in two directions at once: his greatness and his nearness to weakness?
3. In John 10:7-10, what pictures does Jesus use for himself, and what does he say the thief comes to do in contrast to what he came to do? [00:28:02]
4. What details were highlighted about the high priest’s garments, especially the colors and the gold thread woven into the ephod? [00:20:42]

1. Exodus 39 keeps stressing, “as the Lord had commanded Moses.” Why would that repeated line matter so much in a chapter about garments? What does it show about how God views worship and holy service? [00:21:12]
2. Hebrews says Jesus can sympathize with weakness, yet he is also the Son of God who passed through the heavens. How do those two truths help explain the meaning of the colors and the gold in the high priestly garment? [00:23:17]
3. Jesus says, “I am the door.” How does that help explain the tabernacle’s guarded access and the truth that a person does not come to the Father by personal effort or religious status? [00:29:47]
4. The old high priest entered with blood that covered sin, but Christ entered with his own blood. What is the difference between sin being covered and sin being removed, and why does that matter for assurance? [00:38:02]

1. If God cares about details in Exodus 39, where is the temptation today to treat holy things casually—worship, obedience, repentance, church life, or personal devotion? What would it look like to become more careful in one of those areas? [00:21:24]
2. Jesus is able to sympathize with weakness. Is there a place in life right now where weakness has been hidden instead of brought to him? What makes it hard to come honestly to the throne of grace? [00:24:49]
3. Jesus is the only door. What are some subtle ways people still try to get peace, cleansing, or acceptance apart from him? Which of those substitutes has been the strongest pull lately? [00:30:03]
4. Christ’s blood is enough. Is there any sin, failure, or old shame that still feels as if it has the final word? What would it look like to answer that with, “His blood is enough”? [00:41:46]
5. Jesus lives to make intercession. How might daily prayer change if it were remembered that someone is already praying in heaven for his people? [00:43:01]
6. Hebrews says Jesus gives aid to the tempted. When temptation hits, is the first instinct usually to run from him or run to him? What might “running to him” look like in a very practical moment this week? [00:46:01]
7. Mercy is to be obtained and grace is to be found in time of need. What is a real “time of need” right now—at home, in thought life, in relationships, in fear, in exhaustion—where mercy and grace are needed today, not someday? [00:47:32]