Tabernacle - The High Priest & His Garments Pt.3

Exodus 28 and 39 put the high priest in garments that were not somebody’s good idea. The repeated line, “as the Lord commanded,” keeps saying that God gave explicit instruction because every thread, stone, color, and place pointed to Jesus. The blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen, and gold spoke of humanity and deity together, and the same colors at the tabernacle door pointed to Christ as the way in. Jesus fulfilled the priest and the prophet. He did not abolish it. He fulfilled it.

The shoulder stones showed the high priest carrying Israel before God. Six names sat on one shoulder, six names sat on the other, and those names were not decoration. The shoulder is the place of strength, the place where weight gets carried. Every time the high priest went toward the altar of incense, the people’s names went with him. Jesus now carries His people before the Father, and His intercession is not weak, distant, or occasional. Romans 8 and Hebrews 7 say He lives to make intercession, and He saves to the uttermost, even to the extreme.

John 10 and Luke 15 show the same picture through the Good Shepherd. Jesus knows His sheep, and His sheep know His voice. When one sheep wanders, the Shepherd does not shrug and say ninety nine is good enough. He goes after the one, calls it, finds it, and lays it on His shoulders rejoicing. The rod and staff may comfort through correction, and the Shepherd may allow the judgment of disobedience, but He also nurtures, heals, and brings the sheep back closer than before.

The breastplate took the picture deeper. The names were not only on the shoulders collectively, but on twelve stones over the heart individually. Each tribe had its own stone, its own name, near the high priest’s heart. Jesus knows His own by name, loves them to the end, and brings them into the presence of God. The rich man in Luke 16 had everything but no named place before God, while Lazarus was known by name. The believer is not on his own. Christ carries the name, keeps it close to His heart, and brings that person with Him before the mercy seat.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus carries names with strength [31:30] The shoulder stones show more than memory; they show burden bearing. The high priest carried the names where strength rests, and Jesus carries His people before the Father with prevailing intercession. The weak place in a person is not too heavy for Christ, because the shoulder belongs to the One who saves to the uttermost. [31:30]
• 2. The Shepherd goes after strays [22:25] Luke 15 shows a Shepherd who is not satisfied with ninety nine when one belongs to Him and has wandered. The sheep may hear the voice and still resist it, and that is where conviction gets real. Christ’s pursuit may include correction, but His correction is tied to rescue, healing, and a deeper nearness afterward. [22:25]
• 3. Names rest near His heart [36:05] The breastplate places each name over the heart, not merely in a crowd on a list. Jesus does not love His people in a vague, general way; He calls His own sheep by name. The name near His heart means remembrance before God, even when prayer feels dry and words will not come. [36:05]
• 4. The door marks real belonging [41:50] The promises of priestly intercession are not treated as automatic for unbelief. The tabernacle door points to Jesus, and entry comes through Him, not through religious nearness or outward familiarity. The difference between the rich man and Lazarus is not comfort or poverty, but whether the person is known by God. [41:50]
• 5. Worship says God is worth it [12:45] Worship is “worth ship,” the confession that God is worth obedience, honor, and praise. The altar of incense could not receive whatever smell somebody preferred; God received what He commanded. True worship does not offer God the world’s leftovers or personal inventions, but what He has said is pleasing to Him.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:54] - Reviewing the High Priest Garments
• [02:52] - Jesus Fulfills the Priesthood
• [05:11] - The Shoulder Stones Introduced
• [06:02] - As the Lord Commanded
• [08:33] - Gold, Deity, and the Names
• [10:18] - The Altar of Incense
• [13:44] - Jesus the Good Shepherd
• [17:34] - Leaving the Ninety Nine
• [22:00] - The Sheep on His Shoulders
• [26:39] - Intercession Before the Father
• [35:16] - The Breastplate Over the Heart
• [39:30] - Loved to the End
• [43:50] - The Rich Man and Lazarus
• [51:24] - His Sheep Know His Voice

Bible Reading

Exodus 28:9-12
“You shall take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel, six of their names on the one stone, and the names of the remaining six on the other stone, in the order of their birth. As a jeweler engraves signets, so shall you engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel. You shall enclose them in settings of gold. And you shall set the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel. And Aaron shall bear their names before the LORD on his two shoulders for remembrance.” [05:36] [07:29]

Luke 15:4-7
“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.” [17:44] [22:25]

John 10:11-14
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,” [13:44]

Exodus 28:15, 29-30
“You shall make a breastpiece of judgment, in skilled work. In the style of the ephod you shall make it—of gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen shall you make it... So Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment on his heart, when he goes into the Holy Place, to bring them to regular remembrance before the LORD. And in the breastpiece of judgment you shall put the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be on Aaron's heart, when he goes in before the LORD. Thus Aaron shall bear the judgment of the people of Israel on his heart before the LORD regularly.” [35:31] [35:54] [36:05]

Romans 8:34
“Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.” [27:41]

Hebrews 7:25
“Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” [28:05]

Observation questions

1. In Exodus 28, where were the names of the tribes placed, and what was Aaron told to do with those names before the Lord?
2. What repeated phrase in Exodus 39 shows that the priestly garments were made by God’s instruction rather than by human preference? [06:02]
3. In Luke 15:4-7, what does the shepherd do with the sheep after he finds it, and what emotion is attached to that action?
4. In Exodus 28:15, 29-30, what is different about the breastpiece compared to the shoulder stones, especially in how the names are carried? [36:47]

Interpretation questions

1. If the shoulder is the place of strength, what does it mean that the names of God’s people were carried on the shoulders of the high priest? How does that shape the way a believer thinks about Christ’s intercession? [31:25]
2. Jesus says He is the Good Shepherd who knows His own. How does Luke 15 deepen that picture by showing Him going after one sheep instead of settling for ninety-nine? [20:24]
3. The names were carried not only on the shoulders but also over the heart. What does that add to the picture of how Christ relates to His people—not just as a group, but personally? [38:07]
4. Entry into these priestly blessings comes through the door. What does that suggest about the difference between outward religious nearness and truly belonging to Christ? [41:50]

Application questions

1. When life feels heavy or when prayer feels weak, is it easier to live as though everything depends on personal strength? What would it look like this week to rest in the truth that Christ is already carrying His people before the Father? [30:33]
2. A sheep can hear the shepherd’s voice and still resist it. Where has Christ’s voice been clear lately, but obedience has been delayed or avoided? [23:15]
3. Christ does not shrug at wandering sheep. Is there an area of life right now that feels like drifting—habits, thought patterns, relationships, or secret compromise? What would repentance look like in a real and specific way? [22:53]
4. The Shepherd’s correction is tied to rescue, healing, and nearness. Has there been a hard season that, looking back, brought greater closeness to Christ? How did that happen? [25:23]
5. The names on the breastpiece show personal love, not vague care for a crowd. When has it been difficult to believe that Christ knows and loves personally, not just generally? [46:10]
6. True worship offers God what He has asked for, not just what feels convenient. Are there places where worship has become mostly habit, preference, or leftovers? What might wholehearted obedience look like instead? [12:45]
7. These promises belong to those who come through the door, who is Christ Himself. Is there confidence that He is your Shepherd, or is there still a kind of standing outside while staying near religious things? [42:13]