Message 126
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Scripture Reading: Exo. 28:22-30; 39:15-21; Num. 27:21; Deut. 33:8, 10a
Exodus 28:30 says, “And you shall put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be upon Aaron’s heart when he goes in before Jehovah.” In David Baron’s book The Ancient Scriptures and the Modern Jew there is an appendix containing an article on the Urim and the Thummim. According to this article, the twelve names on the breastplate included eighteen of the twenty-two letters in the Hebrew alphabet. The remaining four letters were put on a piece called the Thummim. The Hebrew word Thummim means perfecters or completers. Thus, on the breastplate with the additional piece called the Thummim all twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet could be found. Just as the twenty-six letters of the English alphabet on the keys of a typewriter can be used to compose a word, phrase, sentence, or paragraph, so the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet on the breastplate and the Thummim could be used to spell out words and sentences.
Furthermore, according to this article, the Urim was an illuminator inserted into the breastplate underneath the twelve stones. In Hebrew the word Urim means lights. This article in David Baron’s book says that the Urim had the capacity to contain oil for burning and that the fire used to burn this oil came from the altar. The Hebrew scholar responsible for this article also said that this Urim had twelve illuminators, one to illuminate each piece of stone on the breastplate. Then the transparent stones could shine with light.
When the Urim and the Thummim were added to the breastplate, they caused it to become the breastplate of judgment. Before they were added, the breastplate was simply for a memorial.
When God brought His people into the wilderness, He spoke to them through Moses. God spoke to Moses face to face. But after the death of Moses, Joshua received guidance from God not by His direct speaking in the way He spoke to Moses, but by the Urim and the Thummim on the breastplate worn by the high priest. Hence, whenever Joshua needed guidance concerning the move of the people, he had to go to the high priest who then received guidance from God by means of the Urim and the Thummim. Thus, God spoke through the Urim and the Thummim.
The writer of this article illustrates the function of the Urim and Thummim by referring to the case of Joshua and Achan. The children of Israel were defeated at Ai due to the sin of Achan (Josh. 7). How was Achan’s sin discovered? According to this article, a representative of each of the twelve tribes came to the tabernacle and stood before the high priest, who was wearing the breastplate. Suddenly one of the twelve pieces on the breastplate became dark. That was the stone for the tribe of Judah. In this way Judah was singled out. Joshua 7:16-18 says, “And the tribe of Judah was taken: And he brought the family of Judah; and he took the family of the Zarhites: and he brought the family of the Zarhites man by man; and Zabdi was taken: And he brought his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.” It was also by the darkening of certain stones on the breastplate that the family and eventually the person were found out. In this situation the breastplate functioned like a spiritual and heavenly typewriter to spell out the name of Achan.
This article cites other instances of the use of the Urim and the Thummim. It says that Joshua allotted the land to the tribes through the Urim and the Thummim (Josh. 18:6-10), and also fought against the enemies according to the guidance of God made known by the Urim and the Thummim (Judg. 1:1-12; 20:18, 27 see Num. 27:21). Furthermore, when Saul the king became unfaithful to God, God would no longer answer him through the Urim and the Thummim (1 Sam. 28:6). When the priests were slain by Saul, one of the sons escaped to David, and David then followed the Lord by the Urim and the Thummim.
We have pointed out that the breastplate was called the breastplate of judgment. Deuteronomy 33:8 and 10 say, “And of Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy holy one....They shall teach Jacob thy judgments, and Israel thy law.” Because the Urim and the Thummim were with the Levites, the priests, they could teach the people not only the law of God, but also His judgments.
What we have covered thus far regarding the Urim and the Thummim are some of the historical facts according to scholarship. We have not yet seen anything concerning the spiritual application of the Urim and the Thummim. It is not my burden in this message to speak about historical facts; rather, it is to show the spiritual application.
The breastplate signifies the church with all the believers built up together as one entity. All the transformed believers who are built up to become the one entity known as the Body of Christ, the church, are letters for God’s speaking to us. This means that today, in the New Testament age, God speaks to the church through all the saints. We can see this in the way many of Paul’s Epistles were written. In writing to a particular church, Paul considered the saints in that local church. In other words, he considered the condition and situation of the saints in that locality. Then he used the condition and situation of the saints as letters in the spiritual alphabet to compose an epistle. Paul did not write any of his Epistles in an abstract way with vain thoughts. No, his Epistles were always based upon the condition and situation of the saints in a particular locality. Thus, those saints became the letters used by Paul in the spiritual typesetting of an epistle.
What does this mean for us today? It simply means that in a local church the leading ones need to seek the Lord’s guidance by reading the actual situation and condition of the saints. For example, suppose the leading ones are considering whether or not the church should have a meeting for the preaching of the gospel. Before making a decision, they should consider the saints in their locality, asking what the condition of the saints is. Then based upon their reading of the condition and situation of the saints, the leading ones will have the guidance of the Lord. This will enable them to know whether or not at that time they should have a meeting for the preaching of the gospel.
The children of Israel went on by the guidance they received from the high priest’s reading of the breastplate with the Urim and Thummim in the presence of God. Today it is important for all the leading ones to read the condition and situation of the saints in their locality. In this way they will receive the leading of the Lord for the going on of the church.
For us today, the breastplate is the church, and the stones on the breastplate are the saints. Every saint bears some letters. Therefore, with the saints we have the letters of a heavenly and spiritual alphabet. Furthermore, by reading the condition and situation of the saints, we can have certain “words.” When these words are put together we have a complete sentence, a complete thought. This is the speaking of God through His redeemed saints as the letters. It is in this way that the congregation of the Lord knows how to go on.
The Urim and the Thummim were added to the breastplate based upon what the breastplate was. Certain items were necessary in order for the Urim and the Thummim to be added into the breastplate. There had to be the twelve precious stones, the inscribing of the names of the tribes on these stones, the building up of the stones into one entity, the connecting and joining by the chains, the ribbons, and the rings, and the ephod with the shoulder-pieces. Therefore, the adding in of the Urim and the Thummim required all these basic matters. This signifies that what Christ is, what the church is, and how the church is attached to Christ are the basis for the addition of the Urim and the Thummim. If we as God’s redeemed people are not transformed, if we do not have Christ inscribed into our being, if we are not built up as one entity, and if we are not connected by Christ’s divinity and humanity to His expression, then we do not have the basis for the Urim and the Thummim. If our condition is poor, like that of many Christians, there is no ground, no basis, for the Urim and the Thummim. Thus, it is crucial to see that the basic matters concerning the breastplate covered in these messages are the condition for having the Urim and the Thummim.
In Romans 8:14 Paul says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” The leading of the Spirit is based upon many things covered in the first thirteen verses of Romans 8. When these basic matters are put together, they virtually equal the leading of the Spirit. This can be compared to mathematics, where certain numbers are added together to give a total. The leading in Romans 8:14 is the total of many spiritual items covered in Romans 8:1-13. The principle is the same with the breastplate and the Urim and the Thummim. The adding in of the Urim and the Thummim depends upon the breastplate, the twelve stones, the inscribing, the chains, the ribbons, and the rings. Without all these items, it would be useless to try to add in the Urim and the Thummim.
According to the appendix in David Baron’s book, the Urim had twelve illuminators to enlighten all twelve of the transparent precious stones. But suppose no letters had been inscribed on these stones. What, then, would be shown by the shining of the illuminators through the stones? Nothing would be shown, for there would have been no letters on the stones to be illuminated. Even if the stones had been enlightened by the illuminators and thereby shone with light, there would not have been any content. The content depends on the letters inscribed on the stones.
The principle is the same with the living letters of Christ in 2 Corinthians 3. Only when Christ has been inscribed into our being do we become His living letters. Just as God could not speak through the breastplate unless the stones had been inscribed with letters, so God cannot speak through His redeemed people unless they have been inscribed with Christ. Yes, the Lord does speak through His redeemed people. However, He actually speaks through the Christ who has been inscribed into them. This means that we need the content of Christ inscribed as letters into our being. Otherwise, God will have no way to speak through us, for there will not be any letters inscribed into us.
How many of today’s Christians have Christ inscribed into them? The answer is that few have truly been inscribed with Christ. Even with these few, the amount of Christ inscribed may not be very great. Moreover, many Christians are not transparent. How can the Lord speak through those who have not been inscribed with Christ and who are not transparent? This is impossible. If the stones placed in the breastplate had been opaque, the illuminators of the Urim may have enlightened them, but they would not have been able to shine through such opaque stones. Likewise, because so many Christians are opaque, Christ does not have a way to shine through them. We need to be transformed, and we need to be transparent, and we need to have Christ inscribed into us. Then when the light shines through us, others will be able to read the letters, the content of Christ, inscribed into us. But if we are not transformed and transparent and if we have not been inscribed with Christ, but are merely opaque stones without any letters inscribed into us, it will not be possible for God to speak through us.
Another basic matter related to the breastplate with the Urim and the Thummim is that the twelve stones on the breastplate were not divided, but were built up together as one entity. This signifies the building together of God’s redeemed people into one entity, the church. However, today’s Christians are scattered, separated, and divided. Furthermore, there is no building up. The oneness portrayed by the breastplate is lacking.
We must remember that the twelve stones on the breastplate were arranged in three rows of four, signifying humanity mingled with divinity to form a complete unit for the full expression of God and His eternal government. This is the significance of the number twelve, and it also is a basic condition for having the Urim and the Thummim.
Christians often talk about God’s guidance and about the leading of the Lord. Actually, for the most part, they have no ground to have the Lord’s leading. What they have is actually not His guidance or leading. Instead, it is often something according to their own imagination and doings. How is it possible to have the Lord’s leading if we have not fulfilled the basic conditions signified by the breastplate? It is not possible to have His leading in such a situation. The points we have covered concerning the breastplate are basic and necessary to have the Lord’s leading. If we do not have these basic items, there is no way to have the Lord’s leading.
I would call your attention once again to the way the Urim and Thummim are recorded in 28:30. This verse says, “And you shall put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim.” This clearly indicates that the Urim and the Thummim were added to something which had previously been made ready. First the breastplate with all its items was prepared. Then the Urim and the Thummim, two additional pieces, were put into it. Without the readiness of the breastplate, there would have been no way to add in the Urim and the Thummim. The Urim and the Thummim actually signify the Lord’s speaking. The fact that they could not be added to the breastplate until it had been made ready indicates that if we do not have the breastplate today, the Lord does not have a way to speak to us. The speaking of the Lord results from the readiness or the preparation of the breastplate.
According to 28:29 and 30, the breastplate was not only a memorial before the Lord, but was also a plate of judgment. After the Urim and the Thummim were added into the breastplate, it became the breastplate of judgment. Verses 29 and 30 speak of judgment, not of leading or guidance. The judgments mentioned in Deuteronomy 33:10 are related to the Urim and the Thummim in 33:8, where we are told that the priests, the Levites, would have the Thummim and the Urim. The judgments in Deuteronomy 33:10 refer to the judgments in Exodus 28:29 and 30. In both portions of the Word judgment is related to the Urim and the Thummim.
In English judgment may mean the action of judging or a decision of judging. But this is not an accurate understanding of the word judgment as used in these verses. In Deuteronomy 33:10 the judgments are part of God’s law, which is a totality of God’s regulations. Usually when we think of the law of God, we think of the Ten Commandments. However, the law includes more than the Ten Commandments. As we have seen, the Ten Commandments recorded in Exodus 20 are supplemented by the ordinances and regulations recorded in chapters twenty-one through twenty-three. All these regulations are judgments. Therefore, the law not only includes the Ten Commandments, but also includes regulations and ordinances. Some of these ordinances concerned punishment for smiting others, and some were related to making recompense for damage to others’ property. All such regulations are judgments.
The English word judgment used to translate Deuteronomy 33:10 and Exodus 28:29 and 30 can be misleading. It may be regarded as an action of judging or even as an opinion, for our judgment may refer to our opinion. Furthermore, judgment may also involve evaluation. But this is not the meaning of judgment with respect to the breastplate of judgment. The word judgment in these verses indicates that God has a regulation concerning everything among His people. All the regulations will issue in judgments, and these judgments become God’s leading. Thus, the leading of God comes from His judgments, which are based on His regulations.
When we were on Exodus 21 through 23, we pointed out that these chapters are supplements to the Ten Commandments. First God gave the Ten Commandments. Then He issued many regulations and ordinances as supplements to these commandments. The Ten Commandments are the principles of God’s regulations, but the supplements in Exodus 21 through 23 provide the details of these regulations. In these detailed regulations we have God’s judgment. This judgment leads us to certain decisions. As a result, we have God’s leading.
God’s regulations always include His judgment. For this reason, if we would receive the Lord’s leading, many things about us need to be judged by God. Our flesh, our wrongdoings, and our natural life must all be judged by Him. God’s regulations require that all these things be set aside. What remains afterward is truly of God. In this way we come to know God’s leading.
