Message 130
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Scripture Reading: Exo. 28:31-38; 39:22-26, 30-31; Isa. 6:1; Psa. 133:2; Rev. 1:13; Eph. 1:23
In typology garments signify expression. This is especially true of the priestly garments, garments that were for glory and beauty. Beauty and glory are both for expression. In a foregoing message we pointed out that, humanly speaking, garments are for covering, for warmth, and for beauty. But in the record concerning the priestly garments, the emphasis is on beauty and glory. Beauty is human, and glory is divine. Hence, the priestly garments are the expression of Christ’s human beauty and divine glory.
The garments worn by the high priest were unusual. First, there was a tunic, which may have reached the ankles. Over the tunic there was a robe, which reached to the feet, and upon the robe there was the ephod. Upon the ephod there were the breastplate and the two shoulder-pieces. All these garments contain significant aspects of typology regarding Christ with the church.
Christ is the expression of God. The incarnated Christ is the embodiment of God, and this embodiment is an expression. No one has ever seen God, but the Son of God, the only begotten, has manifested Him (John 1:18). This manifestation of God in Christ is God’s expression. This means that Christ is the expression of the invisible and mysterious God. As the expression of God, Christ makes God visible and practical. When we contact Christ, we contact the visible, practical God. Now God is no longer only mysterious and invisible; in Christ, He is practical and visible. Christ as God’s expression has made God visible and practical to us.
The expression of God is both individual and corporate. As God’s expression, Christ is not only individual, but also corporate. When Christ was on earth, He was the individual expression of God. But after His death and resurrection, this expression became corporate. In the four Gospels we see the individual Christ. But in Acts, the Epistles, and Revelation, Christ is no longer merely individual, for He has become corporate. In the Epistles and Revelation we see the corporate Christ.
In this message we shall consider the robe worn by the high priest. What does this long robe signify in typology? To find the answer, let us turn to Isaiah 6:1: “In the year that King Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.” According to this verse, Isaiah had a vision of the Lord sitting in the temple. The word “train” here refers to the skirt of the Lord’s long robe. Isaiah does not tell us how long this skirt was, but he does say that it filled the temple. No one has ever seen a bride whose wedding garment was so long that it filled the place where the wedding was held. No bride has such a fullness. But because the Lord is so full, His skirt fills the temple, His dwelling place.
What does this long train signify? It signifies the expression of Christ’s virtues (see John 12:41). The Lord’s fullness is shown in all His virtues. Suppose the Lord was very much lacking in virtue. In that case He would not be expressed by a long garment with the train filling the temple, for He would not have any fullness. If someone were to wear a garment that did not properly cover his body, this would indicate that this person was short of virtue. But if he is properly covered, this shows that he is full of virtue. The Lord is full of virtue. Therefore, when He sits in His dwelling place, His long train fills the temple. This means that the Lord’s dwelling place is full of His virtue.
Psalm 133 also refers to the long robe of the high priest. When the divine anointing oil was poured upon Aaron, the high priest, that ointment ran down from the head to the beard and then to the skirts of his garment. Furthermore, in Revelation 1:13, the Lord Jesus has a garment reaching to the feet. This is a sign that the Lord’s virtues are so extensive that they become His fullness.
We should never think that the Lord’s long robe is devoid of significance. Based upon biblical usage, such a long robe surely signifies the virtues of Christ, and these virtues are His expression. When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He expressed God in the divine virtues. If His human living had been short of these virtues, it would not have been possible for Him to express God. God was expressed in Jesus through the divine virtues. As He walked on earth, He walked in a way that was full of virtue. His expression certainly had a long train. For example, when He was in that little cottage in Bethany, His train filled the room. Likewise, when He walked on the streets of Jerusalem, His virtues filled the city. That was the expression of God. Therefore, in the Bible a long garment with a long skirt signifies the fullness of the virtues of the one clothed with that garment.
In this universe what is the fullness of Christ? Ephesians 1:23 says that the church is the fullness of the One who fills all in all. How great Christ is! He is all-inclusive and all-extensive, filling all in all. Because He is so great, inclusive, and extensive, He surely needs a fullness to express what He is. This fullness is the church.
Christ’s train envelopes the whole earth. First this train was in the heavens. Then it descended to Jerusalem and spread to Antioch, Philippi, Corinth, and Rome. Eventually, it spread to Asia and then to the western hemisphere. Now the long train of Christ is wrapping the globe. Compared to this train, the earth is very small. It is covered by the church. Even though the church has become degraded, it cannot be denied that nothing is more prosperous and far-reaching in human history than the church.
When I left the mainland of China thirty-three years ago, there were not more than four million Christians in China. Recently I read a newspaper article which says that now in China there are forty million believers. Furthermore, we have learned that in just one county in a certain province there are one hundred forty thousand believers pray-reading and calling on the name of the Lord Jesus. This proves that God is living and that Christ is mighty. Communist countries are known for being atheistic and for restricting the activities of Christians. But after thirty-three years, there are ten times more believers in China today than there were in 1949. This is the stretching, the lengthening, of the long robe of Christ. His train cannot be broken. The more there is persecution of the Christians, the farther His long robe extends.
I have also read that today in Russia the number of those who attend church services is five times the number of those who attend in England. This reminds me of an article I read in 1944. Stalin had asked the United States for aid. President Roosevelt told him that because so many American taxpayers were Christians, Russia would have to open the churches once again before aid could be given. Roosevelt pointed out that his people could not help one who persecutes Christians. Stalin thought that since the churches had been closed for years, there probably were not many Christians left. Therefore, he promised Roosevelt to open the churches. To his great surprise, at Easter, 1944, crowds of Christians gathered into the church buildings for Easter worship.
Christ the Lord is full of divine attributes and human virtues. In history there has never been a person with so many attributes and virtues. Now the expression of His virtues and attributes makes up a long train, a train that covers the whole earth. This train is the church, the fullness of Christ. Praise Him that we all are parts of Christ’s long robe!
The tunic, the long robe, the ephod, the breastplate, and the shoulder-pieces typify Christ with the church. Regarded as a whole, these garments signify Christ expressing God. This is the basic significance of the priestly garments. But on the breastplate were engraved the names of God’s redeemed ones. This no doubt signifies the church. Thus, upon the priestly garments we have the breastplate. This means that upon Christ, signified by the garments, we have the church, signified by the breastplate and the two shoulder-pieces. Moreover, the breastplate and the shoulder-pieces were set into the ephod. This indicates that the church is in Christ. Christ has His fullness, and this fullness is the church. The breastplate, the shoulder-pieces, and the long skirt all typify the church.
As we consider the garments worn by the high priest, we see that the most beautiful and precious part is the breastplate and the shoulder-pieces and that the longest part is the skirt. The most precious and beautiful part and the longest part signify the church. If the breastplate and the shoulder-pieces were removed and the skirt were cut off from the high priest’s garments, the garments would be without fullness and beauty. This indicates that without the church, Christ’s expression would be lacking in fullness and beauty. Today the beauty of Christ and the fullness of Christ are in the church. In other words, the church is Christ’s fullness.
The picture of the high priest’s garments shows clearly that the beauty and fullness of the garments consist of the breastplate, the shoulder-pieces, and the long skirt. The significance of this is that today Christ’s beauty and fullness are in the church. According to our view, the church may be degraded and pitiful. But the Lord has His view of the church. According to His view, the church is lovable. He is not disappointed. What the enemy, Satan, has been doing may be compared to the activities of a naughty boy. One day the Lord Jesus will say, “Satan, is there anything more you can do? If not, go to the lake of fire. Now I shall come in to clear up the situation.” In the eyes of the Lord, the church is wonderful. This is true even today. Hallelujah for the clear picture of Christ with the church portrayed in the garments of the high priest!
The main elements of the high priest’s garments are linen, gold, and precious stones. Linen signifies humanity, gold signifies divinity, and precious stones signify transformation. Also, there are various colors: blue signifying heavenliness, purple signifying kingliness, and scarlet signifying redemption. As we consider the garments of the high priest, we truly see a portrait of Christ with the church.
According to this picture of the priestly garments, Christ holds the church and sustains the church. The breastplate is held by the ephod, and the shoulder-pieces are supported by the ephod. Now we must see that the long skirt signifies the church joined to Christ. From this we receive an impression of where the church is. The church is in Christ, on His breast; the Church is upon Christ, upon His shoulders; and the church is joined to Christ.
The robe is called the robe of the ephod because it was mainly for the ephod. With the ephod we see Christ with the church. Hence, the long robe is for Christ with the church. The basic interpretation of this long robe is that it signifies both the individual and corporate Christ as God’s full expression. In this expression we have Christ and also the church joined to Christ.
According to 28:31, the long robe of the ephod was all of blue. This indicates that the church is all heavenly. The New Testament gives us this revelation concerning the church. The church is not in heaven, but the church is heavenly. In nature and position the church is not earthly but heavenly. John 3:7 indicates that we have been born from above. This reveals that heaven, not earth, is our source. Therefore, even though we are on earth, we have been born from above, from heaven, and have a heavenly life with a heavenly nature. Even our position is heavenly.
Exodus 28:32 says, “And there shall be an opening for the head in the middle of it; there shall be a border of woven work around its opening; like the opening of a coat of mail it shall be, that it may not be torn.” This verse indicates that the long robe was woven in such a way that it was one whole piece. At the top was an opening woven very strongly, like the opening in a coat of mail used for fighting. The reference to a coat of mail in verse 32 indicates that the priestly service is a warfare (Num. 4:23, margin “to war the warfare”). While we are serving as priests, we are also fighting as warriors. Our robe is a priestly garment, but the opening is like that of a coat of mail. Verse 32 says that the opening was like a coat of mail so that “it may not be torn.” This means that something could happen to damage the garment.
Today we are here as a testimony of the Lord. However, we cannot avoid warfare. We do not want to fight, but many times we have been attacked by others. Therefore, our priestly garment must have the kind of opening to indicate that our ministering is a fighting.
Verses 33 and 34 say, “And you shall make upon its skirts pomegranates of blue, and purple, and scarlet, on its skirts all around; and bells of gold in the middle of them all around: a bell of gold and a pomegranate, a bell of gold and a pomegranate, upon the skirts of the robe all around.” Verse 33 speaks of pomegranates and bells, and verse 34, of “a bell of gold and a pomegranate.” When the garment was being made, the pomegranates came before the bells. But in function, the bells come before the pomegranates.
As we have pointed out, the skirts are a sign of fullness, and the fullness of Christ is the church. Therefore, the pomegranates and bells on the skirts must be matters related to the church. The pomegranates and bells were not part of the tunic, which does not signify the church. They were the bottom part of the robe, which does signify the church. This means that we need to consider the pomegranates and the bells as related to the church.
The pomegranates were made of linen signifying humanity, and the bells were made of gold signifying divinity. With the pomegranates we have humanity, and with the bells we have divinity. In the church life we always have humanity and divinity. Humanity is related to the pomegranates, and divinity, to the bells.
If you see a ripe pomegranate with its seeds, you will receive an impression that a pomegranate is full of life. In the Bible pomegranates signify the fullness of life. The church should be full of life in her humanity. This is the significance of pomegranates made of linen.
The church differs from Christ in that Christ never makes mistakes, but the church does make mistakes. You and I often make mistakes, especially when we act too hastily. For this reason, we need the golden bells to warn us not to walk too fast or carelessly. Fullness of life is expressed in the church’s humanity, but the voice of warning is expressed in the church’s divinity, as signified by the golden bells. The proper speaking of the church always comes from her divinity. If in the church we speak from ourselves, that is pitiful. We all need to learn to be little bells uttering a sound that has its source in divinity, not humanity. Such a sound is pleasant and gentle, for it comes not from a steel bell but from a golden one. What the church needs is not a few large bells, but a great many small ones.
I can testify that throughout the years in the church life, I have been warned a number of times by the speaking of young brothers and sisters. Sometimes they stand up and speak something in the meeting that is a warning to me. It seems that I hear the sounding of a little golden bell warning me not to walk carelessly. This is a description of a particular aspect of the church life: the church speaking out of divinity, based upon the fullness of life in humanity.
When we all express the fullness of Christ as life in our humanity, there will be among us many golden bells. Then there will be God’s speaking, God’s voice expressed through the divinity of the church. In each of us there is a certain amount of divinity. From this element of divinity a sound comes out in a small scale, like the ringing of a little bell. First we have the expression of the fullness of life and then the sounding of the golden bells, that is, the speaking from the divinity of the church. The church has humanity for the expression of the fullness of life and also divinity for the sounding of the golden bells. First we have the fullness of life, the pomegranates. Out from this we have the sounding of the bells. However, it is difficult to tell which comes first, the sounding of the bells or the expression of the fullness of life. Both are in the church as the long train of Christ.
In the local churches we have pomegranates and bells. However, if you visit the degraded part of Christianity, you may not find any pomegranates or bells. No matter what you may say or how you may walk, you may not hear any warning sounds. But in the churches there are many voices of warning, voices that come from the fullness of life.
In the church we are not under human control. Certainly no one is controlling the way we think. I can testify that I do not control the elders in Anaheim and that they do not control me. However, we all are controlled by the pomegranates and the bells. The proper church life is full of the expression of life in the pomegranates and of the warning from the sounding of the golden bells. Do you know what are the signs of the proper church life? The signs are the pomegranates and bells.
According to 28:34, the pomegranates and the bells were placed alternately, a bell and a pomegranate. This indicates that the divine voice is interrelated with the divine life. God did not command Moses to have only bells on the skirts of the robe. If in the church life we have bells without pomegranates, there will be gossip and criticism, not the ringing of golden bells. But if pomegranates are placed alternately with bells, gossip and criticism will disappear, and instead there will be a proper, divine sound.
In order for pomegranates to be placed alternately with bells in the church life, we need to grow in life and eventually blossom in life. Then we shall become pomegranates. Instead of gossiping, we shall give forth a divine sound. Furthermore, this growth in life will influence others and cause gossip and criticism to be replaced by the proper sounding of little golden bells. If this is the experience of a certain brother, he may come to the meeting to testify of how he has been dealt with by the Lord in a particular matter. Through his speaking others may be warned, for they shall hear the sound of golden bells placed alternately with pomegranates.
If the church is proper and is truly Christ’s fullness, His train, then on the skirt there will be pomegranates and bells. In the church there will be the expression of life and the divine sounding. I have learned these things through experience and observation in the church life.
Only by experience can we understand the significance of the typology of the long robe with pomegranates and bells. First we see that the pomegranates and bells are attached to the skirts of the long robe. This indicates that they are related to the church life. Furthermore, the pomegranates signify the fullness of life, and the bells are for sounding. But the sounding is not from a human source; it is from a divine source, even divinity, as indicated by the fact that the bells are golden. Whatever we speak in the church must be of divine origin, of the divine source. At the same time, we need the fullness of life expressed in linen, in humanity. Therefore, in the church we have the beauty of life expressed in our humanity and the divine sounding from the golden bells. These are signs of the proper church life.
