Let’s rewind the tape a bit and go back to the Book of Exodus.
I want to show you something interesting.
Check out the following verses and pay special attention to the words I bolded and underlined.
“the turban of fine linen, the splendid headgear of fine linen, the linen shorts, and the sash of finely woven linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn, the work of a weaver in colors — as Adonai had ordered Moshe.”-Exodus 39:28-29
Notice the word “and” separating the phrase “the sash of finely woven linen” from the phrase “blue, purple and scarlet yarn”.
This type of word construction differs from all the other descriptions that detail how the Priestly garments were to be made.
Here’s the thing.
The ancient Jewish sages maintain that the “blue, purple and scarlet yarn” were NOT made out of linen but made out of a different material.
They say that this “different material” had to be wool because it was the only other type of material in use at that time to make garments.
Hence, the sashes and the High Priest’s MITRE (head band) were SHA-ATNEZ meaning made out of two different fabrics.
Do you remember what SHA-ATNEZ (mixed fabrics) signified?
It signified HOLINESS.
Recall that God had separated the entire tribe of Levi away from Israel.
Technically speaking, they were no longer considered Israelites anymore.
That’s why they did not get a land inheritance when they entered the Promised Land.
Just as Israel were GER (protected foreigners) to the Lord, so were the Levites GER (protected foreigners) to common Israel.
This is an important point you’ve got to embed in your cranium.
A distinction was made between the Levites and the common Israelites.
Scripture demonstrates this clearly.
So here again we have another example of SHA-ATNEZ being used to designate the HOLY, in this case the Levites.
My point in going through this lengthy explanation is to demonstrate that the TZITZIT which was also woven out of the two different materials of linen and wool, WAS PATTERNED AFTER THE PRIESTLY GARMENTS.
Just as the mixed garments the priests wore distinguished them as separate and HOLY from the common Israelites, so did the wearing of TZITZIT by the common Israelites distinguish them from common mankind.
Now there’s another awesome pattern of HOLINESS established here I don’t want you to miss.
Recall when we were studying about the Sanctuary, we learned there was a hierarchy or different degrees of HOLINESS as we moved from the inside to the outside.
The HOLY OF HOLIES was the HOLIEST spot.
Moving outward, the HOLY PLACE represented a lower degree of holiness.
Finally, when we move to the Outer Courtyard where common Israel was allowed to gather, we come to the area of the lowest degree of holiness.
Here’s the thing.
We see this same amazing hierarchy of holiness in a top-to-bottom fashion in the garments the High Priest, the common priests, and the common Israelites wore.
The High Priest’s Head was covered by a mixed fabric garment (MITRE).
Next, the common priests’ waist or middle part of their bodies were covered by mixed fabric garments.
Finally, the common Israelite wore a mixed fabric garment, the TZITZIT, that went below his waist (normally extending between the knees and ankles).
So we have “high“, “middle” and “low” degrees of holiness.
Finally, recall that per the Lord’s command, there was to be a single purple woolen thread woven through the center of the TZITZIT.
Remember this purple thread signified royalty!
Hence, it was to be as HASHEM had proclaimed!
“You will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”
Every Israelite was to wear on his own body a physical reminder of the HOLINESS of the God that had chosen him to be royalty, set apart and a light to the nations.
There were no exceptions, whether High Priest, whether common priest, or whether common Israelite.
Every Israelite, to one degree or another, was to be consecrated to serve the true Creator the Universe and this was represented by SHA-ATNEZ or the garments woven out a mixture of linen and wool that he wore.
Awesome!
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