Dressed for Righteousness: The Fabric of Our Salvation Text: Exodus 28:39
Introduction: The War Over Wardrobes
We live in an age that despises uniforms, detests dress codes, and champions the autonomous self as the sole arbiter of what is fitting. Our culture insists that what you wear is a matter of personal expression, a flimsy fabric draped over the authentic you, which is supposedly found somewhere deep inside. But the Bible begs to differ, and it does so profoundly. Scripture teaches that clothing is never neutral. Clothing is rhetoric. It always says something. From the fig leaves of Adam and Eve, a pathetic attempt to cover their shame, to the glorious white robes of the saints in glory, what we wear declares our allegiance, our status, and our righteousness, or lack thereof.
Nowhere is this theology of textiles more apparent than in the meticulous instructions for the priestly garments in Exodus. The modern mind, even the modern Christian mind, is tempted to skim these chapters. We see detailed instructions about tunics, sashes, and turbans, and we think it is little more than ancient haberdashery. We treat it like the fine print in a contract we have no intention of reading. But in doing this, we miss the warp and woof of the gospel itself. God is a divine artist, a master weaver, and He is communicating glorious theological truths in every thread.
These instructions are a direct polemic against the surrounding paganism. The priests of Egypt and Canaan were arrayed in their own gaudy splendor to serve their own grotesque gods. Their attire was meant to intimidate, to mystify, and to mediate with chaotic and capricious deities. But the garments of Aaron and his sons are for "glory and for beauty," a glory and beauty that reflect the character of the one true God. They are not designed by man to appease God, but are designed by God to represent His approach to man. They are a tangible sermon, a typological masterpiece that points forward to the one who would be our true and final High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ.
In this single verse, Exodus 28:39, we are given three key pieces of the priest's wardrobe. Each one is laden with meaning. Each one is a thread in the grand tapestry of redemption. And each one has everything to do with how you and I are to be clothed before a holy God.
The Text
"You shall weave the tunic of checkered work of fine linen, and you shall make a turban of fine linen, and you shall make a sash, the work of a weaver."
(Exodus 28:39 LSB)
The Tunic of Checkered Work
We begin with the foundational garment, the tunic.
"You shall weave the tunic of checkered work of fine linen..." (Exodus 28:39a)
The tunic was the inner, foundational garment that covered the priest's body. It was his first layer of clothing, the one closest to him. And it was to be made of two things: fine linen, and it was to be of checkered work. Let us take these in turn.
First, the material is fine linen. Throughout Scripture, fine linen is a symbol of righteousness and purity. When the saints are seen in heaven, they are "arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints" (Revelation 19:8). This is not a righteousness they have manufactured themselves. This is a gifted righteousness. The priest does not show up in his own clothes. He is to be clothed in a purity that God Himself prescribes and provides. This tunic is the base layer, signifying that the very foundation of our service to God must be a righteousness that is not our own. We cannot approach God in the filthy rags of our own self-righteousness (Isaiah 64:6). We must be covered.
But notice the craftsmanship. It is a "tunic of checkered work." This is not a plain, flat, simple piece of cloth. The Hebrew suggests a complex, intricate pattern, a weaving of cells or boxes. This is a crucial detail. Why checkered? Because the righteousness that God provides is not a simple, one-dimensional thing. It is a multifaceted, intricate, and perfectly ordered reality. Think of the complexities of the law, with all its statutes and judgments. Think of the manifold wisdom of God in the plan of salvation. The righteousness of Christ, which this tunic typifies, is a perfect and complete righteousness that covers every possible angle. It is a righteousness that is tested and true from every direction. The checkered pattern speaks of a comprehensive, interlocking, and divinely intelligent holiness. It is not a flimsy whitewash, but a robust, textured, and deeply woven purity.
This tunic, then, represents the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. It is the first thing that goes on. Before any other ministry, before any other service, the priest must be clothed in this perfect, intricate righteousness. This is justification. It is a declaration from God, based on the work of Christ, that we are righteous in His sight. Without this tunic, everything else is just a man playing dress-up in the presence of a holy God, which is a deadly game indeed.
The Turban of Holiness
Next, God commands the making of the head covering.
"...and you shall make a turban of fine linen..." (Genesis 28:39b)
The turban, also made of fine linen, covered the head of the priest. The head, in Scripture, represents our thoughts, our minds, our governing principles. And this, too, must be consecrated to God. The priest's mind is not his own. His thoughts are to be brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5).
The Talmud teaches that the turban was to atone for the sin of arrogance. This is instructive. Arrogance is a sin of the head, a sin of high-mindedness against God. The priest, who mediates between God and man, must be a man of profound humility. The fine linen of the turban signifies the purity of thought required to stand before God. He is not to be filled with his own brilliant ideas or his own theological speculations. His mind is to be wrapped in the pure linen of God's revealed Word.
We know from earlier in the chapter (v. 36-38) that a golden plate was to be attached to this turban, engraved with the words "HOLINESS TO THE LORD." This was to be on Aaron's forehead. The turban is the foundation for this declaration. It signifies that the priest's entire intellectual life, his worldview, is dedicated to the holiness of God. His mind is set apart. He thinks God's thoughts after Him. For the Christian, this means our minds must be renewed (Romans 12:2). We are not to think like the world. Our minds must be covered, consecrated, and dedicated to the proposition that Yahweh is holy, and that all our thoughts must bow before that central reality.
The Sash of Service
Finally, we have the sash that holds everything together.
"...and you shall make a sash, the work of a weaver." (Genesis 28:39c)
The sash, or girdle, was a belt that was wrapped around the tunic. Its function was to gather the loose garments and prepare a man for work or for action. To "gird up your loins" was to get ready to move. This sash, therefore, represents readiness, faithfulness, and truth in action. It is one thing to be clothed in righteousness (the tunic) and to have a consecrated mind (the turban), but it is another thing to put that righteousness and that truth into practice.
The Messiah is described this way in Isaiah: "Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the sash around His waist" (Isaiah 11:5). The sash is what binds everything together and makes it functional. It is the active obedience that flows from a justified state and a sanctified mind. It represents the truth of God's Word, which must govern and direct all our actions. Paul tells us to gird our waists with truth (Ephesians 6:14). This is the belt that holds the armor of God in place.
Notice that it is "the work of a weaver." Again, the skill and artistry are emphasized. This is not a sloppy, thrown-together affair. The faithfulness required of God's people is one that is skillfully and deliberately woven. It is the product of divine craftsmanship. God Himself, through His Spirit, is the weaver who works this faithfulness in us. Our job is to put it on, to gird ourselves with the strength that He provides, and to be ready for every good work.
Conclusion: Clothed in Christ
So what does this ancient dress code have to do with us? Everything. Aaron was a type, a foreshadowing, of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is our great High Priest, and He is clothed in a perfect, multifaceted righteousness. His mind was perfectly consecrated to the Father, and His life was one of perfect, faithful obedience. He is the reality to which these garments pointed.
But the good news of the gospel is not simply that we can admire Christ's wardrobe from a distance. The gospel is that God, in His grace, takes these priestly garments and clothes us in them. When we are united to Christ by faith, God clothes us in the checkered tunic of Christ's perfect righteousness. This is our justification. He covers our arrogant minds with the linen turban of Christ's humility and consecration, renewing our minds by His Spirit. This is our sanctification. And He girds us with the sash of Christ's own faithfulness, strengthening us for service and action. This is our life of obedience.
We are, as Peter says, a "royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9). We have been brought near to God, not by our own merit, but because we have been dressed for the occasion. We have been clothed in Christ (Galatians 3:27). Therefore, we are to live like it. We are to live out the meaning of these garments. We are to walk in the purity of the fine linen, to think with the humility of the turban, and to serve with the readiness of the sash.
The world wants you to believe that you can come to God in whatever you happen to have on. But God has a dress code. And in His infinite mercy, He does not require us to weave the garments ourselves. He has provided them for us, perfectly woven, in the person and work of His Son. Our job is to cast off the filthy rags of our own righteousness and to put on, by faith, the glorious and beautiful garments of salvation that He so freely offers.