Clothes for Religious Leaders

28 “Take from among the people of Israel your brother Aaron and his sons, Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, to work for Me as religious leaders. ² Make holy clothing for your brother Aaron, for honor and for beauty. ³ Tell all the able workmen, whom I have given the spirit of wisdom, to make Aaron’s clothing to set him apart for My work. He will work for Me as a religious leader. ⁴ These are the clothes they will make: A breast-piece, a linen vest, a long piece of clothing, a long coat, a head-covering, and a wide belt. They will make holy clothing for your brother Aaron and his sons to work for Me as religious leaders. ⁵ They will use gold and blue and purple and red cloth and fine linen.

The Linen Vest

⁶ “They will use gold and blue, purple and red cloth and fine linen to make the linen vest that holds the breast-piece. It will be the work of the able workman. ⁷ It will have two shoulder pieces to join it at the two ends. ⁸ The well-made belt on it will be made of the same gold and blue, purple and red cloth and fine linen. ⁹ Take two onyx stones and cut on them the names of Israel’s sons. ¹⁰ Put six of their names on one stone, and the six names of the others on the other stone, from the oldest to the youngest. ¹¹ As an able workman cuts words in a ring, cut the names of Israel’s sons on the two stones. Then set them into beautiful pieces of gold. ¹² Put the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the linen vest, as stones for the family groups of Israel to be remembered. Aaron will carry their names on his two shoulders before the Lord, to be remembered. ¹³ Make beautiful pieces of gold ¹⁴ and two chains of pure gold. Make them like ropes are made. And put the chains on the pieces of gold.

The Breast-Piece

¹⁵ “Make a breast-piece to be used when judging. It is to be made by an able workman. Make it like the work of the linen vest, of gold, and blue, purple and red cloth and fine linen. ¹⁶ It will be as long as it is wide, with one half laid over the other. Make it as long and as wide as a man’s fingers can spread. ¹⁷ Put four straight rows of stones on it. The first row will be a ruby, a topaz and an emerald. ¹⁸ The second row will be a turquoise, a sapphire and a diamond. ¹⁹ The third row will be a jacinth, an agate and an amethyst. ²⁰ And the fourth row will be a beryl, an onyx and a jasper. They will be set in beautiful pieces of gold. ²¹ There will be twelve stones, one for each name of the sons of Israel. The name of each family group will be cut on one of these special stones. ²² Make chains for the breast-piece, like ropes of pure gold. ²³ And make two rings of gold and put them on the two ends of the breast-piece. ²⁴ Join the two gold chains to the two rings at the ends of the breast-piece. ²⁵ Join the other two ends of the two chains to the beautiful gold pieces that hold the two stones at the shoulders in the front. ²⁶ Make two rings of gold to put on the two ends of the breast-piece, on the inside, next to the linen vest. ²⁷ Then make two rings of gold and put them on the bottom of the two shoulder pieces of the linen vest in front, near where they join. They will be above the well-made belt of the linen vest. ²⁸ Tie the rings of the breast-piece to the rings of the linen vest with a blue rope so the breast-piece may not come loose from the linen vest.

²⁹ “Aaron will carry the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breast-piece of judging when he goes in the holy place, so they will be remembered before the Lord all the time.

Other Religious Leaders’ Clothes

³⁰ “Put the Urim and the Thummim into the breast-piece over Aaron’s heart when he goes before the Lord. Aaron will carry the judging of the people of Israel over his heart before the Lord all the time.

³¹ “Make the long piece of clothing all of blue. ³² There will be an opening at its top in the center. Around the opening it will be sewed like the opening on heavy battle clothes, so it may not be torn. ³³ Make pomegranates of blue and purple and red cloth to put all around the bottom of this clothing. And put bells of gold between them. ³⁴ Put a gold bell and a pomegranate, then a gold bell and a pomegranate, all the way around the bottom of this clothing. ³⁵ Aaron will wear it when he serves Me. The sound of the bells will be heard when he goes in the holy place and when he comes out so that he will not die.

³⁶ “Make a plate of pure gold and write on it, ‘Holy to the Lord.’ ³⁷ Put it to the front of the head covering with a blue rope. ³⁸ It will be on Aaron’s forehead. Aaron will take away the sin of the holy things which the people of Israel set apart for the Lord as their holy gifts. It will always be on his forehead, so they may be received by the Lord. ³⁹ Make the long coat of fine linen, a head covering of fine linen, and a wide belt, the work of an able workman.

⁴⁰ “Make long coats for Aaron’s sons. And make belts and head coverings for them, for honor and for beauty. ⁴¹ Dress your brother Aaron and his sons in them. Then pour oil on them, set them apart and make them holy, so they may serve Me as religious leaders. ⁴² Make for them linen clothing to cover their flesh from their belts to their legs. ⁴³ Aaron and his sons will wear them when they go into the meeting tent, or when they go near the altar to serve in the holy place. Then they will not be guilty and die. It will be a law for him and for his children forever.