The Breastplate (Ex. 28:15-30 & 39:8-21)

7/25/2008 7:01 AM

My Worship Time           Focus:  The breastplate

Bible Reading & Meditation               Reference:  Ex. 28:15-30; 39:8-21

          Message of the verses:  Again there are just too many verses to copy and past them into this SD.  The breastplate along with the ephod and the girdle are under the point in Warren Wiersbe’s book entitled “Priests are chosen to serve the people.”

            I guess that I will start out this section with the verse that probably will cause the most misunderstanding in this section and may even be one of the most misunderstood verses in the Bible, as least it will rank high on the list.  I have copied and pasted, what I think is a good definition of what Exodus 28:30 means and will put it in this SD here:  “Question: "What were the Urim and Thummim?"

Answer: The Urim "lights" and Thummim "perfections" were gemstones that were carried by the High Priest of Israel on the ephod / priestly garments. They were used by the High Priest to determine God's will in some situations. Some propose that God would cause the Urim and Thummim to light up in varying patterns to reveal His decision. Others propose that the Urim and Thummim were kept in a pouch and were engraved with symbols identifying yes / no and true / false.

It is unclear whether the Urim and Thummim were on, by, or in the High Priest's ephod. No one knows the precise nature of the Urim and Thummim or exactly how they were used. The Bible simply does not give us enough information. References to the Urim and Thummim are rare in the Bible. They are first mentioned in the description of the breastplate of judgment (Exodus 28:30; Leviticus 8:8). When Joshua succeeded Moses as leader over Israel, he was to receive answers from God by means of the Urim through Eleazar the High Priest (Numbers 27:21). The Urim and Thummim are next mentioned in Moses' dying blessing upon Levi (Deuteronomy 33:8). The following Scripture likely also speak of the Urim and Thummim: Joshua 7:14-18; 1 Samuel 14:37-45; and 2 Samuel 21:1.
Exodus 28:30:  “You shall put in the breastpiece of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be over Aaron’s heart when he goes in before the LORD; and Aaron shall carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before the LORD continually.”

            I suppose that the reason that the Urim and Thummim is such a topic that catches peoples attention is that there seems to be an almost magical way of discerning exactly what the will of God is for someone of for the nation of Israel.  As stated above there is little said about it in the Bible so there is not a lot to go on, and because of this I have to go to one of my favorite verses when I have trouble understanding something in the Scriptures that is not as clear as I would like it.  Deuteronomy  29:29 “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law.”  In other words God has not told us everything and is not obligated to do that, however what He has told us we must obey.

            “Believers today don’t have devices such as the Urim and Thummim for determining what God wants us to do, but we do have the Word of God to guide our steps (Psalm 119:1050).  The Word of God reveals the God of the Word, His character, His desires, and His purposes for His people, and the better we know God, the better we can discover His will.  God’s Word contains precepts for us to obey, warnings for us to heed, promises for us to claim, and principles for us to follow.  If we’re sincerely willing to obey, God is willing to direct us (John 7:17; Psalms 25:8-11).

            “But if we had a simple infallible method of determining the will of God such as the Urim and Thummim, we probably wouldn’t pray as much, search the Scriptures as much, or humble ourselves as much as we do today as we seek God’s direction.  But seeking and doing God’s will is the way we grow in the Lord, and sharing in the process is as much a blessing as knowing the results.”  (Quoted for Warren Wiersbe’s book on Exodus).

            Now back to the breastplate.  I am not sure why but in some of the material that I have looked at it is called “The Breastplate of Judgment.”  In this breastplate there were twelve stones, three in four rows, and they were different stones, but each stone represented one of the tribes in Israel.  It doesn’t seem like anyone knows the order of the stones or why they were put in the order that they were put in.  These stones representing the tribes of Israel were over the heart of the high priest and he also had these names on two stones that were on his shoulders so the tribes of Israel were represented two times on the high priests clothing or uniform that he would wear in the holy place of the tabernacle.  I believe that this shows that God carries His children and also has love for them.  I want to say that there is a great picture of the high priest in the SD from 7-24-08 that shows all of the different parts of the uniform that he wore while serving the Lord and serving the people while in the holy place. 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Just as each tribe had a different stone to represent them on the breastplate and this could show that there is a difference in all of the tribe, yet God loves them all, and God loves me even though I am different that other believers.

            As I go through some of the trials that I am going through part of the problem is trying to discern what the will of God is for me as to whether or not I am to go at this time to work with Tim in Hawaii, and it would be nice to have this Urim and Thummim in my possession to determine what it is that God wants me to do at this point in my life.  However I know that I would be missing the blessing of God because I would not be searching the Scriptures, praying, and asking others to help me determine what it is that God wants me to do about this. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

1. Trust the Lord to show me through His Word, or through prayer, or through the good counsel of other believers what it is that He desires me to do concerning this job in Hawaii.
2. I trust that the Lord will give me the grace needed for each day that I serve Him while on this earth.

Memory verses for the week:                                  Exodus 20:1-3

1. Then God spoke all these words, saying,
2. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3. You shall have not other gods before me.

7/25/2008 8:25 AM