In the book of Numbers, God gives Moses commands on the way the temple was to be dismantled for their movements through the wilderness. In Numbers 4:4-8 it is written, “This is the work of the Kohathites at the tent of meeting: the care of the most holy things. When the camp is to move, Aaron and his sons are to go in and take down the shielding curtain and put it over the ark of the covenant law. Then they are to cover the curtain with a durable leather, spread a cloth of solid blue over that and put the poles in place.
“Over the table of the Presence they are to spread a blue cloth and put on it the plates, dishes and bowls, and the jars for drink offerings; the bread that is continually there is to remain on it. They are to spread a scarlet cloth over them, cover that with the durable leather and put the poles in place.“
Again we see the blue covering the table and the articles of the tabernacle, still representing the law or Judaism, but other symbols are important to the understanding. As I’ve mentioned in other writings, what I do with the symbols is something like algebra in that when you have known symbols they act like constants, and the unknown symbols act like variables in the equation that need to be solved. In the above section we also have the bread of the presence on the table and in John 6 Jesus calls himself the bread of life. And of course he is a Jew born under the law, hence the blue cloth.
Then in verse 8 a scarlet cloth covers over the blue cloth. The durable leather reference comports with another symbolic analyzing tool that I use which is to uses that symbols defining characteristics for understanding what is being said. In this case, leather is made from the skin of an animal. In other words, that bread (Jesus) would be covered in flesh.
But we also see Jesus covered in a scarlet robe during his trial before Pilate in Matthew’s gospel account, but in John’s gospel account the robe is purple. Setting aside why these accounts might be different, I can tell that this is not accidental. What I have been writing and will continue to write doesn’t alter at all who Jesus is and what he has done. Everything hangs on him and symbolically this confirms that.
Where the scarlet and purple come back into the picture most prominently happens in Revelation 17:4, “The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.” If you have read the “Following the cup. . . “ series that I wrote on earlier, you will recognize what this means. Much of what is written in the book of Revelation is about the future history of the church and her specific failings, in this particular case, the Catholic Church’s idolatrous understanding of the Lord’s Supper.
But what these colors all indicate is that the truth can still be found in Judaism and the Church if they are willing to both repent and begin an understanding of scripture that transcends and comports more closely with what the Bible says about itself than current teaching methods allow or understand. I believe this is where the purple comes in.
Going back to the book of Numbers in chapter 4:13-14, ““They are to remove the ashes from the bronze altar and spread a purple cloth over it. Then they are to place on it all the utensils used for ministering at the altar, including the firepans, meat forks, shovels and sprinkling bowls. Over it they are to spread a covering of the durable leather and put the poles in place.” The altar is the place of the burnt offering.
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