The Meaning of the Tabernacle Colors

A replica of the wilderness Tent of Meeting in Timnah Park. Israel

A Dwelling Place for God and His People

On Mount Sinai, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments and elaborate instructions for building the wilderness Tabernacle. This structure would serve as a meeting place for God and His people, prophetically demonstrating a New Testament plan of salvation through God's one and only Son, so that whoever came to Him could dwell with Him eternally.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
— John 3:16

The Tabernacle would become a place of worship for God's people, requiring specific protocols and procedures. Each specification was intended to provide a possible means for God's people to dwell with Him, as requested by God, and all of them pointed to what Christ would do in the future, enabling God's people to live with Him eternally.

Let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.
— Exodus 25:8

From the fall of humankind in Genesis until the construction of the Tabernacle, the Bible records people occasionally walking and talking with God but not dwelling with Him. As we shall see, within the framework of this Old Testament sanctuary, God draws His people closer to Himself through an intricate system of sacrifices. This arrangement can speak volumes about the specifics of such a great salvation and indescribable gift.

... how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation ...?
— Hebrews 2:3

Blue: The Color of Heaven

Blue was the first of three colors mentioned in the requested items for the construction of the Tabernacle.

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart, you shall take My offering. And this is the offering which you shall take from them: gold, silver, and bronze, blue, purple, and scarlet thread, fine linen ...

— Exodus 25:3

In Bible typology, blue is the color of heaven and eternal things. It is the rarest color in nature and most often not the result of pigment. Most things in the natural world that appear blue refract light from the sun, a heavenly body, through built-in structures designed to reflect this color. The natural physical world agrees that blue is "out of this world."

Blue Sapphire

Sapphire: God's Throne

For the blue part of the lesson, we will borrow imagery from the familiar blue sapphire, which connects us to concepts of heaven and God's throne. In an online article titled "The Blue Stone," David Asscherick points out how the Scriptures reveal a connection with sapphire, heaven, and God's throne, expressed as "under His feet" in Exodus chapter 24. In this scene, a paved area of sapphire stone appears to be under God's feet. Here, God gives Moses the stone tablets inscribed with His commands.

Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel. And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very heavens in its clarity ... Then the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of (the) stone, and the law and commandments which I have written, that you may teach them. (parentheses mine)

— Exodus 24:9-10

The literal translation of "I will give you tablets of stone" in the above verse should read "I will give you tablets of the stone," implying a particular stone rather than a random rock from the mountain. In the following passage, God links heaven with His throne through the prophet Isaiah.

Thus says the Lord:

“Heaven is My throne,
And earth is My footstool ...

— Isaiah 66:1

Could the stone tablets that God gave Moses have been taken from the sapphire stone of God's throne in the heavens?

In his cryptic experience of God's presence, Ezekiel twice envisions God's throne in connection with heaven and sapphire.

... above the firmament over their heads (heaven) was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone.
— Ezekiel 1:26
... there in the firmament that was above the head (heaven) of the cherubim, there appeared something like a sapphire stone, having the appearance of the likeness of a throne.
— Ezekiel 10:1

Blue is an appropriate color to convey these concepts, as the heavenly qualities of love, loyalty, and God's faithfulness are often associated with it. As it concerns us, blue reminds us to listen to and obey God's heavenly commands. Late 1800s theologian William Brown helps us make this connection through the color blue, hearing God's commands, and faithful obedience to them.

"When we gaze up at the stainless white clouds floating serenely in the air above us, may we ever hear the voice of God saying through them to us, 'be ye holy, for I am holy, ' and when we look beyond to the robe that covers them, the vast blue dome of the heavens, may we ever hear the voice of God through the blue, saying unto us, 'remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them."

In his letter to the Colossians, Paul admonishes that obedience to God's commands hinges on setting our minds on things above.

If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God (the throne). Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.
Therefore, put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
— Colossians 3:1-6

Corner tassels with a blue thread as a reminder of the heavenly origin of God's commands.

The Blue Heavenly Thread

Another Biblical narrative associates the color blue with loyalty, faithfulness, and heavenly protocols. The book of Numbers includes a command God gave Moses to instruct every Israelite male to wear tassels on the corners of their garments. These tassels had one blue thread that reminded them to be loyal to their faithful heavenly Father in response to His already proven faithfulness to them.

... the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel: Tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.”

— Numbers 15:37-41

Mid-1800s Bible scholar and commentary writer Henry Soltau provides the believer's application of these concepts.

"The believer is constantly to keep in view his heavenly origin, and to remember, he is not of the world, even as Christ is not of the world. He should gaze continually on the face of Him who has manifested the love of God in giving His life for his redemption. God, in the gift of Jesus, has proved that love is inseparable from holiness ... The heart first and the eye next, can only be kept from lusting after the things of the world and the flesh, by being fixed on heavenly things."

Origins of the Biblical Blue Dye

The origin of the Biblical blue dye and its processing techniques is significant. Blue dye was obtained from the yellow secretions discovered in the glands of a particular sea mollusk common to the Middle East. The secretions of these mollusks turn purple when exposed to the air. When exposed to sunlight, they turn blue during a particular phase of their color development. The sun, a heavenly body, must process this specific color. The video above provides a demonstration and explanation of this ancient process.

It was a painstaking task to obtain and produce. According to David Jacoby of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, it takes approximately 12,000 snails to produce 1.4 grams of dye, making it a precious, rare, and expensive commodity. It is said to be worth its weight in gold.

The rare and precious blue dye connects us with the rare and precious gold used in the Tabernacle and its furnishings. Concerning the metals, gold, like the color blue, was considered the glorious heavenly metal and ranked first among the three mentioned metals. Interestingly, the gold and blue are paired throughout the instructions of the Tabernacle construction.

Fine golden threads were also woven into the high priest's garment along with the other colors, and, in combination with blue, they signified the glory of Jesus, our High Priest, and his heavenliness.

Purple is a symbol of royalty.

Purple: A Royal Color

Purple is the second and central color mentioned of the three. It is a combination of blue, the first color, and scarlet, the third color. After discussing scarlet, we will examine the significance of this being the center color. But let's first lay a solid foundation for each, so that everything makes sense when we pull it all together at the end.

In the ancient world, purple was the color of royalty, wealth, and power. Like blue, it was difficult to obtain and, therefore, rare and costly. In Luke 16, the rich man in Jesus' parable was clothed in purple.

“There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.

— Luke 16:19

Like blue, this dye was obtained from a sea mollusk. Experts believe it may have been a species related to the one that also produced blue. Purple was said to be worth its weight in silver. Purple and silver are both the second noted of their categories.

Historical and mythological literature affirms these symbolic connections with purple and silver in the ancient world, as recorded in ancient Greek writings.

"There is a sea, and who shall dry it up? that breeds a gush of much purple, precious as silver, ever renewed, for the dyeing of garments. And a store of such stuff by the gods' grace, king, is here for us to have; the palace does not know poverty."

— Homer "The Iliad"

The Bible also associates purple with power and position in the book of Daniel. After Daniel reveals the hidden message of the handwriting on the wall for the king, the king makes good on his lavish promise to give Daniel royal purple clothes.

Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a chain of gold around his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.

— Daniel 5:29

Another King, not of this world, was clothed in purple but displayed a different kind of wealth and power. His wealth and power were gloriously displayed in His humility.

And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head, and began to salute Him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him. And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him.
— Mark 15:17-20

Light spectrum and frequency chart

The Power of Purple

The chart above shows that the visible light spectrum places purple as the most energetic color, based on a wavelength, frequency, and photon energy perspective. This color's potency expresses the power and majesty of the King of kings and Lord of lords.

He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen.

— I Timothy 6:15-16

Purple is also at the top of the visible light spectrum, containing the highest frequency, demonstrating the exaltedness of Jesus Christ the King.

God also highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
— Philippians 2:9-10

Scarlet: The Color of Man and Blood

The symbolism of the third-mentioned color, scarlet, is related to humankind and the lifeblood that sustains them. The Hebrew word for "man" is "adam" (אדם) and is spelled exactly the same as the Hebrew word for "red". Moreover, the Hebrew word for blood is "dam" (דםָּ). Notably, both "man" and "red" contain the word "blood."

The Hebrew word for scarlet, as is used in the Tabernacle list of colors, is "tôlaʻath sheni" (תולעת שני). A tolah, the creature from which the dye, representing red blood, is obtained, has a unique and applicable story behind it. A "tolah" is a worm or maggot known as the crimson worm. This lowly creature's life cycle illustrates humanity's salvation through the perfect sacrificial blood of Christ on our behalf, as Christian Apologist Henry Morris describes in the following quote.

"When the female of the scarlet worm species was ready to give birth to her young, she would attach her body to the trunk of a tree, fixing herself so firmly and permanently that she would never leave again. The eggs deposited beneath her body were thus protected until the larvae were hatched and able to enter their own life cycle."

Another source commentary on this worm notes that the mother gives her life to protect her babies with her own body and feeds them with it.

As the mother died, the crimson fluid stained her body and the surrounding wood. From the dead bodies of such female scarlet worms, the commercial scarlet dyes of antiquity were extracted. What a picture this gives of Christ, dying on the tree, shedding his precious blood that he might 'bring many sons unto glory' (Hebrews 2:10)! He died for us, that we might live through him! Psalm 22:6 describes such a worm and gives us this picture of Christ.
My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? (uttered from the cross)
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning? ...
... But I am a worm (tolah תולע), and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people.

— Psalm 22

The Alpha Omega Institute at Discover Creation adds the following note to this process.

After three days, the dead mother Crimson worm's body loses its crimson color and turns into white wax, which falls to the ground like snow. So what did Jesus mean by saying "I am a worm"? There are many ideas about what Jesus might have meant, but nobody really knows for sure. However, it is very interesting that, just like the Crimson worm, Jesus sacrificed or gave up his life on a tree so that his children might be washed with his crimson blood and their sins cleaned white as snow. He died for us, that we might live through him!

“Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the Lord,
“Though your sins are like scarlet (sheni שני),
They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson (tolah תולע),
They shall be as wool.

— Isaiah 1:18

In the book of Joshua, a harlot named Rahab seeks salvation from the coming destruction of her city, Jericho. She stakes no righteous claim based on her deservedness but only faith in a promise secured and evidenced by a scarlet thread she hung from her window.

Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee.
And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him ...
... And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dwells in Israel even unto this day.
— Joshua 2:18-19, 6:25

Like Rahab, the harlotry of all humanity has no righteous claim to salvation, but we are saved from destruction only through faith in the shed blood of Christ, the scarlet thread.

The following section will tie all three thread colors together and discover their united message.

... a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
— Ecclesiastes 4:12

The United Message

This symphony of colors, taken together, produces a joyous melody of revelation heralding the message of salvation. These colors are usually mentioned in the same order everywhere they appear: blue, purple, and scarlet.

Blue is the color of heaven.

Purple is the color of royalty.

Scarlet is the color of man/blood.

Jesus Christ was titled the following.

The Son of God (heaven/blue)

The King of Kings and Lord of Lords (royalty/purple)

The Son of Man (man/blood/scarlet)

The first and last mentioned colors, blue and scarlet, and the first and last mentioned titles, Son of God and Son of Man, produce the center color and title. The Son of God (blue) became the Son of Man (scarlet). Unitedly, this made Him King of Kings and Lord of Lords (purple) over all of heaven and earth. These threads are interwoven throughout the tapestry of John's account of "The Passion."

And the soldiers twisted a crown (purple) of thorns (scarlet) and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe. Then they said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” (purple) And they struck Him with their hands.

Pilate then went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no fault in Him.” (white linen-explained in the next section)

Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown (purple) of thorns (scarlet) and the purple robe.

And Pilate said to them, “Behold the Man!” (scarlet)

Therefore, when the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” (scarlet)

Pilate said to them, “You take Him and crucify Him, (scarlet) for I find no fault in Him.”(white linen) The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die because He made Himself the Son of God.” (blue) ...

... When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” (purple)

— John 19:1-5,13-14

A diagram of the Tent of Meeting Spaces

The Colors Representing the Tent of Meeting Spaces

Notably, the color order also suggests a hierarchy of three spaces within the "Tent of Meeting" structure. Blue represents the Holy of Holies, where God dwelt between the Cherubim. Purple represents the Holy Place where the mediating work of the priesthood occurred. The scarlet represents the Outer Court, where the sacrifices took place.

Jesus, portrayed by 1800s artist James Tissot in white linen garments

White Linen: Righteousness and Purity

The final discussion on color involves the linen fabric used in the Tabernacle instructions. Its predominant feature was its white color, suggesting a symbolic connection to purity and righteousness.

Linen is a plant-based textile. It was used to make the curtains surrounding the entire "Tent of Meeting." Linen was also used to make veils that concealed and protected sacred spaces and priestly garments.

John's vision in the book of Revelation links white linen with concepts of purity.

And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.
— Revelation 9:14

The crisp white fabric provided the backdrop for the colors studied above, which relate to the righteousness of Jesus Christ. He came down from heaven, clothed in human flesh, and became the only righteous one qualified to secure redemption through His sacrificial death.

My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world.
— I John 2:1-2

Jesus was the lamb without blemish or spot. (1 Peter 1:18-19) The spotlessness of the lamb is in stark contrast to the worthless, filthy garments of fallen humankind. No other human being could qualify.

Oh, that You would rend the heavens! That You would come down! ... But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.
— Isaiah 64:6

Such is the state of all humankind, apart from Christ.

Now Joshua (the high priest) was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel. Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him.” And to him He said, “See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.”
— Zechariah 3:3-4

Paul explains how this works in His letter to the Romans.

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience, many will be made righteous. so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
— Romans 5:8-9, 17-19, 21

We have no righteousness in and of ourselves. It is with the righteousness of Christ that God desires to clothe His beloved believers.

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
My soul shall be joyful in my God;
For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
He has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments,
And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

— Isaiah 61:10

The Continuity of God's Sacred Plan and His Word

In Conclusion, the blue, purple, and scarlet on a canvas of white linen have clearly shown us God's righteous Son from heaven came to the earth as a man, was crucified on our behalf, and is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords in both realms—the physical world and the heavenly one.

There is nothing in God's Word that is without significance. Every word, color, number, and name is rich with layers of meaning. These help us connect the dots of God's larger story of dwelling with His created ones through a necessary means of sacrificial salvation.