The Tabernacle system was YHWH dwelling in the midst of Israel so that His life-giving relationship with them became the heartbeat of the Camp. The axis mundi of the Camp of Israel involved shedding the skin of decay through access to the Fountain of Life, thereby donning new garments of righteousness that their names be written in the census Book of Life. By arranging Israel’s camp, YHWH created sacred spaces that He filled with holy images of Himself. Like the Garden of Eden, He provided His people with bread, His Word, to teach them discernment between good and evil, and living water flowing from His heart, His Spirit.

After covenanting with King YHWH at Mount Sinai (Exo. 19-24), Israel rebelled five times, from the golden calf incident to Israel’s refusal to enter the Land, preventing achievement of the Abrahamic covenant. YHWH sentenced that generation to wander in the wilderness until all twenty years and above died. To encourage them to continue their sojourn through the wilderness deprivations, He gave the people seven commands¹ to keep in the Land that pointed to the abundant life of worship promised to the new generation through a renewed Nazirite-like vow consecration to Him (Lev. 6).

1. A burnt offering of a lamb with its grain, oil, and wine
2. A burnt offering of a ram with its grain, oil, and wine
3. A burnt offering of a young bull with its grain, oil, and wine
4. The firstfruits wave offering of their harvests
5. Atonement offering for community unintentional sin
6. Atonement offering for individual unintentional sin
7. Judgment for anyone despising YHWH’s word, tied to a Sabbath-breaking case

The first involved three burnt offering edicts with lavish grain, oil, and wine to fulfill a vow, a freewill offering, or an appointed festival offering. The burnt offering symbolized a community or person’s wholehearted dedication to YHWH, whether Israelite or stranger. A fourth reminded the people to always honor YHWH with the first portion of a harvest by presenting a wave offering before eating the harvest. When the first is dedicated as holy to YHWH, the rest of the harvest is also holy (Rom. 11:16). The next two commands explained atonement offerings for unintentional sin committed by the community or a person. The seventh, exemplified by a Sabbath-breaking case, was expulsion by death (stoning) from the covenant promises of an Israelite or foreigner whose high-handed, defiant act desecrated YHWH. Sabbath holiness was the sign of YHWH’s covenant to dwell with Israel in the Land, all creation’s telos. To pollute the Sabbath outrightly rejected YHWH’s rescue of Israel out of Egypt, refusing to enter the Land by lusting to return to Egyptian bondage. Spurning YHWH’s salvation, the man chose death instead of life. From YHWH’s seven-command platform, He issued a decree to help them remember that He called them to be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation with the Sabbath destination, their inheritance in the Land where He would live and rule through them. This blog focuses on YHWH’s Numbers 15:37-41 tassel command.

Again YHWH 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 YHWH 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 YHWH your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your Elohim: I am YHWH your Elohim” (Num. 15:37-41, NKJV).

Dissecting this mandate reveals its brilliance. Each Israelite was to make for themselves cords of blue thread on the four corners (wings)² of their garment, like the cherubim four wings that carried YHWH’s throne according to His will. To prevent another failure to enter the Land, each Israelite became as intimate with YHWH as the cherubim, having YHWH’s will enthroned in their minds, directing their every movement. By the blue tasseled boundary of their covering, they each became associated with the high priest, related by the blue cords (tzitzit, צִיצִת) attached to the gold blossom (tzitz) diadem of his turban inscribed with “Holy unto YHWH” and the jeweled (segullah) breastplate bearing the tribes’ orientation over his heart. Like the cherubim of the heavenly hosts, an Israelite’s every action and word must be fixed in the Tabernacle’s law of holiness. When the thousands of Israelites in their respective tribes remembered their heavenly calling, they formed a community structured after the pattern of YHWH’s celestial city (Num. 1-6). Thus, being aligned individually within a holy community gave them greater power over evil influences.

The twisted blue³ thread cord reminded each Israelite’s eyes to keep all YHWH’s commands and do them, bending their will to God’s will, a memory device to reverse Adam and Eve’s “seeing with their eyes” and taking to themselves. It acted to avert a repeated failure of the ten spies and Israel’s refusal to enter the Land, their “whoring,” doing what was good in their searching eyes and the deceitful inclination of their own hearts (Num. 13-14; 5:11-21). Following YHWH’s ruling, each Israelite became yoked to Him through the high priest so that their wills were tamed/overcome under His shepherd’s staff. The blue-violet marked them as belonging solely to YHWH, holy bearers of His nobility and authority. Its visual reminder encouraged them in their renewed Nazarite-like consecration to complete their priestly vocation vow and to receive its abundant blessings.

In the Ancient Near East, touching or grabbing a man’s tassel, his mark of integrity and power, was “a formal act of petition.”⁴  Zechariah foretold of an age when citizens from other nations would grasp hold of a Hebrew’s garment “wing,” saying, “Let us go with you because we have heard that God is with you” (Zec. 8:23). A woman with a twelve-year flow of blood touched the “wing” or tassel of Yeshua’s garment and was healed (Luke 8:44). “Wherever He entered villages, cities, or country, the sick implored Him that they might just touch the tassel of His cloak, and as many as touched His wings were saved” (Mark 6:56). When all humans see Yeshua’s glory (see Blog 125), our High Priest comes wearing the turban of salvation and breastplate of righteousness to punish the wicked and vindicate the righteous, arising with healing in His wings (Psa. 104; Isa. 59:17; 60:1-3; Mal. 4:2).

Takeaway:
After Israel failed to enter the Land, and His judgment led to forty years of wilderness wandering, YHWH encouraged them with seven commands to keep in the Land (Sabbath) and gave them a memory aid to assure them of their success. The tassels visually reminded each Israelite that they must become wholly dedicated to Him in worshipful obedience, connected to His holiness in mind and heart through his high priest. Since there was no other God but YHWH, by the blue on their wings, they were saved (healed) to fulfill their purpose as a light to the nations. We must see the blue-tasseled boundary during the Feast of Tabernacles to inherit His Kingdom.

Fun Factors:
Numbers 15’s 511 words (7 × 73) total 137,883, (2³ × 5³)(4² + 11²) + 883, 883 is the 153^rd prime number and the same value as “a Feast seven days” (Num. 28:17, 29:12). The numeric language tells of YHWH’s complete and perfect (7) wisdom (73) of His holy existence (5³) in His Feasts (2³), providing atonements (137) to all nations, restoring by the Spirit of God (153, 3² + 12²).

The five tassel verses of Numbers 15:37-41 of 69 words (3 × 23) total 22047, 3 × 7349, 3(25² + 82²), numerically symbolizing living (3 × 23) in YHWH’s sure wisdom (73) of completing us (49, 7²) in perfect holiness (25²) to tabernacle with Him (82, 41 × 2), the power of His Word (22) and work (47).

Numbers 15:38, YHWH’s instructions to put tassels on the four edges of their garment border, has 73 letters in 19 words totaling 6335, 5 × 7 × 181, the sum of seven triangular numbers T³⁹ + … + T⁴⁵; 6 + 3 + 3 + 5 = 17; 6 × 3 × 3 × 7 = 270; 6335’s prime factor sum, 5 + 7 + 181 = 193, 12² + 7².

The 23 letters of “and they will put on the tassels of the wings a thread of blue” = 2727, the numeric mnemonic code for YHWH’s throne in the Holy of Holies, 3³ × 101; 101 is the 26^th prime and the 12^th Pythagorean prime; 2727 = 27(1² + 10²), the power of a holy YHWH dwelling with His people.