Page 169 - Radical Love by Linda Robinson

RADICAL LOVE

The first thing to observe in this verse is how the analogy shifts from

“goats” to “sheep.” This is because sheep are shorn of their woolly
coats in the summer. In the book of Ezekiel 44:17–18 (NIV), we read

the following referring to the priest: “When they enter the gates of the
inner court, they are to wear linen clothes; they must not wear any

woollen garment while ministering at the gates of the inner court or

inside the temple... They must not wear anything that makes them
perspire.”

Wool carries several points of significance. Firstly, the priests were
instructed to wear linen, which, as revealed in Revelation 19:8,

represents the righteous acts of God’s holy people. This righteousness
emanates solely from Christ’s finished work on the cross—no works of

our own are valid. Wool, on the other hand, represents the works of the

flesh—efforts that make us sweat—based on human striving, as was
the case for Adam after the fall (see Genesis 3:19).

As Christians, we are meant to work from a place of rest, for it is God’s
work; we are yielded vessels. Bible expositor John Gill writes:

“Woollen clothes are also liable to moths and worms, and to contract

filth; and may signify that the priests of the Lord should be clear of
carnal and sensual lusts, these should not be upon them, or they under

the predominance of them, and particularly avarice; they should feed
the flock, not fleece it, and clothe themselves with the wool of it.”

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