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Colors in Scripture – Blue, Part 1

[Study Aired November 21, 2025]

If the color red or scarlet symbolizes the first Adam being of the earth, blue symbolizes  the last Adam, “the Christ,” coming to be in the heavens.

1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy [signified by the color red]: the second man is the Lord from heaven [signified by the color blue].
1Co 15:48  As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

Our study today will deal with the spiritual significance of the process of spiritually going from scarlet to blue; from red to blue. That journey is a trying and bruising experience signified by the color purple, which is the color found between red and blue in the colors of the Lord’s dwelling place. Purple is the color of bruised flesh, signifying the “much… great tribulation” we are all destined to endure before we will be granted to enter into the Lord’s tabernacle:

Mat 10:21  And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.
Mat 10:22  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Act 14:22  Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

God’s people all “come out of [Babylon]”:

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her [Out of Babylon], my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

Being delivered from a ‘scarlet, red’ beast and the great whore, Babylon the Great, who is also “arrayed in… scarlet color” (Rev 17:3-4), all in whom the mind of Christ dwells are provoked to offer up their own bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord (Rom 12:1):

Exo 25:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering.
Exo 25:3  And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass,
Exo 25:4  And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair,
Exo 25:8  And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.
Exo 25:9  According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.

The ”gold and silver and brass and blue and purple and scarlet…” all signify the sacrifice of our entire body and life to the Lord’s service:

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Christ is hated in this world. He is hated and dead in the streets of Babylon. Nevertheless, He has a “sanctuary” where He can dwell in peace in the hearts and minds of His elect, and that is where we go for consolation and comfort in times of trouble:

Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Php 2:1  If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,
Php 2:2  Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.

1Th 5:11  Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

The phrase “blue and purple and scarlet” is found 19 times in scripture. All 19 are in the book of Exodus dealing with the tabernacle and the priesthood which operated within the tabernacle. In this context, the color blue is mentioned as part of eight different facets of the temple and the priesthood.

1) The Tabernacle is Blue, Purple, and Scarlet

Exo 26:1  Moreover thou shalt make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: [with] cherubims of cunning work shalt thou make them.

Look at what holds the curtains of the tabernacle together:

Exo 26:4  And thou shalt make loops of blue upon the edge of the one curtain from the selvedge in the coupling; and likewise shalt thou make in the uttermost edge of [another] curtain, in the coupling of the second.

Blue signifies the things of the spirit, and it is Christ in us which holds us together in His spirit and in His love.

There were ten curtains that surrounded the tabernacle:

Exo 26:2  The length of one curtain shall be eight and twenty cubits, and the breadth of one curtain four cubits: and every one of the curtains shall have one measure.
Exo 26:3  The five curtains shall be coupled together one to another; and [other] five curtains [shall be] coupled one to another.

These ten curtains signify the fact that Christ is in us dwelling in “earthen vessels”:

2Co 4:7  But we have this treasure [“Christ in us”, (Col 1:27)] in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/numbers_ten/

One more curtain was to cover the tabernacle. That totals 11 curtains, which signify the dissolution of the flesh.

https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/numbers-in-scripture-11/

2) Blue and Gold are What Connect the Curtains of the Tabernacle

If a cubit is 18 inches (45.27centimeters), then 28 cubits is 42 feet in length (12.8 meters), and four cubits would be six feet in breadth (1.83 meters). Therefore, we have ten curtains 42 feet long and six feet high which surround the tabernacle. These curtains are held together with blue loops connected one to the other with fifty “taches of gold”, fifty gold knobs.

Exo 26:4  And thou shalt make loops of blue upon the edge of the one curtain from the selvedge in the coupling; and likewise shalt thou make in the uttermost edge of another curtain, in the coupling of the second.
Exo 26:5  Fifty loops shalt thou make in the one curtain, and fifty loops shalt thou make in the edge of the curtain that is in the coupling of the second; that the loops may take hold one of another.
Exo 26:6  And thou shalt make fifty taches of gold, and couple the curtains together with the taches: and it shall be one tabernacle.

What is this telling those with eyes to see and ears to hear?

King James Version

1Co 12:11  But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
1Co 12:12  For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also [is] Christ.
1Co 12:13  For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
1Co 12:14  For the body is not one member, but many.

Rotherham’s Emphasized Version

1Co 12:11 But, all these, energiseth the one and the same Spirit, distributing unto each one, peculiarly, even as it is disposed.
1Co 12:12 For, just as, the body, is one, and yet hath many members, but, all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so, also, the Christ;
1Co 12:13 For, even to one Spirit, we all, into one body, have been immersed, – whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free, – and, all, of one Spirit, have been caused to drink.
1Co 12:14 For, the body also, is not one member, but many:

3) The Vail Between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies was Also Blue, and Purple, and Scarlet.

Exo 26:30  And thou shalt rear up the tabernacle according to the fashion thereof which was shewed thee in the mount.
Exo 26:31  And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made:
Exo 26:32  And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold: their hooks [shall be of] gold, upon the four sockets of silver.
Exo 26:33  And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy. 

The cherubims woven into the veil between the holy place and the holy of holies were “of blue and purple and scarlet”.

4) The “Door of the Tent” was Blue, and Purple, and Scarlet

The door is to be of “blue and purple and scarlet.” All three colors and the significance of all three colors are part of the process of entering through the veil into the presence of God.

Exo 26:36  And thou shalt make an hanging for the door of the tent, [of] blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework.

Now just as the spirit does in the book of Revelation, notice how the spirit begins in the holy of holies and “looks behind” to see what it took to get there:

Exo 26:34  And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place.
Exo 26:35  And thou shalt set the table without the vail, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south: and thou shalt put the table on the north side.
Exo 26:36  And thou shalt make an hanging for the door of the tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework.
Exo 26:37  And thou shalt make for the hanging five pillars of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold, [and] their hooks [shall be of] gold: and thou shalt cast five sockets of brass for them.

John had to turn to see what was behind him before he realized that he had been granted to enter into the temple in heaven and to see the things of the spirit:

Rev 1:10 I came to be, in Spirit, in the Lord’s Day, and heard, behind me, a loud voice, as of a trumpet,
Rev 1:11 saying – What thou seest, write in a scroll, and send unto the Seven Assemblies, – unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamum,- and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.
Rev 1:12 And I turned round, to see the Voice which was speaking with me, and, having turned, I saw Seven Lamps of gold;

The fact that the cherbims of blue and purple and scarlet are on both curtains, the curtain of the door to the holy place, and the curtain of the holy of holies signifies that our purple bruising continues as long as we are in these “earthen vessels”.

5) The Vail into the Holy of Holies Hangs on Four Pillars, the Door of the Tent Hangs on Five Pillars. Both are Blue, Purple, and Scarlet.

Exo 26:31  And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made:
Exo 26:32  And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold: their hooks [shall be of] gold, upon the four sockets of silver.

Exo 26:36  And thou shalt make an hanging for the door of the tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework.
Exo 26:37  And thou shalt make for the hanging five pillars of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold, [and] their hooks [shall be of] gold: and thou shalt cast five sockets of brass for them.

The cherubim in the blue and purple and scarlet veil are hanging on four pillars through which all who come into the holy of holies must pass. The cherubim in blue, purple and scarlet also hang on five pillars at the entry of the holy place. What, or rather, who are these pillars and cherubims through which we come to our Creator? It is always best to let the scriptures answer our questions:

Rev 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, [which is] new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and [I will write upon him] my new name.
Rev 3:13  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Yes, the pillars in the temple signify the Lord’s elect “saviors” (Oba 1:21) through whom all men will come to the Lord (1Co 15:22).

Doesn’t Paul tell us that we are the temple of God?

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

2Co 6:16  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

How are we the temple and yet pillars in the temple? Here is how that is accomplished:

Joh 14:20  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

We are in Christ, and Christ is in us. In the same way we are in the temple, and the temple is in us.

Rev 3:13  He that hath [been given, (Mat 13:10-15)] an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches [His temple].

Now let’s ask, “Who are the cherubims?” As always it is best to let the scriptures tell us who these four creatures are. In fact the creatures themselves tell us who they are:

Rev 5:6  And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
Rev 5:7  And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts [The cherubims of Ezekiel one and Ezekiel 10] and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

This is the exact same promise made to the overcomers of the seven churches in Revelation one:

Rev 1:5  And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
Rev 1:6  And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

The four beasts in the middle of and round about the throne of God and the overcomers of the seven churches are both “redeemed to God by the blood of Christ out of every kindred tongue and people and nation” and both are “made kings and priests unto God.” It is obvious that the overcomers of the seven churches, the four beasts and the four and twenty elders, the one hundred and forty and four thousand are all different symbols of those who will sit on thrones judging this world and then judge angels in the lake of fire:

Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

6) “The Gate of the Court” of the Temple Has a Curtain of Blue, Purple and Scarlet Hanging on Four Pillars.

All who come into the holy place must first come through the “gate of the court.” This, too, is blue, purple and scarlet.

Exo 27:16  And for the gate of the court shall be an hanging of twenty cubits, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework: and their pillars shall be four, and their sockets four.

“Pillars in the temple” are just one more symbol of the Lord’s elect overcomers through whom all men of all time will be redeemed to our Lord:

Rev 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

7) The Garments of the Priesthood are Gold, Blue, Purple, and Scarlet

Exo 28:1  And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons.
Exo 28:2  And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty.
Exo 28:3  And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.
Exo 28:4  And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.
Exo 28:5  And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen.
Exo 28:6  And they shall make the ephod [of] gold, [of] blue, and [of] purple, [of] scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning work.
Exo 28:7  It shall have the two shoulderpieces thereof joined at the two edges thereof; and [so] it shall be joined together.
Exo 28:8  And the curious girdle of the ephod, which is upon it, shall be of the same, according to the work thereof; even of gold, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen.

The Lord’s priests’ clothing had to be of linen because linen does not cause sweat:

Eze 44:18  They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat.

Why does Ezekiel tell us “they shall not gird themselves with anything that causes sweat?” He tells us that our own spiritual clothing does not cause us to sweat because we are not the ones who are performing the good works in which He has before ordained that we should walk.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9  Not of [our] works, lest any man should boast.
Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Our clothes do not cause sweat because it is God who is performing that which He has ordained for us:

Job 23:13  But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.
Job 23:14  For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him.

The clothes of the Lord’s elect kings and priests were blue, purple and scarlet clothing “for glory and for beauty.” The only “glory and… beauty” the Lord sees in anyone “is the righteousness of saints.” Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on what is in our hearts.

1Sa 16:6  And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD’S anointed is before him.
1Sa 16:7  But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

The only “glory and… beauty” which the Lord sees is “the righteousness of saints”, and that righteousness is the righteousness of Christ, which beautifies and glorifies His bride:

Rev 19:7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen [“For glory and beauty”, (Exo 28:2)], clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

The righteousness of Christ’s bride is “granted… to her.” A ‘grant’ is a gift :

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9  Not of [our] works, lest any man should boast.

8) Gold, Blue, Purple, and Scarlet are Used by Those Who Teach Others

“Cunning workmen…[who] devise curious works… in gold and silver and brass…  blue, and purple, and scarlet… and any manner of cunning work,” are those whom God is using to teach others to help in the building of the temple of God:

Exo 35:29  The children of Israel brought a willing offering unto the LORD, every man and woman, whose heart made them willing to bring for all manner of work, which the LORD had commanded to be made by the hand of Moses.

Pro 21:1  The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.

Exo 35:30  And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the LORD hath called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah;
Exo 35:31  And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship;
Exo 35:32  And to devise curious works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass,
Exo 35:33  And in the cutting of stones, to set [them], and in carving of wood, to make any manner of cunning work.
Exo 35:34  And he hath put in his heart that he may teach, both he, and Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan.
Exo 35:35 Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of work, of the engraver, and of the cunning workman, and of the embroiderer, in blue, and in purple, in scarlet, and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of them that do any work, and of those that devise cunning work.

Gold, silver and precious stones all signify the Lord’s Word and His doctrines which we all twist and abuse and wrap around the idols of our hearts while we serve Babylon:

Eze 16:10  I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers’ skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk.
Eze 16:11  I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.
Eze 16:12  And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head.
Eze 16:13  Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.

Eze 16:16  And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.
Eze 16:17  Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them,

These verses demonstrate that gold, silver, and raiment of fine linen signify the Lord’s Words and His doctrines. The fine linen signifies the righteousness of Christ imputed to His saints.

That being the case, Bezeleel’s many gifts and his ability to teach others signify what the Lord is doing through His beautiful, glorious bride whom He has filled with His spirit for the purpose of  teaching others:

Exo 35:31  And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship;
Exo 35:32  And to devise curious works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass,
Exo 35:33  And in the cutting of stones, to set [them], and in carving of wood, to make any manner of cunning work.

Those they teach and the materials with which they work are both the result of God’s work in the heart’s of His people to build up His house. It is all just another way of showing all of us the unveiling of Jesus Christ which is “the testimony of Jesus Christ.”

Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See [thou do it] not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

1Co 14:3  But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort.
1Co 14:4  He that speaketh in an [unknown] tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.

How does he edify the church? He does so by working with “gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet” among other things which are used to build up and edify the temple of God by those who God has “filled with wisdom of heart to work all manner of work…”

Conclusion of the Significance of Blue and Purple and Scarlet

Blue and purple and scarlet signify those in whom God’s Spirit is working the process of going from scarlet to blue, from the first to the last Adam:

Exo 36:8  And every wise hearted man among them that wrought the work of the tabernacle made ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: with cherubims of cunning work made he them.

1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam [red – earthy – of the ground] was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit [blue – heavenly – of the spirit].

Purple is just the combining of the blue and the scarlet. Purple signifies the bruising that is experienced in going from scarlet to blue.

[Here is the link to the next study in this series.]