Article May 21, 1990 Issue

Thinking of a blue thread

When everyday life tends to make us forget what life is really all about, it's good to be reminded that it's about God.

Kathryn A. Knox

The ancient stories of the Bible have surprisingly modern lessons to teach us. For example, in the book of Numbers, God commands Moses to have the children of Israel wear tassels on their clothing that contain a blue thread. "It shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes ...: that ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God."^{See Num. 15:37–40.}

With a bit of research I discovered that the blue-purple dye used for coloring the tassel thread was also used in the inner curtain of the Tabernacle and in the garments of the high priest. The blue thread was a means of acknowledging to others, and of reminding oneself, that God directs one's life. As one scholar puts it, "The requirement of the blue thread—royal blue—is a sign that Israel is a people of nobility, whose sovereign is not mortal, but divine."^{Jacob Milgrom, "Of Hems and Tassels," Biblical Archaeology Review, May/June 1983, p. 65 .}

We don't have to rely on a blue thread or any other material symbol to tell us that we have a divine heritage as children of God, but we do need to remember throughout our days that we have a divine heritage, that knowing God to be God—the only real presence—is a present help.

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