White Clothing on Atonement Day
Clothing in the Bible
On Yom Kippur, Atonement Day, it is traditional to wear white clothing.
Clothing is a powerful theme in the Bible. Proverbs 31 mentions the Woman of Valor whose “strength and dignity are her clothing,” (verse 25) while also mentioning the physical quality of her and her family’s fine clothing, which includes ‘scarlet wool’ (verse 21) and ‘fine linen and purple’ (verse 22).
Similar to Proverbs’ mention of spiritual clothing, Isaiah 61:10 connects clothing to righteousness and salvation:
“I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”
The New Testament mentions how salvation enables us to put off our “old self” (Ephesians 4:22) and then to put on “the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness,” (verse 24), much like a garment.
Symbolism of White Clothing
Purity
Among other things, white clothes symbolize purity:
“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)
This is echoed in Psalm 51:7, in David's plea to be cleansed from within:
"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow."
Holiness
In addition to purity, white clothing symbolizes holiness as the High Priest would wear white linen clothing before entering the Holy of Holies to atone for the people’s sins on Atonement Day, by putting
“on the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments next to his body; he is to tie the linen sash around him and put on the linen turban. These are sacred garments; so he must bathe himself with water before he puts them on.” (Leviticus 16:4)
Mortality
In Judaism, the color white also reminds us of our mortality, and serves as a call to repent on this day that foreshadows Judgement Day.
Reflection and Repentance
Atonement Day is a time for us to reflect on the past year. We remember that all our actions, both good and bad, are written down, which includes a list of sins committed unknowingly. On this day, we pray for His forgiveness and strive for our lives to reflect His way of life even more, as prescribed in the Scriptures.
Revelation and the Book of Life
Revelation 3 calls the believers from Sardis to wake up, and mentions that there are few who will “walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy.” (verse 4), and that God “will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels.” (verse 5) In this mention of white clothing, we see its clear connection to godliness and being written in God’s Book of Life. That’s also the book mentioned in the prayers of the Day of Atonement!
Yeshua
Yeshua died for us and then rose from the dead three days later, leaving behind His linen burial garments. John records that Peter saw Yeshua’s ‘linen cloths’ lying in the tomb with Yeshua’s ‘face cloth’ folded up by itself (John 20:5–7; see 19:40). Linen clothing hints at Yeshua’s priestly task to bring atonement for the people, much like the High Priest mentioned prior in Leviticus 16.
Always, but especially on Atonement Day, it’s truly a great privilege to know the King! And yet, let’s walk in humbleness as we approach this day, remembering that we still struggle with sin in the process of life and in this broken world, while also keeping our focus on Messiah with the aim to walk in purity.
