The Gems of Exodus and Revelation - Sapphire

Sapphire is the birthstone for the month of September. Sapphire was the second stone in the second row of the Breastplate of Aaron mentioned in Exodus Chapter 28 and represented the Tribe of Simeon, and will decorate the second foundation of the New Jerusalem mentioned in Revelation 21 and represent the Apostle Andrew.

In Scripture the number two is the number of, and represents, division or double-portion. In the context of this paragraph it represents division. Chapter 34 of Genesis tells the story of the defilement of Dinah, sister of Simeon and Levi (brothers, and sons of Jacob) and their reaction to the incident which ended in the killing of all the males in the city of Shechem. This mass killing came after Simeon and Levi's father Jacob (a.k.a. Israel) had tried to seek justice by requiring the males of Shechem to be circumcised, to which they agreed, only to be killed three days later at the hands and swords of Simeon, Levi, and other sons of Jacob. They also plundered the entire city of anything of value. Upon hearing the news of the killings, Jacob became ashamed, fearful for his life and left that land. This abbreviated history is important to understand when you come to Genesis Chapter 49 when Jacob (now named Israel) calls his sons together to tell them what will happen in days to come. Israel said, "Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; And their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, And scatter them in Israel"ASV (referring to their killing spree in Shechem). Sapphire's 'second in the second row' (2 of 2) representation for the Tribe of Simeon certainly testifies to Simeon's separation or division from the counsel of his father, although not disinherited entirely. The Tribe of Levi was set apart (divided from the nation of Israel in Deuteronomy 10:8-9) by God Himself, to forever be servants of the Temple and have no inheritance with their brethren. The brothers were divided from both their father and from each other. So the significance of Sapphire's representing Simeon seems to have more to do with it's placement (2 of 2, divided from his father Israel and divided from his brother Levi) than any property of the gem itself.

In the context of this paragraph the number 2 will represent double (increased) portion. Sapphire will also represent the Apostle Andrew in the second foundation of the New Jerusalem mentioned in Revelation 21. The blue color of Sapphire can remind us of Andrew (and his brother Peter) in that these first two disciples of Jesus were called from being fishermen of the sea to become "fishers of men" (Matthew 4:18). The first thing Andrew did after meeting Jesus was run and find his brother Simon Peter and bring him to Jesus. It was Andrew who brought the boy with five barley loaves and two fish to Jesus, which Jesus miraculously multiplies into enough food to feed everyone (John 6:8-9). Andrew is most often seen physically bringing people to Jesus. Because of these acts, the numbers of believers was increased as Jesus was glorified.

I believe the thing to remember about this post is that Jesus is the author of forgiveness and redemption. In the case of Simeon, Jesus purposed that Simeon would see repercussions of his own actions, yet in forgiveness, not be disinherited completely. Levi was set apart by God Himself to forever serve others and participate in their own redemption, putting sword to sacrifices instead of men.

In the case of Andrew, many came to know the greatest Love ever to be shown to mankind in the person of Jesus Christ. The blue color of sapphire (representing the Apostle Andrew in the 2nd foundation of the New Jerusalem), is linked to emotions such as sympathy and harmony, friendship and loyalty, emotions with features described as permanent, reliable, composed, and yielding mutual understanding and unshakeable trust. These are qualities that will forever represent the apostle Andrew and his relationship to Jesus Christ, The King of the New Jerusalem.

NEXT POST: Opal - Making All Things New

Having Great Metal and Having Great Mettle

Great Metal
Gold is the most malleable and ductile of all known metals. A single ounce of gold can be beaten into a sheet measuring roughly 5 meters on a side. Thin sheets of gold, known as gold leaf, are primarily used in arts and crafts for gilding. One sheet of gold leaf can be as thin as 0.000127 millimeters, or about 400 times thinner than a human hair.

Pure gold is soft and is usually alloyed with other metals such as silver, copper, nickel, zinc, and magnesium to increase its strength. Gold alloys are used to make jewelry, decorative items, dental fillings and coins.

Gold would never be able to keep the shape of any purpose without the addition of something else to help give it strength.
The same could be said about relationships in that while they can be good all by themselves, they can be better with the addition of something that will help them keep the nature of their intended purpose, the addition of something called Jesus.

I believe it's quite evident that Jesus thinks relationships are very important. In John 13:34 Jesus states "A new COMMAND (not suggestion) I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, love one another."(NIV)

It's appropriate then that we would call both gold and relationships "valuable". Both are able to be shaped, and can become whatever a person or persons will make of them with enough effort. One can make a ring out of pure gold, or a relationship out of pure love. But comes a test and the true strength of both the ring and the relationship is discovered. The ring can become warped, bent out of shape and useless in the purpose for which it was intended. A relationship can become painful, hurtful and useless in the purpose for which it was intended as well.

Great Mettle
Whether we're talking about gold or relationships, it takes great courage to take something precious and introduce anything to it in an effort to make it better. A jeweler can add alloys to gold which strengthen and make it useful for any and every kind of purpose for which the jeweler intends. We can add Jesus to our relationships to make those relationships stronger and more useful for any and every kind of purpose God intends. Whether that relationship is with each other as brothers and sisters in Christ, or between a man and woman as husband and wife, the addition of Jesus as a strengthening alloy makes those relationships stronger than they would be without Him, able to stand against any stress.

You read earlier that a single ounce of gold can be beaten into a sheet measuring roughly 5 meters on a side and 400 times thinner than a human hair. It's very difficult to do anything with gold when it has been beaten and spread out that thin. In that condition, gold can literally be blown away with just your breath.

Relationships too can be hard-pressed to find proper function when those people that make up the relationship are beat-up and spread too thin. Relationships can also be blown away with just your breath…articulated with a sharp tongue or harsh words.

What's It Worth?
The distinction between adding alloys to gold and adding Jesus to relationships however can be made in that while a jeweler can add too many other alloys to gold, no one can add too much Jesus to a relationship. If a jeweler adds too much alloy material to gold, it decreases the value of that gold to a point that it is truly worthless.

Conversely, the more Jesus you add to relationships (or anything else for that matter) the more valuable it becomes, both to the people who make up the relationship and to Jesus who can use that relationship to further His Kingdom. Other 'alloys' like prayer, forgiveness, and bible study all contribute to a strong relationship.

As a jeweler I’m always looking for ways to better preserve the precious metal I work with. As Christians we should always be looking for ways to better preserve our relationships, with each other and with Christ. In working on gold and in working on relationships, both can become whatever we will make of them with enough effort.
NEXT POST: Diamonds and The Real Thing