And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” (Zechariah 3:4 ESV)
New Clothes
When in elementary school, my family got new clothes every August, just before school started. Those clothes, even for an inept fashion gnat like me, were very symbolic. The new clothes were not just shirts and pants, they were a fresh beginning. The new shoes were not just better fitting than my old shoes, they caused me to walk lighter. The new coat was not simply warmer, and the correct size, but were a statement about who I was going to BE this year in school.
Perhaps that is why God speaks of new clothing here… pure clothing instead of sin-soaked. Clean clothing instead of dirty. New clothing for the new man in the Messiah to come, instead of old clothing for the pre-redeemed, pre-believing, pre-fulfilled us.
Eventually I stopped getting new clothes each Autumn.
But God keeps giving them to me.
He guarantees a change in me, a progression towards newness, a revival if I turn to Him.
We are peculiar, God gives us new clothes.