Good Morning Yamon Ki Yesepar:
Here is a mystery.
Isaiah 61:3: “To provide for the mourners in Zion, to give them beauty instead of ashes.”
The word for beauty here is “pe’er” (pe, aleph, resh) and the word for ashes is “’eper” (aleph, pe, resh). Both words can be used to represent a turban.
Even Muslims will admit that turbans have their origins with Judaism. Oddly, it is rarely used by Jews today. Turbans have taken on many different meanings throughout it’s history. Among the Jews it was to be a sign of purity and honor. Aaron as a high priest wore a turban as well as his sons. This was to be a sign that they were pure enough to be honored as a priest.
Turbans were made of fine linen. Fine linen of ancient times was very difficult to come by and only the wealthy could afford it and by the time of Isaiah it was a sign of wealth or authority.
So why does Isaiah use pe’er and ‘eper. He will give them a turban instead of a turban. Pe’er is a turban worn by those who are honored. This is sometimes translated as beauty. Beauty in the sense of purity, respect, or honor. The word for ashes ‘eper” is also a Turban worn by the rich, and honored, but they are in state of mourning and sadness, thus we translate “ashes” as ashes represent mourning, penitence and sadness. Catholics probably know this symbol well as each year they receive ashes on their forehead as sign of repentance and mourning for their sins.. God will exchange a turban of purity and honor for one of mourning and sadness. He will exchange Aleph, pe (God is silent) to Pe, Aleph (silence before God).
I view this as a message for Christians. We have the turban but under that turban lies heartbreak, sadness, mourning. God will exchange that Turban for one of beauty and joy.
There is an old Jewish story of a king who acquired the largest ruby in the world. He was so delighted and he gave it to the royal jeweler to polish it and make it perfect. The jeweler examined it with his practiced eye and replied: “Your majesty there is a crack in this stone.” “Well, fix it .” declared the king. “I can not.” replied the jeweler. “However, I can cut it into three smaller pieces and each will be beautiful and perfect.” But the king replied: “ No then it will not be the biggest, it will not be the best.”
The king hired a number of jewelers, but not one knew how to fix the crack and turn the jewel into a large, beautiful and perfect ruby.
One day a visitor came to the palace. He saw the ruby and asked permission of the king to examine it. After a long period of examination he said, “I can make your stone into something beautiful. The king asked: “Will it be big? Will it be beautiful? Will it be perfect?” The visitor replied: “Yes, yes, yes.”
Everywhere in the palace you could hear the grinding and polishing. It took three days (yes three, this is the way the sages tell the story). Finally the jeweler approached the king with the jewel covered by a black cloth. “It is still big? Is it beautiful? “Is it perfect?” asked the king anxiously. “Yes, yes, yes,” replied the visitor. “But, the crack, how did you get rid of the crack?” asked the King. “It is still there.” replied the visitor and with that he removed the black cloth to reveal the biggest, most beautiful and most perfect ruby in the world. At the center of the stone was now carved a most wonderful rose. The crack had become the stem. The king was awed and he did something unusual. He stopped talking and just stared in wonder at the worlds biggest, most beautiful and perfect jewel.
I wonder if this ancient story was in Solomon’s mind or even if it was Solomon who was the king is this story when he used the term which we as Christians associated with Jesus in the Song of Solomon 2:1: “I am the rose of Sharon.”
We may have many flaws, but God created us as a beautiful gem stone. We only need the Rose of Sharon to take our flaws and make something beautiful out of it. To exchange our turban of mourning and heartbreak to a turban of joy. To give beauty for our ashes.
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