What Does The Color White Mean In The Bible?

The color white often symbolizes purity, innocence, and holiness in the Bible. If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: White represents light, goodness, safety, and redemption in Scripture.

In this comprehensive article, we will explore the symbolic meanings of the color white found throughout the Bible. We will look at key passages that connect the color white to concepts like cleanliness, righteousness, divinity, and victory.

White Represents Purity and Righteousness

In the Bible, the color white is often used as a symbol of purity, righteousness, and holiness. White garments are worn by those seeking cleansing from sin and moral impurity. The book of Revelation describes the saints wearing white robes in heaven, representing their righteous acts.

And the radiant white robes of Jesus symbolize his divine purity and the eternal light of God.

White Garments as Symbols of Purity

Throughout the Bible, white garments are used to symbolize moral and spiritual purity. In the Old Testament, the high priest wore special white linen robes when he entered the Most Holy Place once a year to make atonement for the people’s sins (Leviticus 16:4).

The white garments set apart the high priest and represented cleansing from sin and impurity.

Similarly, in Revelation 3:4-5, the faithful few in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes are promised white garments and their names retained in the Book of Life. This implies white clothes depict righteousness, while soiled clothes represent sin and impurity.

White Robes in Revelation

In Revelation, white clothes also symbolize the saints’ righteous acts. In Revelation 19:8, the Bride of Christ wears “fine linen, bright and clean” which represents “the righteous acts of God’s holy people.”

And the great multitude from every nation wearing white robes in Revelation 7:9 represent the saints who have victoriously overcome sin and been purified by the blood of Jesus.

According to Revelation 7:14, these saints “…have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. “ So the white robes depict purification and righteousness received from Jesus’ atoning sacrifice.

In all these cases, white garments represent moral purity, sanctification, and salvation – not self-righteousness, but the righteousness of Christ.

The Whiteness of Jesus’s Robes

The radiant white robes of Jesus also carry symbolic meaning about his divine nature and role. At the transfiguration (Matthew 17:2), Jesus’ face shines like the sun and his garments become “as white as the light” – representing his divine glory and radiance as the eternal Son of God.

In Revelation 1:13-14, Jesus appears with hair “white like wool” and dressed in a long white robe with a golden sash. The white robe depicts his divine purity and majesty, while still representing the righteous judge who will defeat his enemies (Revelation 19:11-16).

So white clothes throughout Scripture symbolize righteousness, purity and holiness found in Christ alone.

So whether white clothes on earth or the saints’ robes in heaven, white in Scripture represents the purity, righteousness, and holiness found in Christ through his atonement. As Revelation 7:14 says, the saints have “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

White Symbolizes Holiness and Divinity

God Appears with White Light

In the Bible, God is often depicted with brilliant white light representing his divine holiness. For example, in Daniel’s vision in Daniel 7:9, the “Ancient of Days” is described this way: “His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool.”

The white brilliance symbolizes God’s utter purity and separation from sin. Similarly, Jesus appears with a glowing white radiance in his transfiguration and in Revelation 1:14, where “His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow.”

This brilliant white light emphasizes God’s sacred otherworldliness.

Angels in White Representing Holiness

Angels who serve God are also described as clothed in pure white as a symbol of their holiness. In Mark 16:5, the angel at Jesus’ tomb is described as wearing a white robe. In John 20:12, two angels are depicted sitting where Jesus was buried, dressed in white.

White-clad angels also appear in Jesus’ ascension in Acts 1:10 and in Revelation 15:6, among other passages. The white clothing distinguishes these holy servants of God and heaven from the fallen world.

Angels may appear in white apparel because they inhabit the pure presence of God or to signify the righteousness they reflect as messengers of God. Their glowing white clothes set them apart as sacred heavenly beings devoted to God’s purposes.

Jesus’s Transfiguration and Whiteness

At Jesus’ transfiguration recorded in Matthew 17:2, Mark 9:3, and Luke 9:29, Jesus begins shining with brilliant white light. The disciples see Jesus’ face changed to a bright glowing white, and his clothing becomes dazzling white in a way beyond any earthly bleach.

This whiteness represents Jesus’ divine holiness as the Son of God. The light also ties to Jesus’ radiant post-resurrection appearances, affirming Jesus’ deity.

In addition, Matthew 17:5 describes a bright cloud of glory overshadowing Jesus and the disciples, reminiscent of the cloud of God’s presence filling the tabernacle. The brilliant whiteness emphasizes Jesus’ holy identity and glory as God’s Son.

Additional Symbolic Meanings of White

White Representing Cleansing and Redemption

In the Bible, the color white often represents purification, holiness, and redemption. When something is made white or cleaned with bleach, it is considered purified and cleansed of stains or impurities.

Similarly, the Bible uses white to symbolize being cleansed of sin and becoming righteous before God. For example, in Isaiah 1:18 it says, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”

This refers to God’s power to wash away the red stains of sin and make a person as pure as freshly fallen snow.

White clothes are also used in the Bible to represent the righteous acts of the saints in Revelation 19:8. Their white clothes symbolize that they have been redeemed by Christ and cleansed of all impurity.

White garments were often worn during ceremonies and feasts as a symbol of the celebrants’ joy, purity and salvation in God. So white has a very positive meaning of redemption and restoration in biblical symbolism.

The Whiteness of Wool

References to the whiteness of wool in the Bible also carry symbolic meaning. In Isaiah 1:18, Psalm 51:7, Revelation 1:14 and other verses, wool that has been washed clean and bleached white represents sin being cleansed away and a person being made righteous again.

The whiteness symbolizes the restoring of the relationship between God and man. Just as wool is transformed, believers’ hearts and lives are also transformed and made clean by Christ’s redemptive work.

The whiteness and purity of wool were important attributes in Old Testament religious ceremonies. For the ceremonial cleansing of lepers in Leviticus 14, priests used hyssop, cedar wood, scarlet yarn and the blood of sacrificed birds to sprinkle on the lepers.

This ritual symbolized cleansing the leper of his disease and impurity. The purity of the white wool used in this ceremony was symbolic of the leper becoming clean before God again after being purified of his disease.

White Harvest Symbolizing Victory

White also symbolizes victory in the Bible. Jesus used the analogy of a crop turning white and ready for harvest to represent people being drawn to salvation and won for God’s Kingdom. In John 4:35 Jesus told his disciples, “Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!”

The white color of the grain indicated it was time for the crop to be gathered in. Spiritually, this white harvest represented people’s hearts being ready to receive the gospel and be gathered into God’s Kingdom.

The book of Revelation also uses white to symbolize the final victory of the saints and overcomers in Christ. Revelation 20:11 describes the Great White Throne where God sits in victory and judgment over sin and death.

And Revelation 19:14 pictures Christ and his heavenly armies dressed in fine white linen coming to overthrow evil at the final battle of Armageddon. So white represents the ultimate triumph of good over evil at the return of Christ.

Conclusion

In summary, the color white carries rich symbolic meaning throughout Scripture. It represents righteousness, purity, divinity, and redemption. White clothes and light often indicate holiness, godliness, and the heavenly realm.

While additional meanings like cleansing and triumph are found in contexts about wool, harvest, and more. When we see the color white in the Bible, it cues us to think about spiritual cleansing, divine presence, innocence, and the goodness of God.