36 And thou shalt make a plate of pure gold, and grave upon it, like the engravings of a signet, Holiness to the Lord.

37 And thou shalt put it on a blue lace, that it may be upon the mitre; upon the forefront of the mitre it shall be.

38 And it shall be upon Aaron’s forehead, that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts; and it shall be always upon his forehead, that they may be accepted before the Lord.

Now we hear a detail of the mitre, which was a hat or turban worn on the head. We do not hear much of the design of the mitre itself, only that it bore a golden plate with the words “Holiness to the Lord” engraved upon it.

Previously, we heard how the Israelite tribes’ names carved into stones on the priest’s shoulders and chest, now a remined of the Lord is carved upon the head. So, once again we see the role of the priest being representative and mediator for both God and the Israelites at the same time. He has both etched into him, the considerations of each are borne in the carrying out of his duties.

I think it is interesting to note the possibly symbolism of the names of the Israelite tribes being upon the shoulders and the heart, but God upon the head. Assuming that the ancient Israelites viewed the meaning these body parts somewhat similar to how we do today, then the tribes are connected to what you carry and care for, while God is what you are mindful of.

That symbolism might explain what is said in verse 38 that the plate is to cause Aaron to bear “the iniquity of the holy things.” He loves and carries the Israelites, but because his mind is on the holiness of the Lord, he cannot help but perceive the people’s imperfections and iniquity. He thinks on the Lord’s holiness and sees how far the people are from it and he is the one that is responsible to account for that gap.