Christmas: Whiter than Snow
It’s said that no two snowflakes are alike, which as far as we know is mostly correct, but it belies the simplicity of the crystalline structure of snow. For example, snowflakes are always six-sided, and the branches appear at regular angles. The temperature and humidity of the cloud determines the growth of the crystal, which in turn determines its form. Only at certain temperatures do you get what physicists call plates, those flat flakes with six spokes radiating from the center. Equally likely are needles or columns, in which the snowflake grows up the axis of the crystal’s center rather than radially outward. A single snowflake is technically clear, but the facets of the crystal surface reflect light when observed from the correct angle, giving a mass of snowflakes the appearance of white.
Growing up in rural Michigan, I was very familiar with snowfall in my younger days. Besides just the possibility of canceled school, my family loved a good snowfall when the flakes came down as large plates that twinkled in the light. We called it “diamond snow,” and it only happened when the flakes were really large, more than a quarter inch across, and when the air was cold and dry. I can still remember flipping on our porch light to check the depth of snow and getting a thrill at seeing that blanket of white sparkling as far as I could see into the darkness.
The Bible mentions snow only rarely, which is not surprising given the generally warm and dry climate of Israel. When snow does appear, we often see its whiteness emphasized. In the first chapter of his book, Isaiah announced that Israel’s sins, though they be like scarlet, will be white as snow. Associating cleanness and purity with white always made sense to me, and a fresh blanket of snow is about the whitest thing I can think of. But why are sins portrayed as red? Isn’t black the opposite of white? Doesn’t the Bible portray sinfulness as darkness, into which God shines his light?
Red here brings to mind not just a contrast to white but, to the ancient readers, the blood payment for sin. The Torah detailed all the sacrifices one must make to atone for sin, specifying what sort of animals had to be killed, what to do with their carcasses, and where the blood should be splattered. Our modern world with our neat and tidy church services makes it easy to forget just what kind of slaughterhouse the Jerusalem Temple would have been. With so many animals butchered every day, blood was everywhere, and the pious Israelite knew intimately the gruesome penalty for sin. Only through this bloody mess could they be clean before God.
We don’t make sacrifices like that anymore, not because the sacrificial system was ended but because it was fulfilled. We Christians, every one of us, still become clean by the bloody mess of a perfect sacrifice. In his visions in Revelation, the apostle John described a great multitude worshiping that final, perfect sacrifice, the Lamb of God. The angel accompanying him declared, “They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 7:14, ESV). I’m sure Isaiah would tell us that those robes will be whiter than snow.
Have you read my book? You should check that out too!
