2. Regarding a linen ephod, Rambam emphasizes that this ephod was not the ephod which was one of the eight priestly garments worn by the Kohen Gadol, because the ephod of the priestly garments was not only made of linen but also of "sky-blue wool, purple wool...." To substantiate that statement, he brings proof from the Prophet Shmuel, who was a Levite, yet the verse itself states that Shmuel was "a youth girded with a linen ephod."
Rambam concludes that the linen ephod was worn by the disciples of the prophets and by those worthy of having the Divine spirit rest upon them to indicate that they had reached "the level of the Kohen Gadol who speaks by means of the ephod and the breastplate with Divine inspiration."
In other words, prophecy is an extremely lofty level. As our Sages state, "The Divine Presence rests only upon one who is wise, mighty, wealthy, and of [impressive] stature"; they further enumerate other qualities. Nevertheless, even for a person who embodies these qualities, garments and their nature are significant. As such, we find that when the prophetic spirit rested upon a person, "[he] removed his garments." Therefore, as a sign that one is prepared and worthy for the Divine spirit to rest upon him, he would gird himself with a linen ephod.
In chassidic thought, garments refer to a person’s thought, speech, and action and also his self-perception. The intent appears to be that to achieve prophecy, a person’s thought, speech, and action must be flawless. Even then, however, he must "remove his garments," and divest himself of his self-perception.
