To Tattoo or Not Tattoo is the Question

Leviticus 19:26-28 (KJV)
²⁶ Ye shall not eat any thing with the blood: neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times.
²⁷ Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard.
²⁸ Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks (tattoos) upon you: I am the LORD.

All of the above things mentioned are in reference to heathen worship to their false idols. God wanted Israel to represent him which would put them in direct conflict with the practices of the heathen and pagan societies. His desire was for them to be careful not to identify themselves with unholy religious regimens and appearances. Israel was to reflect the holy nature of God in their attitudes and worship. Interestingly, in the New Testament, Jesus was casting out a devil one day and it said to him “I know who you are – the Holy One of Israel.” The Lord commanded this evil spirit to be quiet because he was stopping it from the attempt of identifying with Jesus. In other words, he was careful to maintain difference in the eyes of the people by not creating confusion.

In verse 27 above, the Israelites were not to trim the hair in the temple area of their heads, and they were not to make certain rounded corners to their beards. “What’s the big deal” you may ask? This certain hairstyle and beard appearance identified them as devoted to a certain idol. God wanted Israel to not take on these styles as a testimony to the heathen world that they were not idol worshippers.

Verse 28 is often used in the tattoo debate and there is legitimate reason for it. Historically, the pagan cultures would cut themselves and even mutilate their bodies as a sign of mourning for the dead. They would also print tattoos on their flesh in connection to superstitions and other religious affiliations. It became an insult to God who designed the human body and so the reason for the law stated here.

Now to the present day and would it be permissible for a Christian. First of all, we know the origin of tattooing was not God ordained, but the result of pagan rituals and idolatry. Therefore there are questions we need to ask ourselves:

• Will it glorify God? 1 Corinthians 10:31 (KJV) Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
• Some want to establish their identity or independence, while others get a tattoo in order to assert ownership of their body. However, the Bible encourages Christians: Romans 12:1 (KJV) I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
• Use your “power of reason” to analyze why you want a tattoo. If it is because you want to follow a fad or to show membership in a certain group, remember that your feelings may prove to be less permanent than the tattoo. Examining your motives can help you to make a wise decision.

What about the arguments used such as:
 
Q - Leviticus 19:28 is Old Testament and I live under the New Testament.

• Answer: The verse following 28 states the forbidding of prostituting one’s daughter and it’s the only place in the Bible that says this. Therefore, using this argument then one could say “since I’m not under the OT and I’m under the NT then it MUST be okay to prostitute my daughter.” There are many other "moral laws’ that are ONLY forbidden in the Old Testament, such as the human sacrifice of children. Nowhere in the New Testament is this forbidden. Does that mean that NOW under the New Testament, God Almighty endorses throwing babies into the fire as a human sacrifice? To be fair we have to use the same line of reasoning for both.

Q – Jesus Christ has a tattoo according to Revelation 19:11-16 so what’s good for him is good enough for me.

• Answer: Revelation 19:16 (KJV) And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. The vesture here is a mantle that is wrapped around his thigh. It is not referring to a tattoo on the skin of his leg.

Q – I can identify with those who have them and it gives me the opportunity to witness to people who normally would never listen to a preacher.

• Using that same line of reasoning we could also say that Christian women should dress like prostitutes and go witness to them. Or, maybe we should go to the Bar and have a few drinks with sinners because they won’t listen to a preacher. Jesus never changed his appearance to win souls, he simply went in the power of the Holy Spirit and represented the Kingdom of God.

Up until some years ago, this subject was never debated in the church or sanctioned by commentators. Let’s look at a few reputable scholars on the subject.   

Jamison, Fausett, and Brown Commentary: nor print any marks upon you—by tattooing, imprinting figures of flowers, leaves, stars, and other fanciful devices on various parts of their person. The impression was made sometimes by means of a hot iron, sometimes by ink or paint, as is done by the Arab females of the present day and the different castes of the Hindus. It it probable that a strong propensity to adopt such marks in honor of some idol gave occasion to the prohibition in this verse; and they were wisely forbidden, for they were signs of apostasy; and, when once made, they were insuperable obstacles to a return.

Coffman's Commentary on the Old and New Testament: "The cutting of one's flesh also characterized pagan worship as attested by the priests of Baal on Mount Carmel in the contest with Elijah. Tattooing was also a device of paganism. . . Christians generally disapprove of tattooing, despite the fact of the widespread use of it by many even today. In the light of what God says here, and in view of the history of it, it seems strange that anyone would pay someone else to tattoo him."

Charles R. Erdman, Commentary on the The Book of Leviticus: "The custom of tattooing was forbidden, while among all the nations of antiquity it was common."

Adam Clarke Commentary Leviticus 19:28: I have seen several cases where persons have got the figure of the cross, the Virgin Mary, etc., made on their arms, breasts, etc., the skin being first punctured, and then a blue coloring matter rubbed in, which is never afterward effaced. All these were done for superstitious purposes, and to such things probably the prohibition in this verse refers.

I truly believe without reservation that the practice of tattooing should be avoided by Christians. However, if one has tattoos from the sinful days of his/her life, the Lord has forgiven and we should not judge. This Blog is not written with a judgmental spirit but rather the intention is to get people to think and evaluate their response to this latest fad. Let us also remember, we are a holy people and God’s children.

We are to live a higher standard than the world. I want to end with a true story. Dr. Spence who was founder of Foundations Bible College in Dunn, North Carolina, told this story concerning his daughter. It was during the mini-skirt craze of the late sixties and early seventies. She had purchased a mini-skirt (unbeknownst to Dr. Spence) and she put it on one evening just before they were going out as a family. She came to the top of the stairs and hollered down to him “daddy, what do you think?” He looked up at his daughter and said these words “remember, you are a child of the King.” Without saying a word, she went back to her bedroom and changed into something more presentable. Dr. Spence said she never wore one after that.

Something to think about.