WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT TATTOOS? pt. 1
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT TATOOS? pt. 1
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The subject of tattoos has never been on my radar until recently. Even as a non-believer I never gave tattoos much thought. Therefore, I had never studied this subject or provided any teaching on it. When someone close to me began getting tattooed, however, I found myself uncomfortable with it, but I didn’t necessarily have a strong Biblical basis for my feelings at the time.
More recently I have been giving the subject of tattoos much closer attention to help address my own questions regarding whether or not the Bible has anything to say about the subject, but I have found there is very little quality teaching on this subject. Because of that, I have set forth here what I believe in this 7-part series to be the most complete discussion on tattoos from a Biblical and social perspective you will find.
There does seem to be a sharp disagreement among Christians on the matter of tattoos, some calling them categorically sinful, and others stating that those who say so are legalistic. But I believe the Biblical perspective is much deeper than just the skin, especially in the New Testament age. As God’s Word tells us,
“Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. Therefore, glorify God with your body.” -1 Corinthians 6:19-20
As with anything pertaining to our lives in Christ, therefore, we are forced to go past just looking at things on a surface level and look at the heart. I believe the subject of tattoos allows us to take a closer look at some related Biblical principles which are paramount in the walk of faith, and for that reason I pray this discussion bears fruit well beyond tattoos.
Before we dive into the Scriptures on this subject, let’s first take a look at the historical and social implications of tattoos.
Secular Influence on the Popularity of Tattoos
Tattooing has a very long history among the pagan cultures of the world. It’s obvious that the more a culture drifts from God the more acceptable tattooing becomes among the people. The same is true about standards of dress. The more ungodly a society becomes the less regard it has for standards of modesty. In the late 1800’s in America women were ashamed to be seen in public with even an ankle exposed. Today, form-fitting clothing, plunging necklines, and barely-there skirts and shorts are the norm. But does the “norm” in society equate to being acceptable in God’s sight? God calls His chosen people to come out from the world and be set apart.
“Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you. And I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” -2 Corinthians 6:17-18
Let’s put two and two together and look as this logically for a moment. The rougher a people group is, the more tattoos they tend to don. Tattoos are clearly a badge of honor or a right of passage for the lawless and rebellious. Gang members, for example, will push the envelope by tattooing even the neck, face, and head. While tattoos have gained broader acceptance today, especially among youth, prior to the late 20th century tattoos were seen almost exclusively on criminals, soldiers, bikers or other “rough” people.
Why are tattoos considered the standard among rough and lawless groups of people? And why is there such is a fascination with death at tattoos parlors, with all the skulls, grim reapers and other symbols of the grave which are displayed and promoted? Is it because the practice of tattooing is pagan in its very origin?
I believe there is a spiritual side to this that Christians considering getting a tattoo need to be very careful about. We need to be very discerning about what we associate ourselves with. Satan doesn’t come in the front door and introduce himself and announce his intentions. Godlessness comes on by degrees, one little compromise at a time, until a person eventually finds himself/herself very far from God and very lost, not even realizing how it happened.
People often get tattooed for a sense of acceptance. Peer pressure, therefore, has played a major role in tattoos throughout history and in our society today. People are often drawn to tattooing for a sense of identification with a gang, a tribe, a military group, sports figures, entertainers or circle of friends. Some do it to look “tough,” cool or sexy. All of these reasons, however, are not in keeping with godly humility, honor of one’s body, or the holy consecration God demands.
As Christians, our identity needs to come from God alone. God tells His called-out people,
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father, but is of the world” -1 John 2:15-16
Some contend that a tattoo is merely a harmless adornment like jewelry. Jewelry, however, can be easily removed or changed while a tattoo cannot. And, of course, the Bible also has something to say about the excessive display of jewelry as well (see 1 Peter 3:3-4). In both cases, modesty (i.e. not drawing attention to ourselves with ostentatious displays of dress or outward show) is to rule our appearance.
Many have been tattooed later to regret it. I know some of those people personally. It’s for this reason tattoo removal is now big business. But tattoo removal is expensive, painful, and not even always successful. Scarring or skin color variations often remain.
Hence, wisdom would dictate avoiding doing anything permanent to the body, because as one grows older and more mature, he or she might just think about certain things differently and come to regret those former actions. In fact, I can almost guarantee this will be the case. People change. Hopefully people grow wiser with age. Not everyone grows wise with age, but most people do, even if they are not Christians. I certainly regret many of my past actions, but today I’m happy at least I didn’t do anything in my rebellious years that I still wear on my skin! I look back at some of my clothing choices in my early twenties which I thought were so cool and now cringe at the thought! Thank God I am not forever attached to those clothes! I cast them aside with age, wisdom and a growing understanding of godly humility.
Therefore, people in their youth who get tattoos will very likely regret those decisions later on, but they cannot easily undo what’s been done with a tattoo as if casting aside shameful clothing.
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In the next post we will discuss the addictive nature of tattoos, as well as other health issues and social difficulties connected with them.