You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead, nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves: I am the LORD. (Leviticus 19:28).
I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2).
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body. (1Corinthians 6:19-20).
Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. (Romans 6:13, NIV).
Isaiah 44:5 seems to agree that Tatoo isn’t a sin
Again the Bible says in Isaiah 49 that God has a picture of you tattooed on his palm
Isaiah 49:14-16 14 But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, And the Lord has forgotten me.” 15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child, And have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you. 16 “Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me.
This verse is traditionally understood as referring to the marks that were made when entering into a covenant with another that would serve as a reminder of the terms of the covenant, and that found their fulfillment in the marks on Christ’s hands from being nailed to the cross. I think it is a bit of a stretch to interpret the mark referred to as a tattoo.
Thank you.. You put it well. I needed this tonight.. Long story.. Just thank you.
That ‘tattoo’ is the nails He took for you; it doesn’t make it right in any way to have tatoos, if you think it is, try driving nails through your wrist and I think you’ll find it’s not right.
Great! What was Christ’s thought about tattoos?
NAS Isaiah 44:5 “This one will say, ‘I am the LORD’s’; And that one will call on the name of Jacob; And another will write on his hand, ‘Belonging to the LORD,’ And will name Israel’s name with honor.
Writing on the hand isn’t necessarily a tattoo, and a tattoo is typically understood as more than just writing on the hand. Just as the beast in revelation marks those who belong to him (Rev 13:16-17), so does God mark those who belong to Him (Eze 9:4, Rev 7:3). Whereas the mark of the world is a worldly mark, the mark of God is a spiritual mark; cf. the tefillin commanded of the Jews in Deut 6:8 as a physical symbol of a deeper spiritual reality.
Tattoos are no more worldly or sinful than many other practices that people of the world and even many who claim to follow Christ engage in. But God calls us out of the world into His kingdom of righteousness to be a separate and holy people who will be a light to others. That isn’t to say that people with tattoos cannot be saved or Christians with tattoos are lesser saints. God is able to redeem anyone and use them for His glory to accomplish His purposes, as he did with the apostle Paul who considered himself the worst of sinners. But it does mean that like Paul there needs to be a true repentance from the way we were walking in the world, to walking in the light of the truth. Thank you for your thoughtful comment.
Its a sin
It’s like a jigsaw puzzle. So confusing.
God’s laws are actually very clear and understandable. The confusion comes from trying to conform God’s word to our ways in the world, rather than conforming our ways to God’s. But as it says in Deut 4:29, we will find the Lord (and understand His ways) if we search for Him with all our heart. May God richly reward your earnest search for Him in truth.
I agree, but also think it depends on the motive, as well as what imagery you put on your body that might make it unacceptable to man, or to God
Is tattooing your body a sin? What exactly are you saying?
I’m just reporting what the Bible says that may be relevant to the question of tattoos and body piercing. James 4:17 Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to him it is sin.
Great! What was Christ’s thought about tattoos?
It was Christ’s apostle Paul, taught by Him, who taught us that our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit and to not conform to the pattern of the world or offer our bodies to sin, but rather to be transformed in the renewing of our minds and offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. A righteous person would never have defiled God’s holy temple in Solomon’s or Jesus’ day with graffiti, and in like manner those making a profession of godliness should be careful to not defile the temple of His Holy Spirit today. Many have done so unwittingly, just as many have defiled their temple through drugs or immorality. Such are not unforgivable sins, but sins from which Christ came to save us. All sin leaves a mark on our body, soul and spirit, though some are less apparent than others. Those who are convicted of their sins, whatever they are, need only to confess them as sin and ask God to forgive them. And if they are sincere in their repentance and turn from them, then He will forgive them. God bless you.