Food For Thought
Just some more food for thought. Along side this passage in Revelation,
“On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: King of kings and Lord of lords.”
Revelation 19:16
Isaiah records Yahweh in anthropomorphic form as having something engraved on His hands as well.
“‘Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. 16 Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.Your builders make haste; your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you.
Isaiah 49:16
Reflections
It seems as if this scriptures are communicating to the reader that The Visible Yahweh has engravings/ tattoos on His body. I think a helpful thought to this discussion is for what purpose would the Lord have Tattoos?
Gods Image
I don’t know why, but Dr. Michael Heiser’s view on the image of God keeps popping into my mind when contemplating this topic. For those who may not be familiar, I have heard him describe his view as being not so much a special attribute inherited (ex. free-will) but who spiritual and physical beings are as a whole, i.e. representatives. He uses the illustration of a statue, in that we as Gods Imagers are His statues on the earth.
Tattoos in the O.T.
“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.”
Exodus 20:4
According to this verse it is strictly forbidden by the people to make an idol/ representation of the Lord because Yahweh had already placed His image on the earth. Furthermore others laws require the death of the one who has murdered someone else precisely because the murderer has killed God in effigy.
I’m just shooting from the hip here but could there be something like this going on with the tattoo issue both in regards to humans and the Lord?
Yahweh
I would suggest that the ancient Near Eastern practice of one pledging an allegiance via tattoos could be Gods expression of His loyalty to His people. The A.N.E. model is flipped upside-down and the cultural practice of the devotee engraving their allegiance to a deity on their body’s with a tattoo gets reversed by Yahweh’s inscribing His allegiance to His family with a tattoo on His body.
Humans
Why would there be a ban on tattoos for Yahweh’s people?
Could the Tattoo ban described in the Old Testament be communicating for His people to abstain from practices that the other nations used to pledge allegiance to their gods because there is no need for they are already His portion?
Could the tattoos be reminiscent to circumcision and the dietary laws, in which they were given to separate Gods people from those under the dominion of the rebellious Sons of God?
I would suggest the answer to both these questions is unequivocally YES!
Conclusion
This would link Israels circumcision and their lack of tattoos to the same purpose. Both of which were given to the descendants of Abraham not so they can become God’s portion by obedience, but were given these restrictions because they already are God’s portion and are to be set apart.
There was no need to adopt the others nations cultural practices of pledging allegiance because they were Gods chosen people inherited as their birthright not gained by the procedure of acquiring a tattoo.
If we were to interpreted these scripture this way it would leave us with the conclusion that once Jesus came and fulfill the Law, there is no longer clean and unclean food (Acts 10), circumcised or uncircumcised, nor tattooed and not tattooed for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28).
Peace and Blessings!
Biblical Doctrine Derives From the Biblical Text
Check out this short video on The Image of God by our friends over at The Bible Project by clicking here.
The Unseen Realm Course
This is a response I wrote to a question that was asked durning my semester of The Unseen Realm 101 Course. I highly recommend this online course for anyone who is interested in the topics that are covered here on Critical Thinking Aloud. To see a course overview and a schedule for when the classes start click here
Let us know your thought about our series in the comment section. If you have any topics you would like to suggest please let us know and we will add them to the list of future subjects we will covered.
Call for action: Help us out by learning more
Our Favorite Bible
U.S. Link: NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible- Hardcover Bible, Bonded Leather Bible, Bonded Leather: Thumb Index, Imitation Leather Women’s, Imitation Leather Men’s, Kindle Edition
Our Favorite Book
U.S. Supernatural: What the Bible Teaches about the Unseen World And Why It Matters- Paperback book, Kindle Edition, Audiobook
**** HEY EVERYONE, WE WANTED TO LET YOU GUYS KNOW THAT AS AN AMAZON ASSOCIATE WE EARN A SMALL COMMISSION FROM QUALIFYING PURCHASES YOU MAKE FROM OUR LINKS AT NO EXTRA COST TO YOU! HOWEVER, THIS DOES NOT AFFECT OUR SUGGESTIONS OF WHAT WE RECOMMEND FOR YOU TO USE. WE FEEL THIS IS A GREAT WAY FOR YOU TO BOTH ENJOY QUALITY RESOURCES WHICH WE USE IN HOPES IT WILL LIKEWISE ENRICH YOUR BIBLICAL STUDIES, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME SUPPORTING OUR MINISTRY TO CONTINUE TO EXPAND. IF YOU DO DECIDE TO MAKE A PURCHASE, OUR FAMILY HERE AT CRITICAL THINKING ALOUD WANTS YOU TO KNOW HOW MUCH WE VALUE YOUR SUPPORT.****