Does God care about what we wear?
1. God does care about what we wear, and He does not approve some types of clothing, like those of Adam and Eve.
"Then the eyes of both of them opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves." (Gen.3:7)
"The LORD God made garments from skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them." (Gen.3:21)
2. Clothing must fully cover nakedness, especially at times of worship. Flesh above knee level is considered nakedness.
"And you must not go up by steps to my altar, so that your nakedness is not exposed." (Ex.20:26)
"And make for them linen undergarments to cover the body; they must cover from the loins to the thighs. And they must be on Aaron and his sons when they go in to the tent of meeting, or when they approach the altar to minister in the holy place, so that they bear no iniquity and die. It is to be a perpetual ordinance for him and for his descendants after him." (Ex.28:42-43)
3. There are dresses of prostitutes and foreign (to God’s people) styles of clothing for which God will punish His people.
"All of a sudden a woman came out to meet him! She was dressed like a prostitute and with secret intent." (Pr.7:10)
"Be quiet before the Lord GOD, for the LORD's day of judgment is almost here. The LORD has prepared a sacrificial meal; he has ritually purified his guests. "On the day of the LORD's sacrificial meal, I will punish the princes and the king's sons, and all who wear foreign styles of clothing." (Zeph.1:7-8)
4. God forbids His people to dress in the clothing of the opposite sex (crossdressing).
"A woman must not wear men's clothing, nor should a man dress up in women's clothing, for all who do this are an offense to the LORD your God." (De.22:5)
5. People, who wanted to worship the Lord, got rid of their idols and their earrings.
"So Jacob told his household and all who were with him, "Get rid of the foreign gods you have among you. Purify yourselves and change your clothes. Let us go up at once to Bethel. Then I will make an altar there to God, who responded to me in my time of distress and has been with me wherever I went." So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that were in their possession and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob buried them under the oak near Shechem." (Ge.35:2-4)
6. God’s women are to dress with modesty and without jewelry.
"Likewise the women are to dress in suitable apparel, with modesty and self-control. Their adornment must not be with braided hair and gold or pearls or expensive clothing, but with good deeds, as is proper for women who profess reverence for God." (1Tim.2:9-10)
"In the same way, wives, be subject to your own husbands. Then even if some are disobedient to the word, they will be won over without a word by the way you live, when they see your pure and reverent conduct. Let your beauty not be external – the braiding of hair and wearing of gold or fine clothes – but the inner person of the heart, the lasting beauty of a gentle and tranquil spirit, which is precious in God's sight. For in the same way the holy women who hoped in God long ago adorned themselves by being subject to their husbands." (1Pe.3:1-5)
7. God commanded Israelites to strip off their jewelry.
"When the people heard this troubling word they mourned; no one put on his ornaments. For the LORD had said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, `You are a stiff-necked people. If I went up among you for a moment, I might destroy you. Now take off your ornaments, that I may know what I should do to you.'" So the Israelites stripped off their ornaments by Mount Horeb." (Ex.33:4-6)
"The children of Israel stripped themselves of their jewelry from Mount Horeb onward." (Exo 33:6, WEB)
8. Jewelries are either cause or indicator of pride, which is abominable to God.
"The LORD says, "The women of Zion are proud. They walk with their heads high and flirt with their eyes. They skip along and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. So the sovereign master will afflict the foreheads of Zion's women with skin diseases, the LORD will make the front of their heads bald." At that time the sovereign master will remove the glitter of the ankle jewelry, neck ornaments, crescent shaped ornaments, earrings, bracelets, veils, headdresses, ankle ornaments, sashes, sachets, amulets, rings, nose rings, festive dresses, robes, shawls, purses, garments, vests, head coverings, and gowns. A putrid stench will replace the smell of spices, a rope will replace a belt, baldness will replace braided locks of hair, a sackcloth garment will replace a fine robe, and a prisoner's brand will replace beauty. Your men will fall by the sword, your strong men will die in battle." (Isa.3:16-25)
"The LORD abhors every arrogant person; one can be sure that they will not go unpunished." (Pr.16:5)
"They will throw their silver in the streets, and their gold will be treated as an unclean thing. Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver them on the day of the LORD's furious anger. Their hunger will not be satisfied and their stomachs will not be full, because it was the stumbling block of their iniquity. They were proud of their beautiful ornaments." (Ez.7:19-20)
"There are six things that the LORD hates, even seven things that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift to run to evil, a false witness who pours out lies, and a person who spreads discord among family members." (Pr.6:16-19)
9. Women should cover their heads when they pray or prophesy, but men should not.
"Any man who prays or prophesies with his head covered disgraces his head. But any woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered disgraces her head, for it is one and the same thing as having a shaved head. For if a woman will not cover her head, she should cut off her hair. But if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or be shaved, she should cover her head. For a man should not have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God. But the woman is the glory of the man." (1Co.11:4-7)
"Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace for him, but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. If anyone intends to quarrel about this, we have no other practice, nor do the churches of God." (1Co.11:13-16)
10. God forbids His people to change their natural appearance into unnatural.
"You must not eat anything with the blood still in it. You must not practice either divination or soothsaying. You must not round off the corners of the hair on your head or ruin the corners of your beard. You must not slash your body for a dead person or incise a tattoo on yourself. I am the LORD." (Lev.19:26-28)
11. The painting of the eyes and of the body in Biblical times was a sign of harlots and idolaters. What had changed today?
"And you, Zion, city doomed to destruction, what are you accomplishing by clothing yourself in scarlet, decking yourself out in jewels of gold, and putting on eye shadow? You are making yourself beautiful for nothing. Your lovers spurn you. They want to kill you." (Jer.4:30)
"They even sent for men from far away, sending a messenger, and they came. For them you bathed, painted your eyes, and decorated yourself with jewelry… Then I said about the one worn out by adulteries, `Now they will carry out their immoral acts with her. For they have had sex with her as one does with a prostitute'." (Ez.23:40, 43-44)
"Jehu approached Jezreel. When Jezebel heard the news, she put on some eye liner, fixed up her hair, and leaned out the window." (2Ki.9:30)
12. Adornment of one’s body often has a purpose of alluring the eyes of men.
"And she took sandals upon her feet, and put about her her bracelets, and her chains, and her rings, and her earrings, and all her ornaments, and decked herself bravely, to allure the eyes of all men that should see her." (Judith 10:4, KJV).
13. Woe to the person through whom comes the temptation.
"But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks! It is necessary that stumbling blocks come, but woe to the person through whom they come." (Mt.18:6-7)
14. Friendship with the world means hostility towards God.
"Adulterers, do you not know that friendship with the world means hostility towards God? So whoever decides to be the world's friend makes himself God's enemy." (Jas.4:4)
"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, because all that is in the world (the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the arrogance produced by material possessions) is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away with all its desires, but the person who does the will of God remains forever." (1Jn.2:15-17)
15. Worldly entertainment and friendships with the wicked are not pleasing to God.
"These things happened as examples for us, so that we will not crave evil things as they did. So do not be idolaters, as some of them were. As it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play." (1Co.10:6-7)
"How happy is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand in the pathway with sinners, or sit in the assembly of arrogant fools!" (Ps.1:1)
Scripture quoted by permission. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
1. God does care about what we wear, and He does not approve some types of clothing, like those of Adam and Eve.
"Then the eyes of both of them opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves." (Gen.3:7)
"The LORD God made garments from skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them." (Gen.3:21)
2. Clothing must fully cover nakedness, especially at times of worship. Flesh above knee level is considered nakedness.
"And you must not go up by steps to my altar, so that your nakedness is not exposed." (Ex.20:26)
"And make for them linen undergarments to cover the body; they must cover from the loins to the thighs. And they must be on Aaron and his sons when they go in to the tent of meeting, or when they approach the altar to minister in the holy place, so that they bear no iniquity and die. It is to be a perpetual ordinance for him and for his descendants after him." (Ex.28:42-43)
3. There are dresses of prostitutes and foreign (to God’s people) styles of clothing for which God will punish His people.
"All of a sudden a woman came out to meet him! She was dressed like a prostitute and with secret intent." (Pr.7:10)
"Be quiet before the Lord GOD, for the LORD's day of judgment is almost here. The LORD has prepared a sacrificial meal; he has ritually purified his guests. "On the day of the LORD's sacrificial meal, I will punish the princes and the king's sons, and all who wear foreign styles of clothing." (Zeph.1:7-8)
4. God forbids His people to dress in the clothing of the opposite sex (crossdressing).
"A woman must not wear men's clothing, nor should a man dress up in women's clothing, for all who do this are an offense to the LORD your God." (De.22:5)
5. People, who wanted to worship the Lord, got rid of their idols and their earrings.
"So Jacob told his household and all who were with him, "Get rid of the foreign gods you have among you. Purify yourselves and change your clothes. Let us go up at once to Bethel. Then I will make an altar there to God, who responded to me in my time of distress and has been with me wherever I went." So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that were in their possession and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob buried them under the oak near Shechem." (Ge.35:2-4)
6. God’s women are to dress with modesty and without jewelry.
"Likewise the women are to dress in suitable apparel, with modesty and self-control. Their adornment must not be with braided hair and gold or pearls or expensive clothing, but with good deeds, as is proper for women who profess reverence for God." (1Tim.2:9-10)
"In the same way, wives, be subject to your own husbands. Then even if some are disobedient to the word, they will be won over without a word by the way you live, when they see your pure and reverent conduct. Let your beauty not be external – the braiding of hair and wearing of gold or fine clothes – but the inner person of the heart, the lasting beauty of a gentle and tranquil spirit, which is precious in God's sight. For in the same way the holy women who hoped in God long ago adorned themselves by being subject to their husbands." (1Pe.3:1-5)
7. God commanded Israelites to strip off their jewelry.
"When the people heard this troubling word they mourned; no one put on his ornaments. For the LORD had said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, `You are a stiff-necked people. If I went up among you for a moment, I might destroy you. Now take off your ornaments, that I may know what I should do to you.'" So the Israelites stripped off their ornaments by Mount Horeb." (Ex.33:4-6)
"The children of Israel stripped themselves of their jewelry from Mount Horeb onward." (Exo 33:6, WEB)
8. Jewelries are either cause or indicator of pride, which is abominable to God.
"The LORD says, "The women of Zion are proud. They walk with their heads high and flirt with their eyes. They skip along and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. So the sovereign master will afflict the foreheads of Zion's women with skin diseases, the LORD will make the front of their heads bald." At that time the sovereign master will remove the glitter of the ankle jewelry, neck ornaments, crescent shaped ornaments, earrings, bracelets, veils, headdresses, ankle ornaments, sashes, sachets, amulets, rings, nose rings, festive dresses, robes, shawls, purses, garments, vests, head coverings, and gowns. A putrid stench will replace the smell of spices, a rope will replace a belt, baldness will replace braided locks of hair, a sackcloth garment will replace a fine robe, and a prisoner's brand will replace beauty. Your men will fall by the sword, your strong men will die in battle." (Isa.3:16-25)
"The LORD abhors every arrogant person; one can be sure that they will not go unpunished." (Pr.16:5)
"They will throw their silver in the streets, and their gold will be treated as an unclean thing. Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver them on the day of the LORD's furious anger. Their hunger will not be satisfied and their stomachs will not be full, because it was the stumbling block of their iniquity. They were proud of their beautiful ornaments." (Ez.7:19-20)
"There are six things that the LORD hates, even seven things that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift to run to evil, a false witness who pours out lies, and a person who spreads discord among family members." (Pr.6:16-19)
9. Women should cover their heads when they pray or prophesy, but men should not.
"Any man who prays or prophesies with his head covered disgraces his head. But any woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered disgraces her head, for it is one and the same thing as having a shaved head. For if a woman will not cover her head, she should cut off her hair. But if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or be shaved, she should cover her head. For a man should not have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God. But the woman is the glory of the man." (1Co.11:4-7)
"Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace for him, but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. If anyone intends to quarrel about this, we have no other practice, nor do the churches of God." (1Co.11:13-16)
10. God forbids His people to change their natural appearance into unnatural.
"You must not eat anything with the blood still in it. You must not practice either divination or soothsaying. You must not round off the corners of the hair on your head or ruin the corners of your beard. You must not slash your body for a dead person or incise a tattoo on yourself. I am the LORD." (Lev.19:26-28)
11. The painting of the eyes and of the body in Biblical times was a sign of harlots and idolaters. What had changed today?
"And you, Zion, city doomed to destruction, what are you accomplishing by clothing yourself in scarlet, decking yourself out in jewels of gold, and putting on eye shadow? You are making yourself beautiful for nothing. Your lovers spurn you. They want to kill you." (Jer.4:30)
"They even sent for men from far away, sending a messenger, and they came. For them you bathed, painted your eyes, and decorated yourself with jewelry… Then I said about the one worn out by adulteries, `Now they will carry out their immoral acts with her. For they have had sex with her as one does with a prostitute'." (Ez.23:40, 43-44)
"Jehu approached Jezreel. When Jezebel heard the news, she put on some eye liner, fixed up her hair, and leaned out the window." (2Ki.9:30)
12. Adornment of one’s body often has a purpose of alluring the eyes of men.
"And she took sandals upon her feet, and put about her her bracelets, and her chains, and her rings, and her earrings, and all her ornaments, and decked herself bravely, to allure the eyes of all men that should see her." (Judith 10:4, KJV).
13. Woe to the person through whom comes the temptation.
"But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks! It is necessary that stumbling blocks come, but woe to the person through whom they come." (Mt.18:6-7)
14. Friendship with the world means hostility towards God.
"Adulterers, do you not know that friendship with the world means hostility towards God? So whoever decides to be the world's friend makes himself God's enemy." (Jas.4:4)
"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, because all that is in the world (the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the arrogance produced by material possessions) is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away with all its desires, but the person who does the will of God remains forever." (1Jn.2:15-17)
15. Worldly entertainment and friendships with the wicked are not pleasing to God.
"These things happened as examples for us, so that we will not crave evil things as they did. So do not be idolaters, as some of them were. As it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play." (1Co.10:6-7)
"How happy is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand in the pathway with sinners, or sit in the assembly of arrogant fools!" (Ps.1:1)
Scripture quoted by permission. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.