Some thoughts on Leviticus 19, tattoos etc…
The old covenant Israelites were living in a theocracy whose laws reflected the character and holiness of God and pointed toward the future when Christ would fulfill the law through his death and resurrection. Christians today live within the new covenant where the law is “in our hearts and minds” Hebrews 10:16 and we are enabled to live a repentant life through the Holy Spirit and our knowledge of Christ and what he has done for us.
The tattoo laws in Leviticus 19 along with hand washing, ritual animal sacrifices and other ritualistic and restrictive laws do not necessarily apply to today’s Christ followers, although the ideas behind them can still guide us. Tattoos and beard trimming and other things mentioned in Leviticus were associated with followers of pagan gods. We can still follow false gods today and we should not dress and groom ourselves so that we appear to align ourselves with these other gods….whether they are gods of wealth, or self-esteem or drug culture or whatever.
To me, I would not categorically say tattoos are always wrong for the Christian, although I don’t like to see them on anybody. They seem to be a self-focused, “look at me and my special expression of myself!” kind of a thing. Our grooming and dress in the morning should reflect our desire to “love my neighbor as myself” and not “look at me, I’m special!”… or “I’m sexy!” or “Look out, I might kill you!”
On the other hand, there is a place for self-expression that does not necessarily detract from our mission to love our neighbor. One of the most unselfish and giving people I have known was a woman who loved to wear bright and flashy colors in church and everywhere else. It was fun to see her and wonder what she was going to wear next Sunday.
But… tattoos, to me, are in a different category. A bright flashy shirt can say, “Hey, I’m a fun, stylish person.” but a tattoo says, “I’m willing to permanently alter my skin to make a statement and I am too short-sighted to even consider that I might regret this later.”
Still, I am willing to consider that I may have a blind, judgmental spot on this point.
Well, if you made a wonderful, beautiful creation and gifted it to me, and I took some permanent markers and drew flowers and dragons on it...how would you feel about that?
Tattoos in the Bible are not like dietary laws, they are condemned as a pagan practice (marking or cutting yourself for the dead). Essentially it is idolatry, putting the tattoo before God.
Tattoos are also implicitly condemned in the New Testament. “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” (I Corinthians). Disfiguring your body is not honoring God.
This was widely known by Christians up until the present age of ignorance.