Tattoos? | Kincaid Books

In the New International Version of the Holy Bible the word tattoo appears exactly one time, in Leviticus, Chapter 19 verse 28. “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.” The King James Version translates this verse somewhat differently: “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord.” When I was a child we went on a church bicycle ride and passed by a Jewish cemetery. One of the things that was said about it was that some Jewish burial societies do not allow anyone with a voluntary tattoo to be buried in their cemetery. A voluntary tattoo is a permanent sign of defying God’s Law.

As Christians we need to remember that the Old Testament is God’s Word as much as the New Testament. God’s rules for us from the Old Testament apply to us today just as they did before Jesus Christ came to Earth and established the New Covenant of Grace through His suffering on the Cross, His Death, His descent into Hell, and His Resurrection. Some things have changed, such as what foods are clean as a result of Peter’s Vision in Acts chapter 10, verses 9 to 16, with the New Covenant, but many have not.

God the Father made it plain in Leviticus that he did not approve of tattoos. There is nothing later in the Bible to indicate that he approves of them. Therefore, it is suggested that Christians refrain from allowing their bodies to be tattooed.