It sure does. Although tattooing our bodies is extremely popular amongst many peoples and even in our Western society, including amongst sailors, marines, teens and others, the Bible clearly prohibits this practice.

Leviticus 19:28 tells us:

“You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the LORD.”

The translation “tattoo” is an accurate rendering of the original Hebrew. The Authorized Version states, “…nor print any marks upon you.” The intended meaning is “tattoo” or “tattoo marks.” The New International Version states, “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourself.” The Revised Standard Version states, “You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh on account of the dead or tattoo any marks upon you.” The Revised English Bible states, “You must not gash yourselves in mourning for the dead or tattoo yourselves.” Compare, too, Moffat, the New American Bible, the New Jerusalem Bible, and the Elberfelder Bible.

The Hebrew word, translated as “tattoo,” is “qa’aqa.” Strong defines it under Number 7085 as an “incision” or “gash” or a “mark.” The Interlinear Bible Hebrew-Greek-English edition by Jay P Green Sr uses the word “tattoo” as a literal translation of Strong’s Number 7085.

The Ryrie Study Bible comments on Leviticus 19:28: “Both cutting and tattooing the body were done by the heathen.”

Soncino remarks, “…’nor imprint any marks,’ i.e. tattooing with a needle. The flesh should not have any marks other than the ‘sign of the covenant,’ circumcision.”

Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary has this to say about “tattoos”:

“A permanent mark or design fixed upon the body by a process of picking the skin and inserting an indelible color under the skin. The moral and ceremonial laws of Leviticus declare, ‘You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks upon you,’ (Leviticus 19:28). Any kind of self laceration or marking the body was prohibited amongst the Hebrew people. Such cuttings were associated with pagan cults that tattooed their followers while they mourned the dead.”

The Nelson Study Bible adds, “The human body was designed by God, who intended it to be whole and beautiful. Disfiguring the body dishonored God, in whose image the person was created. Cutting one’s flesh for the dead and tattooing (or perhaps painting) one’s body had religious significance among Israel’s pagan neighbors. In Israel, such practices were signs of rebellion against God.”

Henry’s Commentary points out, “The rites and ceremonies by which they expressed their sorrow at their funerals must not be imitated… They must not make cuts or prints in their flesh for the dead; for the heathen did so to pacify the infernal deities they dreamt of, and to render them propitious to their deceased friends.”

Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, Commentary on the Whole Bible, has this to say about the subject: “… nor print any marks upon you — by tattooing — imprinting figures or flowers, leaves, stars, and other fanciful devices on various parts of their person — the impression was made sometimes by means of a hot iron, sometimes by ink or paint, as is done by the Arab females of the present day and the different casts of the Hindoos [sic]. It is probable that a strong propensity to adopt such marks in honor of some idol gave occasion to the prohibition in this verse; and they were wisely forbidden, for they were signs of apostasy; and, when once made, they were insuperable obstacles to a return…”

The Broadman Bible Commentary adds, “The peculiar markings referred to in vv. 27-28 were all customary mourning rites practiced by the ancient world. Their intention was to make the mourner unrecognizable to evil spirits who might hover around a dead person. In Israel such deference to the presence and power of evil spirits was prohibited.”

Some religious people, although they are aware of Leviticus 19:28, nevertheless claim that they tattoo their bodies just for decoration, without thinking about evil spirits, or mourning for any dead person. They feel Leviticus 19:28 only prohibits tattooing in the context of mourning for the dead. We need to realize, however, that tattooing, even if it was originally done for the purpose of expressing sorrow for a dead person, had a somewhat permanent nature — the person would still continue to wear the tattoo long after his mourning for the dead had ceased. It is also important to consider the origin of a certain practice. If tattooing was originally done to placate evil spirits and to mourn for the dead, as most commentaries suggest, and was therefore prohibited, it would still be wrong to carry out such practice today, even if it was done for different motives. For instance, members of God’s Church don’t keep Halloween, because this festival is clearly of a pagan or demonic origin. This fact is not changed by the argument that most people keeping Halloween today don’t do so for the purpose of placating or expelling demons.

In addition, Leviticus 19:28 contains two commandments. The first commandment prohibits cuttings in the flesh for the dead. The second commandment is broader than that. It says, “…and do not tattoo yourselves” (New American Bible). Although tattooing “for the dead” is included, it is not limited to it. According to Leviticus 19:28, all kinds of tattooing are wrong.

We need to realize, too, that tattooing is a form of “mutilation” (compare Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol.21, ed. 1959). A Christian is not to “mutilate” himself, except where it is expressly commanded or impliedly permitted by God, such as in the case of circumcision. A Christian is to take care of his body in a right and cherishing way (Ephesians 5:29). He is to glorify GOD in his body, knowing that his body is the temple or dwelling place of God’s Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19-20).

More proof on the background of this now popular activity of tattooing may be found in Deuteronomy 14:1 wherein God strictly forbids pagan practices about cutting or disfiguring oneself. Also, in the account of 1 Kings 18, Elijah confronts the false religious leaders of his day. Verse 28 states: “So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them.” When Jesus confronted demon possessed people, one of the common manifestations was that these people mutilated themselves in destructive ways.

Tattooing has given rise to other forms of body mutilations that often prove to be permanent disfigurations. Right and true worship of God not only avoids these practices, but Christianity is a way of living in which individuals seek to honor God through the kind of obedience that is rooted in love–not body mutilation.

A: We read in John 7:37-39, “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, [which] those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”

We read in verse 2 that the Holy Days that were celebrated at that time evolved around “the Feast of Tabernacles.”

Several commentators feel that the reference to the “last day, that great day of the feast,” applies to the seventh day of the Feast of Tabernacles. For instance, Edward Chumney, “The Seven Festivals of the Messiah,” points out the following on pp. 173-174:

“‘Hoshana Rabbah (literally, the great hosanna or the numerous hosannas) is the seventh day of sukkot (Tabernacles)… It has some special rituals and customs that make the day more like a full festival day than any of the intermediate days… On the seventh day of the feast, the people circled the altar seven times… Yeshua’s [Jesus’] statement in John (Yochanan) 7:37-39 was said on Hoshana Rabbah.”

Other commentaries state that Christ spoke those words on the eighth day, the last day of the Tabernacles season. The eighth day is an annual Holy Day, a special Sabbath, and is mentioned, for instance, in Leviticus 23:36 and in Numbers 29:35. This day is also referred to as “Shemini Atzeret (the eighth day of assembly)” and was treated by the rabbis as “an independent festival” (Chumney, p. 187).

Unger’s Bible Handbook, 1967, states on page 553: “The last day of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:36) was the most solemn and climactic of the entire festival cycle. It was the eighth day of rest and holy assembly. During the seven days prefiguring their wilderness wandering, water was drawn from the pool of Siloam and then poured out, commemorating the water supplied Israel in the desert. The eighth day signified the enjoyment of the springs of the land itself and no water was poured out.”

The Ryrie Study Bible concurs: “Though it is not mentioned in the O.T., the Jews had a ceremony of carrying water from the Pool of Siloam and pouring it into a silver basin by the altar of burnt offering each day for the first seven days of the Feast of Tabernacles. On the eighth day this was not done, making Christ’s offer of the water of eternal life from Himself even more startling.”

Further insight is given by William Henry Green, “The Hebrew Feasts,” copyright 1885, pp. 281 and 292:

“… at Tabernacles they remained not only through the full term of seven days, but an eighth day was added at the end, which in later times at least was reckoned ‘the great day of the feast,’ John 7:37… This eighth day is particularly mentioned in the observance of the feast by Ezra and Nehemiah, Neh. 8:18, and from the increasing concourse of pilgrims, it had risen to great consequence in the time of our Lord, John 7:37.”

Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, Commentary on the Whole Bible, 1961, also say that the reference to the “last day, that great day of the feast,” in John 7:37, applies to the “eighth (Lev. 23:39). It was a sabbath, the last feast day of the year…”

The Worldwide Church of God under Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong taught that Christ spoke the above-quoted words on the eighth day, the Last Great Day, and not during the seventh day of the feast. The Church of the Eternal God and its affiliates in Canada and Great Britain have also concluded that Christ spoke these words on the Last Great Day of the Feast — the eighth day (compare “God’s Commanded Holy Days,” page 32). John 8:1 shows that these words were spoken in the evening — at the beginning of the eighth day.

It is important to note what Christ said. He pointed out that the time would arrive when EVERYONE who thirsts could come to Him to receive from Him the gift of living waters — the Holy Spirit. That promise will not be fulfilled until the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-12) — AFTER the Millennium (Revelation 20:4, 6). While the Feast of Tabernacles pictures the Millennium, the Great White Throne Judgment is pictured by the Last Great Day or the EIGHTH Day. When THAT time has arrived, all persons who had not been called before will be resurrected to physical life and will then be given their first real opportunity to accept God’s calling. Christ’s words in John 7:37-39 speak of a time when God’s Spirit will be offered to all, for at that time, all will be CALLED to salvation.

A: 1 Kings 15:5 reads, “…David did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.”

The account of David’s transgressions “in the matter of Uriah the Hittite” can be found in 2 Samuel, chapters 11 and 12. First, David committed adultery with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba; then, he tried to cover up his sin in different ways; failing that, he had Uriah murdered in war, so that he could take Bathsheba to become his wife. We read that “the thing that David had done displeased [or better: “was evil in the sight of”] the LORD” (2 Samuel 11:27). Later, after David came to his senses and realized what he had done, Nathan the prophet communicated God’s words to David: “Why have you despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife” (2 Samuel 12:9-10). Nathan added, “…by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme” (2 Samuel 12:14).

David’s conduct “in the matter of Uriah” constituted a great sin. This does not mean, however, that this was the only sin that David ever committed. The passage in 1 Kings 15:5, quoted above, must be read in context with all the other Scriptures on this subject. For instance, note the following statement in 1 Kings 14:8, “… yet you have not been as My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do ONLY what was right in My eyes.” Taken all by itself, this Scripture would say that David did not sin at all — not even in the “matter of Uriah.”

A similar passage can be found in Acts 13:22, where Paul relates the following: “And when He had removed him [Saul], He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.'” Again, a superficial reading might suggest that David did not sin at all.

The truth is, of course, that David sinned in many different ways. For instance, David sinned when he numbered the people at the end of his life. We are told in 2 Samuel 24:10: “And David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the LORD, ‘I have sinned GREATLY in what I have done; but now, I pray, O LORD, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly.'”

David sinned on other occasions, too. Notice his words in Psalm 38:4, “For my iniquities have gone over my head; Like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.” Notice Psalm 40:12, “… My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to look up; They are MORE THAN THE HAIRS OF MY HEAD…” Notice, too, David’s prayer in Psalm 25:18: “Look on my affliction and my pain, And forgive ALL MY SINS.”

The Bible makes it very clear that everyone sins — even after conversion — and that there is no human being [with the only exception of Jesus Christ, when He was here on earth] who does not sin (compare 1 Kings 8:46). Job thought that he was not guilty of sin, but he deceived himself (compare 1 John 1:8). He was guilty of self-righteousness, thinking that he was more righteous than God (Job 32:1-2). God had to deal with him very severely so that he could see himself for what he really was (Job 42:6).

We are also told in Scripture that God forgives us our sins and even forgets about them, once we confess our sins to God (1 John 1:9). In that case, God cleanses us from all unrighteousness (same verse). He will remember our sins no more (compare Jeremiah 31:34).

David had a loyal heart. When he sinned, he repented and asked God for forgiveness. He did not try to hide his sins, but he was truly heart-broken. He desired earnestly to be forgiven. He said in Psalm 51:3-4, 7, 9-11: “For I acknowledge my transgressions, And my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned, And done this evil in Your sight… Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow… Hide Your face from my sins, And BLOT OUT ALL my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.”

When God forgave David, He removed his sins — not to be remembered anymore. Upon forgiveness, David was justified or righteous — but he always understood where his righteousness came from. He said in Psalm 24:5, “He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM THE GOD of his salvation.” Other passages confirm that our righteousness must come from God — in fact, it is God’s righteousness within us that makes us righteous (compare Philippians 3:7-9; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

God said that David followed Him with all his heart. When David sinned, he repented and obtained God’s forgiveness. God would forget his sins. That is why God could say, “David has kept My commandments. He followed Me with all his heart, to do ONLY what was right in My eyes.” (Compare, again, 1 Kings 14:8).

We also understand, of course, that God forgave David his sins “in the matter of Uriah.” Still, in the one passage, in 1 Kings 15:5, God brings this matter one more time to our attention. Not, because God had not forgiven David, but because this was a sin that belonged to a slightly different category. It was not the unpardonable sin, to be sure, since David will be in the Kingdom of God (compare Jeremiah 30:9; Hosea 3:5). However, it was not a sin that was committed “in ignorance” — because of a temporary, passing weakness that had “snuck up” on David. This was a planned, premeditated, carefully designed sin. David thought through very diligently how to cover up his sin with Bathseba, until he resorted to the murder of Uriah. God brings up the “matter with Uriah” one more time, because He was terribly grieved that David would have acted in such a way — and He wanted to impress on the reader the awful consequences of that sin for David and his entire household.

When we sin and subsequently confess our sin to God, God is faithful to forgive us (Compare, too, Proverbs 28:13: “He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”). We should not sin (1 John 2:1), but as humans, we will (compare again 1 John 1:8-9). Upon forgiveness (compare Romans 11:27), God will remember our sins no more (compare Hebrews 8:12). This should show us that we must strive to do the same. When we forgive, we must also forget. David sinned in many different ways — as we all do — but he obtained complete forgiveness from God, as his heart was right. In God’s eyes, David kept God’s commandments; following God with all his heart, to do ONLY what was right in God’s eyes.