CHRISTIAN DRESS AND ADORNMENT

Chapter 2

DRESS AND ORNAMENTS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

Samuele Bacchiocchi, Ph. D., Andrews University

Sometimes church members will remove colorful cosmetics and jewelry simply "because the church says so" rather than because they understand the principles that God has revealed to ensure a healthy relationship with Him. Such members are prone to ask, "What is wrong with my earrings or necklace? They are inconspicuous and inexpensive! What is wrong with wearing my miniskirt to church? It is only four inches above the knee! I am still young, and this is what everybody else wears!"
My heart has been troubled on many occasions by these questions because they reveal a negative attitude toward God. The concern seems to be: "How much adornment and body exposure can I get by with and still be accepted by God?" This attitude reflects a desire to do only the minimum necessary for salvation.
But a genuine Christian will not ask, "How little can I do and still remain a child of God?" but rather, "How much can I do to show my faith, love, and commitment to Christ through my outward appearance?" This is the positive approach springing from a heart so full of love for God that it wants to know how best to glorify Him in all aspects of lifestyle, including outward appearance. Christians with this positive and loving attitude are eager to know what God has revealed in Scripture regarding dress, jewelry, and cosmetics. It is with this attitude that we shall conduct our study, beginning from the Old Testament.
Objective of Chapter. This chapter examines the most relevant Old Testament passages dealing with jewelry, cosmetics, and extravagant clothing. We shall discover a consistent association of the use of these articles with seduction, adultery, and apostasy. We shall see that the removal of outward ornaments is a precondition to inward spiritual cleansing and reconciliation with God. In view of the fact that some people find support in certain Old Testament passages for a moderate use of jewelry, we shall give special attention to these passages and to the arguments drawn from them.
The Robe of Light. The human body was the crown of God’s creation, most marvellous in design, most beautiful in form and features, and most charming in expression. God expressed His total satisfaction over His creation of Adam and Eve, declaring it "very good" (Gen 1:31). In their Edenic state man and woman wore only the garment of their innocence. "A beautiful soft light, the light of God, enshrouded the holy pair. This robe of light was a symbol of their spiritual garments of heavenly innocence. Had they remained true to God it would ever have continued to enshroud them. But when sin entered, they severed their connection with God, and the light that had encircled them departed. Naked and ashamed, they tried to compensate for the loss of the heavenly garments by sewing together fig leaves for a covering."1
In the Bible, clothes or their absence (nudity) serve to represent the spiritual condition of human beings before God and His glory. When Adam and Eve sinned, they suddenly discovered that they "were naked" (Gen 3:7) because they had lost the robe of light. Their nakedness resulted not from removing physical garments. They had never worn any garment until that time. Rather, they became aware of their nakedness the moment they sinned and sensed their separation from the glorious presence of God which had been their covering.
Redemption is often represented in the Bible as the restoration of the original robe of light emanating from God’s glorious presence. Isaiah speaks of the restoration of the robes of light in the Messianic kingdom: "The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light by night, but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory" (Is 60:19). Similarly, John the Revelator compares the church waiting for Christ’s coming to a bride adorned for the wedding: "It was granted her to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure" (Rev 19:8). The Greek term for "bright" is lampron which literally means "shining, resplendent" like a lamp. The robe of light, lost because of sin, is finally regained. The light of God’s glory will clothe not only the redeemed but the city itself: "And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb" (Rev 21:23).
The imagery of clothing extends beyond creation and restoration to include the time in-between. To receive the robe of Christ’s glory at His Return, we need now to "put off the old nature" (Eph 4:23) and to "put on the Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom 13:14). The white robe of righteousness we are called to wear in this present life is not a garment woven by our efforts, but offered to us by Christ: "I counsel you to buy from me . . . white garments to clothe you and to keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen" (Rev 3:18). The nakedness of sin is covered by the glistening white garments offered by Christ. His promise to those "who have not soiled their garments" is that "they shall walk with me in white" (Rev 3:4).