Numbers 15:37-41

C. LAW OF THE TASSELS vv. 37-41
TEXT

Numbers 15:37. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 38. Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments, throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue; 39. And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring: 40. That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God. 41. I am the Lord your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.

PARAPHRASE

Numbers 15:37. And the Lord spoke to Moses saying, 38. speak to the children of Israel and tell them that they shall make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and they shall put on the tassel of each corner a blue cord. 39. And it shall be a tassel for you to see and remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them. Do not seek after your own heart or your own eyes, after which you wander, 40. in order that you may remember to do all my commandments, and be holy to your God. 41. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am the Lord your God.

COMMENTARY

Tzitzit, the Hebrew term used in Numbers 15:38, probably means tassels. Ezekiel used the word (Numbers 8:3) where its apparent meaning is lock of hair. They were placed at the corners of the garments, attached by a blue cord. Two purposes have been ascribed to the tassels: they are to remind the people of their living relationship to the Lord and His Laws; and, they serve as a readily recognizable means of identification for His people. Wherever they went, and among whatsoever people they might mingle, they were uniquely marked unless, in repudiation of this commandment, they should be ashamed or unwilling to comply with God's requirement.

Historically, the Israelites complied with the commandment by wearing the tallith, a special garment worn by all males beyond the age of thirteen. It was a long, narrow cloth with a tassel at each corner and a hole in the center. The head was passed through the hole, and the cloth fell to the chest and the mid-back. Among the many other aberrations and showy practices of the Pharisees, making these tassels extremely large was a practice which Jesus condemned (Matthew 23:5). Their actions had become exhibitions of pridefar from the purpose for which the Lord had prescribed the tassels in the first place. Numerology has figured in the rabbinical attitude toward the tzitzit, whose gematria is six hundred. Adding eight threads and five knots (arbitrarily assigned as components of the garment), one arrives at the total of 613, the total number of commandments accepted as obligatory upon the Jews. Of further interest is the fact that the blue dye used for the tassels was derived from the blood of the hilazon, a shellfish, and was very expensive. It was later determined, perhaps because of the prohibitive cost, that the knotted cord might be white.

Non-Jewish scholars have usually cited the psychological importance of the tzitzit as constant reminders of the individual's relationship to God. Following their own heart and their own eyes would mean spiritual defection according to their personal whims rather than the righteous laws God had delivered to them. Such a defection is termed a whoring here in KJa strong, symbolical term frequently applied to such conduct in both testaments.

QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH ITEMS

288.

Describe the tzitzit, its appearance and function.

289.

What use, and what abuse, was made of the tassels?

290.

Discuss the numerological significance attached to the tassels.

291.

For what reason were the Israelites later permitted to make the tassels white rather than blue?

292.

Do you find any memorials or instructions in the New Testament which resemble the one given here?