Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version “’Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. New Living Translation “Do not trim off the hair on your temples or trim your beards. English Standard Version You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard. Berean Standard Bible You must not cut off the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. King James Bible Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. New King James Version You shall not shave around the sides of your head, nor shall you disfigure the edges of your beard. New American Standard Bible You shall not round off the hairline of your heads, nor trim the edges of your beard. NASB 1995 ‘You shall not round off the side-growth of your heads nor harm the edges of your beard. NASB 1977 ‘You shall not round off the side-growth of your heads, nor harm the edges of your beard. Legacy Standard Bible You shall not round off the side-growth of your heads nor harm the edges of your beard. Amplified Bible You shall not trim and round off the side-growth of [the hair on] your heads, nor mar the edges of your beard. Christian Standard Bible You are not to cut off the hair at the sides of your head or mar the edge of your beard. Holman Christian Standard Bible You are not to cut off the hair at the sides of your head or mar the edge of your beard. American Standard Version Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. English Revised Version Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. GOD'S WORD® Translation "Never shave the hair on your foreheads, and never cut the edges of your beard. Good News Translation Do not cut the hair on the sides of your head or trim your beard International Standard Version "You are not to cut your hair in ritualistic patterns on your head or deface the edges of your beard. NET Bible You must not round off the corners of the hair on your head or ruin the corners of your beard. New Heart English Bible "'You shall not cut the hair on the sides of your heads, neither shall you clip off the edge of your beard. Webster's Bible Translation Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. Majority Text Translations Majority Standard BibleYou must not cut off the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. World English Bible “‘You shall not cut the hair on the sides of your head or clip off the edge of your beard. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionYou do not round the corner of your head, nor destroy the corner of your beard. Young's Literal Translation 'Ye do not round the corner of your head, nor destroy the corner of thy beard. Smith's Literal Translation Ye shall not cut the extremities of your head, and thou shalt not destroy the extremities of thy beard. Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleNor shall you cut your hair roundwise: nor shave your beard. Catholic Public Domain Version And you shall not cut the hair of your head circularly, nor shave your beard. New American Bible Do not clip your hair at the temples, nor spoil the edges of your beard. New Revised Standard Version You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard. Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleYou shall not let the hair of your heads grow, neither shall you trim the corners of your beard. Peshitta Holy Bible Translated Do not grow the hairs of your heads and you shall not twist the mustache of your beards. OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. Brenton Septuagint Translation Ye shall not make a round cutting of the hair of your head, nor disfigure your beard. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context Keep My Decrees…26You must not eat anything with blood still in it. You must not practice divination or sorcery. 27You must not cut off the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. 28You must not make any cuts in your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.… Cross References Deuteronomy 14:1 You are sons of the LORD your God; do not cut yourselves or shave your foreheads on behalf of the dead, 1 Corinthians 11:14-15 Doesn’t nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, / but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. Isaiah 15:2 Dibon goes up to its temple to weep at its high places. Moab wails over Nebo, as well as over Medeba. Every head is shaved, every beard is cut off. Jeremiah 9:26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab, and all the inhabitants of the desert who clip the hair of their temples. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.” Ezekiel 44:20 They must not shave their heads or let their hair grow long, but must carefully trim their hair. 1 Samuel 1:11 And she made a vow, saying, “O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever touch his head.” Numbers 6:5 For the entire period of his vow of separation, no razor shall touch his head. He must be holy until the time of his separation to the LORD is complete; he must let the hair of his head grow long. 2 Samuel 10:4-5 So Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their garments at the hips, and sent them away. / When this was reported to David, he sent messengers to meet the men, since they had been thoroughly humiliated. The king told them, “Stay in Jericho until your beards have grown back, and then return.” 2 Kings 1:8 “He was a hairy man,” they answered, “with a leather belt around his waist.” “It was Elijah the Tishbite,” said the king. Judges 13:5 For behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son. And no razor shall touch his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Do you not know that your body is a temple 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 glorify God with your body. Romans 12:1-2 Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. / Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. 1 Peter 3:3-4 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair or gold jewelry or fine clothes, / but from the inner disposition of your heart, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in God’s sight. 1 Timothy 2:9-10 Likewise, I want the women to adorn themselves with respectable apparel, with modesty, and with self-control, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, / but with good deeds, as is proper for women who profess to worship God. Matthew 5:36 Nor should you swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. Treasury of Scripture You shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shall you mar the corners of your beard. Leviticus 21:5 They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh. Isaiah 15:2 He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off. Jeremiah 16:6 Both the great and the small shall die in this land: they shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them: Jump to Previous Beard Chin Clip Corner Corners Cut Destroy Edge Edges Ends Face Hair Harm Head Heads Mar Mutilate Round Shave Sides TemplesJump to Next Beard Chin Clip Corner Corners Cut Destroy Edge Edges Ends Face Hair Harm Head Heads Mar Mutilate Round Shave Sides TemplesLeviticus 19 1. A repetition of various lawsYou must not cut off the hair at the sides of your head This command is part of the Holiness Code, a section of Leviticus that outlines how the Israelites are to live as God's holy people. The prohibition against cutting the hair at the sides of the head is often understood as a directive to distinguish the Israelites from surrounding pagan cultures, which may have practiced specific hair-cutting rituals as part of idol worship or mourning rites. In ancient Near Eastern cultures, hair was often associated with one's identity and status, and altering it could symbolize allegiance to foreign gods. This command emphasizes the importance of maintaining a distinct identity as God's chosen people. or clip off the edges of your beard. Persons / Places / Events 1. MosesThe prophet and leader of the Israelites who received the laws from God, including the instructions in Leviticus. 2. Israelites The chosen people of God to whom the laws in Leviticus were given, as they were being formed into a distinct nation. 3. Mount Sinai The place where Moses received the Law from God, including the instructions found in Leviticus. 4. Canaan The land promised to the Israelites, where they were to live according to God's laws and be set apart from the surrounding nations. 5. Pagan Nations The surrounding cultures whose practices the Israelites were to avoid, including certain grooming habits that were associated with idolatry. Teaching Points Cultural DistinctivenessThe command in Leviticus 19:27 was part of a broader call for the Israelites to be distinct from the surrounding nations. As Christians, we are called to live in a way that reflects our identity in Christ, distinct from worldly values. Holiness and Identity The grooming laws were symbolic of a deeper spiritual truth about holiness and identity. Our outward actions should reflect our inner commitment to God. Avoiding Idolatry The prohibition against certain grooming practices was to prevent the Israelites from adopting pagan rituals. We must be vigilant in avoiding practices that could lead us away from God. Respect for God's Creation The command can also be seen as a call to respect the way God has made us, avoiding unnecessary alterations that reflect pagan practices. Understanding Context While the specific command may not apply directly today, understanding its context helps us discern how to apply biblical principles in our cultural setting. Lists and Questions Top 10 Lessons from Leviticus 19Leviticus 19:27 speaks against specific forms of shaving and hair trimming; why do modern believers overlook this? What are the Bible's teachings on shaving? What was the appearance of biblical people? What was Jesus' physical appearance?(27) Round the corners of your heads.--That is, they are not to shave off the hair around the temples and behind the ears, so as to leave the head bald except a dish-like tuft upon the crown, thus imparting to their heads the form of a hemisphere. This was done by the Arabs, and other worshippers of the god Orotal. Hence the Arabs are ironically called "those with the corner of their hair polled," as it is rightly rendered in the Margin (Jeremiah 9:26; Jeremiah 25:23; Jeremiah 49:32). Mar the corners of thy beard.--The beard was regarded by the Hebrews and other eastern nations as the greatest ornament of a man, and was as dear to them as life itself. It was the object of salutation (2Samuel 20:9), and the mutilation of it was looked upon as the greatest disgrace and most degrading punishment (2Samuel 10:4; Isaiah 7:20; Ezra 5:1-5, &c.). It was only in seasons of sorrow that the Hebrews neglected their beards; and sometimes, to show how deeply they were afflicted, they covered them up, or even cut them off, or tore them out (2Samuel 19:24; Isaiah 15:2; Jeremiah 41:5, &c.). Because it was so precious a treasure, it was customary among some of the ancients to present to their gods the firstlings of their beards. The prohibition before us alludes to this practice. . . . Hebrew You must notלֹ֣א (lō) Adverb - Negative particle Strong's 3808: Not, no cut off the hair תַקִּ֔פוּ (ṯaq·qi·p̄ū) Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - second person masculine plural Strong's 5362: To strike, to knock together, surround, circulate at the sides פְּאַ֖ת (pə·’aṯ) Noun - feminine singular construct Strong's 6285: Mouth, direction, region, extremity of your head רֹאשְׁכֶ֑ם (rō·šə·ḵem) Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine plural Strong's 7218: The head or clip off תַשְׁחִ֔ית (ṯaš·ḥîṯ) Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - second person masculine singular Strong's 7843: Perhaps to go to ruin the edges פְּאַ֥ת (pə·’aṯ) Noun - feminine singular construct Strong's 6285: Mouth, direction, region, extremity of your beard. זְקָנֶֽךָ׃ (zə·qā·ne·ḵā) Noun - common singular construct | second person masculine singular Strong's 2206: Beard, chin Links Leviticus 19:27 NIVLeviticus 19:27 NLT Leviticus 19:27 ESV Leviticus 19:27 NASB Leviticus 19:27 KJV Leviticus 19:27 BibleApps.com Leviticus 19:27 Biblia Paralela Leviticus 19:27 Chinese Bible Leviticus 19:27 French Bible Leviticus 19:27 Catholic Bible OT Law: Leviticus 19:27 You shall not cut the hair (Le Lv Lev.) |
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