Problem: Critics argue that arbitrary laws like this seem quite bizarre. Why would God care about trimming our beards or getting tattoos?
Solution: In ancient Near Eastern culture, beard trimming and tattoos were closely connected with Pagan practices of contacting the dead, which was expressly forbidden in Israel (Deut. 18:11). This is why the text clearly states, “You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead” (Lev. 19:28). Copan writes, “The act of men trimming their hair on the sides of their head or the edges of their beard… was a Canaanite practice of offering one’s hair to departed spirits to appease them (cf. Deut. 14:1).”[1]
[1] Copan, Paul. Is God a Moral Monster?: Making Sense of the Old Testament God. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2011. 91.
“Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord. (Lev 19:27-28)”
