Christian Men and Beards
by
By way of introduction of why I feel this is a topic worth visiting let me share a personal testimony with you:
In the neck of the woods that I come from (West Tennessee) Pentecostal fundamentalism ruled. Standing on the front porch of the house I grew up in I could count no less than 35 Oneness Pentecostal churches within a 15 mile radius -- and I lived in the country. (For those that think the UPCI compose the vast majority of Oneness believers I will say this: of the 35 Oneness churches only 3 were UPCI.) In my part of the world one was either Pentecostal or Baptist.
Our brand of Pentecostalism was to the right of the right, so to speak. Apart from Acts 2:38 the message one heard more often than any other was the “4-H” sermon. What was the “4-H” sermon? you may be asking. You know, it is the sermon when one hears about “hair”, “hems”, “hose” and “holes” (in case you are wondering what “holes” related to: the holes in the toes of women’s shoes—which under no circumstance could be the color red). Under the category of “hair” was the hair of men as well as women. Of course the women could never cut their hair—not even split ends, spit curl nor bangs. The hair requirements for men were just as restrictive in the other direction: it was required that men keep their hair cut at the hair line (hair was to be kept off the collar and the ear) and the sideburns at the cheek bones. You can rest assured that in this hair regiment for men, absolutely no facial hair was allowed.
Looking back on it now we all are, or should be, more than a little embarrassed at how we permitted ourselves to be led to such extremes without questioning the pulpits that were requiring such measures. Christianity does not require one to check in their minds upon being baptized. One should question everything that comes across the pulpit. For this reason the Bible admonishes the believer to “prove all things” and to “judge” what is preached. If you, dear reader, have followed my writing, or preaching, for very long you have read or heard me say, “Nothing suffers from examination except error.” We all should stand appalled at the damage done to the body of Christ by men and women who have little education but great oratory skills. Pentecostalism has not been exempt from contributing to the religious trash heap of the cults, from the People’s Temple cult led by Jim Jones, to the snake handling cults of Appalachia, to the “4-H Club” preachers and churches.
An example of the “ignorance on parade” type of preaching and teaching that produced (sadly is still producing) the doctrine of “No Facial Hair” on Christian men can be found in this true story:
In the late sixties of the last century there was a camp-meeting conducted in the Iron Hill community just outside Parsons, Tennessee. Among the sponsoring pastors were L. M., O.T. C., R. C. M., C. B., D. J., G. S., R. G., and B. G.; the camp evangelist was B. R. of Louisiana.
Of course the intention of the night evangelist of such gatherings is to bring the crowd to its feet by preaching on pet points of doctrine that sets that particular group apart from all others. Well, Elder B. Ritchey was one of the best speakers in the country and was in high demand as a camp meeting speaker. On this particular night he was preaching against facial hair on Christian men. During his sermon he introduced the text from Isaiah 7:20. He quoted the part of the text that says, “In that day the Lord will shave..” Now, his point for introducing this text was to say that it had Christ in view (a reference to v14) and that it proved Jesus shaved. Therefore, all Christian men should be like Christ and shave their faces clean. When the evangelist made that statement the crowed erupted in shouting. Many of the men, with shaved faces, began running around the tent in excitement at the fact that there was a Scripture text that “proved” Christian men should be clean shaven. Now, I know this to be true because I was one of those men.
Think of my sense of betrayal when years later I learned the true meaning of Isaiah 7:20. It did not mean what the preacher said it meant. IT MEANT RIGHT THE OPPOSITE! In Isaiah 7:20 the prophet is prophesying against Israel and telling them that the LORD was going to send the Assyrians against them to shame them and reveal their nakedness. Thus the analogy of a razor and the removal of the beard. (This text will be addressed later on in this writing.) Did the evangelist knowingly misrepresent the the prophet Isaiah? I knew him personally very well (later on I conducted revival meetings in his church and preached the state camp meeting for the ALJC in his state) and would not think that of him. However, I have witnessed first hand how wrong doctrine will force otherwise honest men to doctrinal dishonesty, rather then admit their teaching to have been in error.
At the turn of the 20th Century most all men, that could, grew beards. (Biblically, it was a shame to have one’s face shaved.) With the advent of the First World War, all that changed. This is how and why it changed:
In this war, chemical warfare was introduced on a major and universal scale. In order to use gas masks properly, all soldiers of every army were required to be clean shaven. When the men came home from the war, all had clean shaven faces. The womenof America and Europe loved it. The fashion designers of New York and Paris and other fashion centers of the world saw this and quickly responded with all men’s fashions represented with shaved men. Then it became the “fashion” and accepted norm.
It is an irony that the “holiness” preachers of the last century permitted the worldly fashion pimps of New York and Paris to form their brand of “holiness.”
In professing themselves to be men of God, they demonstrate themselves to be nothing more than willing tools in the hands of the Ungodly, who lead men into rebellion against the very nature of the Almighty.
Hello friends, I am a full time biblical researcher. I rely on freewill love offerings (from those of you who benefit from my work) and book sales for my support. After you have been blessed by this essay, would you please consider leaving a small donation at the link provided here? Thank you for your support. -JLH
What Does The Bible Actually Say About Beards?
The most clear biblical passage to condone beards comes from Leviticus (19:27): “You shall not cut the hair on the sides of your heads, neither shall you clip off the edge of your beard.” To cut off another man’s beard, according to Samuel (10:4) is an outrage.
According to Jeremiah (41:5), to shave or pluck one’s own beard was only appropriate during times of mourning. In other passage of holy scripture, Leviticus (21:5) states that “You shall not shave your beard for the dead [a pagan practice] with a baldness on the top, and they shall not shave their beard.” Moreover, Leviticus (19:27) also states “...to all men in general, you shall not make a round cutting of their hair of your head, nor disfigure your beard.”
Roughly 200 years after the death of Jesus, Clement of Alexandra wrote that it is impious “to desecrate the symbol of manhood, hairness.” Writing in 195 A.D., Clement also stated “But let the chin have the hair ... For an ample beard suffices for men. And if one, too, shave a part of his beard, it must not be made entirely bare, for this is a disgraceful sight.” Even today Christian clergy in Greece, Russia, Romania and other Orthodox communities wear untrimmed beards and hair.
Men in the Bible Who Had Beards
The Bible does mention many Godly men who had beards: First, Aaron, Moses’ brother, definitely had a beard: It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments (Psalm 133:2)
We also see that Samson, who took the Nazarite vow, also must have surely had a beard: That he told her all his heart, and said unto her, There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazirite unto God from my mother’s womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man. (Judges 16:17)
And King David, the man after God’s own heart, also wore a beard. In perhaps the funniest passage of all the Bible, David, fearing for his own life, pretended to be insane to escape death from King Achish. Can’t you imagine David blurting out gibberish, scrabbling on a door, and spitting all over himself to appear insane? And he changed his behavior before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. (1 Samuel 21:13)
Ezekiel also wore a beard, as we see in this passage where God has him to shave part of his hair and beard, as a symbolic gesture showing the shame that would soon come upon Jerusalem. Shaving the head or beard of a man in these times would have caused severe humiliation, and God used this illustration by his prophet Ezekiel to reflect the impending shame that Jerusalem would soon feel by the hands of their enemies (the Babylonians): “Now, son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber’s razor to shave your head and your beard. Then take a set of scales and divide up the hair. (Ezekiel 5:1)
Joseph, the son of Jacob, also wore a beard, as we see in the passage below. He was to be presented to Pharaoh, and it was Egyptian custom to be clean-shaven: Pharaoh sent for Joseph at once, and he was quickly brought from the prison. After he shaved and changed his clothes, he went in and stood before Pharaoh. (Genesis 41:14)
Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth, also referred to as Saul’s son since he was his grandson, also grew a beard, as we see in this passage when he hadn’t groomed it for a time due to mourning: And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king. He had neither taken care of his feet nor trimmed his beard nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came back in safety. (2 Samuel 19:24)
Ezra, after learning that the Israelites had broken God’s strict command of not intermarrying with the surrounding women, tore his garments and beard in complete horror of their sin: And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down astonished. (Ezra 9:3)
Last, but certainly not least, the scriptures show us that Jesus Himself had a beard. The following passage is a prophecy from the book of Isaiah, and it depicts the future Messiah (Jesus) as a suffering servant. This prophecy was fulfilled literally as Christ stood in front of his mockers before he was crucified: I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting. (Isaiah 50:6)
Note how in the above passage, His beard was pulled out. This is interesting for a few reasons: This reveals that Christ certainly had a beard, and it wasn’t a very short beard.
So the Bible clearly teaches that Kings, the Prophets, and even our Lord Jesus had a beard. In other words, beards are Biblical. I think any denomination or cult who shuns beards need to read their Bibles again! How dare anyone frown on growing a beard, when Jesus Himself had a beard and was without sin. Most all Godly men: From Abraham, Adam, Moses, etc. would have worn a beard. God made men with the ability to grow beards, and therefore, most men in the Bible grew them.
Some suggest people today should not grow beards by using the lame argument, “That was a different culture. Things have changed.” Friend, we don’t need to change the Bible to fit in with the world, we need to change the world to fit in with the Bible.
To Shave or Cut a Man’s Beard Was To Shame or Humiliate Him
Now that we’ve established the fact that most God-fearing men wore beards, let’s now notice how beards are held in great esteem by men in the scriptures. In the Bible, not having a beard was an embarrassment to a man, especially if it was taken from Him in a shameful way. Here are some scriptures that reveal how beards are held in esteem, and shaving a beard was a grave embarrassment.
In this first passage, we see how men were greatly ashamed that their beards had been cut: So Hanun took David’s servants and shaved off half the beard of each and cut off their garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away. When it was told David, he sent to meet them, for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Remain at Jericho until your beards have grown and then return.” (2 Samuel 10:4-5)
These men were so humiliated to have their beards cut, they were allowed to wait until they grew out before they returned. I find this interesting for one reason: The beards were only half-shaved. They could have easily shaved the other half and looked okay. But they didn’t do that. Instead, David knew what a beard meant to a man. So he ordered that they remain until their beards grew back. This proves beyond a doubt that beards were considered a big deal in this biblical society.
Next, Isaiah, prophesying the impending attack from the Assyrians, symbolically described their attack as shaming the entire body of Judah (again, showing the shame of shaving one’s head and beard. This is the text that I wrote about in my testimony at the beginning of this writing): In that day the Lord will shave with a razor that is hired beyond the River—with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it will sweep away the beard also. (Isaiah 7:20)
Again, Isaiah uses the shaving of the beard as a symbol if humiliation and sham: He has gone up to the temple, and to Dibon, to the high places to weep; over Nebo and over Medeba Moab wails. On every head is baldness; every beard is shorn; (Isaiah 15:2)
And in the Book of Jeremiah, we see how shaving a beard was a sign of deep mourning or shame: Eighty men arrived from Shechem and Shiloh and Samaria, with their beards shaved and their clothes torn, and their bodies gashed, bringing grain offerings and incense to present at the temple of the LORD. (Jeremiah 41:5). And: For every head shall be bald, and every beard clipped: upon all the hands shall be cuttings, and upon the loins sackcloth. (Jeremiah 48:37)
All of these verses make it clear that not only did Godly men wear beards, but they also had great esteem for their beards. They recognized God’s creative power in giving men and women distinct characteristics. To shave their beard meant great humiliation or shame. It also was used by God as a bold sign of great calamity, or great mourning, thus showing God’s attitude toward beards.
Early Churchmen on Beards
1) "The Beard Signifies the Courageous" – St Augustine, 4th – 5th century
“The beard signifies the courageous; the beard distinguishes the grown men, the earnest, the active, the vigorous. So that when we describe such, we say, he is a bearded man.” (Exposition on Psalm 133, 6)
2) "Manliness and Strength" – Lactantius, 3rd – 4th century
“[T]he nature of the beard contributes in an incredible degree to distinguish the maturity of bodies, or to the distinction of sex, or to the beauty of manliness and strength.” (On the Workmanship of God, Chapter 7)
3) "What a Disgrace" – St. John Chrysostom, 4th century
“Just think now what a disgrace it would be for a man having a flowing beard, and with staff in hand, and cope on shoulders, to go to school with children, and be set the same tasks with them: would it not be above measure ridiculous?” (Homily 10 on the Acts of the Apostles)
4) "Unnaturally Change the Form of a Man" – Apostolic Constitutions, 4th century
“[I]t is not lawful for you, a believer and a man of God, to permit the hair of your head to grow long, and to brush it up together, nor to suffer it to spread abroad, nor to puff it up, nor by nice combing and platting to make it curl and shine; since that is contrary to the law, which says thus, in its additional precepts: You shall not make to yourselves curls and round rasures. Nor may men destroy the hair of their beards, and unnaturally change the form of a man. For the law says: You shall not mar your beards. For God the Creator has made this decent for women, but has determined that it is unsuitable for men. But if you do these things to please men, in contradiction to the law, you will be abominable with God, who created you after His own image. If, therefore, you will be acceptable to God, abstain from all those things which He hates, and do none of those things that are unpleasing to Him.” (Apostolic Constitutions, Book 1, Section 2)
5) "Impious to Desecrate the Symbol of Manhood" – Clement of Alexandria, 2nd – 3rd century
“But for one who is a man to comb himself and shave himself with a razor, for the sake of fine effect, to arrange his hair at the looking-glass, to shave his cheeks, pluck hairs out of them, and smooth them, how womanly! […] For this is a meretricious and impious form of snare. For God wished women to be smooth, and rejoice in their locks alone growing spontaneously, as a horse in his mane; but has adorned man, like the lions, with a beard, and endowed him, as an attribute of manhood, with a shaggy chest – a sign of strength and rule. […]
“This, then, the mark of the man, the beard, by which he is seen to be a man, is older than Eve… In this God deemed it right that he should excel, and dispersed hair over man's whole body. Whatever smoothness and softness was in him He abstracted from his side when He formed the woman Eve, physically receptive, his partner in parentage, his help in household management, while he (for he had parted with all smoothness) remained a man, and shows himself man. […]
“Wherefore males have both more hair and more heat than females… It is therefore impious to desecrate the symbol of manhood, hairiness. But the embellishment of smoothing (for I am warned by the Word), if it is to attract men, is the act of an effeminate person,— if to attract women, is the act of an adulterer; and both must be driven as far as possible from our society. […]
“Let the head of men be shaven, unless it has curly hair. But let the chin have the hair. But let not twisted locks hang far down from the head, gliding into womanish ringlets. For an ample beard suffices for men. And if one, too, shave a part of his beard, it must not be made entirely bare, for this is a disgraceful sight. The shaving of the chin to the skin is reprehensible, approaching to plucking out the hair and smoothing. For instance, thus the Psalmist, delighted with the hair of the beard, says, ‘As the ointment that descends on the beard, the beard of Aaron.’ Having celebrated the beauty of the beard by a repetition, he made the face to shine with the ointment of the Lord.” (The Instructor, Book 3, Chapters 3, 11)
Doesn’t the Bible Forbid Trimming a Beard?
One verse that is sometimes a point of confusion is this: You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard. You shall not make any cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves: I am the LORD. (Leviticus 19:27-28)
In this passage, God is forbidding the Israelites to emulate the surrounding pagan nations, who squared off their beards as an act of worship to their false Gods/idols. These nations would also make cuts on their bodies when mourning, and place tattoos on themselves. Funny how some things never change, eh?
God has always called His people to be separate from “the world,” and grace didn’t change that. In the New Testament we are also told not to be yoked together with unbelievers, and to avoid worldly appearances, and to not be “of the world.” Law or grace has nothing to do with separation or Godly principles for living (or clothing yourself). So what this passage is saying is that God doesn’t want His people to look or act like un-godly people. Tattoos, cutting of the body, freakish hairstyles–these are all things pagans/unbelievers have done (and still do).
This doesn’t mean you can’t groom your beard, or cut your hair. In fact, God actually wants us to have good hygiene. He wants us to keep our bodies, which is the temple of the Holy Spirit, clean and Holy to glorify God. The scriptures teach that men should keep short hair on their heads, which is only done by regular grooming: They shall not shave their heads or let their locks grow long; they shall surely trim the hair of their heads. (Ezekiel 44:20)
So these scriptures show us that we shouldn’t grow facial hair in a way to emulate pagans or ungodly people. Of course, we are free to groom our hair and beards to keep them looking respectful. Beards were the default for men in the Bible.
Should Christian Men Grow Beards or Facial Hair?
With all of the scripture above being considered, the Bible makes a strong case that growing a beard is an honor for a man, and glory to God. Why? Well, first, we see that Godly men (and our LORD) wore a beard/facial hair. Next, we see that it was shameful or humiliating to have it shaved or removed. Next, we see God forbidding Israelites from adopting pagan practices, which including trimming the beard in a way the pagans did in honor of their deity.
Also, we should note that this is a highly distinguishing characteristic that God gave specifically for men. With the minor exception of a few women with severe medical conditions or genetic defects, only a man can grow a beard. This is a God-given honor.
One has freedom on how long one wants to grow his beard. Some men prefer to keep a short beard. Others keep stubble.
Even though many Godly men grew beards, some may say, “I don’t live under the law.” Well, that’s true, We don’t live under the law, but is growing a beard a law? Has it ever been a law? It is just the way God made a man to be. Have you ever seen a lion? He has a wonderful God-given beard, which beautifully distinguishes him from his female lioness. There’s no “law” that a lion has to have it’s beautiful beard, it’s just the way he’s made.
“But I’m saved by grace alone, and I have freedom in Christ for my hairstyles,” yet another man may quip. Well, that’s true too. In all of this talk about grace, legalism, and law, let’s consider another point about beards.
The Apostle Paul knew a great deal about grace, law, and faith. In fact, he is the guy who wrote the chapters on it! But even though Paul loathed the Judaizers and the Pharisees teaching works-based salvation, and always upheld Grace doctrines, let’s see what the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write:
I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.
A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels. Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.
Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not the very nature of things 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. If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice—nor do the churches of God.
I Corinthians 11:2-16 (underlining mine)
Paul, in his argument about hair length and head coverings, appeals to nature. Here he suggests, by the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, that it is dishonorable for men to have their head covered (with anything). Likewise, it is dishonorable for a woman to pray without her head covered.
He says, “Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him?” In other words, Paul is saying: “Hey guys, it’s pretty obvious that women ought to have their head covered, because this is how God created a woman to be. And men ought to not cover their heads, since their heads are usually uncovered (ie, balding or short hair).
Isn’t a beard merely an extension of this very same “nature” argument? By nature, don’t most men produce facial hair? Is it not just as obvious as the Apostle Paul suggests here with regard to hair length? It is a God-given honor to grow facial hair (whether a full beard, or even a partial one). It is a glorious distinction between the sexes. Even if a man can only grow a little scruff, long sideburns, or a mustache–it is still a glorious distinction and an honor God gave us.
This has nothing to do with salvation. It has nothing to do with law or grace or sin. But it does have something to do with nature itself–the very nature of a man! Your nature (ie, genetics) makes you grow hair on your face.
Now, you don’t have to grow a scraggly beard to your knees. You can trim it nicely. Just like you should trim the hair that naturally grows on your head. We should say, if you can’t grow a beard, or choose not to, you’re no less of a man. God made you that way, so honor Him the way He made you.
Benefits of Growing a Beard
Aside from scripture, as a man, I can attest to the very practical reasons to grow a beard. Here are a few of the benefits:
- Saves time and money–My beard generally needs to be trimmed only every couple of weeks. It takes just minutes. Contrast that with people who have to lather up their faces daily. Furthermore, I just use an electric trimmer (the same I use to cut my hair). I never have to waste money on shaving cream, razors, etc. This adds up to thousands of dollars in savings over a lifetime (do the math!).
- Keeps you warm in the winter–Beards act as natural insulators to the face, helping it to stay warm.
- Hides imperfections on the face–Have a weak jaw line, a strange mole, or other imperfections on your lower face? A beard will have you covered (literally).
- Enhances your appearance–My wife is a very attractive woman, and without hesitation, she tells me that my beard is one of her favorite features on my face. She loves my beard. Not all women like beards (at least, at first), but many of them do once they realize how you look with it grown out and groomed.
- Glorifies God and honors you–Most importantly, given the fact that God created us to grow hair facial hair, and that by our very nature beards are the natural result, I think it gives honor to the man, and glory to the God that made man with his God-given beard.
The only downsides to having a beard is that occasionally a hair will fall out. No big deal, and it’s no different than a hair of your head falling down. Plus, you can trim it to any length you want, so don’t worry about looking like some Amish person or renegade. If you want a closely cropped beard, go for it!
Conclusion: We Need a Beard Revolution!
The Bible places great emphasis on beards. Many Godly men wore them, and beards were held in high esteem. Facial hair is a bold distinction God has generally given to men. Christian men should strongly consider the verses above, and the distinctive characteristics that facial hair offers a man.
Let us embrace our God-given distinction, and reject Satan’s objective to blur the lines between males and females. Did Jesus not say, And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, (Matthew 19:4).
Don’t get the idea that I’d ever look down on a Christian brother who couldn’t grow a beard. I know many wonderful Christian men who wished they could grow a beard, but couldn’t. All I’m trying to do in this article is reveal the scriptures, show how beards do glorify God by revealing His distinctions, if God enabled you to do so.
Charles Spurgeon is considered by many to be one of the greatest preachers of the ages. He is often called “The Prince of Preachers.” I’ll leave you with a quote from him as he lectured a group of students: “Growing a beard ‘is a habit most natural, scriptural, manly, and beneficial.’” -Charles Spurgeon
Apostolically Speaking
☩☩ Jerry L Hayes
(Mar David Ignatius)
Read other essays from the Bishop on the Christian's physical appearance:
The Christian Woman's Outward Adorning
https://bishopjerrylhayes.blogspot.com/2015/06/outward-adorning-of-christian-women.html
Deuteronomy 22:5, Christian Women and Slacks
https://bishopjerrylhayes.blogspot.com/2013/10/deuteronomy-225-examined-by-laws-of.html
Meaning of the Word, “Katastolē”
(As it pertains to a woman’s attire) ⏤ 1 Timothy 2:9
Biblical Liturgical Dress Requirement For Men and Women
Ministers and Clerical Dress: Collars and Vestments
Hello friends, my name is Jerry Hayes, I am a full time biblical researcher. I rely on freewill love offerings (from those of you who benefit from my work) and book sales for my support. Would you please consider leaving a small donation at the link provided here? Thank you for your support.
