Sometimes, as Christian women, though we want to live godly lives, we struggle to understand the “why” of some of the Bible’s teaching on women, including submission. We’re told on the one hand that we are equal to men, yet we are to submit to our husbands and male leaders in the church. Of course, the world tells us we’re crazy to accept that idea, and sometimes we’re more influenced by the world around us than we might like to admit. So how are we to understand? Are submission and equality mutually exclusive?
Many of us, though we want to live godly lives, chafe against some of the Bible’s teaching on women, including submission. We’re told on the one hand that we are equal to men, yet we are to submit to our husbands and male leaders in the church. So, are submission and equality mutually exclusive?
God, through the prophet Isaiah, had a great deal to say about judgment. And in Isaiah 3, He spoke directly to the women of Zion. Their clothing, jewelry, perfume, beauty, and appearance had become connected to something much deeper—a heart of pride and a desire to attract attention.
God warned that judgment was coming, even in the very areas they valued so highly.
But does that mean God is against attractive clothing, jewelry, perfume, or other ways we care for our appearance? And what principles might this passage give us about modern questions like tattoos, piercings, t-shirts, modesty, and fashion?
The answer goes deeper than a list of rules. It requires us to examine our motives, our consciences, and the effect our choices may have on others.
And there is another important truth in Isaiah’s warning. God wasn’t warning His people because He delighted in judgment. He was calling them to repent. And in the middle of those warnings, He gave His faithful people a wonderful word of encouragement:
“Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them.”
What does that promise mean when God’s judgment affects the culture and nation around us? And what kind of “divine supports and comforts” does God provide His people in difficult times?
But God didn’t send Isaiah to His people out of meanness. He sent him to warn them so they could repent and turn from evil and going their own way because God cannot be just, holy, and righteous and not judge evil. Something our nation, as a whole, needs to understand.
So, what does all this have to do with tattoos and t-shirts? And what words of encouragement did Isaiah include in his warnings?
But God didn’t send Isaiah to His people out of meanness. He sent him to warn them so they could repent and turn from evil and going their own way because God cannot be just, holy, and righteous and not judge evil. Something our nation, as a whole, needs to understand.
So, what does all this have to do with tattoos and t-shirts? And what words of encouragement did Isaiah include in his warnings?
