Numbers 15:38
“Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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The command to add a "cord of blue" to the tassels isn't just about decoration; it makes the tassels strikingly visible. This wasn't meant to be a subtle reminder, but a constant, almost unavoidable visual cue, designed to catch the eye and jolt the wearer into remembering God’s commands.
This instruction comes right after God establishes laws concerning unintentional sins and sacrifices for atonement. In essence, God is shifting from dealing with what happens when people stray to providing a constant, visible reminder to stay on His path. These fringes are to be worn on the corners of their garments, serving as a physical emblem to help them remember and obey all of God's commands.
Why would God ask His people to wear a constant, visible reminder of His commands on their clothing?
God's people were instructed to add tassels, or fringes, to the corners of their garments, with a blue cord woven into each. This wasn't just decoration; it was a divine instruction for a specific purpose.
A Living Memorial
The primary goal, as stated in Numbers 15:39, was remembrance. These tassels served as a tangible cue to recall all of God's commandments. In a time before widely accessible scriptures, such physical markers were crucial for maintaining spiritual discipline and focus.
More Than Just Appearance
While the tassels were visible, their value wasn't in their appearance alone. The commentaries highlight that the texture or the specific knots held no inherent religious power. Instead, their significance came from God's decree: they were to be a constant, everyday sign pointing back to His Word and His will. This applied to their everyday garments, ensuring faith wasn't confined to specific religious settings.
What was special about the blue cord, and why was it a specific part of this commandment?
The instruction to add a 'cord of blue' to the tassels was a significant detail. While the exact shade and method of its application are debated, the color blue carried profound symbolism within ancient Israel.
Symbolism of Blue
Many Jewish traditions connect the color blue to the sky, and by extension, to heaven and God's throne. The commentaries suggest it was a distinct color meant to draw attention. This blue thread, woven into the white tassels, would make them more noticeable, enhancing their function as a reminder.
A Heavenly Connection
This visible connection to the heavens served as a constant reminder that God's commands were not arbitrary human rules, but divine precepts originating from the heavenly realm. It subtly pointed to the divine authority behind the Law and the holy nature of the God of Israel, who called His people to be holy like Him.
Understand the original words
tsitsith · Hebrew Noun
Distinctive decorative fringes or tufts of thread attached to the corners of garments, serving as a visual and tactile reminder of God's covenantal requirements and the holiness of the people.
tekheleth · Hebrew Noun
A specific pigment often associated with the heavens and the priesthood, serving as a symbolic reminder of the Lord's majesty, the covenant, and the heavenly origin of the commandments.
This passage shows the fulfillment of the symbolic meaning of the tassels when a woman touched Jesus' garment, demonstrating the deep reverence and expectation tied to these appointed signs.
Matthew 23:5Here, Jesus contrasts the true purpose of the fringes—remembrance of God's commands—with the hypocrisy of the Pharisees who made them large for show, highlighting the importance of inner obedience over outward display.
Deuteronomy 22:12This passage provides a parallel command for making fringes on garments, reinforcing the enduring nature of this practice throughout Israel's history and its divine origin.
Exodus 22:26-27This earlier commandment about keeping a garment taken as a pledge serves as a foundational principle for the Israelites' modest attire, connecting outward appearance to righteous conduct.
Numbers 15:39-40These verses directly explain the purpose of the tassels: to be a visual reminder of God's commandments, urging the Israelites to remember and obey them, thus linking the physical sign to spiritual obedience.
gillNumbers 15:38: "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:"
Speak unto the children of Israel,.... Whom it only concerned, and all of them, except women and children; for priests, Levites, Israelites, proselytes, and freed servants, were bound to wear the fringes, but not Gentiles; nor might the Gentiles make them, what were made by…
calvinNumbers 15:37-41: "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,"
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:
Alloquere filios Israel, et dic eis ut faciant sibi fimbrias in angulis vestimentorum suorum, per generationes suas, et ponant in fimbria anguli filum hyacinthinum.
And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may lo…
The command to add a "cord of blue" to the tassels isn't just about decoration; it makes the tassels strikingly visible. This wasn't meant to be a subtle reminder, but a constant, almost unavoidable visual cue, designed to catch the eye and jolt the wearer into remembering God’s commands.
This instruction comes right after God establishes laws concerning unintentional sins and sacrifices for atonement. In essence, God is shifting from dealing with what happens when people stray to providing a constant, visible reminder to stay on His path. These fringes are to be worn on the corners of their garments, serving as a physical emblem to help them remember and obey all of God's commands.
This instruction comes right after God establishes laws concerning unintentional sins and sacrifices for atonement. In essence, God is shifting from dealing with what happens when people stray to providing a constant, visible reminder to on His path. These fringes are to be worn on the corners of their garments, serving as a physical emblem to help them remember and obey all of God's commands.
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Beyond just remembering, what was the deeper spiritual danger this commandment addressed?
The tassels were not merely passive reminders; they were also meant to actively guard against internal spiritual dangers. The commentaries point out that the Israelites were prone to follow their own desires and imaginations.
The Danger of Self-Will
As Calvin notes, the commandment served to restrain their 'wandering senses' and prevent them from falling into 'superstitions and errors' by following their 'own heart and your own eyes.' This highlights a core struggle: the human tendency to create religious practices or beliefs that align with personal preferences rather than God's revealed will.
Contentment in God's Word
By wearing the tassels, the people were reminded to be content with the rule God prescribed, rather than inventing their own interpretations or seeking fulfillment in worldly desires. It was a call to intentional obedience, ensuring their affections and actions were aligned with God's unchanging Law, not their fleeting impulses. The blue cord, reminding them of the divine source, underscored that true holiness came from God's order, not human invention.
"“Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner." — The command to add a "cord of blue" to the tassels isn't just about decoration; it makes the tassels strikingly visible. This wasn't meant to be a subtle reminder, but a constant, almost unavoidable…
