Numbers 15:38-39
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The instruction to add a blue cord to the tassels wasn't just for show; it was to make them more noticeable, a constant visual reminder. This wasn't about mere decoration, but about turning everyday clothing into a tangible tool to jog their memory and keep them tethered to God’s commands, preventing them from straying into their own desires.
“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. And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This command follows a section where Israel has just been given new laws for living in the promised land, after a period of rebellion and consequence. God is laying out how they are to live distinctly as His people, and this instruction about making tassels on their garments is meant to be a constant, visible reminder of His commands and their calling to holiness. The subsequent verses reveal the purpose: so they will look at them and remember all the Lord’s commands and do them, distinguishing them from the surrounding nations and their own desires.
Ever feel like life gets so busy you forget the important things? God knew His people would too. He gave them a tangible reminder, woven right into their daily lives.
The command to make tassels, or fringes, with a blue cord on the corners of their garments wasn't just about fashion; it was a deeply symbolic practice.
A Constant Cue
These weren't just decorative additions. The tassels served as a constant visual cue. Every time an Israelite looked down at the corners of their clothing, they were meant to be reminded of God and His commands.
More Than Just Cloth
As Calvin explains, the material itself had no inherent religious value. Instead, God used these 'coarse rudiments' as a way to help His people, who are 'lazy and forgetful,' stay focused on piety. It was a practical provision for human frailty, designed to 'strike even their outward senses.'
Why blue? This specific color wasn't arbitrary. It held a special meaning, pointing to something beyond the earthly realm.
The instruction to add a 'cord of blue' to the tassels is particularly intriguing. While the exact shade and method of its creation are now lost to history, the symbolism remains.
A Heavenly Connection
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Many Jewish traditions understood this blue color to represent the heavens, the sky, and even God's throne. It served as a reminder that the commands they were meant to remember came from God in heaven.
Beyond the Law
As the commentaries suggest, this blue cord, along with the tassels, was meant to keep them from straying after their own 'heart and eyes.' It was an outward sign meant to foster inward obedience and holiness, connecting their daily lives to God's divine presence and authority.
It's one thing to remember; it's another to do. These tassels were a catalyst for action, not just passive remembrance.
The ultimate purpose of the tassels and the blue cord was not mere intellectual recall, but active obedience. God wanted His people to live His commands.
From Sight to Action
Calvin emphasizes that God demands 'serious affections and practical performance.' The visual cue of the tassels was intended to stimulate their sluggishness and restrain their wandering desires, preventing them from following their own inclinations over God's Word.
A Holy Life
This outward observance was directly tied to an inward transformation. The goal, as stated in verse 40, was 'that ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God.' The tassels were a constant nudge toward living a life set apart for God.
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.
mitsvah · Hebrew Noun
Refers to the revealed will and statutes of God given to His people; they are the authoritative directives that govern the life, ethics, and worship of the covenant community.
zanah · Hebrew Verb
A metaphorical term describing spiritual unfaithfulness or idolatry, where the people turn away from their covenantal devotion to God to pursue desires or gods that compete for His place in their hearts.
This passage shows Jesus himself wearing and interacting with the tassels (fringes) commanded in Numbers, illustrating how the practice was observed in his time.
Matthew 23:5Here, Jesus condemns the Pharisees for making their tassels (fringes) excessively large, highlighting how this outward sign of devotion could be misused for self-righteous display, a warning against empty religious performance.
Deuteronomy 22:12This verse is a parallel command to make fringes on garments, reinforcing the ongoing and generational nature of this ordinance for the people of Israel.
John 13:34While not directly about tassels, Jesus' command to 'love one another' speaks to the inward transformation that the tassels were meant to symbolize – a reminder to live out God's commands, not just perform them.
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 instruction to add a blue cord to the tassels wasn't just for show; it was to make them more noticeable, a constant visual reminder. This wasn't about mere decoration, but about turning everyday clothing into a tangible tool to jog their memory and keep them tethered to God’s commands, preventing them from straying into their own desires.
This command follows a section where Israel has just been given new laws for living in the promised land, after a period of rebellion and consequence. God is laying out how they are to live distinctly as His people, and this instruction about making tassels on their garments is meant to be a constant, visible reminder of His commands and their calling to holiness. The subsequent verses reveal the purpose: so they will look at them and remember all the Lord’s commands and do them, distinguishing them from the surrounding nations and their own desires.
This command follows a section where Israel has just been given new laws for living in the promised land, after a period of rebellion and consequence. God is laying out how they are to live distinctly as His people, and this instruction about making tassels on their garments is meant to be a constant, visible reminder of His commands and their calling to holiness. The subsequent verses reveal the purpose: so they will look at them and remember all the Lord’s commands and do them, distinguishing them from the surrounding nations and their own desires.
"“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. And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember a…" — The instruction to add a blue cord to the tassels wasn't just for show; it was to make them more noticeable, a constant visual reminder. This wasn't about mere decoration, but about turning everyday…
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Last reviewed October 2026
