You may have heard the tzitzit are only for men, however, in the spirit of testing everything, I was compelled to look into this matter further. On a random night not too long ago, my husband and I came across a video teaching that caught our interest. After watching the short teaching, which was supporting that the Bible (specifically Numbers 15:38-39) teaches that tzitzit are for not only men, but women too, I asked if we could look into some original text for this passage. Jeremy helped me narrate my way through some verses and pray with me about this. Neither of us had put much thought into this matter prior to this. I was feeling more and more convicted by the second and by the time I went to bed, my new tzitzit (aka: my husband’s old tattered pair) were attached to my undershirt awaiting their maiden voyage with me the next morning! I thought I would feel self-conscious wearing them, but once I put them on, I immediately felt more at home in my clothing than I ever had before! It still amazes me how often I am reminded to keep all of the commands just from a single finger sweep along my side while walking around all day long!
Human beings rely on reminders everyday! Simply put, we forget things often. Why not accept the reminder that is commanded to us, rather than make up our own (WWJD bracelets, cross necklaces, etc). What is the point in altering a God-given command to remind ourselves and be a set-apart body to fit something that blends in? I mean, many people will ask me about my tzitzit, and it will give me the opportunity to talk with them about this passage, but few people would ever ask anything if they simply saw me wearing a WWJD bracelet. I’m not saying we can’t ALSO do other things to remind us of these things, just that we shouldn’t let those things replace what the Bible ordains.
Some people take the following verse and apply it to the wearing of tzitzit:
“A woman shall not wear man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing; for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD your God”. (Deut 22:5) NASB
HOWEVER, I would question where in the Bible they find that tzitzit are strictly a man’s clothing. And furthermore, proof that tzitzit are even considered to be a garment in and of themselves!?! To me, this verse is commanding against cross-dressing. Others may wonder: Did women even wear 4-cornered garments? Or were 4 cornered garments only for men to wear? Again, the Bible doesn’t say.
What the Bible DOES say, is:
“Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them that they shall make for themselves tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue. It shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and your own eyes, after which you played the harlot”. (Numbers 15:38-39) NASB
Some translations begin that verse off by saying: “speak to the Children of Israel or speak to the Israelites and tell them…” but regardless, when going back to the original language for the phrase “sons of Israel” or “children of Israel” or “Israelites”, the word used is b’nai. B’nai translates as men. HOWEVER if there is a crowd of 1,000 women with just a single male present, that single man rules over all the other women, and the term used is b’nai. Proof of this is found many places in the Bible. A couple other places where the word b’nai is used, is when referring to the commandment to not eat unclean foods, as well as when referring to the commandment to keep the Biblical festivals. Clearly, those commandments are not only for men, but women too! To finish off this thought, I will state that IF Yahweh had wanted to refer to ONLY MEN in this verse commanding that tzitzit be worn, then He would have used the word ‘z-char’ in place of ‘b’nai’. This is what He chose to do when commanding circumcision, and many other commands that are specifically for MEN ONLY.
So, after learning all of these things, and praying for wisdom and guidance, I was convicted to wear my own tzitzit! It truly is amazing what happens when we TEST EVERYTHING for OURSELVES! The process of sanctification is a lifelong process of spiritual growth and understanding of the Scriptures. This process is never-ending and leads only to a deeper and deeper love for our Maker!
For a detailed perspective on the commandment to wear Tzitzit, Check out my husband’s blog HERE.
Written By: Leslie Gipe
