First, we should understand that this command which God gave to the Israelites was apparently intended to be directed only to the males, in consideration of their greater spiritual responsibilities (see Numbers 30 and Ephesians 5:22-33).  There is no Scriptural record of the tassels ever being worn by women; nor to the best of our knowledge, is there any reliable historical record of the tassels ever being worn, except by males. 

The command is recorded in two places in the Bible: 

You shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of your garment with which you cover yourself.  (Deuteronomy 22:12) 

The LORD also spoke to Moses, saying,  "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, so that you may remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your God. "I am the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt to be your God; I am the LORD your God."  (Numbers 15:37-41) 

What does God teach here as the meaning of the tassels? 

As we see above, the tassels provide to the wearer a constant physical reminder of the requirement to be obedient to all of God’s commands, and to be holy to God.  The tassels also serve as a constant physical reminder of God’s imperative to His people to “not follow after your own heart and your own eyes.” 

Do we find evidence of the tassels in the New Testament? 

Yes, indeed. The Greek kraspedon, translated “fringe,” “hem,” or “border” in various New Testament translations, is from the same term given for the tassels in the Greek Septuagint Old Testament,[1] a translation which was in common use during the time of Christ.  In fact, the Septuagint appears to use kraspedon only with reference to the tassels (Numbers 15:38-39; Deuteronomy 22:12; Zechariah 8:23).

Accordingly, scholars routinely acknowledge that kraspedon in the Gospels represents the fact that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ wore the tassels.[2] 

For example, a respected Professor of the History of Religion comments on the passages below: "the fringe of his garment  On the corners of the garments at the time of Jesus were fringes fulfilling the command of Num. 15. 1 ff. The Gr. kraspedon is the translation of 'fringe,' [t]zi[t]zit. The [t]zi[t]zit had one fringe of blue (ibid. 15.38)."[3]

When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word into all that surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick; and they implored Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were cured.  (Matthew 14:34-36) 

When they had crossed over they came to land at Gennesaret, and moored to the shore. When they got out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him, and ran about that whole country and began to carry here and there on their pallets those who were sick, to the place they heard He was. Wherever He entered villages, or cities, or countryside, they were laying the sick in the market places, and imploring Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were being cured.  (Mark 6:53-56) 

And a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak; for she was saying to herself, "If I only touch His garment, I will get well." But Jesus turning and seeing her said, "Daughter, take courage; your faith has made you well." At once the woman was made well.  (Matthew 9:20-22) 

And a woman who had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and could not be healed by anyone, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak, and immediately her hemorrhage stopped. And Jesus said, "Who is the one who touched Me?" And while they were all denying it, Peter said, "Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You." But Jesus said, "Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me." When the woman saw that she had not escaped notice, she came trembling and fell down before Him, and declared in the presence of all the people the reason why she had touched Him, and how she had been immediately healed. And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace."  (Luke 8:43-48) 

How perfectly fitting that God used Jesus’ tassels as the physical device through which numerous miraculous healings were accomplished!  Given the deeply spiritual meaning of the tassels, and the complete obedience to God which they signify, this comes as no surprise.

Moreover, what is God's command to wear the tassels?

We learn that the tassel command is one of God's statutes (choqim) or judgments/ordinances (misphatim) by its inclusion (Deuteronomy 22:12) in a list of God's statutes (choqim) and judgments/ordinances (misphatim), which continues throughout Chapters 12-26 of Deuteronomy.

Yet why should we care that that the tassel command is one of the statutes (choqim) and judgments/ordinances (misphatim)? What need do New Covenant Christians, led by the Spirit of God, have for statutes and ordinances?

God's answer may come as a surprise to many:

Few realize that the indwelling of the Holy Spirit leads to careful obedience to God's statutes and ordinances! Thus, genuine New Covenant Christians, having God's Holy Spirit within them, should definitely be seeking to obey God's statutes and ordinances, including His command to wear the tassels, just as Jesus did.

Further, years after the death of Christ, the apostle Paul defends himself before the governor Felix, and later before Felix’ successor Festus, with sincere affirmations that implicitly suggest that Paul also wore the tassels: 

Nor can they prove to you the charges of which they now accuse me. “But this I admit to you, that according to the Way which they call a sect I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets; having a hope in God, which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. In view of this, I also do my best to maintain always a blameless conscience both before God and before men. “Now after several years I came to bring alms to my nation and to present offerings; in which they found me occupied in the temple, having been purified, without any crowd or uproar… (Acts 24:13-18) 

After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him which they could not prove, while Paul said in his own defense, “I have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.” But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me on these charges?” But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s tribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know.  (Acts 25:7-10) 

Defending himself against the Jews’ accusations, Paul plainly proclaimed that he had committed no offense against the Law of the Jews.  Clearly, Paul, a son of Israelite tribe of Benjamin himself (Romans 11:1 and Philippians 3:5), could not have made this claim if he had neglected God’s command to wear the tassels. 

Nor had Paul abandoned teaching God’s commands.  He openly professed to serve God, professing to believe everything “that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets.”  “The Law and the Prophets” was the common term for most of the Biblical books which we ordinarily refer to as the “Old Testament.”   Even the Church’s adjustment regarding Gentile circumcision, spearheaded by Paul, was founded in the Old Testament Scriptures.  (See the article “Is a Sabbath Commanded for Christians?”) 

On the other hand, just as Christ condemned Pharisaic distortions of the Sabbath command, Christ also condemned distortions regarding the wearing of the tassels: 

But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.  (Matthew 23:5) 

As you will recall from the Biblical passages quoted earlier, God does not tell us that the tassels are given to remind onlookers of a man’s piety.  Rather, the tassels are given as a reminder to the wearer : 

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, so that you may remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your God.  (Numbers 15:39-40) 

Therefore, wearing the tassels becomes useless if the motive behind it is only to be seen as righteous by others. 

Conversely, if a man chooses not to wear the tassels, perhaps because he wishes to avoid the appearance of being “odd” or “out of place” in our modern society, what then?  Frankly, our natural human desire for the approval of others seems to be at the heart of much of the current resistance to this God-given command.  To this point, the apostle Paul issues a sobering reminder: 

For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.  (Galatians 1:10) 

Moreover, Jesus warns: 

But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.  (Matthew 10:33) 

In addition to the above, our reasons for wearing the tassels are as follows: 

·         God commanded the male Israelites to wear the tassels.  Beyond that, we in the Church understand the Church to be Spiritual Israel.  (See Galatians 3:26-29 and Romans 2:25-3:31.) 

Based upon what is evident in the history of the Church, and in our individual lives also, the Scriptural reason for wearing the tassels (… ”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, so that you may remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your God …”) seems every bit as necessary and important for God’s people today as it was for the ancient Israelites.  As we have seen, the reasons which God gives for wearing tassels are spiritual, not physical.  See also Malachi 4:4-5, which speaks of the end times: 

Remember the law of Moses My servant, even the statutes and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel.  Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. 

Again, we have the keeping of God's statutes and ordinances, even in the end times, right before the return of Jesus Christ!

·         Jesus wore the tassels.  His life is an example for us. (See 1 Peter 2:21.)  We are to walk as He walked: 

The one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked. (1 John 2:6) 

·         Christ’s words in Matthew 23:5 do not condemn the wearing of tassels; rather, Christ condemns those who make extra-long tassels as an object of vanity and self-exaltation. 

·         Multiple healings occurred when people reached out touch the fringe – the tassels – of Christ’s garments.  The tassels represent the visible reminder of holy obedience to all of the Law of God, which Jesus Christ wore on His cloak. 

·         Objections to the wearing of tassels which we have seen so far are objections that could equally be applied to the keeping the Sabbath or to other important aspects of the Law of God – commands which the Bible clearly demonstrates are ongoing for Christians.  (See the article “Is a Sabbath Commanded for Christians?”) 

·         We do not wish to have Christ deny us before the Father. (Matthew 10:33, see above.)

In summary, we see compelling Scriptural reasons for Christian males to wear the tassels. 

This being said, the Church of God – His Beloved does not demand the wearing of tassels for initial attendance with us; on the other hand, we embrace this precept, and we do expect that males who continue attending with us will in time come to wear the tassels. 

However, because of Christ’s redirection, the tassels which our males wear are somewhat different from the tassels which are worn by those contemporary Jews who wear them.  Ours are shorter than those which I have seen some Jews wear (For the adult, our tassels are 3-4 inches [7.5-10 cm] long; and for the child, our tassels are about 1.5 inches [4 cm]).   Also, the tassels which our males wear are not predominantly white, like the Jewish tassels.  Instead, we make a set of tassels in the color of each pair of trousers, with the contrasting blue thread added, as God commands.  The Bible does not dictate the color of the tassel itself.  Moreover, as we have seen, Christ condemns the practice of making a show of wearing tassels and Scripture indicates that although tassels were worn on an outer garment, God explains that it is the wearer who is to see and be reminded, not everyone else.  Thus, we have chosen to use colors that match the garment, so that the tassels which we wear do not make a grand show to onlookers, yet they are visible, as God expects.

For photographs of sample tassels, please click here.