From a reader:
Church of God International take on tattoos.
Tattoos, cuttings in the flesh, and cutting the edges of the hair and beard were apparently associated with pagan religious practices at the time, so the underlying law, which is still in place, is: Don't attempt to serve God the same way the heathen serve their false gods and stay far away from superstitious and magical rites.
It is probable that some of those practices were magical rites designed to bring good luck. God is simply telling the Israelites to rely on Him and avoid putting their trust in magic and superstition for healthy crops, babies, etc. Archaeologists have uncovered evidence for some of these customs, but there are still uncertainties about many of the specifics pertaining to them.
Because of my age and background, when I see tattoos, I do not associate them with anything positive. However, I realize that the people who get them today usually do so for reasons other than magical or religious or as a sign of servitude, and since I usually don't know their motives for getting tattooed, I cannot tell them they are in violation of God's law. The most I could do would be to say to them that I think their tattoos are unbecoming and that someday they will most likely regret having gotten them.
The specific commandments within the Torah tell us something about how the timeless, universal Law of God applies to specific circumstances common to the time in which the Law was given to Israel. For example, Moses commands that a parapet be put on the roof of one's house (Deuteronomy 22:8). The purpose of that law was for the protection of the people who would go up on the roof and use it as a living area. Have I dis- obeyed that law by not putting a parapet around the roof of my house? No, of course not. My roof is not used as a living area; I've never had or served a single meal upon it. But I am to obey the underlying universal principle, which means that if I dig a swimming pool in my backyard, I must fence it in or do something to make sure my neighbor's children don't wander into it. It's called loving one's neighbor as oneself—and that is the timeless principle (law) underlying the parapet instruction.
