What Does the Bible Say About Tattoos and Piercings?
The Bible mentions tattoos once, in Leviticus 19:28. Here is what that verse means, how the New Testament frames the question, and how to decide wisely.
The Bible speaks directly about tattoos in one place: Leviticus 19:28. There God told Israel, “You must not make any cuts in your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD” (BSB). That single verse is the whole of the Bible’s explicit teaching on tattooing. Piercings are never forbidden in Scripture; Rebekah received a nose ring (Genesis 24:22), and Israelite women wore earrings (Exodus 35:22).
So the short answer is this: the Bible nowhere says a tattoo or a piercing is a sin in itself. The one verse that mentions tattoos sits inside a chapter about imitating the idolatrous mourning customs of Israel’s neighbors. The New Testament never repeats the command, and it never lists body markings among the works of the flesh. What the Bible does give is a set of principles about the body, the conscience, and motives — and those principles matter more than the ink.
What was actually going on in Leviticus 19:28?
Read the verse in its neighborhood. Leviticus 19:26-28 forbids eating blood, practicing divination, cutting the hair at the temples, trimming the beard, and gashing the body for the dead. Every one of these was a Canaanite or Egyptian mourning and magic practice. Easton’s Bible Dictionary notes that cutting the flesh was “an idolatrous practice, a part of idol-worship,” and that Israel was commanded not to imitate it (Leviticus 19:28; 21:5; Deuteronomy 14:1).
Deuteronomy 14:1 gives the reason: Israel is called the children of the LORD their God, and so must not cut themselves or shave their foreheads for the dead. The issue was not decoration. The issue was a pagan attempt to get the attention of the dead, and a pagan way of marking whose side you were on. When Elijah faced the prophets of Baal, they cried out and cut themselves with knives and swords, as was their custom, until the blood gushed out on them (1 Kings 18:28). That is the world Leviticus 19:28 is talking about.
Some Bible teachers read the verse as a permanent ban on any marking of the skin. Others read it as a ban on a specific pagan ritual, in the same way the surrounding verses ban specific pagan rituals rather than haircuts in general. Faithful Christians land on both sides, and it is worth being honest about that rather than pretending the text settles more than it does.
Does the New Testament repeat the command?
No. The New Testament never mentions tattoos. What it does say is that the ceremonial markers that once separated God’s people from the nations no longer carry that weight. Paul wrote to the Galatians:
For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything. What counts is a new creation. — Galatians 6:15 (BSB)
That is not a license for anything you like. It is a shift of focus. The outward mark that once identified the covenant people has been replaced by an inward one, and the New Testament consistently cares about the heart behind an action. When God chose David, He told Samuel that man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).
Paul also wrote, “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus” (Galatians 6:17 BSB) — most likely the scars from beatings he took for the gospel. He was not endorsing branding. He was saying that his suffering, not a religious badge, proved whose he was.
Is it a sin to get a tattoo or a piercing?
On the plain reading of Scripture, no — not in itself. But “not forbidden” is not the same as “always wise.” Several New Testament principles should shape the decision.
Your body belongs to God. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 BSB). Paul’s point there is about sexual sin, but the logic reaches further: what you do with your body is not a private matter.
Love limits freedom. “Be careful, however, that your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak” (1 Corinthians 8:9 BSB). If a tattoo would genuinely wound a young believer or dishonor your parents in a culture where that matters, love may say wait.
Whatever is not from faith is sin. “But the one who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23 BSB). If you cannot do it with a clear conscience before God, do not do it. That verse cuts both ways: it also means you should not condemn a brother who can.
Motives matter. Ask why. Is it art, memory, or meaning? Or is it a bid for attention, a mark of belonging to a group that pulls you away from Christ, or a way of numbing something you should bring to God? Paul’s rule is simple: whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).
What about piercings specifically?
Scripture never forbids them. Earrings and nose rings appear in the Old Testament as ordinary jewelry (Genesis 24:22; Exodus 35:22), and the prophets sometimes use them as pictures of how Israel adorned herself (Ezekiel 16:12). The same principles apply: modesty, motive, culture, and conscience. A piercing done for beauty and worn with self-control is not treated anywhere in the Bible as sin.
How should you decide?
Work through four questions honestly, in prayer.
First, what is my reason? If you can thank God for the design and offer it to Him, that is a good sign. If you would be embarrassed to explain it to a mature believer, that is worth noticing.
Second, what will it cost others? Consider your parents, your church, and younger believers who watch you.
Third, can I do this in faith? Not “can I get away with it,” but “can I thank God for it?”
Fourth, is it wise for my future? Some workplaces and some cultures will close doors. That is not a moral rule, but it is a real cost worth counting.
Then talk it over with a pastor or a mature believer who knows you, not just with people who will agree with you. “Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls” (Romans 14:4 BSB). That verse forbids two things at once: looking down on someone with tattoos, and looking down on someone who has none.
If you already have tattoos or piercings and you are wondering whether you sinned, bring it to God and rest in Christ. He does not ask you to undo your skin. He asks you to belong to Him. Read Leviticus 19 and Romans 14 side by side, pray over them, and let your local church help you think it through. The goal is not a rule about ink. The goal is a conscience at peace before God and a life that points to Him.
Common questions
Does the Bible actually forbid tattoos?
Leviticus 19:28 forbids tattoo marks in the context of pagan mourning rituals for the dead. The New Testament never repeats the command, and Christians have read it in different ways ever since. The verse is real, but it is not the whole discussion.
Is it a sin to get a piercing?
Scripture never forbids piercings. Earrings and nose rings appear in the Old Testament as ordinary jewelry, and no New Testament passage treats them as sin. The same questions of motive, modesty, and conscience still apply.
What if I already have a tattoo I regret?
Bring it to God honestly and rest in Christ’s forgiveness, which covers every sin. A tattoo is not beyond grace, and it does not define your standing before God. Talk with a pastor if guilt is still weighing on you.
How do I decide whether to get one?
Pray about your motive, weigh how it affects others, and ask whether you can do it in faith rather than just getting away with it. Then talk it through with a pastor or mature believer who knows you well.