Tassel
Biblical Command and Description
God commanded the Israelites to make tassels (tsitsith) on the corners of their garments through a specific instruction given to Moses: "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" (Numbers 15:38). This command followed immediately after the narrative about a man executed for gathering wood on the Sabbath (Numbers 15:32-36), highlighting the connection between the tassels and the seriousness of obeying God's law. The purpose was explicitly stated: "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. So you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God" (Numbers 15:39-40). A similar command appears in Deuteronomy 22:12, which instructs, "You shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of the garment with which you cover yourself."
Physical Form and Cultural Context
The tassels were attached to a person's outer cloak, a rectangular garment known in Hebrew as a simlah (cf. Exodus 22:26-27). This was a practical, all-purpose cloak worn by men and could be used as a blanket at night. The "corners" likely refer to the four extremities of this rectangular cloth. The command specified including a blue or violet cord (tekhelet) among the white threads of the tassel. The dye for this blue cord was extraordinarily expensive in antiquity, derived from a specific sea snail (Murex trunculus), making it a color associated with royalty, priesthood, and the heavens. Each tassel consisted of a set of threads that were knotted in a specific pattern. Over time, Jewish tradition developed detailed regulations for the making of these tassels, including the number of windings and knots, which were seen as symbolically representing the 613 commandments of the Torah.
Tassels in the New Testament and the Ministry of Jesus
Tassels remained a visible part of Jewish piety in the first century. The Gospels show that Jesus himself wore them. In Matthew 9:20-22 and Luke 8:43-48, a woman suffering from a hemorrhage is healed when she touches "the fringe of his garment"—the Greek word kraspedon used here is the same term for the tassel (tsitsith). This act demonstrated her faith in Jesus's power. Furthermore, in Matthew 14:36, people sought to touch "the fringe of his garment" for healing. However, Jesus also criticized the religious leaders, the Pharisees, for enlarging their tassels ostentatiously: "They make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long" (Matthew 23:5). His critique was that they used this visible sign of piety to seek human praise rather than to cultivate a heart obedient to God, thus missing the true purpose of the commandment.
Theological Purpose and Legacy
The primary theological function of the tassel was as a mnemonic device, a tangible, daily reminder of one's covenant identity and obligations. Every time a person saw or felt the tassel, they were to remember the totality of God's law and the call to holiness (Numbers 15:40). The blue thread served as a visual link to the divine, reminiscent of the blue of the sky and the heavenly origin of the Law. It symbolized that obedience was not merely a terrestrial duty but a response to a heavenly calling. The tassel, therefore, wove together the themes of memory, obedience, and identity. It was an external sign meant to prompt internal commitment.
In later Jewish tradition, after the Roman prohibition of Jewish religious symbols, the tallit (prayer shawl) with its tassels became primarily a garment for prayer and religious study. The practice continues in observant Judaism today, with a smaller undergarment (tallit katan) worn daily with tassels. For Christians, the New Testament narratives transform the symbol. Jesus, by wearing the tassels and fulfilling the Law (Matthew 5:17), becomes the ultimate embodiment of the holiness and obedience to which the tassels pointed. The woman's healing by touching his tassel signifies that true healing and righteousness come through faith in him, not merely through adherence to a symbolic law.
Biblical Context
The tassel (tsitsith) is commanded in the Torah in Numbers 15:37-41 and Deuteronomy 22:12. It appears narratively in the Old Testament as part of the covenant clothing of Israel. In the New Testament, it appears in the Gospels in connection with Jesus's ministry: he wears tassels, and people are healed by touching them (Matthew 9:20, 14:36; Luke 8:44). Jesus also criticizes the Pharisees for ostentatiously lengthening their tassels to appear pious (Matthew 23:5).
Theological Significance
The tassel represents the integration of faith into daily life. It teaches that holiness (being set apart for God) is to permeate all of a believer's actions. It serves as a powerful symbol of God's desire for His people to remember and obey His commandments continually. In the New Testament context, the tassels on Jesus's garment point to him as the true fulfillment of the Law—the source of healing and righteousness that the Law's symbols anticipated. The critique in Matthew 23 underscores that the value of religious symbols lies in the authentic faith and humility they represent, not in outward display.
Historical Background
The Israelite outer garment (simlah) was a large, rectangular woolen cloak, similar to the later Roman pallium or the Arab 'abayah. Archaeological evidence and comparative anthropology suggest its form changed little for centuries. The blue dye (tekhelet) was a prestigious commodity in the ancient Near East, produced from the gland of the Murex snail in a complex, expensive process. Its use in the tassel connected a common item to sacred and royal symbolism. Extra-biblical sources, like the Dead Sea Scrolls and later rabbinic literature (the Mishnah and Talmud, tractate Menachot), detail the developing traditions about the materials, knot-tying, and religious significance of the tassels, confirming their central role in Second Temple Jewish life.