A Case for Biblical Modesty

The Bible is not only a book about WHO God is, but is also a book about WHAT God expects of us. There is NO area of a Christian's life in which is God is not concerned. Some topics are more popular and easy to talk about, but ALL are important. The topic of modesty is no exception. The 1826 Webster's Dictionary defines modesty as follows:

1. Properly, restrained by a sense of propriety; hence, not forward or bold; not presumptuous or arrogant; not boastful; as a modest youth; a modest man.

2. Not bold or forward; as a modest maid. The word may be thus used without reference to chastity.

Example: The blushing beauties of a modest maid.

3. Not loose; not lewd.

Example: Mrs. Ford, the honest woman, the modest wife.

4. Moderate; not excessive or extreme; not extravagant; as a modest request; modest joy; a modest computation.

A Lesson From Tragedy

2Samuel 11:1 And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.
2Samuel 11:2 And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.
2Samuel 11:3 And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?
2Samuel 11:4 And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house.
2Samuel 11:5 And the woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said, I am with child.

David should have been away with his men, in battle. Many times tragic events happen from someone being in the wrong place at the wrong time. As he walked on his rooftop, he saw this woman, Bathsheba, bathing. She should have known her rooftop was visible from the palace of the king, but she was not concerned about that. One thing leads to another and the events go from looking, to lusting, to adultery, to an unexpected pregnancy, and then the most tragic of all, the murder of an innocent man, Uriah.

2Samuel 11:14 And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.
2Samuel 11:15 And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die.
2Samuel 11:16 And it came to pass, when Joab observed the city, that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were.
2Samuel 11:17 And the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab: and there fell some of the people of the servants of David; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

One sin lead to more sin. Sin grows like a cancer unless caught early and dealt with. David should have remembered the words of Job of old:

Job 31:1 I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?

Bathsheba should have been thinking about who might have been looking at her. David should have been in battle with the other men. But, he could have turned quickly away and prayed for the Lord to take captive that thought and that would have been the end of that story.

2Corinthians 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Back To The Garden

Genesis 2:25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

When God made Adam and Eve, they were naked and it was o.k. They were existing in accordance to God's creative order. When man walks in the pathway of God's design life if a beautiful journey. But, disobedience changes everything. Enter the Serpent.

Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
Genesis 3:2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
Genesis 3:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
Genesis 3:4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
Genesis 3:5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
Genesis 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
Genesis 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

Because of disobedience, Adam and Eve had their minds opened alright, opened to sin! Now their thinking was corrupted. Nakedness was not a problem originally, but sin ALWAYS complicates things. Adam and Eve's eyes were opened and they saw the nakedness that was covered with God's glory that now was departed. So, in an effort to cover-up their problem they made the first sets of clothing.

Genesis 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

They made aprons. You know what an apron is, it is a small piece of cloth with ties made to keep the front of you, (or your garment,) from getting soiled. This is hardly enough to cloth a persons nakedness. Their best effort was NOT ENOUGH. Their thinking was affected by a new nature working in them...sin. They imagined an apron made them modest. God thought otherwise:

Genesis 3:21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.

God, knowing how they should dress in order to be PROPERLY covered made coats of skins, and clothed them. The Hebrew word, coat, means, coat, garment, robe. There is a BIG difference between an apron and a coat, a robe. Which do you think covers more? Obviously, the coat. Furthermore, the text tells us God clothed them. The Hebrew word for clothed means to properly wrap around. We'll see this very same description come up again in the New Testament. God not only gave them more than aprons, what they had now was proper, like a full robe, it wrapped around and properly covered them. This was his pattern for man to maintain, that is, man that listens to, and obeys God.

The Bible and Nakedness

Like stated earlier, sin often leads to more sin if not caught in time. The next time we see an issue with nakedness is in the life of Noah.

Genesis 9:20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
Genesis 9:21 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
Genesis 9:22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
Genesis 9:23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness.
Genesis 9:24 And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.
Genesis 9:25 And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.

How we hate it when we see a good man struck down. Here, Noah, the one who preached so courageously for 120 years about the sinfulness of those around him and coming judgment of God, gives in to the sin of drunkenness in the shadow of Mt. Ararat. In his drunkenness, he passes out naked and his son, Ham comes in and sees him. Ham should have been more reverent, but his actions caused Noah to pronounce a curse upon the descendant of Ham. Shem and Japheth, having a serious attitude about sin, came in, not beholding his nakedness, and covered him up. Nakedness is ALWAYS to be covered up.

Some may argue, how naked is naked? Well, actually, according to the Bible, one does not have to be completely unclothed to be considered "naked."
Look at the example of the Priests:

Exodus 20:25 And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
Exodus 20:26 Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.

The altar of God was to have a ramp instead of steps because God did not want the priests, who wore long modest garments, to hike their legs up the stairs in such a way that their legs were exposed and their nakedness was discovered. God does not want the leg exposed. . . any of it. We will see more of this same thing in a moment. Notice in the Book of Leviticus, nakedness is such an issue, God gives 14 verses of the chapter to make it obvious that he does not want his people to take nakedness lightly. Here is just a few of the verses:

Leviticus 18:6 None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am the LORD.
Leviticus 18:7 The nakedness of thy father, or the nakedness of thy mother, shalt thou not uncover: she is thy mother; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
Leviticus 18:8 The nakedness of thy father's wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father's nakedness.
Leviticus 18:9 The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or daughter of thy mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover.

God hated this type of activity because it was the practice of the wicked people he was driving out of the promised land that Israel would soon inherit.

Leviticus 18:24 Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you:
Levitucus 18:25 And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants.
Leviticus 18:26 Ye shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you:
Leviticus 18:27 (For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled;)
Leviticus 18:28 That the land spue not you out also, when ye defile it, as it spued out the nations that were before you.
Leviticus 18:29 For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people.
Leviticus 18:30 Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.

The Prophetic Example of Babylon.

In Isaiah chapter 47, God is preparing to bring judgment upon those of Babylon. He likens that land to a virgin daughter who, uncovers her nakedness and draws the anger and judgment of God:

Isaiah 47:1 Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon, sit on the ground: there is no throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called tender and delicate.
Isaiah 47:2 Take the millstones, and grind meal: uncover thy locks, make bare the leg, uncover the thigh, pass over the rivers.
Isaiah 47:3 Thy nakedness shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and I will not meet thee as a man.

When a woman of any age, does not observe God's clear teaching on modesty, bad things occur. Isaiah said she would not longer be called, "...tender and delicate." When a woman, especially a young virgin girl, begins to give in to the fashions of the time and dress immodestly, she loses that sweet innocence of youth and is no longer tender and delicate. When the attention of a strong spiritual inner man is no longer important, and attention to dress and style give way to immodesty a young lady no longer wants to be considered a "young girl," but likes it when people think she is older.

This virgin daughter goes through a series of steps downward until she has put herself in the pathway of God's judgment:
1. She uncovers her locks.
2. She makes bare the leg.
3. She uncovers the thigh.

What is the result of these actions?

Isaiah 47:3 Thy nakedness shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and I will not meet thee as a man.

Though this is another topic that we will address in another message, the practice of covering the head goes back to antiquity. It is neither, Greek nor Hebrew, and is not just subject to culture or time periods. This girl considered this unimportant, and throws her covering to the wind. She then made some of the leg uncovered, and then the thigh. God saw this as nakedness. God not only wants the thigh covered, but the whole leg, too!

What Happened to Distinction?

The day is December 7, 1941 and the United States of America declares war on the Imperial Forces of Japan. In an unprovoked attack, they had bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This thrust the U.S. into war and soon we were engaged in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters taking on Germany and Italy, also. Soon we were sending men in the hundreds of thousands to both fronts. Though some men were left behind, a new phenomena occurred. Women entered the industrial factories of wartime America. Because the work was dirty, greasy, and dangerous, they dawned the coveralls and pants of the working man. Though we saw our way through the war, and God in his mercy, gave us victory in both places, we suffered two blows. Women became a permanent fixture in the workplace, and women kept wearing mens clothing.

Does God have anything to say about this? Does he have a principle for us to examine? The answer is yes:

Deuteronomy 22:5 The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God.

1. There is a clothing that pertains to men.
2. There is a clothing that pertains to women.
3. They are NOT interchangeable.
4. It is an abomination to God.

The Hebrew word for abomination means, disgusting, abhorrence, idolatry, an abominable custom or thing. God made women to be women and men to be men and for the distinction to be clear. Anything else is disgusting to God, is the practice and custom of the heathen whom God was casting out of the land before the children of Israel before they could call it their own. Some try to justify themselves by listening to those who teach that women can now wear women's pants. Then we should not be offended if men wear men's dresses. . . right? WRONG! Ask 100 people and you will see, anyone in their right mind will tell you, like God, it is a disgusting thing for men to dress like women. Some may listen to those who teach that EVERYONE wore a dress in Bible times. . . right? Wrong again. True, they both wore a long flowing garment, but men's garments were different. They were cut so they could reach between their legs, grab the back flap of cloth, pull it up between their legs, tuck it into their girdle, (belt,) and work or war. This is was called, girding up oneself.

Job 38:3 Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me.

Notice God said, gird up now thy loin like a man. This is because women did not gird themselves up. Their garments were long and flowing, covering the leg, consistent with the distinction between women and men that God designed.

The Role of Fashion

"That outfit was to die for!" You've heard someone use that phrase before, haven't you? There is a story in the Bible of an outfit a man DID die for. Read on:

Joshua 7:19 And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me.
Joshua 7:20 And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:
Joshua 7:21 When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.
Joshua 7:22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it.
Joshua 7:23 And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the LORD.
Joshua 7:24 And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.
Joshua 7:25 And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.
Joshua 7:26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.

The children of Israel had taken the wicked city of Jericho. It was such a wicked city that God commanded not to take any of their things because it was all accursed to him. but Achan saw something. . . to die for, a Babylonish garment. He saw that fancy outfit and said, like so many who cruise the malls, "I've got to have it!" It was his undoing. Style, fashion, people spend millions every year so they can keep up with the styles. They come out of Paris, London, and New York. For the most part, designed by people with defiled minds, caring not that nakedness be covered. . . as God commanded.

Can a garment tell you what a person is or what image is being portrayed by them? Yes indeed!

Proverbs 7:7 And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding,
Proverbs 7:8 Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house,
Proverbs 7:9 In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night:
Proverbs 7:10 And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart.

The one here called, simple, is not living a simple, pure, life, but is to be understood as one who, as we say in the country, "...ain't got no sense!" He went into the streets, came to the house of a certain woman, and her clothing said it all, she had on the attire of an harlot. Not only did she dress like this, but it spoke of her inner heart motives, she was subtil, like the serpent in the garden. So, is everyone who wears wrong clothing a devilish harlot? No, but the Hebrew implies by the word harlot, it is not ONLY one who is a harlot, but one who portrays one. Your outfit says it all. If the outfit is not long and flowing, properly covering the nakedness, wrong ideas can arise. Tight fitting clothing is JUST AS BAD. Consider this lesson from nature.

Everyone knows what a banana looks like. Whether the peel is on, or the peel is off, the banana is basically the SAME shape. When a woman wear her outfit so tight it outlines her shape, she is showing her nakedness. One might try to get out of the blame by saying, "Well, men should not be looking at me, anyways!" If one such as this would be honest, that is why the tight or improper clothing was chosen in the first place, to attract the attention of the opposite sex.

God made men visual and women emotional. Men see and conquer, women like to feel special. Women use this to their advantage when trying to CATCH a man. For this reason, God commands the Christian woman to be modest. Her apparel should not attract the WRONG kind of attention, but speak of her relationship with the Lord. Paul saw the glory of a godly woman and gave her clear teaching to protect this.

The Danger of Feelings

Some women may say something like this, "But I feel modest." or "Dressing the way I want does NOT make me feel immodest." So, what's wrong with those statements. Nothing, if they are made in the light of Bible truth. First of all, we need to understand that we cannot always trust our "feelings." Notice what the Bible says:

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], and desperately wicked: who can know it?

According to Jeremiah, the prophet of God, the heart is not to be trusted. Why? Because the heart is prone to be influenced by emotions more that facts. This is why we have to have a final authority. What did Solomon, the wisest man in the Bible, (next to Jesus,) have to say:

Proverbs 28:26 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.

So we see that the heart is not a good guage for what is right or wrong. So what should I rely on for TRUTH?

Psalm 119:169 Let my cry come near before thee, O LORD: give me understanding according to thy word.
Matthew 4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

So we can plainly see that we HAVE to let the Bible be the final say so on ALL matters of life and faith.

Paul's Plea for Godly Women

1Timothy 2:9 In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;
1Timothy 2:10 But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.

The phrase in verse 9, "modest apparel," means clothing that promotes proper behaviour. An outfit that hangs down and takes attention away from self. Wow! That is the opposite of the fashion world. There is even a magazine called, SELF. The verse goes on asking the Christian woman to have shamefacedness. This word means to have downcast eyes, to be modest toward men. Her shamefacedness is coupled with sobriety. This is a lady with a sound mind, one who is discreet, one who has self-control. She is said to be a woman professing godliness with good works. She is not a slave to fashion, but a servant of Christ.

Peter's Plea for Godly Women

1Peter 3:1 Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;
1Peter 3:2 While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.
1Peter 3:3 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel;
1Peter 3:4 But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.
1Peter 3:5 For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:

The lifestyle of the godly woman in our text is able to reach those who obey not the word, namely, the unsaved. Wow! She carries herself in such a way that Christ is the one they can see in her life. It says she is chaste. This word means, clean, innocent, and pure. When a woman is dressed in a way that attention is drawn to her form, or the revealing of flesh, is the first thought of her innocence? Not at all. This IS NOT to be the testimony of the woman who professes godliness and good works, of whom Paul spoke. Her chaste conversation, or lifestyle, is coupled with fear. This is something that has been explained away to such an extent that modern Christendom virtually knows nothing of it. Though God loves us dearly, many have gone to such an extreme to take away guilt and proper fear and reverence that they have made him our great big buddy in the sky. God is holy, he is high and lofty, his ways are terrific to comprehend.

Isaiah 57:15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Proverbs 16:6 By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.

When a Christian lady sees the Lord for who he is then she develops a holy fear and wisdom that will turn her away from practicing evil and copying the fashions of the world. This godly lady Peter speaks of does not make the OUTWARD the key element in her life, but is concerned with the "hidden man of the heart," and for an ornament, she wears, "the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit."

Ladies, I hope in reading this, you do not see an unrealistic mountain, impossible to climb, but instead a key to open the door and set you at liberty from the restraints that are put upon you by the fashion world. You were created by the Lord beautiful already and there is a beauty far more important to the Lord. He wants you to worship him wearing this beautiful outfit.

Psalm 29:2 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.