Old Testament law gave this mandate to Israel: “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 19:28). Although Christians today are no longer subject to the constraints of the Old Testament law and the New Testament does not mention this issue (Romans 10:4; Galatians 3:24-25; Ephesians 2:15), the subject is worthy of our attention because the law had specifically prohibited tattoos.
About tattoos and body piercings, a good conscience test is to see if we deserve to ask God’s blessing and through this behavior fulfill his good purpose. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (I Corinthians 10:31). The Bible does not explicitly oppose tattoos or body piercing, but also does not give any reason for us to believe that God would have us get a tattoo or piercing.
Another factor to consider is modesty. The Bible teaches us to dress modestly (1 Timothy 2:9). Dressing modestly means covering certain parts of the body deemed inappropriate to reveal. Modesty means not attempting to attract the attention of others; a modest person does not cause someone else’s special attention. Tattoos and body piercings are very noticeable. From this point of view, it is not modest to have tattoos and body piercings.
Even when the Bible does not explicitly deal with the problem mentioned, an important principle is to evaluate your ability to do it to please God. If that cannot be accomplished, it is best to refrain from such behavior. “But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.” (Romans 14:23). Remember that our bodies and souls belong to God. Although I Corinthians 6:19-20 does not directly mention tattoos and piercings, it gives us a principle: “Do you not know that your bodies are temples 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 honor God with your bodies. “(I Corinthians 6:19, 20). No matter where we are, what we do, we should follow this truth. If our bodies belong to God, we have to make sure to clearly have His permission before getting tattoos and piercings.
舊約律法要求以色列人：“不可為死人用刀劃身，也不可在身上刺花紋。我是耶和華”（利未記19：28）。儘管今天的基督徒不再受舊約律法的制約（羅馬書10：4；加拉太書3：24-25；以弗所書2：15），但畢竟有過禁止紋身的律法，這值得我們注意。新約中沒有說到信徒應不應該有紋身。
關於紋身和穿孔，一個很好的檢驗方法是看我們能不能誠實地、無愧良知地求神祝福並通過這種行為來成全他的美意。“所以，你們或吃或喝，無論作什麼，都要為榮耀神而行”（哥林多前書10：31）。聖經沒有明言反對紋身或穿孔，但也沒有給任何理由讓我們相信神會讓我們紋身或穿孔。
另一個要考慮的因素是正派。聖經教導我們要衣著正派（提摩太前書2：9）。衣著正派的一個面向是確定衣服遮擋了身體應該遮擋的部位。正派的中心含義是不要招搖吸引他人的注意，穿著正派的人不會引起別人的特別注意。而紋身和穿孔大多肯定會引人注目。從這點看，紋身和穿孔就不算正派了。
對待聖經沒有明確講到的問題，一個重要的原則是看你對於做這件事能否取悅神是否心有疑慮，如果有那最好放棄。“凡不出於信心的都是罪”（羅馬書14：23）。要謹記我們的身體和靈魂是得了救贖屬於神的。儘管哥林多前書6：19-20沒有直指紋身和穿孔，但它給了我們一條原則：“豈不知你們的身子就是聖靈的殿嗎？這聖靈是從神而來，住在你們裏頭的；並且你們不是自己的人，因為你們是重價買來的，所以要在你們的身子上榮耀神”（哥林多前書6：19，20）。我們無論在哪裏、做什麼，都應該遵循這一真理。如果我們的身體屬於神，在紋身和穿孔之前，就得確保得著祂明確的“允許”。
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