Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel: Tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.” (Numbers 15:37-41)

Making Tassels

Throughout the history of the world, God has left memorials for men to remember Him and learn from those memorials the grace and mercy of the Lord. Sometimes stones are erected as memorials. The smoke from the altars of Abraham marked his journey of faith with God. Moses erected the Tabernacle as a Testimony to the word of God. Sacrifices served not only the purpose of worshiping the Lord but also to remind man of the sacredness of life and the price of sin in the death of an animal. The greatest memorial came when Jesus died on the cross and rose on the third day. Before He was crucified, Jesus instituted a memorial feast called the Lord’s Supper to remember all the commandments of the Lord and the price of redeeming sinful man. This memorial remains an integral part of worship today.

When Moses gave the law to the Hebrews at Sinai, it included many memorials to serve as reminders for the people of God. Lest they forget the Lord on a daily basis, God intertwined a memorial in the garments of the Jews to keep the Lord’s commandments always before them. The law prescribed that the people make tassels on the corners of their garments as a reminder throughout the generations, reminding them of their covenant with God. They were also to include a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. The purpose of the tassels was to invoke the heart of the people to remember the commandments of the Lord and to do them. Tassels would serve as warnings not to follow after the harlotry of the nations around them. God brought them out of Egypt by His mighty hand, and they needed to remember where their salvation came from. The tassels would serve as that reminder.

One of the purposes of the tassels was to serve as a daily reminder to the individual and to others. The garments of the Israelites were required to have tassels. This was not a fashion statement that could be ignored. God commanded that the tassels be included on their garments along with the blue thread. As the person went about their daily activities, the tassels would remind them who they were and what they were in the eyes of the Lord. The tassels would also serve as a reminder to everyone else who saw their family and friends wearing tassels in their garments. Israel became a nation of people who wore tassels on their garments as a sign of the covenant between them and God.

The world would see how Israel dressed and notice the abundance of tassels in the garments. An observant person would see that all of Israel wore tassels with blue threads. This served as a distinction between the people of God and the world, separating them from the wickedness of a corrupt world. If a Jew were tempted to follow after the immorality of the world, the tassels would remind them who they were as people of God. It was the will of the Father that the tassels would stop the heart from seeking after the harlotry of the world. Sadly, in time, the tassels did not stop the Israelites from polluting the land with idolatry because they ignored the tassels and refused to honor the law of God, which required the tassels to be a sign of the covenant they made with God.

The requirement of tassels was abolished when the Law of Moses was no longer in effect. There are other memorials and reminders God has placed in His law to remind the people who they are. The memorial of the word of God serves as the testimony of God’s word. On every first day of the week, the people of God assemble to partake of the Lord’s Supper, a memorial feast instituted by Jesus for His disciples to observe until He returns. This tassel has the blood of Jesus flowing through it. Prayer and song serve as tassels to remind the followers of Christ who they are. These things should be part of the spiritual garment of the Christian that is worn each day as a reminder of the covenant shared with God. The world should see in the life of the Christian the spiritual tassels of God’s word at work in everything the Christian is and will be, amidst an evil world.

God told the Jews to put tassels on all their garments with a blue thread to remind them of who they were and what they were. The tassels never failed, only the people. God has placed spiritual tassels in the church today, and whether they succeed or not depends on the heart of the Christian. Wear the armor of God and don’t forget the purpose of the tassels.