Topic reference
What does the Bible say about tattoos?
Does the word appear in the Bible?
The word "tattoos" does not appear in the Bible.
The English word 'tattoo' does not appear in the Bible. Leviticus 19:28 contains a Hebrew phrase that some translations render 'tattoo marks' and others render more generically as 'marks.' The phrase appears only in this one verse in the entire Hebrew Bible.
Every relevant passage
Leviticus 19:28
Do not make any cuts in your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.
Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.
The verse appears within the Holiness Code (Leviticus 17–26), a section of Levitical law addressed to the Israelites. The verses immediately surrounding 19:28 cover a range of practices the text associates with surrounding nations or with mourning rituals: eating blood, divination, cutting the corners of the beard, and (in 19:29) prohibitions on prostitution. The chapter as a whole opens with the formula 'Be holy, because I, the LORD your God, am holy.'
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
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.
Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth, 1 Corinthians 6:12–20, addresses sexual conduct. The 'temple' language appears in this context, not as a discussion of tattoos. The passage is frequently cited in modern tattoo discussions but does not mention tattoos.
Leviticus 19:27
You must not round off the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.
The verse immediately before 19:28. It addresses grooming practices, paired in the same paragraph with the prohibition on tattoo marks and on cutting the body for the dead.
Deuteronomy 14:1
You are sons of the LORD your God; do not cut yourselves or shave your foreheads on behalf of the dead.
Deuteronomy 14:1 also prohibits cutting the body for the dead, paired with shaving the forehead. It is sometimes cited in tattoo discussions because of the shared language of cutting the body, though it does not mention tattoos.
Original language
Original language
The Hebrew phrase translated 'tattoo marks' in Leviticus 19:28 is כְּתֹבֶת קַעֲקַע (k'tovet qa'aqa). Both words appear in the Bible only once, in this verse. The standard scholarly Hebrew lexicon, the Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (HALOT), notes that the exact meaning of qa'aqa is uncertain, glossing it as a marking on the skin and noting that the term 'could even be a simple decoration.' Translations differ on whether to render the phrase 'tattoo marks,' 'imprint marks,' or simply 'marks.'
What the text does not say
Passages commonly cited in this discussion that, in full context, are about something else.
- 1 Corinthians 6:19
The 'body is a temple' verse is about sexual conduct, not body modification, in its surrounding context.
- Genesis 1:27
The 'image of God' creation account is sometimes cited in tattoo discussions; the passage itself does not address tattoos.
What we are showing you
This page lists every Bible passage commonly cited in discussions of tattoos. Each is presented in full, with a factual note about its surrounding context. We do not draw conclusions about whether tattoos are permitted, prohibited, or anything in between. That is your call.
A note on the Hebrew
The phrase translated “tattoo marks” in Leviticus 19:28 is k’tovet qa’aqa (כְּתֹבֶת קַעֲקַע). This is a hapax legomenon — a phrase that appears only once in the Hebrew Bible. The standard scholarly lexicon (HALOT) describes the meaning of qa’aqa as uncertain, noting that its precise sense is unknown and that the term may refer to any kind of marking on the skin. Translations therefore differ on how specifically to render the phrase.