Should Christian men or women wear earrings, or should women alone wear them, or should they refrain from them altogether? This is an issue that has generated a lot of controversy over the ages. First, God is concerned about what we put on because He wants everything about our lives to glorify His name. In the whole chapter of Deuteronomy 22, He carefully stated to the children of Israel what He desired from them as a nation. Part of what He told them was that a woman should not wear that which pertains to men, neither shall a man put on a woman garment.

We all know that the nature of dressing will dictate the ornaments that will be used, God wants everything about our dressings to be different from that of the world so that we can easily be identified as children of God. As it is often said, the way we dress is the way we will be addressed.

Wearing Earrings as Part Of Some Culture

The history of earrings encompasses how earrings have been used as adornments throughout history, from ancient to contemporary times.

Earrings are believed to have been made during the fourth millennium BCE. People wore earrings for various reasons including to accentuate a woman’s beauty or the jewelry could indicate the status of its wearer. Earrings were worn by both sexes and used for social or religious reasons. This trend started with the Egyptians.

Early Egyptians Wore Earrings

Men and women in early Egyptian civilization wore earrings. Together with nose rings they were used by both sexes and worn for social or religious reasons. Earrings were first seen in the ancient Egyptians around the first half of the 4th millennium BC. The earring-wearing population peaked in approximately the 19th Dynasty around the 17th century BC. Earrings had a spiritual purpose. They were associated with the goddess Hathor and were often found in the burial chambers. The earrings were also associated with the afterlife and were a part of the funeral process. The majority of earrings were made of gold and were sometimes linked to the person’s name, although not always. Women wore earrings when entering the afterlife and men were not allowed to wear earrings in the afterlife. Some earrings were ornate and would contain symbolic elements.

Middle Ages Time and Earrings

Earrings became more popular during the Middle Ages. Earrings in general were associated with women and were worn by both sexes. Earrings were associated with fertility, health, and youth. However, this view changed by the 15th century, and earrings became associated with the devil. The use of earrings in Europe increased greatly during the 16th century as the Protestant Reformation spread across the continent.

Where Earrings Made People to Sin In The Bible

Some modern Christians have concluded that God does not want us to use earrings at all, whether a man or woman. They argued that earrings made of gold or pearls, and other costly materials are instruments in the devil to make people sin against God. When Moses went up to Mount Sinai to collect the Ten Commandments which God had promised His people, he stayed on the mountain for 40 days, and the people taught he had died there.

They believed that the fire that was burning on the mountain must have consumed Moses because the Bible recorded that God descended on the mountain with great fire, thunder, and lightning. When the children of Israel could not wait for Moses any longer, they asked Aaron his assistant to give them another god who will lead them to the Promised Land. In Exodus 32:2-3, Aaron said to them “Break off the earrings in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters and bring them to me.” He gathered all together and used them to make a golden calf which Israel took as their new God. God got angry with them and destroyed some of them as a result of this.

The issue of the wrong use of earrings surfaced again in the story of Gideon, one of the judges of Israel. He was used by God to deliver Israel from the Midianites who mightily oppressed them for 7 years. God gave Israel victory through Gideon, but in Judges 8:24, he demanded the golden earrings and other ornaments that men of Israel collected from the Midianites and used it to make an ephod which people began to worship. It became a snare unto Gideon and his household.

There are cases in the Bible where earrings golden ornaments have been used constructively. but these are few when compared with how it was used to make God angry. In Numbers 31:50, the princes of the tribes of Israel brought spoils of war to Moses and Aaron at the camp. Among these were ornamental objects made from gold. The total weight of all the golden articles was 500kg. They didn’t take any of these things, but they brought them to the Lord for Temple uses. In Song of Solomon 2:10-11, The writer describes her lover’s beauty as “rows of jewels, with chains of gold.” Meaning that just as ornaments made from gold and silver are precious and highly desirable, so is the beauty of his lover.

Use of Earrings in The New Testament

The Christians in the New Testament were spirit-filled, they devoted their time more to pleasing God as they fervently proclaimed the gospel and testified about the resurrected Christ. They believed that modesty should be the lifestyle of the followers of Christ, not wearing expensive clothing, or using costly ornaments.

In one of his messages, Apostle Paul in 1 Timothy 2:9-10 said that women who profess to belong to Christ should strive to bring honor and glory to God, not by dressing to please men but as the Bible says, “I am the Lord your God, be ye holy as I am holy.” They should not make braided hair or any such outward beautification their standard, but they should be sober, modest, and God-fearing.

The issue of dressing is not a matter of personal preferences as some people believed and preached. We are not at liberty to do what we like. We must obey God at all times and in all things. This is applicable to both men and women, especially those who are waiting for the second coming of Christ. We are not of this world; hence we should not allow anything that is of this world to deprive us of our heavenly home.