📖 Biblical Definition
The beard is the hair of the male chin and lower face — and in Scripture, the visible mark of manhood, age, and dignity. The Levitical law explicitly protected it: "Thou shalt not... mar the corners of thy beard" (Leviticus 19:27; 21:5). To shave half a beard was an act of humiliation: Hanun king of the Ammonites did it to David’s ambassadors, and David made them tarry at Jericho until their beards grew (2 Samuel 10:4-5). To pluck off the beard was the mark of mourning or scandal (Ezra 9:3; Isaiah 50:6). Christ’s beard was plucked by His abusers: "I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair" (Isaiah 50:6). Honor the beard; recover it.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
BEARD, n.
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1. The hair that grows on the chin, lips and adjacent parts of the face, particularly of male adults; whence it is a mark of virility. 2. In scripture, an emblem of manliness and dignity.
📖 Key Scripture
Leviticus 19:27 — "Neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard."
2 Samuel 10:4 — "Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards... and sent them away."
Psalm 133:2 — "It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard."
Isaiah 50:6 — "I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Modern culture neuters the male face; Scripture treats the beard as covenant ornament.
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The beard in Scripture is not a fashion choice. Levitical law explicitly prohibited marring its corners (Lev 19:27); 2 Samuel 10 records that humiliating Israelite envoys by shaving half their beards was act of war; the consecrated oil for the priesthood ran down Aaron's beard (Ps 133); Isaiah's Servant prophesied that the Messiah's beard would be plucked out in His suffering (Isa 50:6).
Modern Western culture has spent decades training men to be smooth-faced or fashion-faced — either neutered, infantilized, or carefully curated for marketing. The Levitical view is steadier: the beard is a man's natural covenant ornament. Cultural styles vary; Christian liberty applies; but the casual contempt for the male face that often accompanies modern aesthetics is not biblical. Wear what God gave you with dignity. The beard belongs to manhood.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Hebrew zaqan (H2206); Greek pogon (untranslated NT).
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H2206 — zaqan — beard; chin; elder
H2205 — zaqen — old; aged; elder
Usage
"The beard is the male covenant ornament — the same Hebrew root names the elder."
"Modern aesthetics trains men either smooth-faced or marketed; Levitical law went a different way."
"The Servant's beard was plucked for our sin — the manhood He gave was bruised for ours."