How to cite this article: Joshua N. Tilton, “Tangled up in Techēlet: Tzitzit (Ritual Tassels) in the Time of Jesus,” Jerusalem Perspective (2023) [https://www.jerusalemperspective.com/27237/].
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The wearing of tzitzit (ritual tassels) on the four corners of one’s garment is a Jewish custom enjoined by Scripture:
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר׃ דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם וְעָשׂוּ לָהֶם צִיצִת עַל־כַּנְפֵי בִגְדֵיהֶם לְדֹרֹתָם וְנָתְנוּ עַל־צִיצִת הַכָּנָף פְּתִיל תְּכֵלֶת׃ וְהָיָה לָכֶם לְצִיצִת וּרְאִיתֶם אֹתוֹ וּזְכַרְתֶּם אֶת־כָּל־מִצְוֹת יְהוָה וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֹתָם וְלֹא־תָתֻרוּ אַחֲרֵי לְבַבְכֶם וְאַחֲרֵי עֵינֵיכֶם אֲשֶׁר־אַתֶּם זֹנִים אַחֲרֵיהֶם׃ לְמַעַן תִּזְכְּרוּ וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֶת־כָּל־מִצְוֹתָי וִהְיִיתֶם קְדֹשִׁים לֵאלֹהֵיכֶם׃ אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם לִהְיוֹת לָכֶם לֵאלֹהִים אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם׃
And the LORD spoke to Moses saying, “Speak to the children of Israel and say to them that they must make themselves tzitzit on the corners of their garments for their generations. And they shall place on the tzitzit of the corner a blueish-purple strand. And it shall be for you for a tzitzit so that you may see it and remember all the LORD’s commandments and do them and not stray after your heart or after your eyes which you lust after. In order that you may remember and do all my commandments and be holy to your God. I am the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt to be your God. I am the LORD your God.” (Num. 15:37-41)
גְּדִלִים תַּעֲשֶׂה־לָּךְ עַל־אַרְבַּע כַּנְפוֹת כְּסוּתְךָ אֲשֶׁר תְּכַסֶּה־בָּהּ
Twisted cords you shall make for yourself on the four corners of your covering with which you are covered. (Deut. 22:12)
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Comments 2
You hinted at it with the “Healing in his Wings?” title, but didn’t outright say it. Is Malachi 4:2 a Messianic prophecy because of “wings” (kanaf)? And was this the inspiration for the woman who was bleeding for 12 years in Luke 8 to just touch his “wings” to be healed?
Author
Personally, I think seeing an allusion to Malachi in the story of the Hemorrhaging Woman is a red herring. I think Ze’ev Safrai suggested a more plausible reason why the woman touched Jesus’ ritual tassels: that by doing so she avoided transferring her impurity to Jesus. See Ze’ev Safrai, “Purity Halakha in the Story of the Hemorrhaging Woman,” Jerusalem Perspective (2025) [https://www.jerusalemperspective.com/30401/].