A Status Symbol
The hem of a Jew’s garment was not, as in modern clothes, a simple fold of the cloth, sewn down to prevent the edge from fraying. It was a decorative feature that made a statement about the status and importance of the wearer.
The people of other nearby nations also had this custom. In texts found in Mesopotamia, references indicate that the removal of the fringe of a man’s garment was the equivalent of removing part of his personality. To cut off the hem of a wife’s garment was regarded as divorcing her. Tablets have been found with the impression of a fringe as the mark of the individual, a personal seal or signature.
In New Testament times, ordinary people wore a tallit as an article of clothing. It was the Pharisees who seem to have worn it for show. There is a sarcastic Hebrew idiom that refers to “a completely blue tallit” (טלית שכולה תכלת) which is used to refer to something that is ostensibly, but not really, absolutely pure, immaculate and virtuous. Jesus expresses no disapproval of the custom itself but he does condemn the extra long fringes that they affected to display their piety [Matthew 23:5].
Saul Samuel and David
“And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord hath rejected thee from being king over Israel. And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt (kanaph) of his mantle (tallit), and it rent. And Samuel said unto him, The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.” 1 Sam 15:26-28
Saul, after disobeying God, was told by Samuel that his kingship was over. Pleading with Samuel, Saul rips the tzitzit out of Samuel’s tallit, which becomes a symbolic picture of Saul’s kingdom being ripped from him. The reason Saul lost his authority was because he no longer placed his trust in the kanaph of the Lord God.
“And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet: and David and his men remained in the sides of the cave. And the men of David said unto him, Behold the day of which the Lord said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt (kanaph) of Saul’s robe (tallit) privily.” 1 Sam 24:3-4 Saul, who out of jealousy had been trying to kill David, stopped off at a cave to “relieve” himself. Little did he know that David and his men where in that same cave. They told David, here’s you chance to kill your enemy. But David, being a man after God’s own heart, knew that it was wrong for him to kill Saul and opted to cut off the tzitzit of Saul’s kanaph. (Remember: the tzitzit was attached to the kanaph) In that way, David showed Saul that he very well could have killed him if he so desired.
Why did David do this, and why did his conscience smite him for having done it? Was there some special significance in what he had done? In fact the act of cutting off the skirt (fringe) of Saul’s robe was of very great significance, which Saul was not slow to recognize.
When the shouting began next day Saul said: “And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand” (1 Sam. 24:20). David had robbed Saul of his status symbol, the fringe of his robe that identified him as king.In the Psalms David often refers to the safety of Gods wings. “Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings (kanaph)” Psalms 17:8
“Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusts in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings (kanaph) will I make my refuge, until these calamities be past.” Psalm 57:1
