Bible Stories for Young Adults
The Shame of Nakedness
In the beginning of the world there was no shame at all. That is because
there was no sin, no wrong-doing, and the first couple that God created,
Adam and his wife Eve, had daily communion with God in a paradise called the
Garden of Eden.* Their consciences were perfect and God's holy laws were
written on their hearts. They obeyed God perfectly until one day they were
tempted to disobey God. They were promised by an emissary of Satan that
they could be as gods themselves and make up their own laws. The tempter wanted them to break God’s law, which was not to eat of the forbidden fruit.
They sinned against God by eating the forbidden fruit. They lost their
innocence, and blissful innocence replaced by guilt and shame. Before this,
the man and his wife were naked and not ashamed, just as it should be even
now between a man and his wife in their private chambers. But now Adam and
Eve were so ashamed and afraid of God that they made aprons for themselves
out of fig leaves, trying to cover themselves. They no longer walked in the
inner peace and freedom from guilt that they once had. They even tried to
hide from God.
They died spiritually that day. No longer did they enjoy the sweet
fellowship with God in the garden that they once delighted in. Sin had
entered their hearts and minds, and this sin nature, the natural bent to
sin, was passed on to all of the children that would ever be born through
the seed (sperm) of man. But God did provide two things for Adam and Eve to
give them hope for themselves and their children. He told their tempter
(Satan) that there would be a spiritual battle between those who would
follow the tempter and those who would follow a promised Messiah, but that
the Messiah would ultimately triumph over Satan. Adam and Eve witnessed
this prophecy as it was spoken to Satan. (Genesis 3:15)
Another thing God did as a sign he would cover their sin Himself is that He
killed an animal and had Adam and Eve more properly covered with the skin
from this animal. From that time forward, those who are rightly related to
God have looked to Him to provide the covering for their sin and mankind has
worn clothes because nakedness is a shame since sin has entered the world.
Today, the farther a society drifts from God, the more common nakedness,
indecent exposure, and immodest dress become. Our society today is flooded
with nakedness in the form of pornography, immodest clothing, and unbridled
sex sin.
The fact that an animal's life had to be sacrificed for Adam and Eve to be
properly clothed before God was re-enacted throughout the Old Testament as
animals were sacrificed as an act of worship and faith in the Messiah to
come. When that Messiah came, Jesus Christ Himself was the blood sacrifice
for the sins of humans who would trust in Him as their Savior, the one who
would ultimately crush Satan under his feet.
Nakedness is not necessarily complete nudity. Nakedness exists when one's
body is not covered enough. For example, Isaiah was told by God in Isaiah 20
to walk barefoot and naked to demonstrate the way that Assyria would
lead their captives away as slaves. Isaiah probably only wore a loincloth.
MIcah also spoke of going barefoot and naked, and he also prophesied during
the days of Isaiah. These prophets were demonstrating that God was no
longer covering for the people. Their sins and shame would soon be exposed
as some would be led away as captives into slavery, and be dressed as slaves were commonly “dressed” -- only in a loin cloth.
The shame of nakedness is associated with the exposure of parts of the body
that are to be covered to maintain decency, modesty, and covering of private
parts. A modestly clothed person is one whose clothing draws attention to
the face, not to lower parts of the body.
Noah's Grandson Cursed
Since originally there was no human government to restrict man's behavior or
to punish him for wronging others, by several hundred years after Adam and
Eve's creation, the world was in a big mess. Marriages were being made
between the righteous and the wicked so much so that the offspring were
growing more and more violent. God saw that every thought and every
attitude of man was only evil continually, so doubtlessly sex sins were
being committed also. The earth was so filled with violence and corruption
that God determined to destroy mankind with a Great Flood. Noah and his
wife, their three sons, and their sons' wives were the only people saved on
a great ark that Noah built under God's direction.
These eight people were saved. After staying on the ark for over a year,
waiting for the flood waters to subside, Noah got off the ark and saw a very
different world from what had existed before the Flood. The original
creation no longer existed. So Noah planted a vineyard and drank wine from
that vineyard, so much so that he became drunk and passed out. As he was
lying there uncovered in his tent, his son Ham spied on him, and instead of
acting honorably toward his father at seeing his nakedness, he went out and
told his brothers, perhaps in a mocking way. The brothers Shem and Japheth
took a garment and laid it across their shoulders and walked backwards and
covered their father's nakedness. They kept their faces turned away from
their father so they would not see his nakedness. They knew it was
dishonorable to look upon or to make sport of someone's nakedness, for
nakedness is a shame. Nakedness must be covered.
When Noah awoke and discovered how his youngest son Ham had acted, he
immediately cursed Canaan, the son of Ham, whose descendants became the Canaanites. These were the same wicked people that were accursed by God for their evil doings and which were conquered by Joshua's army.
The pairing of drunkenness and nakedness is also in Habakkuk 2:15-16. "Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin till they
are drunk, so that he can gaze on their naked bodies. You will be filled
with shame instead of glory. Now it is your turn! Drink and be exposed!
The cup from the Lord's right hand is coming around to you, and disgrace
will cover your glory." How many young women are taken advantage of once
they have been given some alcohol or other drug? Christians must be aware
that the condition of drunkenness often lays the foundation for nakedness
and sex sin, not to speak of the fact that drunkenness in itself is a mortal
sin. (Galatians 5:19-21)
Words from Other Prophets
Throughout the Bible the shame of nakedness is spoken of. It is a
Christian duty to see that the naked are clothed, but these are people who
evidently want to be clothed and are not going around immodestly dressed on
purpose. Perhaps they are too poor to buy clothes or a coat. Christian
women are exhorted to dress modestly (I Timothy 2:9) and not in the "attire
of a harlot." (Proverb 7:10) Priests in the Old Testament were told to wear
special linen breeches as undergarments that covered them from the waist to
the thigh and to not have an altar with steps going up to it so that their
"nakedness would not be discovered." (Exodus 20:26 and 28:42)
The prophet Ezekiel considered any woman who would expose her nakedness to
be a whore and compared a backslidden and idolatrous Israel to such a whore.
Perhaps we should ask those who do not believe the Bible why they wear clothes. Wearing clothes is something God tells us to do. If someone does not
believe in God, why doesn't he go around completely unclothed? As we see
faith in God subside in our land, we are seeing more nakedness. I was
appalled in recent years when a "Miss America" was selected who was wearing
an evening gown that showed showed so much cleavage that
it barely covered the teats, as the "V" plunged nearly to her navel! In
the '60's and '70's, "Miss America" was considered a wholesome example to
young Americans, but now they cannot even have a "Miss Congeniality" because
almost every contestant was voting only for herself! The swimsuit
competition used to be a great deal more modest also!
I had never heard of "mooning" someone until I was an adult. This supposed
joke is really no joke at all, for it is exposing one's nakedness and it is
an offensive act. The practice of "streaking" is another stunt of the '70's
in which total nakedness was exposed. If someone were married to a "mooner,"
a "streaker," or a pornography addict, many would think it to be grounds for divorce, along with other sexually immoral acts.
If Christians do not want to be cursed by God as Noah's son was, Christians
must turn from viewing indecent exposure or nakedness of others in pictures
(pornography), in movies, on TV, and in real life. Turn your eyes away from
the girl who has her cleavage exposed, whose skirt is too short, and whose
clothing (or suggestive ways) is immodest.
Besides the story of Noah's nakedness, there are a few other Bible stories
that illustrate the shame of nakedness.
David's Men Humiliated
In 2 Samuel 10, King David of Israel sent a delegation of his men to Hanun,
an Ammonite king, who had just acquired kingship upon the death of his
father. David's aim was to befriend Hanun, just as his father had
befriended him, and to express sympathy and show kindness. However, the
Ammonite officials believed that David's men had come as spies so they could
overthrow them. So, to shame them, Hanun shaved off half of each man's
beard and cut off their garments in the middle at the buttocks, and sent
them away.
David's men were so ashamed and humiliated that David sent messengers to his
men and told them to stay at Jericho until their beards grew back. But the
shame of nakedness was even greater than the shame of not having a full
beard! Perhaps in the time it would take for their beards to grow back,
they could recover some of their dignity of which they had been stripped.
It is said that one great fear that Adolph Hitler had in his descending moments was that the Russians would capture him and parade him through the
streets naked, stripped of all of his imagined dignity. So even an evil man like Hitler dreaded the shame of nakedness.
Jesus Heals a Naked Man
Nakedness is a shame. One common bad dream that many people have is one in which they are exposed, naked before other people. I wonder what insanity
must overtake people who can live in a nudist colony! I don't use that word "insanity" lightly.
One day Jesus came upon a man who was demon-possessed who lived among the tombs, chained like a wild animal. But he often had such supernatural
strength that he would break out of the chains. He would wander among the
tombs naked, crying out day and night, and cutting himself with stones.
( Mark 5:1-20 and Luke 8:26-39)
When the demoniac saw Jesus, he ran and kneeled before Him, begging not to
be tortured, but it was the demons in him saying that, for those very demons
were already torturing the man. Jesus asked the demons, "What is your name?"
"Legion," they answered, "for we are many."
At that, Jesus ordered the demons to leave the man and enter the pigs
nearby. When they did enter the pigs, it caused the pigs -- about two
thousand of them -- to go crazy. They ran down a steep bank and drowned in a
lake. When the people in the nearby town came out to see what all the
commotion was about, they saw the former demoniac sitting down, clothed, and
in his right mind. They were afraid because of the power Jesus had. Yes,
now he who had been wild and naked so long, was now clothed!
The new man now wanted to follow Jesus, but Jesus told him to go home and
tell everyone what the Lord had done for him. He did so and everyone was
amazed at his testimony.
Demons Tear the Clothes off of Seven Men
Just to show how much Satan loves nakedness, go to Acts 19:13-17. Seven
sons of a Jewish priest had realized that there was power in the name of
Jesus to cast out evil spirits. They had heard of Jesus through the
teaching of the Apostle Paul. They were not Christian believers, but only
wanted to use the power of Jesus for their practice of exorcism. One day as
they were invoking the name of Jesus, the demon in the man answered, "Jesus
I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?" Immediately, the man with
the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered all seven of them, giving
them such a whipping that they fled out of the house naked and bleeding.
Demons tore the clothes off of every one of them.
As this incident became known, many living in that city of Ephesus were frozen with fear and many believed on Christ and started confessing their evil deeds,
even to the point that they burned their scrolls that taught them sorcery.
The word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
Humans, unlike the animals, wear clothes. If I believed that humans evolved
from apes, I would wonder why we did not keep the fur! Why would we have to
start wearing clothes? We don't need to be improperly clothed as Adam and Eve were in their fig leaves, either!
Spiritually, we also need to be clothed in Christ's righteousness and the
clothes we wear each day should remind us of this spiritual need. We have
sinned. We carry shame and guilt within us. To be properly clothed
spiritually, we need the clothes of righteousness that Christ clothes us
with. He died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, and to bear our
guilt and shame. He even bore the shame of nakedness for us while on the
cross, for the soldiers stripped Him of his clothes, dividing them between
themselves, then gambled for his robe. He was left naked on the cross, most
probably not even wearing a loin cloth that most painters show him having. Jesus Christ, we are told, despised the shame, but He did it so we could be freed
from the bondage that sin would hold us in. Jesus replaces our "filthy
rags," which is all we have in His eyes, with His pure white linen of
righteousness.
Further Thought:
1. In Matthew 25:36, Christians who "clothe the naked" will be rewarded.
What do you think this means? Might there be a spiritual aspect to
"clothing the naked?"
2. Is it possible that clothes may become too important to a person? How?
What sin may underlie this attitude toward clothes?
3. Missionaries who go into tribes where few bodily coverings are worn,
either because of poverty, or inability to make clothes, soon learn that the
tribespeople are eager to receive clothes to wear. Do you think the fact
that the missionaries' having clothes caused them to be ashamed of not
having clothes, or do you think their hearing the gospel made them aware of
their need for clothes?
4. God wants us to be clothed. What are practical reasons an atheist may
give for wearing clothes? (Sometimes the Bible uses the word "naked" to
mean someone who doesn't have enough clothes on to keep himself warm in the
cold weather.)
5. What about cross-dressing? (Men wearing ladies' clothing or
vice-versa?) (See Deuteronomy 22:5)
6. Some heathen tribes, such as some of the native American "Indian"
tribes, in the absence of clothes, painted themselves, just as some modern
Americans tattoo their bodies. What does the Bible teach about this?
7. In some circles of Christendom, "mixed bathing" is preached against.
"Mixed bathing" simply means both men and women are in swimsuits (at one
time called "bathing suits") at the same swimming pool or beach. Why do you
think they object to "mixed bathing?"
8. When I was but a very young child, only three years old or less, we had a family reunion at a state park and put on our “bathing suits” to get in the lake. My mom dressed me in only “bottoms” but my cousins which were also my age were dressed in two pieces -- bottoms and tops. I felt naked and ashamed. Why do you think a child would feel this way? Could “nakedness” also be something that we feel when we have less than others no matter what the “less than” is?
Dig Deeper
1. Read Genesis 3:1-7. What approach did Satan (in the form of a serpent)
take with Eve to deceive her. What were his lies? How is this like a
false religion?
Some people have suggested that the "forbidden fruit" was sex itself. Why
can this not be true? (See what God had told Adam and Eve beforehand in
2. Read Genesis 3:8-20. Verse 15 has been said to be the first promise of
a Savior in the Bible. What is said here by God that would make you believe
this?
Verse 16 has in it the hint that all children born thereafter would have a
sin nature because "in pain you shall bring forth children" mean "in sorrow"
due to having to deal with the sins of her children, and perhaps even their
death. The Hebrew word actually means "grief" and it is always associated
with grief over sin in other passages of the Old Testament. Who was
experiencing grief over sin in the following passages?
Psalm 78:40, Isaiah 54:6, I Samuel 20:34, Nehemiah 8: 9-11, Genesis 34:7
3. Read Genesis 3:21 and compare what happened here with what happened in
Genesis 4:1-5, and Genesis 8:20. Read Hebrews 9:11-22 to see the
significance of the blood of an animal being shed.
4. Read Isaiah 20:2-5. Why did God tell Isaiah to go barefoot and naked?
Who was he speaking against and why? Why would a prophet in that day have
to do something drastic like this to get his message out?
5. Read Genesis 6:1-13. List all the ways that the world was said to be
deserving of God's wrath. How was Noah different?
6. Read Genesis 9:20-27. Shem is said to be the ancestor of the "Semites"
(which consisted of Jews and others of Middle East origin) and Japheth is
the ancestor of the Europeans and others. Canaan is said to be a "servant."
Some racist cults have said this meant this meant slavery for certain races.
Why can this not be true? (You may look at the descendants of Noah in
Genesis, chapter 10, to find out.)
It has been observed by certain scientists who are Christians that not only
is there geological evidence for a world-wide flood, but there is also
evidence that the world's climate has changed so drastically that it was
like another world. 2 Peter 3:6 says that the world that existed before the
Great Flood was destroyed. Perhaps, say some, that the rate of fermentation
became greater and Noah inadvertently got drunk, for he was a righteous man.
Do you suppose Noah was innocent of wrong-doing or not?
7. In the Bible, the idea is that some sins are greater than others. Why
would this be true? (See I John 5:16 and John 19:11) Read Ephesians 5:3-5
and Galatians 5:19-21 and tell why the sins listed here could be called
"greater sins" than others? Which of these sins have something to do with
the shame of nakedness? How many sins (and of what sort) will make you
guilty before God? (James 2:10)
8. Read 2 Samuel 10:1-5. How might King David have been humiliated by
this?
9. Read Luke 8:26-39 and Acts 19:13-17 and be able to tell about the part
that demons played in a human being unclothed.
10. Contrast Isaiah 64:6 with Isaiah 61:10.
Memorize: I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation; He has covered me with the robe of righteousness. Isaiah 61:10
*Note: If you believe in the theory of macro-evolution, I can assure you I once was a proponent of the theory myself, but found scientific sources that convinced me otherwise. The Institute for Creation Research (www.icr.org) may have some helpful materials, but don’t let anything stop you from reading the lesson. The point here is not to talk about origins, but about present conditions in our culture.
Christ took all our shame when he died on the cross. According to some sources, he may very well have even hung there naked. He despised the shame (Hebrews 12:2) but bore it for our sakes.
For an hour-long talk by author Josh McDowell on the problem that the internet brings see the link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOSbUjmupWE&feature=share
Why did the faithful offer animal sacrifices before Christ came?
Why was nakedness associated with slavery in the Bible?
What did Noah’s son see that he should not have seen? Genesis 9:18-27
Miss America swimsuit competition is less modest now.
Why?
Why are Christians told to provide clothes to the naked -- those too poor to buy clothes?
Do you think David was humiliated about what was done to his royal ambassadors by Hanun?
Why were the people of Ephesus frozen with fear? Did they realize that power came from God?
Did Jesus speak to demons?
What happened to all the pigs when the demons went into them?
Christ will clothe us in His righteousness, symbolized by pure white linen garments.
What does the Bible say about tatoos?
Quickly look up Bible passages at the website
The links provided will take you there, but most are in the New King James Version. You can select other versions if you prefer when you get to the website.
