How Can a Christian Woman Swim Safely Without Offending God in Dress?
1) Direct Answer
A Christian woman can swim without offending God by keeping modesty, separation, and a feminine testimony. Choose private or women‑only settings; avoid mixed bathing and beaches. Wear a loose, opaque, feminine swim garment that does not reveal the form when wet, covers the body well (neckline high, sleeves at least to the elbow, hem well below the knee—mid‑calf is safer), and is not transparent, tight, split, or clingy. Do it for health or family refreshment, not for show. Keep a meek, shamefaced spirit, and if there is any doubt in the heart, don’t do it.
2) Scriptural Explanation
- The Bible says women are to “adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety” (1 Timothy 2:9–10). Modesty is not only the cloth, but the spirit—yet it does govern how we dress.
- “The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man” (Deuteronomy 22:5). So the outer garment should remain clearly feminine, not the form or style of men’s wear.
- Peter points to the hidden man of the heart, with a meek and quiet spirit (1 Peter 3:3–4). The inside life shows on the outside.
- We must not be a stumbling block (Romans 14:13; 1 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus said a man can commit adultery in his heart by looking with lust (Matthew 5:28). So we guard our brothers by not displaying the body.
- God covered Adam and Eve with coats, not mere aprons (Genesis 3:7, 21). Isaiah 47:2–3 shows that uncovering the thigh is counted as nakedness; Exodus 28:42 shows covering from the loins even to the thighs. Now notice, Scripture treats exposure of the thigh as nakedness—so coverage below the knee is a safe, clean standard.
- “Love not the world” (1 John 2:15) and “be not conformed” (Romans 12:2). Beaches and mixed pools are built for display; separation keeps the testimony clean.
3) Simple Clarifying Logic
- Water makes thin fabric cling and show the body. So choose garments and fabrics that stay opaque and loose when wet.
- Mixed settings put a woman’s body before men’s eyes. Even if her intent is pure, the effect can still stumble others and stain her witness.
- A feminine outer garment honors Deuteronomy 22:5. If functional underlayers are used for coverage, keep them under a proper, loose, opaque swim dress so the visible outfit remains clearly feminine.
- If you have to ask, “Is this too tight, too short, too sheer, or too revealing when wet?” it’s already a warning from the conscience. Better to please the Lord than to fit the culture.
4) Reinforcing Statement
Salvation is in the new birth, but the new birth shows itself. You see, holiness is beautiful when it’s simple, modest, and separate. Walk softly, cover cleanly, and keep your testimony above reproach.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
The faith that was once delivered to the saints
53-1129A §38
I'm not here to tell you how to dress and what to dress. That's between you and God, but listen when a person gets right with God, God will take care of the rest of it. That's right. I don't have no ruling say you have to do this, and wear your dresses, and your skirts, and men have to do this. There's no rule. Just like up in my country. There's a oak tree, a little old scrub oak, it holds its leaves all winter long. When springtime comes, you don't have to go pick off the old leaves so the new ones will come on....
Door to the heart
59-1128 §30
...lady said to me, she said, "I don't wear shorts." And I said, "Well, good for you." She said, "I wear slacks." I said, "That's worse." It's the truth. The Bible said---and God is infinite and cannot change---"It's an abomination for a woman to put on a garment that pertains to a man." You see that door they keep closed up? If Christ could come in there, He'd make it different. You say, "I'm a Christian," but you keep that door shut. "He's not welcome. He can't be Lord." Even get mad at the pastor if he preaches ag...
Christianity versus Idolatry
61-1217 §75
Where it said, "Baptize in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ," they make "Father, Son, Holy Ghost," three gods, out of it. They take all kinds of dogmas, and make up all kinds of things, and sprinkling instead of immersing. Everything! Make some kind of a man-made wallow out of it, instead of putting it in the jewel, in the great King, Christ. Oh, hallelujah! That's God incarnate, Christ! They corrupt the ways of God. Let the people come in the church, women with bobbed hair, wearing make-up, dresses on that looks...
Hear ye Him
58-0209A §29
...oks at you, and you are dressed that way, do you know you're going to answer at the judgment for committing adultery with that sinner? Jesus said, "Whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." And if you dress like that, you're guilty, because you place yourself before him like that. Search through the Scriptures, and see if that's right. It's true. Well, you might be as pure as a lily. That's right. But, as long as you present yourself in some of this mo...
Jesus at the door
58-0529 §37
The Bible said that a woman that'll put on any garment that pertains to a man, it's an abomination in the sight of God. Little old clothes... Mrs. Vayle, and Mr. Vayle, and I was going down the street and they had a statue standing in the window, looked like a sack pulled over a woman. And it was so... And let me ask you something. Do you realize this, my sister, that if you dress like that, may you be pure to your husband; and you girl, you may be pure to your boyfriend; you're going to be answered at the day of j...