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.
But it wasn't so from the beginning
61-0411 §62
...d to be that Pentecostal women didn't do that. But I don't know what happened. It used to be wrong for Pentecostal women to bob their hair. That's right. The Bible says any woman that bobs her hair, her husband has the right to put her away, of divorce, because she is a dishonorable woman. The Bible said that. It sure did. Certainly did. Now what? There you are. What we need is gospel from the pulpits. Straighten up, all the way from the pulpit to the janitor. That's right. We need the old-fashioned St. Paul's revi...
God identifying Himself by His characteristics
64-0320 §7
Like a man and a woman: they're both human beings, but a woman has different characteristics to a man. I was reading here some time ago about Solomon and the queen. I've never got around to preaching in my little message here to you on the queen of the South coming up to see Solomon, and seeing that gift of discernment. I was reading about that here not long ago, and they said that one of the puzzles that was put before Solomon was this queen took a woman, or women rather, and dressed them like men. Now, that was f...
Questions and Answers (God being misunderstood)
61-0723E §28
...just a babe in this way. And she was playing the piano. And a man met me out there and just tearing me to pieces. He said, "And you're a Pentecostal preacher, and let that woman sit up there! That short hair!" And just going on like everything. "Well," I said, "I think the woman has a good spirit in her. I certainly do not agree with that." (You know, the skirt part up here, the two pieces. One of them is down here and one is kind of up here. It's a shirt like they wear. And so it's real thin and shows that undern...
What is that in thine hand?
55-0611 §66
Here not long ago, I went down here with one of our Christian sisters, painted up like a Jezebel. I said, "What's the matter?" She said, "Well, glory to God." Said, "My pastor told me it was liberation of women." Liberation of women!? What's the matter with you? No such a thing as that. Christ liberated you from sin; and, act like it and dress like it. About the time the church gets built up and get a good start, then something like that has to happen. Yes, sir. She said, "Well, I tell you." Said, "My pastor told m...
Hebrews, Chapter 7, part 1
57-0915E §79
...you deacon, and you others here, that run out on the street here, and gawking your neck and looking at every one of them women. Shame on you! and calling yourself "sons of God." I know that's scorching, but I'd rather be scorched than then burnt forever there. So if you do those things... Now, you can't help it if a woman walks down the street, half dressed. If you're looking, you're bound to see her, but you can turn your head. The Bible said, "Whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her, hath committed adul...