Why should men have a beard?

Today a co-worker asked me why I keep a beard.  I was able to come up with at least ten reasons.  Here they are:

1) Man was made in Yahuwah's image.  We know that Yahushua is the express image of YHWH's person. (Ivrim/Hebrews 1:3).  And we know that Yahushua kept a beard. (Yeshayahu/Isaiah 50:6).  It was always the custom of Yisra'elites to wear beards.  Thus, to mar or shave the beard is an attack on the very image of Yahuwah.

2) Yahuwah is very clear that men are to look, act and dress like men; women are to look, act and dress as women.  It is an abomination for a man to wear a woman's garments.  The beard was given to man as part of his "manliness."  Therefore, men should look masculine and wear a beard.

3) Historically, shaving the beard is a custom practiced by pagan cultures (most notably those that practiced homosexuality).  Yahushua gave His talmidim clear instructions not to act like pagans.

4) From scripture, we read the account of an incident that happened to some of Melech Dawid's men.  They had half of their beards removed.

2Sa 10:4 So Ḥanun took Dawiḏ’s servants and shaved off half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, as far as their buttocks, and sent them away. 
2Sa 10:5 And they informed Dawiḏ, and he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed. And the sovereign said, “Wait at Yeriḥo until your beards have grown, and then return.” 

It was a very shameful thing to have your beard shaved.  Notice that the Melech didn't shave the other half of their beards and send them back to their families.  On the contrary, he told them to wait in Jericho until their beards had grown to spare them the shame.

When else were beards shaven?  When someone was cured of leprosy.  (Lev. 14:9)

5) The Kohanim (priests) were commanded to not mar the corners of their beards.  Having such a defect would exclude someone from serving in the Temple.  We are to be a royal priesthood.  (1 Peter/Kepha Alef 2:9)  Therefore, as His priests, we should wear beards.

6)  Yirmeyahu/Jeremiah 41:4-7 tells us what happens to shaved men practicing idolatry in the name of YHWH.

7) One of the curses that YHWH pronounces on Moab is to have their beards shaven.  It seems obvious that YHWH doesn't consider being shaved a good thing.
Yirmeyahu 48:37 “For every head is bald, and every beard clipped – cuts on all the hands, and sackcloth on the loins. (They shaved their beards as a sign of immense weeping)

8) Yezekiel HaNavi was commanded to shave his head and beard as a testimony against unrighteous Yisra'el.  This hair was placed on scales and divided.  Since the Kohanim kept their hair short, this pile of hair must have come predominantly from his beard.

9)  We know that this world hates the things of Yahuwah.  This world hates beards.  Our very language proclaims this.  Men are called "CLEAN shaven" or they look like a "DIRTY hippie"with a beard.  Whose Malchut/Kingdom do we want to be a part of?  Yahuwah's (bearded) kingdom or the enemy's shaven kingdom?  Pray that Yah will move upon the heart's of men to stand up and be REAL men - with beards!

10)  "Into the fire down below, that's where the beardless people go.  Where forever they will rot, for all the beards they haven't got."  "There's just nothing better than a beard"  -The Beards of Australia.