Orthodox Jew rapper Matisyahu took a razor blade to the face this week ... and shaved off his trademark beard ... or so it seems.

Matisyahu just posted the shorn pics of himself on his Twitter page ... along with the message, "At the break of day I look for you at sunrise ... When the tide comes in I lose my disguise."

We're reaching out to Matisyahu for comment -- we'll fill you in on the beard drama as it unfolds.

10:38 AM PST -- Matisyahu has posted a blog, explaining his decision to chop his face warmer ... in which he writes, "No more Chassidic reggae superstar."

He adds, "Sorry folks, all you get is me ... no alias. When I started becoming religious 10 years ago it was a very natural and organic process. It was my choice. My journey to discover my roots and explore Jewish spirituality—not through books but through real life."

"At a certain point I felt the need to submit to a higher level of religiosity…to move away from my intuition and to accept an ultimate truth. I felt that in order to become a good person I needed rules -- lots of them -- or else I would somehow fall apart. I am reclaiming myself. Trusting my goodness and my divine mission.