I agree with Lane.
In
posting the quotes from Clement early this morning I was doing so in jest. We could pull up other pro-beard verses from men like Spurgeon and others that would be equally humorous based solely on the difference in societal norms.
If you're really worked up about it, I suggest you go read the entire chapter from which the quotes come. You can find it in volume 2 of ANF in chapter three book three of
The Instructor. Celement is, as Lane suggests, arguing mainly against the confusion of gender roles and secondarily against lavish living that carried with it effeminate overtones. You'd be surprised at how much he actually does quote Scripture and not just the ceremonial law.
Surely no one would argue with the importance of gender roles. We are simply left with the unassailable fact that God has given each gender biological distinctions to remind us that gender roles are important. The beard just happens to be one of the more prominent options for men whether it is utilized or not.
For more info on the history of beards and how World War I changed the American perception of beards, see
this article.