The Bible has clear guidance on the issue of romantic relationships between close relatives. While cultural norms have shifted over time, God’s standards remain constant and serve to protect human relationships from harm.
Biblical prohibitions against incest
Several verses in both the Old and New Testaments expressly forbid sexual relations between close relatives:
Leviticus 18:6-18 condemns sexual relations with various close family members, including one’s mother, father, sister, brother, aunt, uncle, daughter-in-law, and sister-in-law. The passage describes such acts as “wickedness” (Leviticus 18:17).
Leviticus 20:11-12, 17-21 mandates the death penalty for men and women who engage in incestuous relationships.
1 Corinthians 5:1 expresses shock and disapproval over a case of a man sleeping with his father’s wife, likely his stepmother. The church is instructed to expel this man.
These and other verses make it clear that incestuous relationships are sinful in God’s eyes. He instituted laws against incest to protect human relationships and prevent exploitation.
Reasons for the biblical prohibition
Several reasons help explain God’s commands against incest:
1. Incest confuses family roles and blurs generational boundaries in unhealthy ways. The parent-child bond is meant to nurture and guide, not become an avenue for sexual fulfillment. Siblings are intended to grow up together as peers, not as romantic partners. Uncle-niece and other extended family relationships have built-in power imbalances that make consent difficult. Incest distorts all of these roles.
2. Incest often arises from or leads to exploitation and abuse. The imbalance of power makes it hard for one party to resist advances from an older relative. Younger relatives can be groomed from a young age. Incest survivors often report feeling trapped and suffering long-term trauma.
3. Incest increases the risks of genetic abnormalities in potential offspring. While genetic problems are not guaranteed, increased commonality of genes raises risks for recessive diseases and disorders. God intends children to be born healthy.
4. Incest removes appropriate social and sexual boundaries. As will be explored more below, boundaries are healthy and help preserve human thriving. Incest blurs the lines between familial intimacy and sexual intimacy in ways that undermine human relationships.
Therefore, the Levitical prohibitions serve to protect vulnerable parties, avoid heightened genetic risks, and maintain clear family boundaries ordained by God for human flourishing. The verses reflect God’s love and wisdom.
Degrees of kinship prohibited
Leviticus 18 and 20 mention several specific family members with whom sexual relations are forbidden:
– Parents (mother, father)
– Siblings (sister, brother)
– Aunts and uncles
– Nieces and nephews
– Grandparents and grandchildren
– Step-relations (stepmother, father’s wife)
Later rabbinic law expanded the Levitical lists to include additional relations by marriage or by blood, up to third cousins. The principle is that the closer the biological kinship, the more strictly forbidden the relationship. Even extended clans were advised to avoid intermarriage.
The prohibitions also apply regardless of whether the relationship is polygamous, as seen in the example of a man approaching both a woman and her daughter (Leviticus 18:17). Here the kinship tie supersedes the validity of the marriage bond.
The verses do not address same-sex incestuous relations likely because all homosexuality was condemned (Leviticus 18:22). But the principles would apply equally. In summary, a wide degree of kinship is covered by biblical incest prohibitions.
Exceptions for sibling marriage in the Bible
There are two notable instances of sibling marriage recorded in the Bible during the early stages of human history:
– Cain married his sister (Genesis 4:17)
– Abraham married his half-sister Sarah (Genesis 20:7-12)
Later Levitical laws clearly outlawed these practices. However, changes did not happen immediately after the Fall. Sibling and limited intermarriage was likely permitted or at least tolerated early on to quicken the propagation of humanity. Genetic risks from shared recessive genes were not yet cumulatively high.
By the time of Moses, more humans were on earth and marriage between close kin was formally prohibited in the law of Moses. These early biblical accounts serve as descriptive snapshots of cultural development rather than enduring prescriptions for all time. They illuminated the need for clearer marital standards.
The example of Lot and his daughters
Another biblical account that involves incest is the tragic case of Lot and his daughters, described in Genesis 19:30-38:
– After the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot’s daughters got their father drunk
– They lay with him to “preserve offspring” after fearing no men were left to marry
– The daughters bore children who became the founders of Moab and Ammon
This account illustrates the Genesis pattern of sinful human behavior beginning immediately after the Fall. Lot’s daughters’ actions violate the ethical standards for sexual conduct laid out in Leviticus 18 and 20.
Their motives to bear children were understandable but their means were sinfully wrong. The account serves as a warning against justifying immoral actions by seemingly noble ends. No positive commendation or prescription is given; it is a record of shameful human behavior after a disaster.
Argument: “Love should trump social custom”
Some argue that romantic love between consenting adults should override social taboos against incest. If two relatives sincerely love and desire each other, who is society to condemn them?
Several flaws undermine this view:
1. Subjective feelings do not determine right and wrong. God’s unchanging moral standards serve to protect vulnerable people, no matter how sincere or intense their emotions may feel.
2. Power imbalances make true consent very difficult. Younger relatives often succumb to pressure from older relatives in ways that lead to long-term trauma. The relationship dynamic is inherently uneven.
3. Social customs arise for good reason. They preserve order, reinforce wisdom gathered over generations, and channel potentially destructive human impulses in healthy directions. Customs should not be discarded lightly.
4. Other people are harmed. Family units are thrown into upheaval. Public health may be impacted if pregnancies result. Innocent parties like the couple’s own children suffer psychological damage.
Therefore, while emotions feel powerful, they do not exist in a vacuum. Moral obligations and social ties rightly impose constraints out of care for human welfare. God’s standards are given for flourishing.
Modern cultural shifts regarding incest
Some modern cultural trends display greater openness toward incest:
– Increased sexual permissiveness has weakened certain taboos.
– Pop culture has normalized forbidden sexual desire, including incestuous themes. This desensitizes audiences.
– Redefinition of familial ties through divorce, blended families, etc. has muddied once-clear waters. Step-relations, distant relatives reconnect through ancestry websites, etc.
– “Genetic sexual attraction” has been proposed as an instinctual draw toward reunited relatives, often parents and adult children meeting for the first time later in life.
However, these cultural shifts do not nullify the enduring moral framework and wisdom of biblical sexual ethics regarding incest. Human nature has not evolved to freely indulge incest without consequences. God’s design for human relationships remains intact despite changing social tides. Christians should evaluate cultural trends carefully in light of Scripture.
Maintaining healthy family boundaries
Scripture gives wisdom for maintaining healthy boundaries that guard against unhealthy sexual attraction:
– Cultivate appropriate respect and intimacy between family members. Parents care for children, siblings enjoy friendship, etc. But beware inserting sexuality into these relationships.
– Be vigilant over power imbalances where older relatives interact closely with minors and young adults. Don’t leave them unsupervised together for long periods. Watch for grooming behavior.
– Talk openly about sex, consent, and appropriate boundaries within families. Teach children to identify and resist sexual manipulation by relatives. Report concerns.
– Deal wisely with divorced and blended family dynamics. Clarify when step-relatives enter the picture and maintain the spirit of prohibitions accordingly.
– Limit physical affection once children reach adulthood. Respect their autonomy and privacy. Remain involved emotionally but avoid lingering physicality.
– Suggest counseling for romantic feelings toward relatives before things progress. If needed, limit contact and interaction to cool off inappropriate passions.
Healthy caution and ethical boundaries from the start can prevent much heartache. Openness, accountability, and humility about struggles are also key. God’s standards are good, even when our desires rebel against them at times.
Prohibition against incest in the New Testament church
1 Corinthians 5 provides a case study where the early church prohibited incest. When a man in the Corinthian church was discovered sleeping with his father’s wife, Paul rebuked the church for boasting about it rather than mourning. He says the man must be expelled from the church and handed “over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh” (1 Corinthians 5:5). The church must not tolerate or associate with any professing believer who is sexually immoral.
This account shows that the early Christians took Old Testament sexual ethics seriously, including incest prohibitions. They were meant to remain pure from such unlawful relationships, even when surrounding society condoned it.
Paul says not even to eat with such a person (1 Corinthians 5:11). The incestuous man apparently repented because 2 Corinthians refers to forgiveness and restoration for an unnamed offender, likely the same man. Either way, the prohibition stood firm. The church today must maintain the same vigilance against unethical sexual relationships.
Applying biblical principles
When addressing incest and other sexual ethics issues today, Christians should:
– Uphold the clear biblical prohibitions against incestuous relationships
– Remove any offender engaging in incest from fellowship per 1 Corinthians 5, pending repentance and restoration
– Call for justice against any coerced relationships or abuse
– Offer compassion alongside correction to help people wrestle with inappropriate desires
– Advocate for healthy boundaries and ethical practices within families and churches
– Be wary of cultural trends toward sexual license in entertainment, laws, etc. that normalize taboos
– Help those struggling with emotional wounds and trauma from incest in their past
God cares deeply about human flourishing and healthy relationships. His standards remain a strong protection and guide. Christians must hold the line with both conviction and kindness.
Conclusion
In summary, the Bible explicitly forbids and condemns incestuous relationships between a variety of close kinship relations, both immediate and extended family. This strong prohibition applies regardless of mutuality or consent in order to protect against sinful indulgence, exploitation, blurred familial roles, and genetic risks.
Cultural shifts may weaken certain taboos, and biblical accounts show incest evident after the Fall. But God’s moral standards endure unchanged. Christians must uphold God’s design for healthy, ethical sexual relationships by guarding the vulnerable, establishing proper boundaries, and calling for purity within families and churches.