The question what does the bible say about interracial marriage may be an interesting conversation depending on who you speak to – can an African-American date or marry a Caucasian person? Is there anything in the Bible about a Chinese or Japanese person marrying a Hispanic person?
The first scripture to take into account on this topic is from Samual, 16:7b, which says, “The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” This sets the tone for many passages in the Bible, and teaches not to look at people based on their appearance, but on what’s inside, as God does. There’s some scripture on the marriage between the Israelis of the time and ‘outsiders.’ Corinthians 6:14-17 talks about the marriage of a Christian believer and a non-believer stating, “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common?’
This isn’t referring to the marriage between different races though, and rather the marriage between a believer and an unbeliever. According to the Bible, a marriage of this type would create disharmony and tension, similar to ‘plowing with an ox and a donkey yoked together.’ The root of this is that marrying someone who isn’t a believer may take away their own belief. Some have used the following verse to justify the belief that interracial marriage is wrong; Leviticus 19:19 “Keep my decrees. Do not mate different kinds of animals. Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.”
This is again down to interpretation, and when looking at the history of this verse, it’s actually much more likely to be taken literally. These are rather referring to sanitation laws, and aren’t about two people being together at all. In addition, in the same chapter, God states, “When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the LORD, your God” (Lev 19:33-34).
Using the context from this, it doesn’t make sense that the previous passage is calling interracial marriage a sin, but rather that foreigners should be treated as if they were born in the same country as you, and that we were all foreigners at some point.
This is just a small selection of quotes from the Bible that have been misinterpreted to justify a specific opinion. No direct scripture in the Bible renounces the marriage between two different races. If you’re ever in doubt, remember the opening quote that God doesn’t judge based on your outward appearance, but instead on what’s inside. Every human bleed red blood, and God sees past simple things like the colour of someone’s skin.
A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.
