Short answer: The Bible does not forbid every use of force, but it never celebrates war. The Old Testament records wars God commanded for Israel in a particular time and place, while the New Testament calls Christians to love their enemies, pursue peace, and fight the real battle against sin and evil. Killing in war is not automatically murder, yet no one should treat war as anything but a grave tragedy.
In This Article
Many people stumble over the contrast between the Old Testament and the New Testament. In the one we read of Joshua, Gideon and David going out to battle in the name of God. In the other, Jesus tells us to turn the other cheek. It can look as if God changed his mind, or as if the Bible is at war with itself.
People in the pews kept asking me this very thing, so here is how I read it. We will look at what Scripture says, one passage at a time, and then at where Christians have landed on the hard questions.
Is War Forbidden In The Bible?
No, not in the sense of a blanket ban. But the Bible never treats war as something good in itself, either. The sixth commandment (Exodus 20:13) forbids murder, and the Hebrew word there describes unlawful killing. It is not the ordinary word for any death at all. That is why the same law that forbids murder also set out penalties for crime and rules for Israel's conflicts. For more on the commandments as a whole, see the Ten Commandments.
You shall not murder.
Exodus 20:13 (NIV)
The wisdom of Ecclesiastes names war as part of a fallen world's pattern, without calling it good:
a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
Ecclesiastes 3:8 (NIV)
Notice the balance. War is spoken of as something that happens in a broken world, and peace is set beside it as the better thing. The Bible describes war honestly and then points past it.
Why Does The Old Testament Record So Many Wars?
Because Israel was a real nation among hostile nations, and because Scripture does not hide the ugly parts of history. Some wars were commanded: God told Israel to deal with the Midianites (Numbers 31:2), and Saul was sent against Amalek (1 Samuel 15:18). The rules for how Israel was to fight are laid out in Deuteronomy 20, including limits on who could be conscripted and terms of peace to be offered first.
These passages trouble many readers, and they should make us sober. I do not want to explain them away. Here is how I understand them. These were specific commands to a specific people at a specific moment in redemption history, and the Bible itself presents them as acts of judgment, not as a standing order for Christians to take up arms in God's name. Nowhere does the New Testament tell the church to conquer anyone with a sword. Israel's wars belong to the story of a nation under the old covenant, in the land God gave it. They are not a template for modern politics.
Does that mean God has changed? Scripture says otherwise: Malachi 3:6 and James 1:17 insist that God does not change. The same God who judged the wicked in Canaan is the God who sent his own Son to die for sinners. Judgment and mercy were both there from the start, and the cross is where they meet. The old wars did not show a God who loved violence. They showed a God who deals seriously with evil, and the prophets looked ahead to a day when the fighting would end:
They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.
Isaiah 2:4 (NIV)
What Does Jesus Say About War?
Jesus never led an army and never told his followers to start one. His teaching on enemies is the clearest word we have:
But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Matthew 5:44 (NIV)
He called peacemakers blessed (Matthew 5:9), and in the garden, when Peter drew a sword to defend him, Jesus told him to put it away:
"Put your sword back in its place," Jesus said to him, "for all who draw the sword will die by the sword."
Matthew 26:52 (NIV)
And before Pilate he explained why his followers would not fight to free him:
My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.
John 18:36 (NIV)
Christ's mission was not to defeat Rome but to defeat sin and death. When he healed the paralytic in Matthew 9:2, he began by forgiving the man's sins, which tells you where he placed the deepest need. His kingdom advances through a cross and an empty tomb, not through conquest.
That said, Jesus also never told the soldiers who came to him to leave the army. The centurion in Matthew 8 is praised for his faith without being told to change careers, and John the Baptist told soldiers to be honest and content with their pay (Luke 3:14). The New Testament calls believers to personal non-retaliation while still recognizing that governments have a duty to restrain evil.
Is Killing In War A Sin?
Scripture does not put every killing in the same category. Murder is sin. The Bible also says that government holds a God-given responsibility to punish wrongdoing:
for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason.
Romans 13:4 (NIV)
For that reason, most Christians through history have held that a soldier who fights in a lawful, defensive war is not guilty of murder, just as a person may defend an innocent life in an extreme moment (see Is Self-Defense A Sin In The Bible?). But that is not permission for cruelty. Soldiers still answer to God for what they do, and killing the innocent, or taking pleasure in violence, is sin whatever uniform is worn. And even a justified killing leaves real moral weight on the heart. I would never tell a veteran who carries that weight that it is imaginary.
If you carry guilt over something done in war, bring it to God honestly. The gospel is for exactly this. See Does God Forgive All Sins? for what Scripture promises.
How Do Christians Justify War?
The classic answer is the Just War tradition, which draws on passages like Deuteronomy 20, though the tradition is a human framework built on Scripture rather than a text found in the Bible. You can read a plain overview of the just war theory at the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. In short, it asks whether a war has a just cause, is declared by proper authority, is fought with right intention, is a last resort, has a reasonable chance of success, and is proportionate, sparing civilians as far as possible.
| View | Core Idea | Scripture Often Cited |
|---|---|---|
| Just War | Force is sometimes a lesser evil, if strict conditions are met | Romans 13:1-7, Deuteronomy 20 |
| Pacifism | Christians should not take human life, even in war | Matthew 5:38-48, Romans 12:17-21 |
| Holy War (rejected by most Christians today) | War directly commanded by God for his people | Joshua, Numbers 31 (a one-time command in Israel's history) |
Faithful Christians land in different places on this. Pacifists point to the Sermon on the Mount, and just-war thinkers point to Romans 13 and to the duty to protect the weak. My own leaning is that love of neighbor sometimes requires protecting the innocent, but that war should always be a last resort, fought with sorrow and restraint, never glory. Either way, no Christian is free to hate an enemy (Matthew 5:44; see also Is Hate A Sin In The Bible?).
Does The Bible Say There Will Be A Third World War?
No. The Bible does not mention a "third world war" or any numbered global conflict, and I would be wary of anyone who claims to read one into the headlines. Jesus did say that wars would continue until the end, and he told his followers not to panic:
You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
Matthew 24:6 (NIV)
Every generation has found a way to read its own wars as the final one, and every generation has been wrong. Jesus tells us to stay watchful and faithful rather than to try to match current events to a timetable. For related questions about the end times, see What Does The Bible Say About The Antichrist?.
What Is Spiritual Warfare?
The New Testament also uses war language for the believer's inner struggle. In Ephesians 6, Paul tells Christians to put on the armor of God and names the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. The point is explicit:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)
The church's weapons are truth, prayer, righteousness, faith and the gospel of peace. We fight sin and evil, starting in our own hearts (see How Can We Overcome Sins?), and we leave the sword of the state to the state.
Key Bible Verses About War And Peace
- Exodus 20:13: the commandment against murder, the foundation of the Bible's moral view of killing.
- Ecclesiastes 3:8: war has its place in a fallen world, but peace is set beside it.
- Isaiah 2:4: the promise of a day when nations will stop training for war.
- Matthew 5:44: Jesus commands love for enemies.
- Matthew 26:52: Jesus rebukes Peter for reaching for the sword.
- Romans 12:18: live at peace with everyone as far as it depends on you.
- Romans 13:4: government carries the sword to restrain evil.
- Ephesians 6:12: the real enemy is spiritual, not other people.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Jesus say about war?
Jesus never praised war. He taught his followers to love their enemies, called peacemakers blessed, and told Peter to put away his sword. He also said that wars would continue until the end and that believers should not be alarmed. See the verses above.
Is war forbidden in the Bible?
Not outright. The Bible forbids murder and cruelty, yet it also records wars God commanded for Israel and says governments bear the sword to restrain evil. It treats war as a result of a fallen world, never as a good thing in itself.
Is killing in war a sin in the Bible?
The commandment says "You shall not murder," and murder is different from killing in a lawful, defensive war. Even so, soldiers are accountable for how they fight, and cruelty toward the innocent is always sin. Forgiveness is available to anyone burdened by what they have done.
How do Christians justify war?
Many follow the just war tradition, which says force is sometimes a lesser evil if it has a just cause, proper authority, right intention, last resort, a reasonable chance of success and proportionate means. Other Christians hold to pacifism, citing the Sermon on the Mount.
Does the Bible say there will be a third world war?
No. The Bible never mentions a numbered world war. Jesus said there would be wars and rumors of wars and told his followers not to be alarmed, so I would not trust anyone who claims to know a date or a conflict that fulfills prophecy.
