Vivid Christianity
Teaching Christians how to live a "vivid" Christian life.


Masturbation Is Not a Sin


by Dave Root, VividChristianity.com, last modified on 07/27/2024.


Introduction

The Bible never says or implies or even hints that masturbation is a sin. It's one of those "taboo" subjects that people don't often talk about, but it's important for us to know whether or not it's a sin in God's eyes.

I've tried to deal with this subject carefully, but please forgive me if anything I say makes you uncomfortable. I don't believe that God cringes at this subject but instead He wants us to know His will, so we should try to set our personal reactions aside in order to seek God's view on the matter. It's important that we don't allow our feelings or assumptions to dictate our beliefs.

When I studied the Christian arguments against masturbation and compared them with the Bible, what I discovered is that all of the arguments against masturbation are flawed, often in similar ways, due to the assumptions that people are making. This article is consistently viewed far, far more often than any other article at my website, every single month, which indicates that many Christians want to know what the Bible says about this topic.

Update on 07/06/2024: If everything at my website (VividChristianity.com) says what God wants it to say then He will confirm that for you by doing a miracle (if you're a Christian). When you see the miracle, it means that He wants you to believe everything in all of the articles at my website (including this article) and in my book. See my home page for the details.


Does the Possibility of Addiction Prove That Masturbation Is a Sin?

Many Christians are struggling with addictions to pornography, sex, masturbation, drugs, alcohol, food, gambling, and so on. If you have an addiction, please talk to a pastor or search online for "Christian help for ________ addiction."

Sometimes people claim that masturbation is a sin because there's a possibility of becoming addicted to it. However, if we're willing to be objective then it's easy to see the flaw in this argument.

If you search online then you'll find numerous examples of married people who are in therapy for sex addiction, yet marital sex is not a sin in the Bible.

If people become addicted to marital sex then it's the addiction that's wrong, not marital sex. In exactly the same way, if people become addicted to masturbation then it's the addiction that's wrong, not masturbation. The Bible never says that masturbation is a sin.

But what does it mean to be addicted to sex or masturbation? In psychology and medical articles online there are differences of opinion about whether or not sexual addiction is a real disorder and how to define or diagnose it. Most definitions use terms such as "compulsive" or "obsessive" or "excessive," but how do we know if our desire for sexual satisfaction is compulsive, obsessive, or excessive? Many of these definitions also include the issue of sexual thoughts, desires, urges, or behaviors impacting one's life in a negative way, and this seems to be the key factor. If the frequency of our sex or masturbation, or the way that we do them, isn't causing any negative impact or harm to us or to anyone else, then is there really a reason to consider it as an addiction or a problem? To help you get God's guidance on whether you have an addiction or a problem, see my article called How to Discern God's Guidance.

Any addiction can be devastating to a relationship, and an addiction to masturbation is no exception. Masturbation itself is not a sin as we'll see, but seek help if it's causing a problem in your relationship or your life.


Gratifying the Flesh or Fantasizing

Sometimes people claim that masturbation is a sin because it's done for the purpose of "gratifying the flesh."

However, this is a false argument against masturbation because the New Testament never says that gratifying the flesh is a sin. For example, when you scratch an itch then you're gratifying the flesh. When you eat or drink something (in moderation) because it tastes good or because you're hungry or thirsty then you're gratifying the flesh. When a husband and wife make love and experience physical or emotional pleasure then they're gratifying the flesh. These things are not sins, so gratifying the flesh is not sinful in itself.

The sin is in the method that we use to gratify the flesh (such as adultery). If we can prove from the Bible that masturbation is a wrong method for gratifying the flesh, then masturbation would be a sin. But the argument that masturbation is done for the purpose of gratifying the flesh doesn't mean anything because gratifying the flesh is not sinful in itself.

What the Bible actually says is that we should not gratify the desires, cravings, or lusts of the flesh (our sinful nature):
"Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires [epithumia] of the sinful nature." (Romans 13:14)

"So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires [epithumia] of the sinful nature." (Galatians 5:16)

"All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings [epithumia] of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath." (Ephesians 2:3)

"Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires [epithumia], which wage war against your soul." (1 Peter 2:11)
In the above passages, the Greek word epithumia ("desires" or "cravings") means:
"a longing (especially for what is forbidden): - concupiscence, desire, lust (after)." (Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary, emphasis added)

"Strong desire, longing, lust." (The Complete Word Study Dictionary of the Old and New Testaments, Dr. Spiros Zodhiates, emphasis added)
This is a Greek word for intense desire or lust, such as when one person lusts for another person, or when a person lusts for wealth, or when a person lusts for fame, or when a person lusts for power, and so on.

The above verses tell us not to gratify the lusts of our sinful nature, but notice that they don't say that masturbation is a lust of our sinful nature. We need to look elsewhere in the Bible to find out if something is a lust of the flesh or a wrong desire of the sinful nature, and nowhere does the Bible ever say such a thing about masturbation. Therefore, the above verses have nothing to do with masturbation. If the New Testament said that masturbation is a sin then the above verses would be telling us not to gratify the desire for that sin. However, there's not a shred of scriptural evidence that masturbation is a sin as we'll see throughout this article.

Update on 07/27/2024: A reader asked me about an article called How Do Passions Wage War Against the Soul? Offsite Link, which discusses 1 Peter 2:11 (above). The article points out that Jesus desired food at times, He desired water at times, He desired rest at times, and so on, showing that the desires of the body, the flesh, are not always evil (which is true). The article then correctly says that "what makes the desires of the flesh evil and dangerous is when they cross over from being innocent wishes for food and drink and rest, or any legitimate pleasure, into the service of the rebellious human self...[D]esires, therefore, become destructive when they are disconnected from the will of God." So the issue is whether masturbation is a legitimate pleasure or whether it's a service of the rebellious human self and disconnected from the will of God. As we'll see throughout this article, the Bible never says or implies or even hints that masturbation is wrong or sinful. Therefore, if masturbation is not done improperly (as described throughout this article), then it's not rebelling against anything in Scripture and it's not disconnected from or against the will of God. This means that it's a legitimate pleasure, not a service of the rebellious human self.


A similar argument is that sexual fantasies violate Jesus' command against looking at someone lustfully:
"You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully [epithumeo] has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5:27-28)
In the above passage, the Greek word epithumeo ("lustfully") means:
"to set the heart upon, that is, long for (rightfully or otherwise): - covet, desire, would fain, lust (after)." (Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary, emphasis added)
This Greek word is sometimes used in the New Testament for "coveting" or "lusting after" something (e.g., Acts 20:33, Romans 7:7-8, James 4:2).

In Matthew 5:21-44 (which includes Matthew 5:27-28, above), Jesus explained the meanings and intentions behind some of the commands in the Law of Moses. Concerning adultery, His point was that the intention to commit adultery is just as sinful as the act of adultery. So if people lust for someone and intend to commit adultery, then they've already committed the sin of adultery in their hearts. Matthew 5:27-28 (above) doesn't justify the argument that sexual fantasizing is always a sin because that wasn't Jesus' point. Imagining something with no intention of doing it is not automatically a sin.

For example, consider a husband on an extended business trip to one of his company's offices in another city. There's an attractive woman at this office, and he briefly imagines what it would be like to have sex with her, but then puts away that thought. This is not lust (as described in the above passages) and it's not a sin. If it were a sin then we would all be in trouble because we all occasionally imagine certain actions, sometimes shameful actions, that we have no intention of doing (for example, see this Psychology Today article Offsite Link).

But now let's take that illustration in a different direction. The husband imagines having sex with the attractive woman, and plans how to entice her to his hotel room, and begins to flirt with her. This is not just imagining something; he now has an actual intention to commit adultery. According to Jesus (above), he has already committed the sin of adultery before he even begins to flirt with her because the intention to commit adultery is just as sinful as the act of adultery.

Now let's consider a third scenario: If the husband never has any intention of committing adultery but his thoughts keep going back to that attractive woman, and his desire for her builds, then at some point his thoughts could become lustful, which might lead to adultery. It's his responsibility to control his thoughts in order to avoid lusting or committing the intention or the act of adultery.

As those scenarios show, there are different kinds of fantasizing. According to the Psychology Today article on Fantasies Offsite Link, daydreams are one kind of fantasizing that everyone does occasionally with no intention of acting on them. We all sometimes daydream or fantasize about things we might enjoy doing if we had the money, the time, or the opportunity, and this might include romantic or sexual thoughts about a favorite celebrity or someone from our past, for example. Having these thoughts with no intention of carrying them out is not lusting. But if we allow our sexual thoughts or imaginings or fantasies to become a craving or a lust for a sexual sin that we plan to carry out, then at that point we've already crossed over into sin. It's our responsibility to control our thoughts in order to avoid lusting or committing the intention or the act of sinning.

Since I've been in online ministry for many years, people have sometimes asked me what kind of fantasizing would be acceptable, but we can't provide a scriptural answer to that question because the Bible doesn't specifically discuss that issue. It would be unrealistic to tell people not to fantasize at all, so I asked the Lord about it (see my article below), and He gave me one basic rule. If our fantasies and imaginings (whether sexual or not) might improperly affect how we act with someone, then that's not something that we should imagine or fantasize about. For example, if we indulge in sexual fantasies about a married neighbor or a married co-worker, then this is likely to influence the way we behave around that person (such as being more flirtatious with that person, possibly leading to adultery). But if we fantasize about people that we're not likely to ever meet (or someone that we're allowed to flirt with in real life), and those fantasies won't improperly affect how we behave with anyone, then those fantasies are not a problem (even if the scenarios that we fantasize about would be sinful in real life). If you look at all of the rules and laws and commands throughout the Bible, a large percentage of them have to do with our relationships with each other. God is very concerned about our relationships with each other, so the issue about fantasizing is whether or not it will have an adverse or improper or sinful impact on how we act. To help you discern the Lord's guidance about masturbation and fantasizing and any other issues, please see my article called How to Discern God's Guidance.

Our thoughts influence our words and our actions. When we keep our thoughts pure (2 Corinthians 10:5, Philippians 4:8), then we're less likely to have improper words and actions. If we have sexual fantasies, it's important to be sure that they won't influence us toward improper words and actions.

Notice that if people fantasize during marital sex then it's the fantasies that might be wrong, not marital sex. In exactly the same way, if people fantasize during masturbation then it's the fantasies that might be wrong, not masturbation. The Bible never says that masturbation is a sin.


Does the Possibility of Using Pornography Prove That Masturbation Is a Sin?

Sometimes people claim that masturbation is a sin because there's a possibility of using pornography. But it's easy to see that the flaw in this argument is the same as the flaw in the argument about addiction.

If pornography is causing problems concerning marital sex then it's the use of pornography that's wrong, not marital sex (and please seek help for it). In exactly the same way, if pornography is a problem or an addiction concerning masturbation then it's the use of pornography that might be wrong, not masturbation (and please seek help for it). The Bible never says that masturbation is a sin.

Many Christians would probably want to know if looking at pornography is always a sin, but there's no scriptural answer to this question because the New Testament doesn't directly address the issue. Some people would say that all pornography violates Jesus' command against looking at someone lustfully (Matthew 5:27-28), but they've misunderstood what Jesus meant as we saw in the previous section.

There are numerous types of pornography, so it might be acceptable to God for a person to look at some types but not other types. In fact, God might allow one person to look at a certain type of pornography but not allow another person to look at it, because God knows whether or not it will have a harmful or negative impact on each person.

The safest thing to do is to avoid pornography altogether, but if you want to look at pornography then the only way you're going to know if it's acceptable to God is to ask Him (see my article called How to Discern God's Guidance).


Does Masturbation Bother Your Conscience?

Another argument that people sometimes make against masturbation is that it bothers people's conscience, and therefore it's a sin.

This is a good point because if God is prompting you in your conscience about masturbation then He's probably telling you not to do it. This might mean that you should never masturbate, or it might mean that you should wait until another time. To help you discern what He's telling you, see my article called How to Discern God's Guidance.

However, we need to consider two issues:

  1. People can be uncomfortable inside for a number of reasons. For example, try asking a husband and wife to describe in detail what they do when they make love. Marital sex is not a sin, yet most Christians would probably be uncomfortable inside when faced with this question. So being uncomfortable inside doesn't always mean that God is convicting us of sin. Similarly, since mainstream Christianity considers masturbation to be a sin, most Christians would probably be uncomfortable inside when asked if they masturbate, but this doesn't mean that it's a sin.

  2. Many Christians have never learned how to discern God's guidance within them. Therefore, they can't really be confident that they're properly interpreting what they sense inside. For more on this, see my article called How to Discern God's Guidance.


Consider that the New Testament neither condones nor condemns going barefoot. It's a non-issue in the New Testament. We're never commanded not to do it, and no one in the New Testament was ever chastised for doing it. In exactly the same way, the Bible neither condones nor condemns masturbation. It's a non-issue in the Bible. We're never commanded not to do it, and no one in the Bible was ever chastised for doing it.


Christ in Us

Another argument that Christians sometimes make is that we're supposed to be conformed to the likeness of Christ (Romans 8:29), and that we shouldn't offer the parts of our body to sin because Christ lives in us (Colossians 1:27). Essentially, the argument is that we can't imagine that Jesus ever masturbated, and we shouldn't do it because that would cause "Christ in us" to masturbate.

But if we're willing to be objective then it's easy to see that this argument starts off by assuming that masturbation is a sin. This argument doesn't prove anything for or against masturbation.

For example, how do we know that we shouldn't cause "Christ in us" to commit adultery? We know it because the Bible specifically says that adultery is a sin. In other words, the "Christ in us" argument doesn't prove that adultery is a sin, it only says that because adultery is a sin then we shouldn't cause "Christ in us" to commit the sin.

Is it a sin for a wife to cause "Christ in her" to make love to her husband? We know that this is not a sin because the Bible specifically says that Christian husbands and wives should make love. Again, the "Christ in us" argument doesn't prove that sex is acceptable in a marriage. Instead, we had to look elsewhere in the Bible to find out whether or not marital sex is a sin.

The point here is that first we must show that something is a sin in the Bible, and then we can say that we shouldn't cause "Christ in us" to commit the sin. The "Christ in us" argument by itself doesn't prove that anything is a sin.

So if we can't show that masturbation is a sin in the Bible, then it's acceptable to have "Christ in us" and to masturbate, just as it's acceptable to have "Christ in us" and to have marital sex. In exactly the same way, if we can't show that masturbation is a sin in the Bible, then it's acceptable to masturbate even if Jesus never did it, just as it's acceptable to have marital sex even if Jesus never did it.


"God Told Me Not to Masturbate"

Sometimes people claim that masturbation is a sin because God told them to stop doing it.

Certainly it would be a sin for you to masturbate if God has forbidden you to do it, but it's not a sin for everyone unless the Bible has forbidden it for everyone.

If we can show that the Bible forbids masturbation, then we can say that it's a sin for everyone. However, the Bible never forbids it.


Crucifying the Flesh

Sometimes people claim that masturbation is a sin based on the following passages (and any similar passages):
"Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires." (Galatians 5:24)

"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry." (Colossians 3:5)

"But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people." (Ephesians 5:3)
The argument against masturbation is that we're told to put to death whatever belongs to our earthly nature.

However, it's important to recognize that our earthly desires are not all sinful. For example, we have earthly needs and desires for oxygen, water, companionship, love, etc., but the Bible never says that these are sinful. Therefore, these earthly desires do not need to be put to death.

The sin is in the method that we use for fulfilling our needs and desires. For example, the sin of sexual immorality or impurity is when we have sex in a way that violates Scripture, such as adultery. Notice that the above passages don't tell us that adultery is a sin, but instead we must look elsewhere in Scripture to find out if the desire for adultery is something that needs to be put to death. In exactly the same way, the above passages don't tell us that masturbation is a sin, but instead we must look elsewhere in Scripture to find out if the desire for masturbation is something that needs to be put to death. Again, the Bible never says or implies or even hints that masturbation is a sin.


Onan

Some people say that Onan masturbated in the Old Testament, and they say that God killed him for his wickedness. Here's what the Bible says about Onan:
"Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. But Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the Lord's sight; so the LORD put him to death. Then Judah said to Onan, "Lie with your brother's wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to produce offspring for your brother." But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he lay with his brother's wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from producing offspring for his brother. What he did was wicked in the Lord's sight; so he put him to death also." (Genesis 38:6-10)
By law or custom, it was Onan's duty to marry his dead brother's widow and to provide offspring who would carry on his dead brother's name (this later became part of the Law of Moses - Deuteronomy 25:5-10, Matthew 22:23-28). Notice that Onan did not masturbate, but instead he slept with his dead brother's widow as was his duty. However, because of his wicked and greedy heart, he deliberately prevented her from conceiving any children because they would have been his dead brother's heirs and not Onan's heirs. This is the sin for which the Lord put Onan to death; it had nothing to do with masturbating.

Here are some things that Bible commentaries say about the above passage:
"By the custom of the levirate (from Latin levir, "husband's brother") law of marriage, the second son, Onan, was to marry Tamar, the widow of his brother, and raise up offspring for his brother. However, Onan repeatedly used that law for sexual gratification. He took advantage of the situation, but refused the responsibility that went with it. So God took his life too." (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Walvoord and Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary, Genesis 38:6-11)

"Moses here uses a word not common for marriage, but which was peculiar to the marrying of a brother's wife according to a law given in his time: it appears to have been a custom before, and which the patriarch might be directed to by the Lord, in such a case when a brother died, and left no issue, for the sake of multiplication of seed, according to the divine promise, and which in the time of Moses passed into a law, see Deu 25:5...For this law or custom was partly political, to continue the paternal inheritance in the family, and partly typical, to direct to Christ the firstborn among many brethren, Rom 8:29, who in all things was to have the preeminence, Col 1:18; and this was not taken from the Canaanites, among whom Judah now was, but from the ancient patriarchs, which they had no doubt from divine revelation, and was taught in the school of Shem, and handed down from father to son; for as to this being a law among the Egyptians in later times, and which continued to the days of Zeno Augustus (q), it is most likely they took it from the Jews." (John Gill's Exposition of the Bible, Genesis 38:8)

"The original word means to act as a husband to the widow of a deceased brother who has left no issue. Onan seems to have been prompted to commit his crime by the low motive of turning the whole inheritance to his own house." (Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible, Genesis 38:1-30)

"The sin of Onan has generally been supposed to be self-pollution; but this is certainly a mistake; his crime was his refusal to raise up seed to his brother, and rather than do it, by the act mentioned above, he rendered himself incapable of it. We find from this history that long before the Mosaic law it was an established custom, probably founded on a Divine precept, that if a man died childless his brother was to take his wife, and the children produced by this second marriage were considered as the children of the first husband, and in consequence inherited his possessions." (Adam Clark's Commentary on the Bible, Genesis 38:10)
Notice that Onan knew that the children from this marriage would not be considered as his children (instead, they would be his brother's children). This was an established custom or law, as the above commentaries point out, and it was Onan's duty to marry (or sleep with) his dead brother's widow. Onan was not masturbating in the above passage, but instead he was having legitimate sexual intercourse according to his duty. However, he was rebellious against his duty by not providing offspring for his dead brother, and God put him to death because of his wicked and greedy heart, not because of masturbating. Therefore, Onan's crime does not help us determine whether or not masturbation is a sin.


The Effects on Marriage

Other arguments that people sometimes make against masturbation are based on the assumption that it will have a negative effect on marriage, which is certainly possible. But we mustn't overlook the fact that it can have positive benefits in a marriage as well:

  • According to marriage counselors, sex is one of the top two things that married couples fight about (the other one is money). When the husband or wife is willing to masturbate occasionally in order to help level out their different sexual needs, this can reduce the arguing about sex. Married Christians have sometimes reported in blogs and forums that they're quite happy with their frequency of lovemaking, and it takes the pressure off of them if their spouses are willing to relieve their sexual needs by masturbating once in awhile. So occasional masturbation can enhance a marriage by helping to reduce one of the top two causes for fights in marriages.

  • Married people have also used masturbation to discover what they like in order to communicate this to their spouse, and men have used masturbation as a way of learning to last longer. These things are another way that masturbation can enhance a marriage.

  • Married Christians who occasionally masturbate usually report that they would much rather make love to their spouses. Masturbation doesn't hinder them from making love to their spouses when the opportunities are there, it simply curbs their appetite until there's an opportunity to make love. This has the added benefit of reducing the likelihood of an affair, such as when the husband and wife are away from each other for a period of time.

  • People with an addiction to pornography have been able to break this addiction by masturbating without pornography in order to re-train their sexual responses.


The above points are not "worldly" issues as some people claim, but rather they are real issues that affect Christian marriages. Therefore, it's important to be able to talk about these things in a Christian context. For people with a strong sex drive, it's physically and mentally distressing or painful when the needs are not met. This is difficult for people with a low sex drive to understand and relate to, which often leads to conflict. Here's an article that addresses this issue, which might be helpful for people who feel confused, concerned, or hurt because their spouse or partner masturbates: Okay, So He Enjoys Masturbating Offsite Link.

I've received emails from people who say that masturbation devastated their marriages, and they're appalled that I'm not condemning masturbation. I've also heard from people who are grateful that I had the courage to examine these issues objectively because their marriages have been helped by the knowledge that occasional masturbation doesn't need to be secretive or shameful. People have different experiences, but remember that we must not allow our doctrines and views to be based on experience. Instead, we need to be thorough, objective, and unbiased when we study the Bible, with our only goal being to honor God by finding out His views (for help with that, see my article called How to Study the Bible).


"Unclean"

Sometimes people use passages such as these to argue that masturbation is a sin because it makes a man "unclean":
"When a man has an emission of semen, he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean till evening." (Leviticus 15:16)

"These are the regulations for a man with a discharge, for anyone made unclean by an emission of semen" (Leviticus 15:32)
When people use these verses to argue against masturbation, they're assuming that the word "unclean" means that the man had sinned. This is a false assumption based on a lack of understanding of the Jewish background of Scripture.

Under the Law of Moses, the Jews were not allowed to come into God's presence (e.g., into the Temple) if they were ceremonially unclean. This did not necessarily mean that they had sinned because it was possible to become ceremonially unclean through events that were perfectly normal or good or proper. For example, touching a dead body made a person ceremonially unclean (Numbers 19:11-13), so Joseph of Arimathea became unclean by caring for Jesus' dead body (Matthew 27:57-60). It was proper for Joseph to care for Jesus' body, so Joseph's uncleanness did not mean that he had sinned. If a woman gave birth then she was ceremonially unclean for a period of days, even though giving birth is not a sin (Leviticus 12:1-5). Being unclean simply meant that a person must go through the specified purification ritual in order to become ceremonially clean again.

Here are some explanations of ceremonial uncleanness under the Law of Moses:
"The concepts of "unclean" and "clean" are not equivalent to "physically dirty" and "spic and span"...The distinction between unclean and clean was not even a matter of "sinful" and "unsinful," for much of the ritual defilement came about through accident, illness, physical processes, and other actions that were proper and even commendable" (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Walvoord and Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary, Leviticus 11:1-8)

"Perhaps a helpful way to grasp one nuance of the term's meaning ["unclean"] is by analogy. In designing a house, one does not put the dining room next to the bathroom. The activities of the bathroom do not complement those of the dining room. Neither bathroom nor dining room activities are, however, sinful, just incompatible." (Jewish Laws of Purity in Jesus' Day Offsite Link)

"A Jew avoided ceremonial uncleanness because under the Law of Moses, it prevented him from entering the Temple - in which was the presence of God. The Gentiles, who did not follow the Scriptures to maintain ceremonial cleanliness could never enter the Temple. For instance, at the time of her monthly period, a Jewish woman could not enter the Temple. Other things which made a person ceremonially unclean included contact with the dead, leprosy, sexual discharge, and child birth. Anyone unclean who did enter in was cut off from the community of Israel, excommunicated by God and expelled from His presence in the Temple - a fate worse than death." (What Does the New Testament Say About Kashrut (Eating Only Clean Animals)? Offsite Link)
So under the Law of Moses, being "unclean" was not the same as being a sinner. Leviticus 15:16 and 15:32 (above) were part of the Law of Moses, and they might be referring to masturbation, or a "nocturnal emission" (sometimes called a "wet dream"), or sex, or all of these, we just don't know. However, notice that there's no condemnation associated with it, just as there's no condemnation associated with properly handling a dead body or giving birth. People who became ceremonially unclean did not necessarily need forgiveness for a sin; they simply needed to go through the specified purification ritual in order to become ceremonially clean again (such as purifying themselves with water on certain days or waiting a specified number of days before they could touch anything sacred or go into the sanctuary).


Does the Bible Indirectly Mention Masturbation?

The Bible never directly mentions masturbation, but it's possible that the Bible mentions masturbation indirectly (without condemning it). For example, I've heard that the Jewish expression, "covering one's feet," comes from the practice of standing up while masturbating in a private place. I haven't been able to verify if this is true or not, but the euphemism, "covering one's feet," is translated as "relieving himself" in two places in the NIV. The first occurrence is in the book of Judges:
"Ehud then approached him [King Eglon] while he was sitting alone in the upper room of his summer palace and said, "I have a message from God for you." As the king rose from his seat, Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword from his right thigh and plunged it into the king's belly. Even the handle sank in after the blade, which came out his back. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it. Then Ehud went out to the porch ; he shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. After he had gone, the servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said, "He must be relieving himself in the inner room of the house."" (Judges 3:20-24)
Here's what a prominent Bible commentary says about this passage:
"the king's servants delayed outside his locked door, figuring that the king was relieving himself (lit., "covering his feet," a euphemism for body elimination; cf. 1 Sam. 24:3)." (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Walvoord and Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary, Judges 3:23-26, emphasis added)
The above quote says that "covering his feet" is a euphemism for body elimination (which sounds like a euphemism for defecating).

The other reference to "covering his feet" concerns King Saul:
"He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave. The men said, "This is the day the LORD spoke of when he said to you, 'I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.'" Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul's robe." (1 Samuel 24:3-4)
Once again, "relieve himself" comes from the euphemism, "cover his feet":
"Saul's life was in David's hands as the king went to relieve himself (lit., "cover his feet," a euphemism, v. 3)" (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Walvoord and Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary, 1 Samuel 24:1-22, emphasis added)
People who suggest that this euphemism refers to masturbation will usually argue that if King Saul needed to go to the bathroom, then he would not normally seek out the privacy of a cave because soldiers of that time went to the bathroom at a designated spot outside the camp (Deuteronomy 23:9-13). But King Saul wanted to masturbate, according to this argument, so he went to a place where he could have some privacy for awhile. Notice that there's no condemnation attached to whatever he was doing.

Apart from the above quotes, every Bible commentary that I've checked says that "covering one's feet" either means defecating (because a person's robes covered their feet while they were squatting down) or else it refers to sleeping in a cool place and covering one's bare feet.

These two passages might be describing the simple act of going to the bathroom, or possibly taking a nap, but I've included them for the sake of thoroughness because they might be scriptural examples of masturbation. Sometimes people point out that Eglon and Saul (in the above passages) weren't God-fearing men at that point, so if they did something sinful then it wouldn't have bothered them very much. However, this doesn't change the fact that there's no condemnation attached to whatever they were doing, nor is there any condemnation attached to masturbation anywhere in the entire Bible.

There's one more passage in the Bible that some people believe might be a reference to female masturbation:
"I slept but my heart was awake. Listen! My lover is knocking: "Open to me, my sister, my darling, my dove, my flawless one. My head is drenched with dew, my hair with the dampness of the night." I have taken off my robe - must I put it on again? I have washed my feet - must I soil them again? My lover thrust his hand through the latch-opening; my heart began to pound for him. I arose to open for my lover, and my hands dripped with myrrh, my fingers with flowing myrrh, on the handles of the lock." (Song of Songs 5:2-5)
People have interpreted Song of Songs in different ways, and some people see a suggestion of female masturbation in the above passage. I don't know if that's the proper interpretation or not, but I've included it for the sake of thoroughness. Notice that if Solomon's lover was masturbating while he was away, this is not condemned as a sin.


Sex with Demons?

I've seen several websites which say that masturbation involves sex with demons. A few of them have no Scripture passages at all to justify their view, and the rest show some Scripture passages (many of which we've examined in this article) without even trying to understand what those passages actually say.

The closest thing to someone possibly having sex with demons in the Bible is in Genesis 6:1-8, which says that "the sons of God" married and impregnated "the daughters of men":
"Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose. And the LORD said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years." There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the LORD said, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them." But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD." (Genesis 6:1-8 NKJV)
In Job 1:6, 2:1, and 38:7, the "sons of God" are holy angels (as most Bible commentaries explain). In Genesis 6:1-4 (above), the "sons of God" might be angels as well, except that they would be fallen angels (demons) since the whole passage focuses on wickedness.

However, Bible commentaries Offsite Link point out that there are other explanations for Genesis 6:1-4 that don't necessarily involve angels, so it's not clear who the "sons of God" were in that passage. As those Bible commentaries describe, the "sons of God" might be the righteous men in the line of Seth (see Genesis 4:25-26) who sinned by taking many wives, or they might be powerful kings or rulers. Since we can't determine who they were, we can't prove that the "sons of God" in Genesis 6:1-4 (above) have anything to do with demons. For example, notice that Genesis 6:5-8 (above) says that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and notice that the whole focus of Genesis 6 is on human wickedness with no hint of demons being punished for any evil actions. Sometimes people say that 2 Peter 2:4 and/or Jude 1:6 are referring to angels who sinned in Genesis 6:1-4 (above), but this is just an unsupported assumption because those passages make no reference at all to Genesis 6:1-4.

Many Christians believe that masturbation is a form of sexual immorality, but if you look at the passages concerning sexual immorality under the Old Covenant (e.g., Leviticus 18) and the passages concerning sexual immorality under the New Covenant (e.g., 1 Corinthians), there's never any mention of sex with demons, and there's never any mention of sexual immorality opening the door for being demonized. The devil might try to tempt us into sexual sins, and perhaps sexual sins can give the devil a foothold to demonize a person, but there's not a shred of scriptural evidence that masturbation is a sin or that masturbation involves sex with demons.


Conclusion

Masturbation is one of those subjects that brings out strong emotional reactions in Christians, but it's important to guard against letting our feelings dictate our beliefs.

As we've seen throughout this article, the Bible never says or implies or even hints that masturbation is a sin.

We saw that there are several passages that might be a description of masturbation, and we saw that those passages do not condemn or forbid masturbation in any way. Apart from those passages, the Bible never mentions masturbation at all. Try doing a computer search in any version of the Bible, and you won't find any form of the word "masturbation" (or similar terms such as "self-pleasuring") anywhere in the Bible. Try looking in any New Testament Greek or Old Testament Hebrew dictionaries or lexicons, and you won't find any listings for any form of the word "masturbation" or similar terms. Try looking in any Bible concordances or topical Bibles, and you won't find any listings for any form of the word "masturbation" or similar terms. Masturbation is a non-issue in the Bible. It's never treated as a sin.

After reading this article you might be saying to yourself, "But I still feel that masturbation is a sin." If so, then ask yourself what scriptural evidence supports your feeling that masturbation is a sin. There isn't any! There's not a shred of scriptural evidence to support the idea that masturbation is a sin. Therefore, your view is not based on Scripture, but instead it's based on feelings.

Keep in mind that our goal should always be to honor the Lord in all that we say and do and believe. Masturbation is a subject that causes many people to allow their feelings to influence their beliefs, but this doesn't honor the Lord.

We must elevate Scripture above our feelings and our reasonings, and we must believe what God has chosen to tell us. There's not a shred of scriptural evidence that it's a sin to masturbate or to use devices such as vibrators, dildos, or masturbation sleeves. The only exception is that any form of anal penetration for pleasure or other sexual purposes, whether it involves body parts or anal sex toys or other objects, is a sin (for the scriptural reasons why, see my article called Homosexuality Is Not Always a Sin). I certainly didn't expect to come to these conclusions when I began this study. However, we need to make sure that our masturbation isn't causing any negative impact or harm to us or to anyone else.

To help you discern the Lord's guidance about masturbation, fantasizing, or any other issues, please see my article called How to Discern God's Guidance.


For the glory of the Lord Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, who came in the flesh, was delivered over to death for our sins, and was raised to life for our justification.

Dave Root
home page and email: https://www.vividchristianity.com

"Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit." (1 Corinthians 12:3)

"Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist - denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also." (1 John 2:22-23)

"If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God." (1 John 4:15)

"Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world." (1 John 4:1-3)

"And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love. I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist." (2 John 1:6-7)

"He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification." (Romans 4:25)
 
 
Modification History

  • 07/27/2024 - Added 1 Peter 2:11 and an update in the section called "Gratifying the Flesh or Fantasizing."

  • 07/06/2024 - Added an update in the Introduction section.

  • 06/07/2024 - Slightly modified the section called "Gratifying the Flesh or Fantasizing."

  • 01/16/2024 - Slightly modified the section called "Gratifying the Flesh or Fantasizing."

  • 07/20/2023 - Modified the section called "Does the Possibility of Using Pornography Prove That Masturbation Is a Sin?"

  • 03/26/2023 - Slightly modified the section called "Gratifying the Flesh or Fantasizing."

  • 02/21/2023 - Slightly modified the section called "Unclean." Modified the section called "Sex with Demons?" Added a link to my article called "How to Discern God's Guidance" in the Conclusion section.

  • 12/04/2022 - Added a comment in the Conclusion section that anal penetration for pleasure or other sexual purposes is a sin.

  • 10/12/2022 - Merged the section on fantasizing into the section on gratifying the flesh and renamed it to "Gratifying the Flesh or Fantasizing" (and added more information in that section). Modified the section called "The Effects on Marriage." Modified the section called "Unclean."

  • 09/02/2022 - Modified the section called "Does the Possibility of Addiction Prove That Masturbation Is a Sin?" Added a link to my article called "How to Discern God's Guidance" in the section called "Does Masturbation Bother Your Conscience?"

  • 07/23/2022 - Modified my closing statement.

  • 06/14/2022 - Modified the Introduction section. Modified a paragraph in the section called "Onan."

  • 11/03/2021 - Made the font size a bit bigger and added a fish symbol as a favicon (which is displayed in the browser tab).

  • 08/31/2021 - Added a section called "Sex with Demons?"

  • 06/15/2020 - Modified the section called "Does the Possibility of Fantasizing Prove that Masturbation Is a Sin?"

  • 02/14/2019 - Modified some of the wording.

  • 05/03/2010 - Added more information in the section called "Does the Possibility of Fantasizing Prove that Masturbation Is a Sin?" Added more information in the section called "The Effects on Marriage." Added a section called "Does Masturbation Bother Your Conscience?"

  • 06/07/2004 - Added Song of Songs 5:2-5, which some people believe might be a reference to female masturbation.

  • 08/21/2002 - Added a response to the argument that we should not cause "Christ in us" to masturbate.

  • 08/17/2001 - New article.