What Does the Bible Say About Committing Suicide?
1) Direct answer
Suicide is a sin. The Bible forbids taking life—including your own—and calls us to choose life, trust God, and “do thyself no harm.”
2) Scriptural explanation
- “Thou shalt not kill.” (Exodus 20:13) Taking your own life is self-murder.
- “Do thyself no harm.” (Acts 16:28) The Holy Spirit stopped the jailer from suicide and led him to salvation.
- “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God… If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy.” (1 Corinthians 3:16–17; also 6:19–20) Your life and body belong to God.
- “My times are in Thy hand.” (Psalm 31:15) Life and death belong to the Lord, not to us (Deuteronomy 32:39; 1 Samuel 2:6; Job 1:21).
- “Be not over much wicked… why shouldest thou die before thy time?” (Ecclesiastes 7:17)
- “The thief cometh… to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life.” (John 10:10) Suicide is the enemy’s voice; Jesus gives life and hope.
- God promises a way out of crushing temptation. “God… will with the temptation also make a way to escape.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)
- The Lord is near the brokenhearted (Psalm 34:18), invites the weary to come to Him (Matthew 11:28), and says, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee.” (Isaiah 41:10)
Bible examples of suicide—Saul (1 Samuel 31), Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23), Zimri (1 Kings 16:18), Judas (Matthew 27:5)—are all tragic and never commended. Samson’s death (Judges 16:28–30) was not an act of despair but a prayerful, God-granted act of war against Israel’s enemies; Scripture places him among the faithful (Hebrews 11:32). That’s different from taking one’s life to escape pain.
3) Simple clarifying logic
- Life is God’s gift. You see, if God gives it and numbers our days, we have no right to end it.
- Murder is forbidden, and self-murder is still murder.
- Suicide doesn’t solve the problem. While there is life, there is room for repentance, comfort, and deliverance in Jesus Christ.
- The pressure to self-harm is not the voice of the Shepherd; it is the thief. The Lord always provides a way of escape and a hand to lift you.
4) Reinforcing statement
Choose life. Call on the Name of the Lord right now. Pray, open the Bible, reach to a trusted believer, pastor, or family member, and get help immediately. God is near you, and He will make a way.
If you’re in immediate danger or thinking about harming yourself, seek help now:
- In the U.S.: call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline), or visit 988lifeline.org
- Otherwise: contact your local emergency number or a local crisis hotline
You’re not alone; the Lord is with you, and help is available.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
What are the works of God?
59-0404 §35
...'s the unpardonable sin. My old southern mammy used to tell me... It was a woman taking abortion case, to a child, you know, and about a child. And then, I've had others to say it was a man committing suicide. It's not. It's not so, because the Bible said, "They called the Spirit of God an unclean thing." Called that Spirit of God that was upon the Messiah---that they ought to have knowed that He was a God-prophet that was promised---and they said He's a devil: The unpardonable sin.
Demonology
53-1112 §29
Saul never committed suicide, a Philistine killed him. Any of you Bible readers that reads it thoroughly knows that. A Philistine killed him, and David killed the Philistine for it. All right. Notice. Saul was wounded, it's true, but a Philistine killed him. And David killed him, because he said, "You have taken the life of the anointed of God." And Saul was a prophet, himself. Now, but... Now, my good Catholic friends, don't disagree. If you disagree, it's through friendliness now, see. Now, remember, my people ar...
Questions and Answers
61-1015M §68
Now, like a fundamentalist come to me here some time ago and he said to me, said, "You kind of lean Calvinistic, don't you?" I said, "Well, as long as Calvin is in the Bible I'm with him." I said, "I just go with the Bible and if Calvin stays in the Bible; but if he gets off the Bible, then I just pull on, believe the Bible." He said, "Well," he said, "I want to say something to you. You told, I've heard you say, that if a man was once saved, that he could never be lost." I said, "That's exactly what the Scripture...
Thirsting for Life
58-0611 §63
...the difference between the bleat of a wolf ... or, a bleat of a lamb and a goat. They both bleat alike. That has nothing to do with it. If your life don't tally up to God's Bible, you're still in darkness. Right. And the most deceitful thing there is in the world is a religious thing, putting on religion. We got a guy there in Louisville committed suicide the other day. He'd go down there, and old rock-and-rolls all night long, and out to big shindigs, and come on Sunday morning, and preach the gospel on the radio....
Hear ye Him
57-0125 §58
But if the Bible says that He could be touched by the feeling of our infirmities... There was a woman once who had an infirmity and touched His garment. And she went off into the audience. And Jesus said that He got weak. The immortal Christ said He got weak. Wonder why He got weak. Strength went away from Him. It's hard to understand. It cannot be explained. Did you ever know that poets and prophets are considered neurotic? Did you ever think... Look at William Cowper: gave America its best folk songs. He was misu...