What does the Bible say about suicide?

Content warning: in this video I’m going to be speaking about a dark theme: suicide. So given questions about suicide are often asked by someone grieving the loss of a loved one, or by someone weighing up the consequences of taking their own life, please, be safe, listen to the end, and do reach out for help.

Suicide is a tragic reality where not just one life is taken; many others experience the death. My own brushes with suicide have been devastating. Families overwhelmed by grief. Parents racked by guilt. Kids orphaned without any hope for meaningful answers. And then there is the insider experience: my friend’s mum when we were teenagers, a mate my age in his 20’s, and even one of my pastors. Each one overcome by dark clouds of depression, or seemingly inescapable circumstances, swallowing hopelessness as life’s only forecast.

So what does the Christian story say to those who are wrestling with suicide? Is God there? Does God care? And is suicide an unforgivable sin?

Let me say 4 things, and again, please, hear them all.

First, you are never alone.

Far from pretending life is all rainbows and lollipops, or covering up the difficult experiences of depression, hopelessness, death, and grief, the Christian story is honest in relaying the raw pain of what it means for humanity to live in the shadow of Eden, where God’s good design is now damaged by evil.

Scripture even records God’s people speaking openly about wanting to tap out of life. Job, in his suffering, questions why he was even born (Job 3:11). Elijah, in the depths of depression, cries out for God to take his life (1 Kings 19:4). And even the Apostle Paul speaks about the emotional toll of facing unrelenting opposition, despairing of life itself (2 Corinthians 1:8).

But even though suffering felt overwhelming, or their mental health was failing, or circumstances were stacked against them, each of these people encountered God’s grace in their own way. And in their own words, all of them echo the voice of Hagar in Genesis who spoke of God as the one who sees her.

God sees you. Whether you have considered taking your own life, or are grieving a loved one who has, God sees you. He knows your pain. And as we see in Jesus, as God come near, He loves you. And through His word, God speaks, shedding light on the brokenness of our world, offering comfort in His loving presence, and inspiring hope in His redemptive plans.

Psalm 34:18, ”The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit."

You are never alone. The enemy of our souls will try to isolate you, trying to steal and kill and destroy (John 10:10), but into our fallen world God comes, and His Church are sent to be Christ’s hands and feet to help carry us through the darker seasons of life, with wise and trained professionals to help.

So please, reach out. To God, and to someone you can trust to care. We’ll be sure to put some links to qualified helplines in the video description. God sees you, and has tremendous compassion for those who feel trapped and at their end. But please, suicide is not the answer. Why?

Because, second, suicide is a grave sin.

Simply put, your life matters to God.

Of the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses as the highlights reel for Israel’s moral vision, “You shall not murder” comes in at number six (Exodus 20:13). Now this is not a blanket ban on killing, as Scripture has a category for morally justified killing, such as in war, or as the just penalty for serious crimes. But by piecing together various ways the 6th commandment is parsed out in the Torah, murder is defined as the act of pre-meditated killing that destroys a life that belongs to God. And that’s what suicide is: self-murder. Taking something that belongs to God, a life that bears his image, and destroying it; failing to render unto God that which belongs to God.

Which is why all of the cases of suicide in Scripture are treated as serious sins. King Saul taking his own life after being wounded in battle (1 Samuel 31:4-5). Ahithophel hanging himself after his counsel was rejected (2 Samuel 17:23). Zimri setting his house on fire after facing defeat (1 Kings 16:18). And Judas hanging himself after betraying Jesus (Matthew 27:5).

As our Creator, God alone has the supreme authority to give and take away. Life is a sacred gift to be stewarded; an entrustment for which we will give an account before God after we die. And in addition to squandering God’s gift and attacking His image, suicide is a grave sin because it is so selfishly destructive, transferring our suffering to others by tearing holes in the hearts of those who love us; holes that naturally fill over time with dark questions.

So please, don’t believe the lie. Suicide is neither the answer nor the end.

But for those asking these questions in the aftermath of losing someone, third, suicide is not an unforgivable sin.

Catholic theology teaches a distinction between venial and mortal sins, with suicide being a species of murder, which is classified as a mortal sin, or a sin that leads to death. Given suicide is a person’s final act, the logic goes, with no recourse for repentance, penance, and absolution, suicide is an unforgivable sin, damning your soul.

But while Scripture does teach a hierarchy of sins, and 1 John 5:16-17 speaks of sin that leads to death, the only unforgivable sin Jesus or the Apostles taught is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, which is to reject the Holy Spirit’s witness to Jesus as the Saviour.

Put simply, the only unforgivable sin is to deny Jesus as our Saviour.

While suicide is a grave sin, there is no reason to believe it nullifies someone’s genuine faith in Jesus Christ as the only hope of salvation. Scripture teaches in Ephesians 2:8-10 that Salvation is a gift of grace through faith in Christ that forgives all sin; past, present, and future. Which means your salvation isn’t something lost every time you sin, only to be given back by God or the Church every time you plead forgiveness.

So please, for those mourning a tragic loss, be comforted. Those who suicide may have lost a momentary battle with the dark, but for any who have faith in Jesus, he promises to win the war for their soul. Christ’s love is stronger than death.

And finally, fourth, Jesus brings hope. One of the common threads of those who are genuinely suicidal, who have made specific plans to take their life, is that they see no other way out. But Jesus offers a different path to despair. Hope.

To those who feel trapped in a dead end, the Christian story is loaded with rich resources to help, offering a new perspective by recounting innumerable stories of God’s grace turning lives around. God is in the business of taking broken things and resurrecting something beautiful, completely rewriting our stories to give voice to His plans of redemption. That can be your story, too.

Nothing you have done makes you beyond redemption. No hole is so deep that God cannot lift you out. And no affliction is too great for His all-sufficient grace. I’ve always been moved by by the words in the hymn penned by Annie Johnson Flint, who with a debilitating condition had every reason to give into despair, but gives voice instead to her experience of God.

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,

He sendeth more strength as our labours increase;

To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,

To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,

When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,

When we reach the end of our hoarded resources

Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure.

His power no boundary known unto men;

For out of His infinite riches in Jesus

He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

So please, don’t give in to despair and death. Do reach out for help, now, and and draw near to Jesus so you too can receive from His infinite riches.

Be safe, and if this effects you personally, be sure to check out the links in the description.