The dating world feels complicated, especially when you’re trying to honor God while navigating apps, chemistry, and the question of when to define the relationship. You want to make wise choices about who to date and how to date, but the Bible doesn’t include chapters on dinner dates or relationship timelines. Friends offer conflicting advice: some say date only to marry, others suggest you’re overthinking it, and everyone has opinions about physical boundaries, communication, and how to know if someone is “the one.”
Perhaps you’ve made mistakes in past relationships that you don’t want to repeat, or you’re starting fresh and want to build something healthy from the beginning. You struggle with knowing how much to invest emotionally before commitment, when to introduce someone to your family, and how to balance romantic feelings with rational evaluation of compatibility. The gap between cultural dating norms and biblical principles feels wide and confusing.
The Bible offers timeless wisdom for relationships, even though dating as we know it didn’t exist in biblical times. Scripture provides principles about character to seek, boundaries to maintain, and how to build foundations for lasting love. These verses offer guidance for navigating modern dating with godly wisdom, helping you honor God while pursuing romantic relationships.
Bible Verses for Dating and Relationships
1. 2 Corinthians 6:14 – Do Not Be Yoked Together with Unbelievers
Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?
New International Version (NIV)
2. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 – Love Is Patient, Love Is Kind
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
English Standard Version (ESV)
3. Proverbs 31:10 – A Wife of Noble Character Who Can Find?
Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies.
New Living Translation (NLT)
4. 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 – It Is God’s Will That You Should Be Sanctified
For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God.
New King James Version (NKJV)
5. Ephesians 5:3 – But Among You There Must Not Be Even a Hint
But sexual immorality and any impurity or greed should not even be heard of among you, as is proper for saints.
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
6. Proverbs 4:23 – Above All Else, Guard Your Heart
Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
7. 1 Corinthians 6:18 – Flee from Sexual Immorality
Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
King James Version (KJV)
8. Song of Solomon 8:4 – Daughters of Jerusalem, I Charge You
I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, do not stir up or awaken love until it is ready!
New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
9. Ephesians 5:25 – Husbands, Love Your Wives
Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not getting.
The Message (MSG)
10. Colossians 3:14 – And Over All These Virtues Put On Love
Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which ties everything together in unity.
Amplified Bible (AMP)
11. 1 Peter 3:7 – Husbands, in the Same Way Be Considerate
Husbands, likewise, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with a most delicate partner. Honor them as coheirs of the gracious gift of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
New English Translation (NET)
12. Proverbs 18:22 – He Who Finds a Wife Finds What Is Good
A man who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
13. 1 Peter 4:8 – Above All, Love Each Other Deeply
Most important of all, you must sincerely love each other, because love wipes away many sins.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)
14. Genesis 2:24 – That Is Why a Man Leaves His Father and Mother
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united with his wife, and they become one.
Good News Translation (GNT)
15. Hebrews 13:4 – Marriage Should Be Honored by All
Marriage should be honored by everyone, and husband and wife should keep their marriage pure. God will judge as guilty those who take part in sexual sins.
New Century Version (NCV)
16. Ruth 3:11 – All the People of My Town Know
So now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you everything you say, since all the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character.
International Standard Version (ISV)
17. 1 Corinthians 7:2 – But Since Sexual Immorality Is Occurring
Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband.
Tree of Life Version (TLV)
18. Proverbs 19:14 – Houses and Wealth Are Inherited from Parents
A house and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the Lord.
Lexham English Bible (LEB)
19. Matthew 19:6 – So They Are No Longer Two, but One Flesh
So that they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, don’t let man tear apart.
World English Bible (WEB)
20. Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the Lord with All Your Heart
Trust in Jehovah with all thy heart, And lean not upon thine own understanding: In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he will direct thy paths.
American Standard Version (ASV)
21. 1 John 4:18 – There Is No Fear in Love
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and he who fears is not perfected in love.
Revised Standard Version (RSV)
22. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 – Two Are Better Than One
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
New American Bible (NAB)
23. 1 Peter 3:3-4 – Your Beauty Should Not Come from Outward Adornment
Whose adorning, let it not be the outward plaiting of the heare, and wearing of golde, or putting on of apparell: But let it be the hidden man of the heart, with the incorruptible ornament of a meeke and a quiet spirite, which in the sight of God is of great price.
Douay-Rheims Bible (DRB)
24. Song of Solomon 2:16 – My Beloved Is Mine and I Am His
My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth his flock among the lilies.
English Revised Version (ERV)
25. Proverbs 27:17 – As Iron Sharpens Iron
Iron by iron is sharpened, And a man sharpens the face of his friend.
Young’s Literal Translation (YLT)
26. Ephesians 4:2-3 – Be Completely Humble and Gentle
with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love; using diligence to keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace.
Darby Translation (DARBY)
27. 1 Timothy 5:2 – Treat Younger Women as Sisters
Treat the elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity.
Weymouth New Testament (WNT)
28. Genesis 24:67 – Isaac Brought Her into the Tent
And Isaac brouyte hir in to the tabernacle of Sare, his modir, and took hir to wijf; and so myche he louede hir, that he temperide the sorewe which bifelde of the deeth of the modir.
Wycliffe Bible (WYC)
29. Genesis 29:20 – So Jacob Served Seven Years
And Iaakob serued seuen yeere for Rahel, and they seemed vnto him but a few dayes, because he loued her.
Geneva Bible (GNV)
30. 1 Corinthians 7:9 – But If They Cannot Control Themselves
But yf they can not abstayne, let them marry. For it is better to mary then to burne.
Bishop’s Bible
31. Matthew 5:28 – But I Tell You That Anyone Who Looks
But I say vnto you, that whosoeuer loketh on a wyfe, lustynge after her, hathe committed advoutrie with hyr all redy in his hert.
Tyndale Bible
32. Proverbs 12:4 – A Wife of Noble Character
A worthy wife is her husband’s joy and crown; the other kind corrodes his strength and tears down everything he does.
The Living Bible (TLB)
33. 1 Corinthians 7:39 – A Woman Is Bound to Her Husband
A wife is bound by law to her husband while he lives; but if her husband passes away, she is liberated to be married to whomever she chooses—but only to one who shares our life in the Lord.
The Passion Translation (TPT)
34. Galatians 5:22-23 – But the Fruit of the Spirit Is Love
But the fruit produced by the Holy Spirit within you is divine love in all its varied expressions: joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
The Voice Bible (VOICE)
35. James 1:19 – My Dear Brothers and Sisters, Take Note
My dear brothers and sisters, always be willing to listen and slow to speak. Do not become angry easily.
New International Reader’s Version (NIrV)
Our Thoughts On What the Bible Says About Dating and Relationships
Scripture provides timeless principles for building healthy romantic relationships, even though modern dating culture didn’t exist in biblical times. The Bible’s emphasis on character over chemistry, spiritual compatibility over physical attraction, and covenant commitment over casual connection offers a radically different framework than what culture promotes. Biblical dating seeks a life partner rather than just a good time, prioritizes purity over passion, and builds foundations that can sustain marriage rather than relationships based solely on feelings.
What’s particularly valuable about the biblical approach to relationships is how it protects both people involved. Boundaries around physical intimacy aren’t arbitrary rules but wisdom that guards hearts, honors God, and builds trust. The call to be equally yoked isn’t about being judgmental but about recognizing that shared faith provides the foundation for navigating life’s challenges together. When we follow biblical principles in dating, we’re more likely to build relationships that last and less likely to experience the heartbreak that comes from ignoring God’s design.
The Bible also reveals that healthy relationships require both people to be growing spiritually and emotionally. Iron sharpens iron, meaning good relationships challenge us to become better versions of ourselves rather than enabling destructive patterns. Dating with biblical wisdom means seeking someone who draws you closer to God rather than away from Him, someone whose character reflects Christ rather than worldly values, and someone committed to covenant love rather than conditional affection.
Say This Prayer
Heavenly Father, I want to honor You in my dating relationships, but I often feel confused about how to apply biblical principles to modern dating culture. Help me to seek Your wisdom rather than just following my feelings or cultural norms. Give me discernment to recognize character qualities that matter most and courage to prioritize spiritual compatibility over surface attraction.
Protect my heart from relationships that would pull me away from You or damage my spiritual growth. Help me to maintain healthy boundaries around physical intimacy, knowing that purity honors You and protects both me and the person I’m dating. When I’m tempted to compromise my values, remind me of Your better plan and give me strength to wait for Your best.
Show me how to be patient in my search for a life partner without settling for less than what You want for me. Help me to recognize red flags I might otherwise overlook and give me the courage to walk away from relationships that aren’t Your will. Surround me with wise counselors who can offer a godly perspective on my relationships.
Most importantly, help me to grow in my relationship with You while I’m dating, knowing that the healthier I am spiritually and emotionally, the better partner I’ll be. Let my dating relationships reflect Your love and point others toward You.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Evang. Anabelle Thompson is the founder of Believers Refuge, a Scripture-based resource that helps Christians to find biblical guidance for life’s challenges.
With over 15 years of ministry experience and a decade of dedicated Bible study, she creates content that connects believers with relevant Scripture for their daily struggles.
Her work has reached over 76,000 monthly readers (which is projected to reach 100,000 readers by the end of 2025) seeking practical faith applications, biblical encouragement, and spiritual guidance rooted in God’s Word.
She writes from personal experience, having walked through seasons of waiting, breakthrough, and spiritual growth that inform her teaching.
Evang. Thompson brings 12 years of active ministry and evangelism experience, along with over 10 years of systematic Bible study and theological research.
As a former small group leader and Sunday school teacher, she has published over 200 biblical resources and devotional studies.
She specializes in applying Scripture to everyday life challenges and regularly studies the original Hebrew and Greek texts for a deeper biblical understanding.