Marriage

Marriage is the covenantal union of one man and one woman designed by God from the beginning (Genesis 2:24). It serves as the foundation for family life and human society. Because marriage is part of the created order, Scripture teaches that its structure and moral boundaries apply to all people, not only to believers. For that reason, civil government bears responsibility for upholding and protecting it as part of its duty to promote justice and moral order.

The Biblical Basis for Governmental Oversight of Marriage

The first chapters of Genesis present marriage as a permanent, exclusive bond between a husband and wife, established by God before the fall (Genesis 1:27; 2:18–24). Since this ordinance predates any nation or church, it carries universal moral authority. The ESV Study Bible notes that marriage “is not an institution only for Jews and Christians but… established by God at creation,” and therefore “for all people, believers and unbelievers alike.” It continues, “The church… should encourage non-Christians as well as Christians to abide by God’s high moral standards regarding divorce and remarriage.”¹ Because this institution applies to all humanity, governments act rightly when they define and regulate marriage in ways consistent with the created order. Civil law that reflects this biblical design serves the common good by affirming what God has built into human nature.

The Moral Rightness of Regulating Marriage

Scripture repeatedly connects lawful authority with the promotion of good and the restraint of evil (Romans 13:3–4). When governments protect and regulate marriage according to biblical norms, they fulfill part of that calling. By upholding boundaries surrounding marriage—such as permanence, fidelity, and the complementary union of male and female—civil authority helps preserve social stability, protect children, and foster virtue. These actions are morally right because they reflect God’s revealed will rather than moral relativism.

The Government’s Unique Role in Defining Marriage

Wayne Grudem argues that civil government holds a unique responsibility in this area:

“Only a civil government is able to define a standard of what constitutes a marriage for a whole nation or whole society. No churches or denominations could do this, because they only speak for their own members. No voluntary societies could do this, because they don’t include all the people in the society. If no definition of marriage is given to an entire society, then chaos and much oppression of women and children will result.”²

The government’s authority gives it reach beyond voluntary associations. Without a common legal standard, the most vulnerable—especially women and children—would suffer from instability and injustice within the family structure.

The Social Benefits of Upholding Traditional Marriage

Finally, governments that support and reward marriage between one man and one woman promote social well-being. Grudem observes that extending the same legal benefits given to married couples to other relationships undermines the advantages of true marriage:

“If the benefits that the laws now give to married couples are also given to other arrangements… then to that degree, society will begin to lose the benefits gained from giving special advantages to the relationship of marriage between one man and one woman.”³

This reasoning holds that when a state honors marriage as a lifelong male–female union, the results include family stability, protection of children, and the strengthening of social ties across generations. Preserving these benefits is part of the government’s God-given duty to promote what is good for the whole community.

References

Crossway Bibles, ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Good News Publishers/Crossway Books, 2009), Kindle Locations 317225–317230.
Wayne A. Grudem, Politics—According to the Bible: A Comprehensive Resource for Understanding Modern Political Issues in Light of Scripture (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), 222.
Grudem, Politics—According to the Bible, 226.