'Sister' in the Bible

Zillah gave birth to Tubal-cain, the smith (craftsman) and teacher of every artisan in instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.

Please tell them that you are my sister so that things will go well for me for your sake, and my life will be spared because of you.”

Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her as my wife? Now then, here is your wife; take her and go!”

Abraham said [again] of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah [into his harem].

Did Abraham not tell me, ‘She is my sister?’ And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.”

Besides, she actually is my [half] sister; she is the daughter of my father [Terah], but not of my mother; and she became my wife.

When he saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and when he heard Rebekah his sister, saying, “The man said this to me,” he went to Eliezer and found him standing by the camels at the spring.

So they sent off their sister Rebekah and her nurse [Deborah, as her attendant] and Abraham’s servant [Eliezer] and his men.

They blessed Rebekah and said to her,“May you, our sister,Become [the mother of] thousands of ten thousands,And may your descendants possess (conquer)The [city] gate of those who hate them.”

Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean (Syrian) of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean.

The men of the place asked him about his wife, and he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “my wife”—thinking, “the men of the place might kill me on account of Rebekah, since she is very beautiful.”

Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “See here, Rebekah is in fact your wife! How did you [dare to] say to me, ‘She is my sister’?” And Isaac said to him, “Because I thought I might be killed because of her [desirability].”

and [to appease his parents] Esau went to [the family of] Ishmael and took as his wife, in addition to the wives he [already] had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth [Ishmael’s firstborn son].

When Rachel saw that she conceived no children for Jacob, she envied her sister, and said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I will die.”

So Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings [in prayer to God] I have struggled with my sister and have prevailed.” So she named him Naphtali (my wrestlings).

But Hamor conferred with them, saying, “The soul of my son Shechem [deeply] longs for your daughter [and sister]. Please give her to him as his wife.

Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, because Shechem had defiled and disgraced their sister Dinah.

They said to them, “We cannot do this thing and give our sister [in marriage] to one who is not circumcised, because that would be a disgrace to us.

Then Jacob’s [other] sons came upon those who were killed and looted the town, because their sister had been defiled and disgraced.

But they said, “Should he [be permitted to] treat our sister as a prostitute?”

and Basemath, Ishmael’s daughter, sister of Nebaioth.

The sons of Lotan are Hori and Hemam; and Lotan’s sister is Timna.

The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and Serah their sister. And the sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel.

And his sister [Miriam] stood some distance away to find out what would happen to him.

Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call a wet-nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?”

Amram married his father’s sister Jochebed, and she gave birth to Aaron and Moses; and Amram lived a hundred and thirty-seven years.

Aaron married Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab and the sister of Nahshon, and she gave birth to Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron [and Moses], took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her with timbrels and dancing.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your sister, either the daughter of your father or of your mother, whether born at home or born elsewhere.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter; born to your father, she is your sister.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is your father’s blood relative.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s blood relative.

You shall not marry a woman in addition to her sister as a rival while she is alive, to uncover her nakedness.

‘If a man takes his sister, his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, so that he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace; and they shall be cut off in the sight of the sons of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness; he bears [responsibility for] his guilt.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of (have intimate relations with) your mother’s sister or your father’s sister, for such a one has uncovered his blood relative; they will bear their guilt.

also his virgin sister, who is near to him because she has had no husband; for her he may become unclean.

He shall not make himself [ceremonially] unclean for his father, mother, brother, or sister, when they die, because [the responsibility for] his separation to God is on his head.

for they harass you with their tricks, the tricks with which they have deceived you in the matter [of the Baal] of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the leader of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague because [of the Baal] of Peor.”

The name of Amram’s wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt; and to Amram she bore Aaron, Moses, and Miriam their sister.

‘Cursed is he who is intimate with his [half] sister, whether his father’s or his mother’s daughter.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Her father said, “I really thought you utterly hated her; so I gave her to your companion. Is her younger sister not more beautiful than she? Please take her [as your wife] instead.”

Three sons of Zeruiah [the half sister of David] were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Now Asahel was as light and swift-footed as one of the [wild] gazelles in the field.

It happened afterwards that Absalom the son of David had a beautiful sister whose name was Tamar, and Amnon [her half brother] the son of David was in love with her.

Amnon was so frustrated because of his [half-] sister Tamar that he made himself sick, for she was a virgin, and Amnon thought it impossible for him to do anything to her.

He said to Amnon, “Why are you, the king’s son, so depressed morning after morning? Will you not tell me?” And Amnon said to him, “I am in love with Tamar, my [half-] brother Absalom’s sister.”

Jonadab said to him, “Go to bed and pretend you are sick; and when your father [David] comes to see you, say to him, ‘Just let my sister Tamar come and serve me food, and let her prepare it in my sight, so that I may see it and eat it from her hand.’”

So Amnon lay down and pretended to be sick; and when the king came to see him, Amnon said to the king, “Please let my sister Tamar come and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, so that I may eat from her hand.”

When she brought them to him to eat, he took hold of her and said, “Come, lie with me, my sister.”

So her brother Absalom said to her, “Has your brother Amnon been with you? But now keep silent, my sister; he is your brother; do not take this matter to heart.” So Tamar remained secluded in her brother Absalom’s house.

But Absalom did not speak to Amnon either good or bad; for Absalom hated Amnon because he had violated his sister Tamar.

But Jonadab the son of Shimeah, David’s brother, responded, “Do not let my lord assume that all the king’s sons have been put to death; for only Amnon is dead. This act of revenge has been on Absalom’s mind since the day Amnon violated his sister Tamar.

Absalom put Amasa in command of the army instead of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra the Israelite, who had married Abigail the daughter of Nahash, [the half sister of David and] the sister of Zeruiah, Joab’s mother.

He had conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah [David’s half sister] and with Abiathar the priest; and they followed Adonijah and helped him.

Hadad found great favor with Pharaoh, so that he gave Hadad in marriage the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.

The sister of Tahpenes gave birth to Genubath, Hadad’s son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house; and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s household among the sons of Pharaoh.

But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Joram [of Judah and half] sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah and abducted him from among the king’s sons who were to be killed, and hid him and his nurse in the bedroom. So they hid him from Athaliah, and he was not put to death.

The sons of Lotan: Hori and Homam; and Timna was Lotan’s sister.

All these were the sons of David, besides the sons of the concubines; and Tamar was their sister.

The sons of Pedaiah: Zerubbabel and Shimei. The sons of Zerubbabel: Meshullam and Hananiah, and Shelomith was their sister;

These were the sons of Etam: Jezreel, Ishma, and Idbash; and the name of their sister was Hazzelelponi.

The sons of the wife of Hodiah, the sister of Naham, were: the fathers of Keilah the Garmite and Eshtemoa the Maacathite.

Machir took as a wife the sister of Huppim and Shuppim; her name was Maacah. The name of a second [descendant, the first being Gilead], was Zelophehad; and Zelophehad had [only] daughters.

His sister Hammolecheth gave birth to Ishhod and Abiezer and Mahlah.

The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, and Beriah; and Serah their sister.

Heber became the father of Japhlet, Shomer, Hotham, and Shua their sister.

Now David said, “Whoever strikes down a Jebusite first shall be chief and commander.” Joab the son of Zeruiah [David’s half sister] went up first, and so he was made chief.

Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Berothite, the armor bearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah [David’s half sister],

Joab the son of Zeruiah was in command of the army, and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder;

But Jehoshabeath, the king’s daughter, took Joash the [infant] son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were being put to death, and she placed him and his nurse in the bedroom. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of King Jehoram [of Judah] and wife of Jehoiada the priest, hid Joash from [his grandmother] Athaliah so that she did not murder him (for Jehoshabeath was the sister of Ahaziah).

If I call out to the pit (grave), ‘You are my father’;And to the worm [that feeds on decay], ‘You are my mother and my sister [because I will soon be closest to you],’

Say to [skillful and godly] wisdom, “You are my sister,”And regard understanding and intelligent insight as your intimate friends;

“You have ravished my heart and given me courage, my sister, my [promised] bride;You have ravished my heart and given me courage with a single glance of your eyes,With one jewel of your necklace.

“How beautiful is your love, my sister, my [promised] bride!How much better is your love than wine,And the fragrance of your oilsThan all kinds of balsam and spices.

“A garden enclosed is my sister, my [promised] bride—A rock garden locked, a spring sealed up.

(The Bridegroom)“I have come into my garden, my sister, my [promised] bride;I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam and spice [from your sweet words].I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey;I have drunk my wine with my milk.Eat, friends;Drink and drink deeply, O lovers.”

(The Shulammite Bride)“I was asleep, but my heart was awake.A voice [in my dream]! My beloved was knocking:‘Open to me, my sister, my darling,My dove, my perfect one!For my head is drenched with the [heavy night] dew;My hair [is covered] with the dampness of the night.’

(The Chorus)“We have a little sisterAnd she has no breasts.What shall we do for our sisterOn the day when she is spoken for [in marriage]?

I thought, ‘After she has done all these things she will return to Me’; but she did not return, and her treacherous (faithless) sister Judah saw it.

And I saw [that even though Judah knew] that for all the acts of adultery (idolatry) of faithless Israel, I [the Lord] had sent her away and given her a certificate of divorce, yet her treacherous sister Judah was not afraid; but she went and was a prostitute also [following after idols].

Yet in spite of all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to Me with her whole heart, but rather in [blatant] deception [she merely pretended obedience to King Josiah’s reforms],” declares the Lord.

Therefore thus says the Lord in regard to Jehoiakim the [second] son of Josiah, king of Judah,“The relatives will not lament (mourn over with expressions of grief) for him:‘Alas, my brother!’ or, ‘Alas, sister,’ [how great our loss]!The subjects will not lament for him:‘Alas, master!’ or ‘Alas, majesty [how great was his glory]!’

And then I heard the sound of the wings of the living beings as they touched one another and [I heard] the sound of the wheels beside them, a great rushing sound.

You are the daughter of your mother, who loathed her husband and her children. You are the sister of your sisters, who loathed their husbands and their children. Your [spiritual] mother was a Hittite and your [spiritual] father an Amorite.

Now your older sister is Samaria, she with her daughters (outlying cities) who live north of you; and your younger sister is Sodom, she with her daughters who live south of you.

As I live,” says the Lord God, “Sodom, your sister and her daughters have not done as you and your daughters have done.

Behold, this was the sin of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters (outlying cities) had arrogance, abundant food, and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy.

For [the name of] your sister Sodom was not mentioned by you [except as a byword] in the day of your pride [when David ruled],

In you one has committed a shameful act with his neighbor’s wife, another has lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law, and another has violated his sister, his father’s daughter.

Their names were Oholah the elder and Oholibah her sister, and they became Mine and they gave birth to sons and daughters. And as for [the identity of] their names, Oholah is Samaria (capital city of Israel) and Oholibah is Jerusalem (capital city of Judah).

“Now her sister Oholibah saw this, yet she was more corrupt in her lust than she, and her acts of prostitution were more [wanton] than the immoralities of her sister.

So she flaunted her acts of prostitution and exposed her nakedness; then I became disgusted with her [and turned away], as I had become disgusted with her sister [and turned away].

You have walked in the way of your sister (Samaria); therefore I will give her cup [of judgment] into your hand.’

‘You shall be filled with drunkenness and sorrow,With the cup of horror and desolation,With the cup of your sister Samaria.

They shall not go to a dead person to defile themselves; except for father or for mother, for son or for daughter, for brother or for sister who has had no husband; they may defile themselves.

For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven [by believing in Me, and following Me] is My brother and sister and mother.”

For whoever does the will of God [by believing in Me, and following Me], he is My brother and sister and mother.”

She had a sister named Mary, who seated herself at the Lord’s feet and was continually listening to His teaching.

But Martha was very busy and distracted with all of her serving responsibilities; and she approached Him and said, “Lord, is it of no concern to You that my sister has left me to do the serving alone? Tell her to help me and do her part.”

Now a certain man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village where Mary and her sister Martha lived.

Now Jesus loved and was concerned about Martha and her sister and Lazarus [and considered them dear friends].