'Sister' in the Bible

Zillah bore Tubal-cain, who made all kinds of bronze and iron tools. Tubal-cain’s sister was Naamah.

Please say you’re my sister so it will go well for me because of you, and my life will be spared on your account.”

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

Abraham said about his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech king of Gerar had Sarah brought to him.

Didn’t he himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ I did this with a clear conscience and clean hands.”

Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife.

As soon as he had seen the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and when he had heard his sister Rebekah’s words—“The man said this to me!”—he went to the man. He was standing there by the camels at the spring.

So they sent away their sister Rebekah with the one who had nursed and raised her, and Abraham’s servant and his men.

They blessed Rebekah, saying to her:Our sister, may you becomethousands upon ten thousands.May your offspring possessthe gates of their enemies.

Isaac was 40 years old when he took as his wife Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan-aram and sister of Laban the Aramean.

When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say “my wife,” thinking, “The men of the place will kill me on account of Rebekah, for she is a beautiful woman.”

Abimelech sent for Isaac and said, “So she is really your wife! How could you say, ‘She is my sister’?”Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might die on account of her.”

so Esau went to Ishmael and married, in addition to his other wives, Mahalath daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son. She was the sister of Nebaioth.

When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she envied her sister. “Give me sons, or I will die!” she said to Jacob.

Rachel said, “In my wrestlings with God, I have wrestled with my sister and won,” and she named him Naphtali.

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

“We cannot do this thing,” they said to them. “Giving our sister to an uncircumcised man is a disgrace to us.

Jacob’s other sons came to the slaughter and plundered the city because their sister had been defiled.

But they answered, “Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?”

and Basemath daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth.

The sons of Lotan were Hori and Heman.Timna was Lotan’s sister.

Asher’s sons: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and their sister Serah.Beriah’s sons were Heber and Malchiel.

Then his sister stood at a distance in order to see what would happen to him.

Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Should I go and call a woman from the Hebrews to nurse the boy for you?”

Amram married his father’s sister Jochebed,and she bore him Aaron and Moses.Amram lived 137 years.

Aaron married Elisheba,daughter of Amminadab and sister of Nahshon.She bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.

Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with their tambourines and danced.

You are not to have sexual intercourse with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s, whether born at home or born elsewhere. You are not to have sex with her.

You are not to have sexual intercourse with your father’s wife’s daughter, who is adopted by your father; she is your sister.

You are not to have sexual intercourse with your father’s sister; she is your father’s close relative.

You are not to have sexual intercourse with your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s close relative.

You are not to marry a woman as a rival to her sister and have sexual intercourse with her during her sister’s lifetime.

If a man marries his sister, whether his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, and they have sexual relations, it is a disgrace. They must be cut off publicly from their people. He has had sexual intercourse with his sister; he will bear his punishment.

You must not have sexual intercourse with your mother’s sister or your father’s sister, for it is exposing one’s own blood relative; both people will bear their punishment.

He may make himself unclean for his young unmarried sister in his immediate family.

He is not to defile himself for his father or mother, or his brother or sister, when they die, because the hair consecrated to his God is on his head.

For they attacked you with the treachery that they used against you in the Peor incident. They did the same in the case involving their sister Cozbi, daughter of the Midianite leader who was killed the day the plague came at Peor.”

The name of Amram’s wife was Jochebed, a descendant of Levi, born to Levi in Egypt. She bore to Amram: Aaron, Moses, and their sister Miriam.

But if the man doesn’t want to marry his sister-in-law, she must go to the elders at the city gate and say, ‘My brother-in-law refuses to preserve his brother’s name in Israel. He isn’t willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.’

then his sister-in-law will go up to him in the sight of the elders, remove his sandal from his foot, and spit in his face. Then she will declare, ‘This is what is done to a man who will not build up his brother’s house.’

‘The one who sleeps with his sister, whether his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter is cursed.’And all the people will say, ‘Amen!’

“I was sure you hated her,” her father said, “so I gave her to one of the men who accompanied you. Isn’t her younger sister more beautiful than she is? Why not take her instead?”

Naomi said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her god. Follow your sister-in-law.”

Some time passed. David’s son Absalom had a beautiful sister named Tamar, and David’s son Amnon was infatuated with her.

Amnon was frustrated to the point of making himself sick over his sister Tamar because she was a virgin, but it seemed impossible to do anything to her.

and he asked Amnon, “Why are you, the king’s son, so miserable every morning? Won’t you tell me?”Amnon replied, “I’m in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”

Jonadab said to him, “Lie down on your bed and pretend you’re sick. When your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘Please let my sister Tamar come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare food in my presence so I can watch and eat from her hand.’”

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

When she brought them to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, “Come sleep with me, my sister!”

Her brother Absalom said to her: “Has your brother Amnon been with you? Be quiet for now, my sister. He is your brother. Don’t take this thing to heart.” So Tamar lived as a desolate woman in the house of her brother Absalom.

Absalom didn’t say anything to Amnon, either good or bad, because he hated Amnon since he disgraced his sister Tamar.

But Jonadab, son of David’s brother Shimeah, spoke up: “My lord must not think they have killed all the young men, the king’s sons, because only Amnon is dead. In fact, Absalom has planned this ever since the day Amnon disgraced his sister Tamar.

Now Absalom had appointed Amasa over the army in Joab’s place. Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra the Israelite; Ithra had married Abigail daughter of Nahash. Abigail was a sister to Zeruiah, Joab’s mother.

Pharaoh liked Hadad so much that he gave him a wife, the sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes.

Tahpenes’ sister gave birth to Hadad’s son Genubath. Tahpenes herself weaned him in Pharaoh’s palace, and Genubath lived there along with Pharaoh’s sons.

Jehosheba, who was King Jehoram’s daughter and Ahaziah’s sister, secretly rescued Joash son of Ahaziah from the king’s sons who were being killed and put him and the one who nursed him in a bedroom. So he was hidden from Athaliah and was not killed.

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

These were all David’s sons, with their sister Tamar, in addition to the sons by his concubines.

Pedaiah’s sons: Zerubbabel and Shimei.Zerubbabel’s sons: Meshullam and Hananiah, with their sister Shelomith;

These were Etam’s sons: Jezreel, Ishma, and Idbash, and their sister was named Hazzelelponi.

The sons of Hodiah’s wife, the sister of Naham: the father of Keilah the Garmite and the father of Eshtemoa the Maacathite.

Machir took wives from Huppim and Shuppim. The name of his sister was Maacah. Another descendant was named Zelophehad, but he had only daughters.

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

Asher’s sons: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, and Beriah, with their sister Serah.

Heber fathered Japhlet, Shomer, and Hotham, with their sister Shua.

Jehoshabeath, the king’s daughter, rescued Joash son of Ahaziah from the king’s sons who were being killed and put him and the one who nursed him in a bedroom. Now Jehoshabeath was the daughter of King Jehoram and the wife of Jehoiada the priest. Since she was Ahaziah’s sister, she hid Joash from Athaliah so that she did not kill him.

and say to corruption: You are my father,and to the maggot: My mother or my sister,

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”and call understanding your relative.

You have captured my heart, my sister, my bride.You have captured my heart with one glance of your eyes,with one jewel of your necklace.

How delightful your love is, my sister, my bride.Your love is much better than wine,and the fragrance of your perfume than any balsam.

My sister, my bride, you are a locked garden—a locked garden and a sealed spring.

M I have come to my garden—my sister, my bride.I gather my myrrh with my spices.I eat my honeycomb with my honey.I drink my wine with my milk.N Eat, friends!Drink, be intoxicated with love!

W I sleep, but my heart is awake.A sound! My love is knocking!M Open to me, my sister, my darling,my dove, my perfect one.For my head is drenched with dew,my hair with droplets of the night.

B Our sister is young;she has no breasts.What will we do for our sisteron the day she is spoken for?

I thought: After she has done all these things, she will return to Me. But she didn’t return, and her treacherous sister Judah saw it.

I observed that it was because unfaithful Israel had committed adultery that I had sent her away and had given her a certificate of divorce. Nevertheless, her treacherous sister Judah was not afraid but also went and prostituted herself.

Therefore, this is what the Lord says concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah:They will not mourn for him, saying,“Woe, my brother!” or “Woe, my sister!”They will not mourn for him, saying,“Woe, lord! Woe, his majesty!”

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

Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to the north of you, and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to the south of you.

“As I live”—the declaration of the Lord God—“your sister Sodom and her daughters have not behaved as you and your daughters have.

Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, plenty of food, and comfortable security, but didn’t support the poor and needy.

Didn’t you treat your sister Sodom as an object of scorn when you were proud,

One man within you commits a detestable act with his neighbor’s wife; another wickedly defiles his daughter-in-law; and yet another violates his sister, his father’s daughter.

The older one was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. They became Mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. As for their names, Oholah represents Samaria and Oholibah represents Jerusalem.

“Now her sister Oholibah saw this, but she was even more depraved in her lust than Oholah, and made her promiscuous acts worse than those of her sister.

When she flaunted her promiscuity and exposed her nakedness, I turned away from her in disgust just as I turned away from her sister.

You have followed the path of your sister, so I will put her cup in your hand.”

You will be filled with drunkenness and grief,with a cup of devastation and desolation,the cup of your sister Samaria.

A priest may not come near a dead person so that he becomes defiled. However, he may defile himself for a father, a mother, a son, a daughter, a brother, or an unmarried sister.

For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven, that person is My brother and sister and mother.”

Whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.”

She had a sister named Mary, who also sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to what He said.

But Martha was distracted by her many tasks, and she came up and asked, “Lord, don’t You care that my sister has left me to serve alone? So tell her to give me a hand.”

Now a man was sick, Lazarus, from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus.

Having said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”

“Remove the stone,” Jesus said.Martha, the dead man’s sister, told Him, “Lord, he’s already decaying. It’s been four days.”

Standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.

But the son of Paul’s sister, hearing about their ambush, came and entered the barracks and reported it to Paul.

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church in Cenchreae.