For most Christians in America, the use of marijuana has been a nonstarter, mainly because it was against the law. But in the last few decades, the move to legalize weed has gained steam. Today, marijuana is still considered a Schedule I illegal substance by the federal government, though twenty-four states and the District of Columbia now allow recreational marijuana. Forty states allow the medical usage of marijuana. So believers must now think biblically and theologically about the use of this increasingly popular plant.
First, we should understand the terms. Cannabis refers to the entire plant, and marijuana refers to the part of the plant grown, harvested, and produced specifically to produce a “high” and thus psychoactive effects. There are parts of the cannabis plant that are neither addictive nor designed to generate a high. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the primary psychoactive compound. For instance, CBD is a popular ingredient in restorative and medical applications. It does not have THC and therefore doesn’t have mind-altering properties.
How should believers think about marijuana and similar substances that have psychoactive effects? While no specific Bible passage addresses marijuana, there are several biblical principles and ideas we should consider.
In Cannabis and the Christian, ethicist Todd Miles recounts visiting a weed dispensary to learn what customers seek:
In doing some research for my presentations on this topic, I visited one of the seemingly ubiquitous marijuana dispensaries near my house. The staff at this shop were extremely patient and helpful, answering many of my questions by pulling out large visual aids with charts and graphics, showing me the different THC products and how they worked. At one point, I asked, rather embarrassingly, if there was any reason to smoke pot recreationally other than to get high. The clerk looked at me like I was an imbecile and laughed, “Why else would anybody smoke pot?”
While there may be a secondary purpose in consuming marijuana, let’s be honest: People use it to get a high. What is a high? A high is a form of intoxication. Scripture doesn’t speak to marijuana, but it does strongly condemn intentional intoxication. To the Ephesians, Paul urges, “And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). This passage, like many others, frequently references alcohol, as it was the primary substance in use during the context addressed by the scriptural authors.
Consider this warning from Proverbs 23:
Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has conflicts? Who has complaints? Who has wounds for no reason? Who has red eyes? Those who linger over wine; those who go looking for mixed wine. Don’t gaze at wine because it is red, because it gleams in the cup and goes down smoothly. In the end it bites like a snake and stings like a viper. Your eyes will see strange things, and you will say absurd things. You’ll be like someone sleeping out at sea or lying down on the top of a ship’s mast. . . . “They struck me, but I feel no pain! They beat me, but I didn’t know it! When will I wake up? I’ll look for another drink.” (vv. 29–35)
This passage discusses “lingering over wine,” consuming so much that one becomes intoxicated and drunk. Scripture warns of its perils: loss of coherence, lack of control of what one says, hallucinations, and addiction: “I’ll look for another drink.” Scripture never portrays intoxication as a good thing for God’s people. What’s more, often drunkenness—intoxication—is seen as sinful. In Galatians 5:19–21, it is listed as a characteristic of people who “will not inherit the kingdom of God” and is inconsistent with a life in step with the Holy Spirit. A similar sentiment is expressed in 1 Corinthians 6:9–10 and 1 Peter 4:3. In 1 Thessalonians 5:6–8, intoxication is contrasted with sobriety and self-control, that is a characteristic of the spiritually mature follower of Jesus. Nine times the New Testament refers to drunkenness or intoxication in its list of sins.
Scripture also offers examples of the kind of debauchery that can result from intoxication: Noah embarrassed himself with public nakedness (Gen. 9:21). Lot committed incest (Gen. 19:30–38). Nabal risked his life and family before the king (1 Sam. 25:36). The Corinthian Christians blasphemed the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:21). David Mathis is right when he says, “When we turn to the New Testament, drunkenness has no place in the church but belongs to the course of this fallen world and the pattern of rebellion against God.”
Scripture warns against it because the effects of intoxication are many. Families, lives, and communities are often destroyed by violence, infidelity, and loss of control. Scholar Christopher Cook asserts from church history, “At least up until the nineteenth century, these ethical conclusions were remarkably uniform. All agreed that drunkenness was a sin.” If the primary purpose of marijuana is to get high and if intoxication is seen as a sin in Scripture, can a Christian seek to get high and be in obedience to Christ?
Editor’s Note: This is an excerpt from Biblical Wisdom for Everyday Life: Ethical Answers for Cultural Questions, by Daniel Darling, released by B&H Publishing (May 2026).
