what does the bible say about premarital sex

The Bible does not explicitly use the term "premarital sex," but it clearly teaches that sexual relations are meant to be reserved for marriage and considers sex outside of marriage as sexual immorality or fornication, which is condemned. Key passages include 1 Corinthians 7:2, which states that each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband to avoid sexual immorality, implying that sex is to be confined within marriage. Hebrews 13:4 reinforces this by stating marriage should be honored and the marriage bed kept pure, warning that God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous. The Bible sees sex as a sacred union meant to be enjoyed within the covenant of marriage, both for pleasure and procreation. Sex outside this covenant is viewed as defiling God's design and an act of immorality. The Old Testament also underscores this by directing that sexual activity should lead to a binding marital relationship, as in Exodus 22:16-17 and Deuteronomy 22:13-21, which place premarital sex alongside sexual sin and impurity. Thus, while the Bible does not mention premarital sex by name, it classifies it within the broader biblical category of sexual immorality or fornication and condemns it as inconsistent with God's intended design for human sexuality.