Statement
The Bible even portrays mixed marriages in a positive light. The most famous case is Ruth, a book many scholars think was written in the age of Ezra and Nehemiah, which holds that David himself descended from the marriage of the Israelite Boaz and the Moabite Ruth. Esther's marriage to Ahasuerus likewise does not trouble the author of Esther.
References
p. 38
supports · boxed feature · ch. 2
Efron, Lehmann and Weitzman. The Jews: A History. 3rd edition. New York and Abingdon: Routledge, 2019.
Section: Intermarriage: Biblical Arguments For and Against
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Scholarly debate
What does the Bible say about marrying foreigners?
3 positions · no single answer · take a seat →
- A
Strong opposition (Nehemiah)
Nehemiah and the laws against marriage with Canaanites
Nehemiah curses and beats Judahites married to women from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab; the biblical ban seems to have arisen from fear that such marriages lead to worship of Canaanite gods, but Nehemiah's worry is that the children lose the language of Judah.
- B
No blanket ban
Other texts of the Hebrew Bible
The ban targets non-Israelites living in Canaan; there is no general veto on marrying foreigners, and Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Moses marry Arameans, Egyptians and Midianites.
- C
Mixed marriage as blessing
Ruth and Esther
In Ruth, David descends from the marriage of the Israelite Boaz and the Moabite Ruth; the author of Esther likewise is not troubled by Esther's marriage to Ahasuerus.