Divine command theory is the view that moral obligations are determined by God’s commands. An action is morally required if God commands it, forbidden if God prohibits it, and permissible if God neither commands nor prohibits it.
How the theory works
Divine command theory is a form of theological voluntarism: moral duties depend on God’s will rather than on independent moral standards. For example, if God commands truth-telling, then telling the truth is morally obligatory because it has been divinely commanded.
The theory may provide morality with an objective foundation. If God is perfectly good, omniscient, and authoritative, divine commands are not merely human opinions and can apply universally.
However, Plato’s Euthyphro dilemma challenges this account: does God command an action because it is morally right, or is it morally right because God commands it?
| Response | Philosophical problem |
|---|---|
| God commands actions because they are independently right. | Moral standards exist independently of God, so God is not their ultimate foundation. |
| Actions are right because God commands them. | Morality may appear arbitrary: in principle, any action could become right if God commanded it. |
A modified version argues that commands arise necessarily from God’s perfectly good nature. This aims to avoid arbitrariness because a loving and just God could not command cruelty for its own sake. Critics respond that the theory must still explain what makes God’s nature good without using an independent standard of goodness.
A further issue is epistemological: even if divine command theory is true, humans may disagree about which revelation is genuine or how a command should be interpreted.
Exam technique
For an IB Philosophy response, first define the theory precisely, then explain the Euthyphro dilemma and evaluate at least one possible reply. A common misconception is that divine command theory simply means religious people follow moral rules; the theory makes the stronger philosophical claim that God’s commands constitute or ground moral obligation. Use a clear argument, objection, and counterargument rather than merely describing religious beliefs.
