S OUL TIES

by Frank Hammond
E-ISBN 10: 0-89228-237-1
E-ISBN 13: 978-089228-237-1

Copyright © 1988, 1995. Revised 2011.

Impact Christian Books

IMPACT CHRISTIAN BOOKS, INC.

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www.impactchristianbooks.com
All passages are from the New King James Bible unless otherw ise noted.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

 CONTENTS
WHAT ARE SOUL TIES?

GOOD SOUL TIES

DEMONIC SOUL TIES

INFLUENCE OF LIKE SPIRITS

THE POWER OF SOUL TIES

BREAKING DEMONIC SOUL TIES

 What are Soul Ties?

There are times when we experience spiritual truth

before we understand it. I am reminded of an occasion
when a group of ladies invited me to teach them about the
baptism in the Holy Spirit. In the midst of the lesson, one
of the ladies interrupted me to ask, “Can’t you go ahead
and pray for us to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit
and explain it to us later?” Because it was scriptural, that
is what I did. Remember the one hundred and twenty who
were baptized in the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost?
They had the experience before they understood it.
My wife and I dealt with soul ties, through the
ministry of deliverance, long before we had much
understanding of them. In fact, long before someone
introduced the designation “soul ties,” we referred to them
as “unholy alliances” or “perverse relationships.” Through
deliverance ministry, we encounter soul ties regularly and
break their power over individuals’ lives. Yes, soul ties are
real, but what are they? What is the scriptural basis for
understanding soul ties? How are they formed? Are they
always demonic? What danger is there in soul ties? How
can they be broken?1
1 For more research and insights into soul ties, see the book Breaking Unhealthy Soul Ties by Bill Banks, and
the DVD teaching Breaking Demonic Soul Ties by Frank Hammond.
 Good Soul Ties
Soul ties are formed when two or more people
become bonded together. Some soul ties are good, and
others are evil; some are holy, and some are ungodly. Our
Holy God has ordained and sanctioned the soul ties of
bonding between children and parents, husbands and
wives, friends with friends and Christians with one another
as members of the Body of Christ. Good soul ties are
founded upon the law of love, which the Bible calls the law
of Christ” (Gal. 6:2), and the “royal law” (Jas. 2:8). Thus,
the soul ties approved by God represent the bonding of
people together in agape love.
 Ties of Marriage
In marriage, God purposes that a man and a woman
“be joined... and the two shall become one flesh” (Eph.
5:31). They are to be bonded by love. “So husbands ought
to love their own wives...” (Eph. 5:28). Within marriage,
sexual union is an expression of God-approved love. The
Bible declares that in marriage God joins a husband and
wife, and let not man, through divorce, put asunder what
God has joined together (see Matt. 19:6). Thus, divorce
violently rends soul ties which God created. This tearing is
what causes such pain, sorrow and trauma in divorce.
 Ties of Friendship
“The soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David,
and Jonathan loved him as his own soul” (1 Sam. 18:1).
Here is another type of soul tie that is pure and based
upon love. Jonathan loved David even to the laying down
of his rights to the throne of Israel. “There is a friend who
sticks closer than a brother” (Prov. 18:24). The Hebrew
word for “friend” is rea, meaning “companion or lover.”
Oh, what a Friend we have in Jesus! For, “A friend loves at
all times” (Prov. 17:17). Pure and holy soul ties are always
based on godly love.

Parent/Child Soul Ties

Concerning Jacob’s relationship with his son,
Benjamin, we read, “His father loves him... His life is
bound up in the lad’s life, and his soul knit with the lad’s
soul” (Gen. 44:2, 30 A MPLIFIED BIBLE). Although Jacob’s love for
Benjamin was intensified because he believed his son,
Joseph, had been killed; it illustrates the soul tie that exists
between a parent and child.
When a child is born, the infant should be bonded to
his parents. The parents convey their love to the child in
many ways. When a healthy soul tie is formed, it
ministers, throughout life, love and security to that child.
The soul tie between parent and child stabilizes a child’s
personality.
 Soul Ties Between Christians
The Church is made up of many members who are
knit together and built up together through love. “The
whole body joined and knit together by what every joint
supplies... causes growth of the body for the edifying of
itself in love” (Eph. 4:16, EMPHASIS MINE). The relationship
between Christians in the Body of Christ is compared to
the relationship of the various parts of the human body.
The soul ties formed between members of the Body of
Christ are not only desirable but necessary, for they
enable the Body of Christ to mature and fulfill its calling.
 Demonic Soul Ties
Demonic soul ties are perversions of the good and
holy. Good soul ties are founded upon love; demonic soul
ties are founded upon lust. Remember that Satan cannot
go beyond his limited rights: He must work within the
framework of what he is allowed. When he gets the
opportunity, he will pervert that which is pure.
 Ties Formed Through
Fornication
“Do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is
one body with her? For ‘The two,’ He says, ‘shall become
one flesh” (1 Cor. 6:16). Through sexual relationships
outside of marriage, demonic soul ties are forged. Those
who engage in sex outside of marriage, become the one
flesh which God purposed solely for a husband and wife.
Through adultery, an evil soul tie is created in lust, and
this demonic soul tie destroys the holy union that is based
upon mutual love and trust. When love and trust are
betrayed through adultery, it is very difficult (although not
impossible) to restore the shattered bonds of marital
oneness.
Through physical attraction and passionate forms of
affection outside of marriage, passions are aroused and
demonic soul ties are created. The world’s standard for
couples is: dating, petting and marriage. God’s order is:
marriage, dating and petting. Excessive physical touching
outside of marriage leads to the formation of a soul tie,
and the lust that accompanies it makes the tie unclean,
which opens the door for unclean spirits.
Perverse soul ties are not limited to those formed
between persons of the opposite sex; they are also
formed between those of the same sex through sodomy.
Homosexuals, both gays and lesbians, attempt to remove
the stigma of their sin by referring to themselves as
“lovers,” but the Word of God declares that their
motivation is lust: “Even their women changed the natural
use for what is against nature: Likewise also the men,
leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust
for one another” (Rom. 1:26–27, EMPHASIS MINE).
Furthermore, perverse soul ties include those formed
between men and animals. Animals have souls (minds,
emotions and wills); therefore, men can form soul ties
with animals. The ultimate expression of sexual perversion
is bestiality: lying carnally with animals. Some soul ties
with animals fall short of bestiality and are characterized
by false compassion and inordinate affection for animals.
When Adam needed a companion with whom he
could become one flesh, every animal in all creation
passed in review before him, and “Adam gave names to
all the livestock, and to the birds of the air, and to every
[wild] beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found
a helper meet (suitable, adapted, complementary) for
him” (Gen 2:20, AMP). A soul tie with an animal is a
perversion.
 Ties with Evil Companions

“Do not be so deceived and misled!

Evil companionships (communion,
associat ions) corrupt and deprave
good manners and morals and
charact er.”
1 Cor. 15:33, AMP

One is readily influenced by his friends, so it is

important to choose righteous and holy friends.
Soul ties with evil companions will ensnare you, and
you will find yourself entangled in wickedness.

“Thorns and snares are in t he way of

t he perverse; He who guards his soul
will be far from t hem... Make no
friendship wit h an angry man... lest
y ou learn his way s and set a snare for
y our soul.”
Prov. 22:5, 24–25 (EMPHASIS MINE)
 Perverted Family Tie
Within a family, there are close soul ties, any of
which Satan is eager to pervert. The soul tie between
parent and child can be healthy and beneficial, except
when it continues into the adult life of the child. The
familiar expression, “cutting the apron strings,” actually
speaks of severing the soul tie between the parent and an
adult offspring, When a son or daughter is ready for
marriage, the soul tie with the parents must be terminated
in order for the soul tie between husband and wife to be
formed. Therefore, God decrees,

“A man shall leave his fat her and

mot her and be joined t o his wife…”
Eph. 5:31

When the father gives his daughter in marriage, he

severs the soul tie with her in consideration of her
husband. When the filial soul tie is not severed at the
proper time, then that which was good and beneficial
becomes evil through control and possessiveness.
 For one to “leave his father and mother” is not to be
understood as breaking relationships with parents. Rather,
it speaks of a maturing of the parent/child relationship that
accompanies the maturing of the son or daughter. One
must never stop honoring his Father and mother for this is
a commandment with promise (Exod. 20:12).
Sexual perverseness within family relationships has
become alarmingly prevalent. This perversion occurs when
there is an incestuous copulation between father and
daughter, mother and son, brother and sister, father-in-
law and daughter-in-law, mother-in-law and son-in-law,
or other close family ties.
When the essential bonding between parents and
child is missed at birth, the child is left with a sense of
incompleteness that can leave him restless and searching
for love-bonding throughout life. This is the reason that so
many who did not bond with their parents in love are
targets for Satan’s use.
A pastor and his wife had five children of their own
plus an adopted daughter. The six children were raised
with impartial love, spiritual influences and training. Why,
then, was this adopted daughter the only child who was
drawn into the world and its rebellion? It was that this
particular child was abandoned and rejected by her own
flesh-and-blood parents. In spite of the love offered by the
adoptive parents, the spirit of rejection kept her from
accepting that love. In her quest for love-fulfillment, she
became wed to the world in lust.
 Soul Ties with the Dead
When a family member or close friend dies, the soul
tie formed with that person must be dissolved. The period
of sorrow, following the death of a loved one, is a time of
adjustment during which the soul tie is ended, yet the fond
and loving memories remain.
Bible examples of mourning for the dead teach us
that days of mourning should be limited. Mourning
normally lasted from seven to thirty days. When Jacob
died, Joseph “observed seven days of mourning for his
father” (Gen. 50:10). “Now when the congregation saw
that Aaron was dead, all the house of Israel mourned for
Aaron thirty days” (Num. 20:29). “And the children of
Israel wept for Moses... thirty days. So the days of
weeping and mourning for Moses ended” (Deut. 34:8).
Prolonged mourning may indicate the continuation of
the soul tie, and the stress of extended grief will create an
opportunity for spirits of sorrow, grief and loneliness to
enter. Also, if one attempts to communicate with the
deceased loved one, he can easily acquire a familiar
spirit.2
A woman who came to us for deliverance had never
formed satisfactory soul ties with her three children. She
was afraid to form the needed ties, and there was a
reason for this reluctance. She was also very possessive
of her grandchildren. Furthermore, when she realized that
she was nearing the time of menopause, she became
obsessed with the desire to have another child. When she
heard a teaching on soul ties, she realized her problem
and came for ministry.
The Lord showed her that she had never broken the
soul ties with three babies she had miscarried and one
that was stillborn. Normal soul ties had been formed while
these babies were in her womb. The loss of these
children, which occurred prior to the birth of her other
children, made her afraid to bond (form soul ties) with her
living children, lest she also lose them. Within herself she
had never ceased sorrowing over the infants lost through
miscarriage and stillbirth. Thus, she was never really
satisfied with the children she raised. She tried to fill the
emptiness within by bonding with her grandchildren. She
was released from bondage when she realized her reason
for wanting another child.

Demonic Soul Ties within the

Church
 Sometimes there are factions within the Body of
Christ that oppose the Body unity sung about in the
familiar hymn, “Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in
Christian love.” There are evil soul ties represented by
cliques that cause division in the Body. Such groups
oppose Church unity and the blending of the Body
together.

But God composed t he body , having

given great er honor t o t he part t hat
lacks it , t hat t here should be no
schism in t he body , but t hat t he
members should have t he same care
for one anot her.
1 Cor. 12:24, 25

Cliques work against the mutual care that Christ

designed for His Church in “tempering the body together,”
(1 Cor. 12:24, KJV).
Christ is the avowed Head of the Church; therefore, it
should be the goal of church leadership to join each
member to Christ. “He who is joined to the Lord is one
spirit with Him” (1 Cor. 6:17). Sometimes, pastors join
church members to themselves rather than to Christ. This
unnatural bonding actually seduces the people away from
Christ. Such ungodly soul ties may be formed by the
intentional designs of the pastor, or they may be initiated
by members of the congregation who idolize the pastor
above Christ. Cults are often an outgrowth of these kinds
of soul ties.
I recall ministering deliverance to a pastor who
idolized his spiritual mentor to the extent that he would not
listen to any other minister’s recorded messages. He
prided himself that he had every cassette tape that his
idolized teacher had made. This pastor walked with a limp
in emulation of his teacher who had a lame leg. When his
teacher had a heart attack, this pastor developed chest
pains. As we ministered deliverance to this pastor, the
demon in him cried out, “I am fellowshipping with him [the
idolized minister] in his suffering!” (see Phil. 3:10).
The Apostle Paul countered this same unhealthy soul
tie when he said to the church at Corinth:

For where t here are envy , st rife, and

divisions among y ou, are y ou not
carnal and behaving like mere men?
 For when one say s, “I am of Paul,” and
anot her, “I am of Apollos,” are y ou not
carnal? Who t hen is Paul, and who is
Apollos, but minist ers t hrough whom
y ou believed.
1 Cor. 3:3–5

Paul went on to explain that Christ is the only

foundation that can be laid. When man replaces Christ as
the foundation, the spirit of Antichrist is introduced. This is
the sort of error that took place within some elements of
the Shepherding movement. The shepherd of the local
flock became: the “I Am” to his sheep, so that no action
took place except through the human shepherd.
Spiritual leaders must maintain the spirit of John the
Baptist who declared, “I am not the Christ... but the friend
of the bridegroom” (John 3:28–29, EMPHASIS MINE). Otherwise,
one usurps the position of Christ as Head of the Church
and ties the people to himself. When loyalties are tied to
man rather than to Christ, Christian fellowship with other
churches and denominations is either hindered or made
impossible.
Demons of doctrinal error have been known to
identify themselves by the name of the leader who
fostered the error. In such cases the demonic soul tie is
clearly identified.

2 See Confronting Familiar Spirits by Frank Hammond as an E-book online, or as a paperback through
www.impactchristianbooks.com
 Influence of Like Spirits
How do demons enter into soul ties? Evil spirits are
able to enter when spiritual boundaries are violated. God
has set boundaries that govern our relationships with
others. God has given man a nature to love and to live in
association with others, but God has set boundaries for all
such relationships. For example, there are protective
boundaries set by God for marriage. A man is to forsake
all others and be joined to his wife. There are similar
limitations that govern friendships and bonds within the
Body of Christ. When relationships within any given area
disregard the boundaries that God has established, the
relationships become perverse and demons enter. In other
words, fleshly soul ties become demonic soul ties.
Through soul ties, a spiritual channel is formed. For
example, in a godly marriage, the Holy Spirit flows
between husband and wife so that revelations and
workings of the Holy Spirit are held in common between a
man and his wife. The two become one through the
influence of the Holy Spirit on their lives. The same
principle operates in demonic soul ties. When there is a
sinful joining of two individuals, demon spirits in one
person open up the other person for similar spirits, and
the two become one.
 The Power of Soul Ties
The power of soul ties is reflected in two important
words in the Greek New Testament: “joined” and
“fellowship.”

“Joined”
The word “joined” is used in relation to marriage. In
Ephesians 5:31 we are told that a man is to be “JOINED”
unto his wife. The literal meaning in Greek is: to cleave,
stick to, glue or cement. Another use of “joined” is found
in Matthew 19:6 where we are told concerning marriage:
“Therefore what God has joined together, let not man
separate.” “Joined” can be translated as “yoked together.”
Within marriage, one can plumb the heights and
depths of human relationship. The soul tie between
husband and wife is pure and satisfying. The times of
“coming together” can be a ministry to one another under
the anointing of the Holy Spirit. If, however; the husband
introduces oral or anal sex (sodomy) into the relationship,
then another spirit is introduced; and the wife becomes
defiled by the transference of the unclean spirit in him to
herself.
The word “joined” is also used in relationship to the
Church. Ephesians 4:16 speaks of “The whole body,
joined and knit together” (EMPHASIS MINE). Again, in 1 Cor.
1:10, we read, “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same
thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that
ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in
the same judgment” (EMPHASIS MINE).
The Church is one body. “And if one member suffers,
all the members suffer with it” (1 Cor. 12:26). That is,
whatever happens to one member affects the other
members of the Body. “Do you not know that your bodies
are the members of Christ? Shall I then take the members
of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly
not!” (1 Cor. 6:15). Therefore, when a church member
engages in sexual immorality, Christ the Head is affected;
and each member of the body is affected. This is the
reason that there must be church discipline in such
matters to remove any unrepentant sinner. For example,
the man in the Corinthian church who was living
incestuously, was to be excommunicated. Paul explained:

“Do y ou not know t hat a lit t le leaven

 leavens t he whole lump? Therefore
purge out t he old leaven, t hat y ou
may be a new lump.”
1 Cor. 5:6–7

We have known of churches whose members fell into

sexual sin in wholesale fashion. A spirit of fornication ruled
those churches. Perhaps it was a pastor who first fell into
adultery, but it could have been any member of the Body
who committed the sin. Since each member is “joined” to
the other members; when one sins, the whole body is
affected.
Furthermore, the word “joined” describes our
relationship with Christ. “But he who is joined to the Lord
is one spirit with Him” (1 Cor. 6:17, EMPHASIS MINE). Just as a
husband or wife can commit adultery against his/her
spouse, a person can commit spiritual adultery against the
Lord. Idolatry is spiritual harlotry. Every occult practice is
an expression of idolatry, and by participating in anything
occult a person goes outside his relationship with God to
receive forbidden knowledge, wisdom, guidance or power.
The person who has relationship with idols is said to have
“joined” himself to that idol.
 So Israel was joined t o Baal of Peor [an
idol of Moab], and t he anger of t he
Lord was aroused against Israel.
Num. 25:3.

They joined t hemselves also t o Baal of

Peor, And at e sacrifices made t o t he
dead.
Ps. 106:28.

Ephraim is joined t o idols, let him

alone.
Hos. 4:17 (EMPHASIS MINE)

When a person goes to a fortune teller, he “joins”

himself to that occult practioner by a spiritual connection
and, therefore, commits spiritual adultery. By spiritual
adultery, a spiritual soul tie is formed. Through occult
involvement, one has spiritual intercourse with demons!
 “Fellowship”
We have fellowship with Christ through His sacrifice
on cross.

The cup of blessing which we bless, is

it not t he communion of t he blood of
Christ ? The bread which we break, is it
not t he communion of t he body of
Christ ? For we, being many , are one
bread and one body : for we all
part ake of t hat one bread.
1 Cor. 10:16–17

The Greek word “fellowship” means communion,

partaking together, sharing in common. As Christians, our
communion is in Christ. We become “one body” by
partaking together of the One Bread which is Christ who is
broken for us. When we sit at the Lord’s table and partake
of the bread and wine of communion, we are partaking of
His sacrifice. This is fellowship based on our sharing in His
sacrificial death for the atonement of our sins.
 We have “fellowship” with demons through idolatry.
What happens when we participate in an idolatrous activity
such as hypnotism, the Ouija Board, astrology or
divination? We have sat at another table: the table of
idols.

Therefore, my beloved, flee from

idolat ry ... You cannot drink t he cup of
t he Lord and t he cup of demons; y ou
cannot part ake of t he Lord’s t able
and of t he t able of demons.
1 Cor. 10:14, 21

How does the Lord feel about our fellowship with

demons? “We provoke the Lord to jealousy” (1 Cor.
10:22). If a wife goes out with another man, the husband
is jealous. Likewise, a Christian’s affair with “another
spirit” provokes the Lord to jealousy. Soul ties made
through occult involvement must be renounced and
destroyed.
Husbands and wives who truly become “one flesh”
will think alike, act alike and may even look alike. God’s
Word says that when people are joined to idols they
become like their idols:

Their idols are silver and gold, The

work of men’s hands. They have
mout hs, but t hey do not speak; Ey es
t hey have, but t hey do not see; They
have ears, but t hey do not hear;
Noses t hey have, but t hey do not
smell; They have hands, but t hey do
not handle; feet t hey have, but t hey
do not walk; Nor do t hey mut t er
t hrough t heir t hroat . Those who make
them are like them; so is everyone who
trusts in them.
Ps. 115:4–8 (EMPHASIS MINE)
 Breaking Demonic Soul
Ties
Through our study we have come to see that demonic
soul ties are indeed prevalent and more far-reaching than
we may have supposed. As evil soul ties are identified,
what can be done to reverse their power?

FIRST, repentance toward God is necessary. God’s

ordinances have been violated. Lust has taken us beyond
the boundaries of purity that the Lord set for us. Even if
the sin was committed ignorance, it still requires
forgiveness. Ask God NOW to forgive you for each
perverse soul tie that you have created.

SECOND, spoil the devil’s house by taking back all that

he has gained against you. Confess before God that Satan
has no further legal right to you. Declare that each
demonic soul tie that you have identified is now destroyed
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

THIRD, command the evil spirits associated with the

soul ties to leave you in the Name of Jesus Christ, the Son
of God.
 Note: Be as specific as possible when breaking soul
ties. Soul ties are formed with each person with whom
one has had sexual relationships outside of marriage.
Name each sexual partner by name and verbally renounce
the ties with each one. Are there soul ties with animals?
Are there any wrong ties with family members? Are there
abnormal ties with pastors or people within the Body of
Christ? Have spiritually perverse soul ties been created
through association with occultists such as: diviners,
astrologers, witches, charmers, mediums, necromancers,
hypnotists, ear piercers (Exod. 21:5, 6), tattoo artists (Lev.
19:28), blood covenanters, or unholy vows with Free
Masons, fraternity brothers or sorority sisters?
Ask for and accept God’s forgiveness for each evil
soul that you ever formed. In the name of Jesus,
command all demons associated with perverse soul ties to
go.