The most controversial and debated topics of a generation expose its firmest held beliefs. The subject of abortion is a case in point. For one side, religion proves the murderous and godless nature of abortion. For others, abortion rights are pursued and defended with great religious fervor. The sad truth is that the religious nature of abortion is not new. In fact, the scripture says, “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the son” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). To understand this ancient controversy, consider its origins and opposition.
How Does Life Begin?
After God’s creation of Adam (from dust) and Eve (from Adam’s rib), every person thereafter was created in a woman’s womb. This is accomplished or withheld by God who opens or closes the womb (Genesis 20:18; Genesis 29:31; and especially Genesis 30:2). Furthermore, it is God who allows conception (Ruth 4:13) and the fruit of the womb is His reward (Psalm 127:3).
Once conception is realized, God fashions the child in the womb (Job 31:15) and makes “the bones...grow in the womb of her that is with child” (Ecclesiastes 11:5). While in the womb, it is the Lord who upholds the child (Psalm 71:6), with David confessing that it was during that time he was “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:13-14). Both Isaiah (Isaiah 44:2, 24) and Jeremiah (Jeremiah 1:5) confirm God’s involvement in the existence and well-being of the child while in the womb. At the same time, none of this denies the impact a woman with child can have on the child in her womb (Judges 13:7).
When Does Life Begin?
For purity’s sake, we will stick to the biblical language with the expectation that those who need to understand will be able to do so and that the innocent readers will stay innocent.
According to the scripture, life is given when a man “knows” or goes in unto his wife (Genesis 4:1, 17; Ruth 4:13; 1 Chronicles 7:23; Isaiah 8:3; Hosea 1:3), her womb is opened (Genesis 30:22-23), and she conceives. Now, while there may be much confusion and debate about the specifics of conception, the Bible is quite clear. After David went in unto Bath-sheba, she conceived and sent and told David, “I am WITH child” (2 Samuel 11:5). A CHILD was WITH Bath-sheba when she conceived. Simply put, life begins at conception. This may not be the accepted or agreed upon teaching among the scientists, but it is the teaching of the first and ultimate scientist—the Lord.
The world’s disapproval of the Bible regarding children and God’s hand in the process is clearly seen in their terminology, much of which removes the spiritual and biblical heritage in the whole process. A pregnant woman initially carries a fetus. She can choose to abort (exiting a mission) or give birth to a kid (baby animal—see Genesis 27:9) that she will put in a crib (see Proverbs 14:4; Isaiah 1:3). God, however, declares that a woman who is expecting is “with child” (Genesis 16:11; Matthew 1:18) which means that she has another living soul WITH her. As time progresses in the child’s development in the womb, the mother becomes “great with child” (Luke 2:5) until she is “ready to be delivered” (Revelation 12:4; see also 1 Samuel 4:19; Isaiah 26:17).
What Is the Value of Life?
In Isaiah 55:8-9, the Lord declared, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
To understand God’s thoughts and ways, one must consult His word. To that end, the Lord presented a scenario in Exodus 21:22-25 that would offer great insight to the subject matter at hand. In this scenario, the Lord speaks of potential strife between two men where a woman with child is hurt in the process (Exodus 21:22).
If, as a result of the strife, the woman gives birth to the child prematurely, but the child is healthy and no mischief follows, the offending party is punished by the woman’s husband and the judges (Exodus 21:22).
If, however, as a result of the strife, mischief follow and the child is harmed or lost, an equal punishment is to be inflicted upon the offending party, up to and including life for life (Exodus 21:23-25).
This lines up with the commandment of God concerning the man that sheds innocent blood—“Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man” (Genesis 9:5-6). Furthermore, the one who sheds innocent blood is called a murderer (Numbers 35:30-31).
Where Did Child Sacrifice Begin?
A culture where the Bible is revered will often see less severe implementation of idolatrous practices than a culture where the Bible is not known, believed, or practiced. This is very clear in the matter of child sacrifice.
Historically, the nation of Israel was warned not to “let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech” (Leviticus 18:21). This was further explained in Deuteronomy 12:31 as the burning of sons and daughters in fire as offerings to false gods. The Lord identified this behaviour as one of the “abominations of the heathen” (2 Kings 16:3) and those who did so, or allowed and observed it, were to be put to death (Leviticus 20:2-5). This barbarous act involved the shedding of innocent blood and therefore caused the land to be polluted with blood (Psalm 106:37-38). To assign this act or right to God is folly, as He said that this would never enter his heart (Jeremiah 7:31) or mind (Jeremiah 19:5).
The average person reading this may argue that there is a vast difference between sacrificing a living child versus ending a child’s life in its mother’s womb, but that is because we fail to acknowledge that BOTH are living souls known to and loved by God. We may think ourselves superior because we only kill babies living in the womb, but it is the same practice in God’s eyes and the powers that be know and understand that our nation is NOT YET READY for the full-blown child sacrifice. However, know this, if the Lord tarries His coming and the culture continues its swift spiral from God’s word, there will be children, living outside the womb, who will be killed.
