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"They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons & their daughters ... and the land was polluted with blood..."
Psalms106:38
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"While you were being formed in the belly of the womb, I knew you and ordained (intended for) you to be a prophet to the nations." (Jeremiah 1:5)
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"The Lord hath called me from the womb, from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name ... to be his servant..."
(Isaiah .9:1,.5)
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ABORTION:
What Saith the Scriptures?
© 1992 Diane S. Dew in The Standard
Copyright © 1998 Diane S. Dew
Is the Bible silent on the issue of abortion?
Hardly. The Bible also does not directly refer to bank robberies, credit card fraud or writing bad checks. But none of these can be justified.
While abortion per se is not mentioned specifically, the principles of Scripture clearly define God's position on the matter. Whatever the opinion polls say, it is God's Word that counts.
The Teaching of Scripture
What the Bible does say is that::
o Life is sacred, and it begins at conception.
o God is the Author of life (Genesis 2:7; Deuteronomy 30:20; Job 12:10; Psalms 66:9; Isaiah 42:5; Ezekiel 37:10; Daniel 5:23; Zechariah 12:1; Acts 17:25, 28; Hebrews 12:9), and only He is entitled to determine its end.
o The deliberate destruction of human life without cause is sin, punishable by death.
"My times are in thine hand," the psalmist wrote (Psalms 31:15). To take human life into our own hands is sin. "You are not your own, you are bought with a price, even the precious blood of Jesus." (1 Corinthians 6:20)
Personhood of the Unborn
From the gospel accounts of events leading up to Jesus' birth, much can be learned about the state of the unborn.
1. Scripture refers to the unborn as children, not "blobs of tissue." In Luke 1:36 we read that Elizabeth had "conceived a son." Notice that the "product of conception," as pro-aborts would call "it," is simply called a "baby." Similarly, in Matthew 1:18, 23, Mary is said to be "with child."
2. The unborn child is a separate being, apart from the mother. As such, it is able to sense such feelings as "joy," etc. (Luke 1:44). Elizabeth's "babe leaped in [her] womb for joy," we are told in verse 45. The unborn babe, independent of the mother, made movements ("leaped") -- so "it" cannot be reduced to merely a "part of the woman's body" -- a necessary step in reducing the issue to that of "a woman's right." The time for "control over a woman's body," as they put it, is before she becomes pregnant. (The Bible calls this self-control: Galatians 5:22, 23.)
Numerous scriptures support the belief that God has a plan for each life, established at conception. (Psalms 139:13-16 Isaiah 49:1, 5; Jeremiah 1:5; Galatians 1:15). Abortion is the direct interference with that plan and, thus, a direct defiance of God's will. This truth is clearly presented in both the Old and New Testaments.
"While you were being formed in the belly of the womb," God told the prophet Jeremiah, "I knew you and ordained (intended for) you to be a prophet to the nations." (Jeremiah 1:5)
Similarly, Isaiah declared, "The Lord hath called me from the womb, from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name ... to be his servant, to bring Jacob again unto him ..." (Isaiah 49:1, 5)
Paul, too, said he was "called from my mother's womb." (Galatians 1:15) Likewise, the psalmist wrote of his being "formed in secret," in his mother's womb, referring to himself in such a state, "yet imperfect (incomplete)," as "I" -- that is, a person (Psalm 139:13-16). God always speaks of the unborn as "children" (Romans 9), never as mere blobs of tissue, or part of the woman's body. (Cp. Exodus 21:22-25, which clearly establishes the personhood of the unborn.)
When we presume to play God, we interfere with the plan of the Creator. "In the fulness of time, God sent His Son," just as He raised up Moses, Isaiah, Deborah, etc. -- "for such a time as this." Who knows, whether we might have had a cure for cancer, or AIDS, had our nation followed God's laws?
Even some basic individual characteristics of individuals are determined before birth. Of Jacob, whose name means supplanter, we read: "he (implying personhood) took his brother (also implying personhood, based on their biological relationship) by the heel in the womb." (Genesis 25:21-24) When Rebekah conceived, "the (twin) children struggled together within her ..." (Genesis 25:22) They "struggled," not she. This reinforces the fact that the unborn child is a separate being apart from the mother. (See also Romans 9:10-11.)
Besides proving that life begins at conception, Scripture clearly condemns the destruction of innocent human life. And none is more innocent than an infant. However, the Bible also clearly states that God's people have a responsibility to defend the oppression of the innocent.
Respect for life from the time of conception -- like the blood atonement -- is a thread that runs throughout Scripture.
For reprint permission, contact:
Diane Dew, PO Box 340945, Milwaukee, WI 53234
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Diane Dew o PO Box 340945 o Milw WI 53234
Email: Diane@dianedew.com
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