The Bible, God’s Word, is not silent on abortion.
The Bible teaches us that life is to be treasured, and children—who are “the fruit of the womb” and “a heritage from the Lord”—are to be cherished as a blessing from God. Jesus, Himself, displayed tremendous love for young children and infants during His earthly ministry. “Let the little children come to Me,” He commanded His disciples, “and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.”
Luke’s Gospel tells us that people brought their “infants” to Him. The Greek word used by Luke for “infants” is brephos. When the Gospel of Luke tells of Jesus in the manger, Jesus is called a brephos. When Luke describes an unborn baby leaping in the womb, he uses the same word: brephos. The Bible makes no distinction between born and unborn. The Greek word brephos is used interchangeably to describe them both.
The Bible is Clear
Scripture leaves no room for doubt about the moral status of the unborn. Pregnant women are said to be “with child.” God does not see the unborn as clumps of tissue without purpose or value. The Scriptures make this abundantly clear! In the Psalms, the Holy Spirit inspired King David to pray:
O Lord … You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them. —Psalm 139:13-16
The Lord declares to Jeremiah:
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you.—Jeremiah 1:5
Job, the great hero of patient suffering, said,
Did not He who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same One fashion us in the womb?—Job 31:15
The prophet Isaiah proclaimed,
Thus says the Lord who made you And formed you from the womb…—Isaiah 44:2
The Bible offers dignity to the unborn not only in poetic tribute, but through legal protections. When God delivered His law to the people of Israel through the prophet Moses, He specified that unborn children are not of lesser worth. They are to be given the same rights as those who are already born.
If men fight, and hurt a woman with child, so that she gives birth prematurely, yet no harm follows, he shall surely be punished accordingly as the woman’s husband imposes on him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life … —Exodus 21:22-23
The sixth commandment declares, “You shall not murder,” and the Law of Moses specifies that “if anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death.” By including the murder of an unborn baby in the list of capital crimes (“life for life”), the Bible is explicitly treating unborn children with the same dignity and value as the most developed of adults.
Created in His Image
All human life is given extraordinary value, because it is created in the image of Go Thus, an attack on human life is an attack upon the image of God Himself. In Proverbs, this connection is made when God proclaims, “All those who hate Me love death.”
The people of God are to cherish life. In centuries past, a barren womb was a thing to be feared. Today, it seems that people go out of their way to avoid children. People sympathetic to abortion have argued that abortion is a necessary evil to prevent undue hardship and overpopulation; how different is the perspective of a Christian, who sees the world through eyes of faith.
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate. —Psalm 127:3-5
The Lord is not ambiguous about bringing children into the world. Twice He commands:
Be fruitful and multiply.—Genesis 1:28 and Genesis 9:7
Abortion is a perversion of this command and a rejection of God’s gift of life and family. No matter who you are, all people are called to stand in defense of life.
Open your mouth for the speechless, in the cause of all who are appointed to die. —Proverbs 31:8
Ending Infanticide
The Word of God must be the primary weapon in the Church’s battle against abortion. In the past, the Bible has changed societies’ perceptions about abortion. Fifteen hundred years ago, as Christianity spread throughout the West, the ancient Greek and Roman practices of infanticide were abandoned and finally outlawed by Emperor Justinian. The Justinian Code declared,
Those who expose children, possibly hoping they would die, and those who use the potions of the abortionist, are subject to the full penalty of the law—both civil and ecclesiastical—for murder. Should exposure occur, the finder of the child is to see that he is baptized and that he is treated with Christian care and compassion. They may be then adopted as ad scriptitiorum— even as we ourselves have been adopted into the kingdom of grace.
Christians are called to be Christ-like. Surely, no person in history has demonstrated a greater zeal and passion for the life of His people than Jesus Christ. Can we who claim the name of Christ do anything less? Can we ignore the clear command of Scripture?
Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, “But we knew nothing about this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done? —Proverbs 24:11-12
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