Abortion: The Real Issue

2011-01-23

The Biblical evidence clearly states that an unborn child is a human being, and therefore, the natural conclusion is that abortion is murder. So if the issue is clear-cut Biblically and morally, then what makes the issue so fiery?

The Blessing of Children

Consider the first commandment listed in the Bible, in Genesis 1:28: “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” Bringing forth new life pleases God and wants all who are married to have children.

In Genesis 25:20-21, the Bible says that the Jewish patriarch Isaac got married at age 40, and his wife was barren. So, they begged God for children, and she finally conceived when Isaac was 60 years old (25:26). They begged God for 20 years! This longing for children is repeated in Rachel and much later in Hannah, among others. Children were considered a blessing by all in the Bible.

If the people of Israel were to obey the commands of God, the following promise was made: “Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body” (Deuteronomy 28:4). The same would be under a curse if they did not obey (28:18). A “miscarrying womb” was considered a curse (Hosea 9:14).

Most importantly the Bible says in Psalm 127:3-5: “Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.” Children are a blessing! The Bible makes it clear.

You will not find long lists commanding “Thou shalt not commit abortion” because children were wanted by every single person in the Bible. Likewise, God had commanded human beings to have children. This commandment was sufficient enough that you did not need such a commandment against abortion. But we do know something about the unborn from the Bible.

Personhood of the Unborn

The Bible makes it clear that unborn children are fully human. Jacob and Esau are called “children” when they are struggling in the womb (Genesis 25:22). John the Baptist is called a babe while in the womb in Luke 1:41-44. Psalm 139:13-16 discusses the formation of David in the womb. God sanctified Jeremiah before he came from the womb (Jeremiah 1:5).

The key evidence that human life begins at conception is given in the following comparison of Scriptures.

Matthew 1:23: “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel.” This is a quotation of Isaiah 7:14.

Isaiah 7:14: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

The difference in wording can be accounted for because the Old Testament and the New Testament were originally recorded in different languages. It clearly can be seen by these two quotations that to conceive is to be with child.

Abortion Must Be Murder

If infants in the womb are fully human, then all passages dealing with murder in the Bible apply to abortion. Genesis 9:6 inaugurates the death penalty for those who kill another person. It is listed in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:13). Cities of refuge did not protect the intentional murderer (Numbers 35).

Murder does not go unpunished by God. He appointed government to punish evildoers (1 Peter 2:14). But even so, God remembers sins of murder, which defiles both people and nations (Numbers 35:33; Isaiah 1:15). These passages apply to everyone, including us today. Anyone that murders or assists in murder will one day experience repercussions from God.

A key passage that speaks to the harming of the unborn is Exodus 21:22-25: “If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life...” In other words, if men are fighting and hurt a woman with child, and cause the baby to be born prematurely, and there is harm done, then they are to be punished accordingly.

One may say, “What about issues of rape and child deformity?” Murder of these babies could be likened to the murder of an innocent third party. From my personal experience, I have known someone who was a son of someone who was raped, and he was the child of that union. I also heard the testimony of a woman who likewise was the child of such a union at a seminar a number of years ago. Who will go and tell them that they do not have the right to live and exist? And what about child deformity? God has always been a defender of the weak, as it says in Psalm 147:6: “The LORD lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground.”

It is written in Ezekiel 18:20: “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.” Yet an unborn infant is paying for sins of his or her parents.

This brief discussion is enough to show that the unborn is a human being, and, therefore, that abortion has to be murder. This leads us to ask the question: why all of the fuss over this issue? Scientifically, this cannot be argued, as the fertilized egg has all of the DNA necessary to create the features of the baby.

The Real Issue

The real issue is that people want to have sexual relations without consequences. People are selfish enough to kill to cover their own sins. There is a lot of discussion of “the woman’s right to choose,” and the question remains, what are they choosing? In light of the evidence above, they are choosing between life and death of another person. It is quite characteristic of sinful human nature to do what is wrong and then justify it. When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, they shifted the blame of their own sins upon each other (Genesis 3:12-13).

Though abortion is murder and a grave sin, all sin is forgiven by God in Jesus Christ. Jesus came to die for our sins and rose from the dead, and when we believe on Him, we can be guaranteed eternal life and forgiveness of sins.