Good Reading

What the Bible Says About Having Children

Can you imagine attending a wedding where the family of the bride prayed for her to have vast legions of children who would grow up to have dominion in the land for the glory of God? This was precisely the blessing offered by the sisters of Rebekah upon her marriage to Isaac. These sentiments beautifully harmonize with Scripture passage after Scripture passage which extol the virtue of trusting the Lord to control the womb and the necessity that believers be fruitful and multiply. For six-thousand years, believers viewed children as a blessing and reward of the Lord greatly to be desired. It was widely accepted that those who cut off their seed usually did so in violation of the express commands of God. Only in the last seventy-five years have child prevention and birth control become acceptable in the Church. Perhaps more than any other philosophical shift in the history of the Church, the modern anti-child philosophy has changed the way we view the role of fathers and mothers as well as the meaning of family life and multi-generational faithfulness. But genuine questions persist: Does the Bible address the question of child prevention? Is cutting off the godly seed ever an act of “good stewardship?” Are economic considerations a valid biblical ground for closing the womb? What about “natural” family planning? What about families that cannot have children? Is the widespread use by Christians of the “pill,” a child prevention device with abortifiacient potential, bringing judgment on the Church? Be Fruitful and Multiply answers these questions and makes the case that Christians should do more than just “trust God” for children, we should cry out to the Lord to bless the fruit of the womb.

By Nancy Campbell, Foreword by Douglas W. Phillips