Abortion and the Bible
by Ernest L. Martin, Ph.D., July 1991
Edited and expanded by David Sielaff, February 2005
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2. Does the Bible reckon abortion as murder?
No. This question is easy to answer. In no teaching of the Bible (no matter in what section one looks at the issue) is abortion considered as “illegal killing” of a human being. The first point that all should consider is the question: Is an unborn fetus considered by God as a bone fide human being? The answer is clearly “no” in all aspects of the word and this is shown in the text of the Holy Scripture. When the patriarch Job was complaining about his affliction and pain, he made the statements to God that he wished he had never been born. He said:
“Let the day perish in which I was born. ... Because it shut not up the doors of my mother's womb, nor hid sorrow from my eyes. Why died I not from the womb? Why did I not give up the spirit when I came out of the belly? ... Or as an untimely birth I had NOT been; as infants which never saw light.” *Job 3:3, 10-11, 16
That last verse, Job 13:16 tells us very much about how Job saw the matter of being a fetus. He saw it as “not having being,” or as we would say, “not having existence.” That is exactly what the text says and that is what any common sense person would accept as the teaching of Job.
But some might object and say that thought was simply Job’s opinion on the matter. No doubt this is true, but God himself stated that Job spoke of God and divine matters in a proper way:
“And it was so, that after the Lord had spoken these words unto Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, ‘My wrath is kindled against you, and against your two friends: for you have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job has.’” *Job 42:7
The simple truth is, when Job was still a fetus within the womb of his mother and had never seen the light of day, that fetus was reckoned as “NOT HAVING BEEN” — and that is how God and the Bible defines the status of the fetus....
3. What constitutes a human being in the biblical definition?
The classic recognition of what represents a human being is the biblical teaching concerning the creation of Adam. At first, the Book of Genesis simply states that Adam was formed to look like a human being and then God breathed into his body the breath of air (the spirit).
“And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” *Genesis 2:7
Until the breath of air entered the body of Adam, he was not a living soul. If anything, he was a dead soul, even if he was a living fetus. A soul only becomes a soul when the breath (the air) comes into the lungs.
There is a second point that shows this biblical teaching. In all legal matters dealing with the length of life of all human beings, it is their day of birth (or the year in which they first exited the womb) that gives them a legal existence. Thus, for a man to be able to go to war he had to be twenty years of age, or a priest to commence his official duties had to be thirty years of age. These ages for legal purposes were always reckoned from birth, not from conception. The reason for this is plain. No one could be sure in all cases just when conception took place, and even if one knew the exact moment of conception, for legal purposes one had to wait to be born to enter human society.
4. What is an unborn fetus considered to be a part of?
This is not difficult to determine through the various examples given within the Old and New Testaments. Just like the hair of the person is a part of the person, and the person has complete charge over his own hair (or the nails on the hands and feet are a part of the person), so a fetus growing in the womb of a mother-to-be is considered to be a part of the woman and is under her complete control as far as the legal aspect is concerned. This has to be the case because in the Book of Job, as pointed out before, the patriarch makes the definite statement that as long as he (or any other fetus) was in the womb of the mother, it is reckoned as “NOT HAVING BEEN” (Job 3:16).
The fetus is really an appendage of the woman and she has control over it (in God’s eyes) as she does her hair or fingernails. There is not a teaching in the Bible that would counter this position. Even a tumor (a growth on or in the body) is always considered to be a part of the woman’s body. For legal purposes, it could hardly be considered as a separate entity from the woman even though it may be a living appendage of the woman. A fetus (just like a tumor) is supplied by nourishment through the physical properties of the woman’s own body, but it is never reckoned to be another human being. The next point will show this quite clearly.
5. If a fetus dies or is aborted through an illegal struggle, is the death a “murder” in biblical teaching?
No. In no way is this the case. The husband of the woman who lost the fetus through a struggle can adjudge a monetary fine upon the one who causes the fetus to abort if the woman herself received no other mischief. The fine had to be approved by the elders within the Israelite community, but it was not considered a “murder” (which was a much more serious crime). However, if in the struggle the woman herself was wounded (or even died) then the judgment would be an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a life for a life. This law of reprisal using the eye for an eye principle only referred to the mother, not the unborn fetus. This is a legal teaching:
“If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief [damage] 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 [damage] follow, then you shall give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.” *Exodus 21:22-25
Summation
The legal teaching within the Bible shows that aborting a fetus in the womb of a mother is not murder because the fetus is not yet a human being. Righteous men and women are encouraged to demonstrate a deep respect for life and for the rights of all living things.
On the other hand, there is nothing in the Bible to show that the practice of abortion for birth control alone is proper, although the life of the mother is infinitely more important than a fetus.
The proper principles of living as shown in the Scripture would cause both men and women to give utter respect to the unborn, but fetuses are NOT human beings. They are considered by God as “NOT HAVING BEEN.”
Ernest L Martin, July 1991
Edited by David Sielaff, February 2005
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