What the Bible Says About Children

In a previous post, I wrote about God’s directions to husbands. They are to love their wives unconditionally and sacrificially, and they are to use their authority for the wellbeing of their families. In the next several posts, I want to write about what the Bible says to parents.

Before continuing on in Ephesians, I want to first address the Lord’s perspective on children. More and more today, children are seen as an inconvenience or nuisance, because they interfere with the parents’ self-interests. They keep us from our career goals, that big vacation, a hobby, etc., but the Lord sees it differently. Solomon wrote, “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.” (Psa 127:3-5)

As we can see, children are a gift, possession, or an inheritance from the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is His reward. We really don’t deserve anything from the Lord, yet He gives us a most precious gift in a child. I’ve known of several instances over the years in which someone was rebelling against the Lord, and when a child was on the way, all of a sudden, they were ready to get straightened out.

So, if children are a gift and reward from the Lord, how many should we want? The Lord likens the children born in one’s youth to arrows in the hand of a mighty warrior, and happy is the man who has a quiver full. If we were going into the front lines of a battle, how well armed would we want to be? Would we want just one bullet in our revolver like Barney Fife, or would we want to be a bit better prepared? Truthfully, we would want to have as much weaponry as we could reasonably carry and use without it being a hinderance to us. Well, as Christians, we are engaged in the hottest battle for the soul of mankind, and our children are a key weapon in our arsenal to defeat our archenemy, Satan. It is our job to train and shape them so that when they are released like an arrow from the bow, they will hit their intended target. They are to be bearers of the good news of the Gospel to the next generation. It is no mistake that the onslaught of evil on our society is first going after our children. It is a devilish attack that will succeed if we are not diligent as parents to train and prepare them in the ways of the Lord.

So, to answer the question, although there is nothing in the Bible that says how many children we should or should not have, it would seem from this passage and others like it that we should want as many children as we can reasonably have and care for. In the end, we will not be ashamed when we face the Enemy in the gate. We do not all have the same size quivers, but it is up to each couple to seek the Lord for His will for them. I will say however, if we really view children as a gift or an inheritance from the Lord, I believe many of our reasons for not having them will fall away. Which of us if a parent or grandparent offered us an early inheritance would not take it? How much more another human life given to us by God? Even in the case of medical problems, many parents who have prayerfully persevered through them have been blessed immensely. I know there are parents who cannot have any children or who are limited in how many they can have due to reasons beyond their control, and it is not my intention to condemn anyone for their choice of how many children to have. Again, my goal is to counteract the societal trend that kids are an inconvenience, and shift our focus back to what the Lord thinks about them. One other thing to consider is that, in a real practical sense, our children are who take care of us when we are old, and the more we have, the easier that burden will be for them. My grandfather was the oldest of 10 children, and his mother was well taken care of right up to her death.

There is one more passage I would like to take a look at here, and that is in the next Psalm. It states, “Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways. When you eat the labor of your hands, you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your table. Behold, thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the Lord. The Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life. Yes, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel!” (Psa 128)

Here, the Psalmist is describing a man who is blessed because he fears the Lord. He works hard, and enjoys the fruits of his labors. He is happy and satisfied because his family has food on their table. His wife is depicted as a fruitful vine in the heart of his house. This is so true; the woman is really the heart of the home. Her fruitfulness is in the bearing of children, and those children are like olive plants all around the table. This man lives a long-blessed life, and he lives to see his grandchildren. Sometime ago, my wife and I went to some friend’s house, and when we came in the door, all of their children were around the dining table. They were all happy and cheerful, and as their mom waited on us, several of them jumped up to help her. I instantly thought of this Psalm, and thought to myself, this guy is blessed, as I am sure he would say of me.

God is into family, folks! He is into marriage, and He is into children. If the Lord is into these things, then we should be too. We need to fear the Lord, work hard, and enjoy the fruits of our labor. We need to realize that the home and family is where the blessings of the Lord begin, and if we accept this, we will be truly blessed. All the other things in life fail in comparison. If you are reading this and do not have a family, the Lord has something better for you for the time. Press into Him, and find all that you need in Him. The Lord is truly good to us. In my next post, I hope to go back to Ephesians to write more about what the Bible has to say on the child/parent relationship.