WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT BIRTH CONTROL OR CONTRACEPTION?
(Message by Tanny Keng)
1. Bible Passages
a) Two passages in the Bible are sometimes interpreted as being opposed to birth control. First, after the creation, God said to the man and woman, "Be fruitful and multiply." Some people interpret that as meaning that intentionally preventing pregnancy would be wrong. But in its original context, this verse was part of a passage telling how God has given mankind stewardship over the world, and it was not a statement about birth control:
Genesis 1:28
And God blessed them; and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
b) The second passage has to do with the Old Testament law of levirate marriage (Deuteronomy 25:5-10). If a man died childless, his brother or nearest relative was expected to marry his widow and father a child to carry on the deceased's name and inherit his property. (These Old Testament laws do not apply to Christians.) Onan refused to fulfill that duty and used a birth control method known as coitus interruptus to prevent pregnancy:
Genesis 38:8-10
Then Judah said to Onan, "Lie with your brother's wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to produce offspring for your brother." But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he lay with his brother's wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from producing offspring for his brother. What he did was wicked in the LORD's sight; so he put him to death also.
c) Most experts say Onan was condemned for using his brother's widow for sexual pleasure while refusing to provide offspring for him, and that no general criticism of birth control was intended.
d) The Bible gives clear, direct guidance on many topics of morality, but not on birth control. Thus, any inferences from the Bible are opinions and not Biblical evidence.
The End ...
1. Bible Passagesa) Two passages in the Bible are sometimes interpreted as being opposed to birth control. First, after the creation, God said to the man and woman, "Be fruitful and multiply." Some people interpret that as meaning that intentionally preventing pregnancy would be wrong. But in its original context, this verse was part of a passage telling how God has given mankind stewardship over the world, and it was not a statement about birth control:
Genesis 1:28
And God blessed them; and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
b) The second passage has to do with the Old Testament law of levirate marriage (Deuteronomy 25:5-10). If a man died childless, his brother or nearest relative was expected to marry his widow and father a child to carry on the deceased's name and inherit his property. (These Old Testament laws do not apply to Christians.) Onan refused to fulfill that duty and used a birth control method known as coitus interruptus to prevent pregnancy:
Genesis 38:8-10
Then Judah said to Onan, "Lie with your brother's wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to produce offspring for your brother." But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he lay with his brother's wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from producing offspring for his brother. What he did was wicked in the LORD's sight; so he put him to death also.
c) Most experts say Onan was condemned for using his brother's widow for sexual pleasure while refusing to provide offspring for him, and that no general criticism of birth control was intended.
d) The Bible gives clear, direct guidance on many topics of morality, but not on birth control. Thus, any inferences from the Bible are opinions and not Biblical evidence.
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