The
Origin of Human Life
How
DID HUMAN LIFE BEGIN? How did the human race originate? The question has
kindled debate for centuries in the quest to solve the mystery. Many scientists
have promoted the hypothesis that life most likely started from molecules that
formed DNA-like material which evolved into mankind. They believe chemical
elements spontaneously combined to produce a spark of life. Could life occur
from a set of random circumstances where the mathematical probability of
happening is actually nil?[1] And
with such uncertainty emanating from the scientific hierarchy of our society,
what should you believe?
The
complexity and harmony of nature, the incredible precision and sophistication
of the human mind and body demand a Creator and Designer. Design and order
reveal a first cause for life, an Intelligence and Will behind the phenomenal
process of the creation of all forms of biological life.
For since the creation of the world
His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been
clearly seen, being understood through what has been made. (Rom.
1:20a)[2]
The
magnificence of creation clearly points to the unlimited power and awesome attributes
of God as the Designer.
The
Bible unequivocally states that God is the One who created not only “the
heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1) but all life on earth (Gen. 1:11-12, 20-31).
Human life is the pinnacle of God’s creation.
Then God said, “Let Us make man in
Our image according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea
and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and
over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
(Gen. 1:26)
But
controversy stirs around God’s ultimate creation. God created the first man and
woman, perfectly formed, without physical flaw or sin, placed them in ideal
environment, and commanded them to “be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1:27-28).
Mankind was mandated to reproduce himself. How was human life to be reproduced?
Did God provide the initial spark of life and then entrust the continuation of
that life to mankind? Or, does God still breathe the “breath of life” (Gen.
2:7) into every human being? If so, when does human life begin?
Orthodox
Christian theology offers two schools of thought explaining the creation of
human life subsequent to the original creation of Adam and the woman:[3]
Traducianism and Creationism.
Traducianism holds that the soul, the immaterial part
of mankind, as well as the human body originate mediately by propagation,
Creationism maintains that a new human soul is created by God immediately at
conception, during pregnancy, or at the birth of every individual.[4]
Both schools have precedence and support throughout Church history. But which
position more closely reflects the biblical explanation of the origin of human
life?
THE CREATION OF THE FIRST HUMAN LIFE
THE ACTIVITY OF CREATION
Genesis
1—2 contain four Hebrew verbs that depict God’s activity of creating the
original human life.
1. Barah means “to create,” to make
something “from nothing,” ex nihilo
in Latin. Barah is found in three
verses of Genesis 1. Each usage reflects an essential creative act by God who
generated inorganic matter from no previously existing material (Gen. 1:1), and
provided life to animals (Gen. 1:21) and humans (Gen. 1:27) where no life
formerly existed.
And God created [barah] man in His own
image, in the image of God He created [barah] him; male and female He created
[barah] them. (Gen. 1:27)
2.
Although Adam’s human life was created from nothing, his body was yatsar, “formed” from dust, an already
existing material. This second verb, found in Genesis 2:7, refers to the divine
formation of the male body as a biologically living organism.
Then the Lord God formed [yatsar] man of
dust from the ground [biological life]. (Gen. 2:7a)
Biological
life exists in all cells of the body and provides the functions necessary to
sustain living material. Biological life is material and does not include a
human soul, which is immaterial. Therefore, biological life by itself is not
human life. By comparison barah describes the life of humanity as a complete
and unique creation which never before existed, “created . . . in the image of
God.”
3. Asah, used in Genesis 1:26, means to
“make” or manufacture something after a pattern.
Then God said, “Let Us make [asah] man in
Our image according to Our likeness.” (Gen. 1:26a)
The
pattern God followed in making man was Himself, “in our image,” be tselem, and “likeness.” What is this
image? In Hebrew usage today image refers to a spiritual rather than a bodily
facsimile. The meaning of the ancient text of verse 26 is similar if not
identical to modern usage.[5] Be tselem
conveys not a physical, visible structure but a “shadow image.” Mankind is not
created as a duplication of God, a blasphemous thought, but in His shadow image.
Shadow image describes something invisible but real. God has bestowed on human
beings an immaterial, invisible essence. We are endowed with certain rational,
moral, and relational capacities, which God empowers with the spark of life. As
the image of God, human beings are the only creatures who uniquely reflect God.
God has essence which is real but invisible. As the shadow image of God our
essence is also real but invisible. And, like God, that essence can be defined
only by its characteristics. These characteristics include self-consciousness,
mentality, volition, conscience, and emotion.[6]
From a theological viewpoint the soul is the real person, existing within a
biologically living body. The human soul is perfect in its creation, but now
linked to the sin nature, it functions imperfectly.[7]
Although this invisible essence is inferior to God’s perfect essence, the soul
is the element that establishes man’s superiority over creatures.
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Every individual has an identical essence of soul, but
each person has a different personality reflecting the combination of the
facets in the soul. Let me explain. If emotion supersedes and overshadows
mentality and conscience, an unstable, maladjusted personality can emerge. If
mentality and conscience balance, guide, and direct the emotional life, a
stable and well-adjusted personality can develop. Heredity and environment also
influence the various aspects of personality, but volition ultimately determines
the priority of the facets of the soul.
Asah in Genesis 1:26 refers to the
particular creation of soul life in human beings. Since “make,” asah, and “create,” barah, are both connected with the phrase “in Our image [image of
God]” in verses 26-27, then the verbs in both verses must refer to the creation
of soul life with a personality. The human soul was “created,” barah, from nothing but was also “made,”
asah, after a pattern, which was “the
image of God.” Asah and barah,
therefore, mark the creation of soul life, a life unique to mankind. Of all
God’s creatures no other is said to be made in His image.
4. In
contrast to yatsar, used to describe
the creation of biological life in the male (Gen. 2:7), a fourth verb banah, “to build,” depicts the, divine
construction of the female body.
And the Lord God fashioned [banah] into a
woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man.
(Gen. 2:22)
As
with the formation of the male body, the construction of the female body
included conveying biological life. This biological life and soul life were
given simultaneously, first to Adam and later to the woman. These four Hebrew
verbs are used to designate two of three categories of life.
THE
PATTERN OF CREATION
The
pattern of initial creation is clearly seen in Genesis 2:7.
Then the Lord God formed [yatsar]
man of dust from the-ground [biological life], and breathed [naphach]
into his nostrils the breath of life [neshamah hayyah, soul life]; and
man became a living being {nephesh hayyah, literally a soul having life, i.e.
human life]. (Gen. 2:7, emphasis added)
The
verb naphach, translated “breathed
into,” resulting in neshamah hayyah,
“the breath of life,” paints a verbal picture of incorporeal soul life bestowed
directly to a human being by God. Neshamah
refers to the breath of God. God Himself breathed into the first man neshamah — a spark of His own life (Isa.
42:5; John 1:3; Col. 1:16). This is the spark that generates human life. Note
the striking contrast between the tangible flesh, blood, and bone of biological
life and the intangible essence of soul life. Until God exhaled His breath into
the first human body, which was “formed” biologically alive, man could not be
“a living soul.” This is true for every human being born throughout history.
Therefore,
the joining of soul life, depicted by the verbs barah and asah, with
biological life, depicted by the verbs yatsar
and banah, formed a third category,
human life, nephesh hayyah (Gen.
2:7), in the first man and woman.
THE
CATEGORIES OF LIFE
CREATION
BEFORE THE FALL
God’s
initial creation of mankind reveals three categories of life inherent in every
human being. First, God created biological life from the dust of the ground,
the chemicals of the soil. Second, He created soul life out of nothing and
imparted that life to biological life. Third, He combined biological life with
soul life to create human life.
Genesis
2:7 narrates a miraculous chain of events. The use in the Hebrew of the waw consecutive reveals that each
creative act of God succeeds His previous act.[8]
Therefore, God’s remarkable creations took place in a logical order:
1.
The formation of biological life from dust;
2.
The imparting of soul life to biological life;
3.
The creation of human life from the joining of soul life to biological life.
God established this same sequence for Adam’s progeny, the human race.
CREATION
AFTER THE FALL
Biological
life and soul life were given directly and simultaneously first to Adam and then
to the woman. This would never be repeated again. God created biological life
immediately only twice in history. Since human life would be perpetuated after
the Fall (Gen. 3:16) how would mankind be reproduced in human history? After
Adam, biological life would be conceived as a result of copulation and then
undergo development in the uterus. Soul life would always be created by God and
imparted immediately to biological
life at the moment of birth. Differentiating between the origins of biological
life and soul life is critical for discerning how human life is perpetuated
after the fall of Adam and the woman.
The
development of biological life in the womb is entirely dependent on the mother.
Soul life is dependent entirely on God. The original breath of life — the
moment Adam became a human being — set the pattern for the first dramatic
instant of human life for all humanity. A newborn baby draws its first breath
when God imparts His divine breath into the infant’s nostrils. This is soul
life created and combined with the biological life of the newly emerged child.
Why cannot human life begin another way?
Because
of Adam’s original sin and the subsequent introduction of the sin nature after
the Fall, biological life and soul life can no longer begin simultaneously.
Therefore, just as through one man
[Adam] sin [the sin nature] entered into the world, and [spiritual] death
through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.
(Rom. 5:12)
All
mankind was present in a seminal way when Adam sinned by an act of his own
volition.[9]
Because of his sin Adam acquired a corrupted nature. The resulting sin nature
was passed down through the sperm to Adam’s progeny, the human race. Therefore,
biological life transmits the sin nature. The guilt or condemnation due Adam’s
sin is imputed to each of us by God at physical birth because it is our own
sin.[10] God
cannot create imperfection without compromising the perfection of His own
character. Therefore, He creates our soul immediately at birth apart from the
stain of the sin nature inherent in biological life. He never condones or
implicates Himself in the sin of Adam, which would make Him the author of sin,
a blasphemous thought.[11]
GOD
CONTINUES TO CREATE HUMAN LIFE
Certain
passages of Scripture declare the continuation of God’s direct role in creating
human life after the Fall. These passages speak literally of immediate, not mediate, creation by God.
Stop regarding man, whose breath of
life [neshamah hayyah] is in his nostrils. (Isa. 2:22a)
Isaiah
uses the words “breath of life” and “nostrils” to describe soul life in
humanity after the Fall. This is the same description used for the creation of
Adam’s soul life in Genesis 2:7. Mankind is forever dependent upon God for soul
life. That God creates this soul life immediately becomes apparent from another
verse in Isaiah.
For I
will not contend forever [with Israel], neither will I always be angry; for the
spirit [ruach, human life] would grow
faint before Me, and the breath [neshamah,
spark of life, soul life] of those whom I have made {asah}. (Isa. 57:16)
“Spirit,”
ruach in the Hebrew, refers in this
context to human life, which God generated through breathing neshamah into the nostrils of Adam, and
likewise imparts to each person (v. 16b). What God breathes into the nostrils
is soul life. The words neshamah,
used for the spark of soul life in Genesis 2:7, and asah, the verb for making soul life in Genesis 1:26, are both featured
in Isaiah 57:16b. This verse reminds us that God creates soul life, and hence,
human life immediately, not only for Adam but for all humanity.
Numerous
other passages of Old Testament Scripture confirm God as the continuing Creator
of human life. After the Fall He did not delegate the prerogative of
reproducing human life to mankind. The Book of Job affirms that God continues
to establish human life. During overwhelming suffering Job unquestionably
recognizes God’s indispensable role. After Job lost his wealth and saw his
servants and children slain, he states:
“Naked I came [out] from my mother’s
womb [birth], and naked I shall return there. The Lord gave [human life and
prosperity] and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
(Job 1:21)
At
the time of God’s choosing, soul life and biological life separate and
physical-death results. 2 The destiny of these two categories of human life at
physical death is the subject of another passage.
Then the dust [biological life] will return
to the earth as it was, and the breath [soul life] will return to God who gave
it. (Eccl. 12:7)
When
the soul departs from the body, physical death occurs. At that time biological
life ends and returns to dust. “Dust” is the same Hebrew word, aphar, used to describe the substance
from which biological life was formed in Genesis 2:7. Biological life is
organic and genetic. Biological life does not return to God but to the earth
from whence it came. But soul life, ruach,
“breath,” given by God, returns to Him at physical death for eternal
disposition.[12] Solomon,
the human author of Ecclesiastes, recognized that God gave him soul life
directly, and hence, human life. What God gave to Solomon, He also gives to
every human being. “The breath will return to God who gave it” concisely
describes the origin and destiny of soul life after the Fall.
Isaiah
further substantiates the Old Testament assurance of God’s immediate formation
of soul life.
Thus says God the Lord, who created
the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and its offspring,
who gives breath [neshamah, spark of life, soul life] to the people on it, and
spirit [ruach, human life] to those who walk in it. (Isa.
42:5)
Neshamah,
the word for “spark of life,” refers not only to original creation but also to
the imparting of soul life after the Fall.
Note
the first part of verse 5 describes God’s past activity of creation; the verbs
are in the past tense. In contrast the last verb “gives” is in the present
tense. From Adam through the time Isaiah wrote until the end of human history
God sovereignly bestows His “breath,” the spark of life, to anyone He so
chooses as they emerge from the womb.
When
God gave soul life to Adam, He set the pattern for imparting all human life
subsequent to the Garden. Another passage from the Book of Job verifies God’s
immediate provision of soul life.
The
Spirit of God has made [asah] me [a
human being], and the breath [neshamah,
soul life] of [from] the Almighty gives me [chayyah,
human] life. (Job 33:4)
The
second phrase of Job 33:4 elaborates on the first phrase. God imparts human
life to every human being by breathing into each one the “breath” of soul life.
These
words are spoken to Job by Elihu, a well-meaning but misguided friend. Elihu,
an impetuous and arrogant young aristocrat (Job 32:1-5), is angry over the
reprimands given by Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar to Job during his prolonged
suffering. These three friends, who are older and supposedly wiser, wrongly
assume Job sinned against God and now suffers from God’s discipline. Job
correctly denies this cause for his suffering, maintaining his innocence.
Although Elihu also believes that the unrighteousness of Job is the cause of
his disaster, he does not think the three friends accurately stated their case
against Job.
Elihu
then makes his case against Job (chapter 33). Much of what he says is not
divine viewpoint.[13] His
false wisdom actually becomes additional testing for Job. But in presenting his
credentials as a worthy counselor in the preamble to the speech (v. 4), Elihu
expresses the correct viewpoint concerning the impartation of soul life. Elihu
reflects this understanding of human Life as a way to gain instant credibility
in presenting his flawed case against Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. Despite
the arrogance and error that Elihu expresses in the body of his speech, his
premise is based on certain divine truths. The “breath of God” is life, the
source of human life. Even after the Fall, God, not procreation, creates soul
life and hence, human life.
HISTORICAL
VIEWS OF THE SOUL
Human
life cannot exist on earth without the union of body and soul. The mystery of
the formation and function of the body, the material part of mankind, continues
to be unlocked through scientific and medical study. But the soul, the
invisible, immaterial part, cannot be examined through scientific observation.
The origin, structure, and activity of the soul traditionally fall to the realm
of theology or philosophy. Orthodox Christian theology has viewed the origin of
the soul, and hence, human origin from two positions: Traducianism and
Creationism. Both views are obtained from biblical interpretation, but neither
view adequately explains the Bible’s position.
TRADUCIANISM
Traducianism
derives from the Latin word traducere,
meaning “to transfer,” and refers to the propagation of the soul by human
generation. Traducianism is the view that was held by Tertullian (A.D.
155-220),[14] by
the Eastern Orthodox Church, by many Lutherans, and by two modern theologians,
William Shedd (Reformed) and Augustus Strong (Baptist).[15]
Traducianism
denies the creation of the soul directly or immediately by God after the Fall.
Traducianists believe that both the material, mortal body and the immaterial,
immortal soul are the genetic products of procreation. Human life is viewed as
beginning in the womb at conception. If the soul and body are propagated
through the sperm of the male and the egg of the female, this would imply that
the soul and the body are both material and mortal. But anything material is
biological life, while soul life is immaterial, immortal and invisible — the
“breath of God.” The tenets of Traducianism make no clear distinction between
the origin of material and mortal, and the origin of immaterial and immortal.
CREATIONISM
Creationists
contend that the soul of every human being is immediately created by God and joined with the mediately formed, material part of the human being. Creationists
differ from Traducianists and with each other as to the time of ensoulment.
Some Creationists believe ensoulment occurs at conception, others believe at
sometime during the nine months of gestation, and still others believe
ensoulment occurs at birth. The Creationist view was held by Jerome (A.D. 347-419),
a distinguished early expositor of the Scriptures, and Thomas Aquinas (A.D.
1225-1274).[16]
Among Protestants, most Reformed theologians, including John Calvin, Louis
Berkhof, and Charles Hodge (Presbyterian), were Creationists.
Creationism
distinguishes between the origin of man’s soul and the origin of his body —
between soul life and biological life. The Bible supports these distinctions in
passages already cited (Eccl. 12:7; Isa. 42:5; 57:16b).[17]
Thus declares the Lord who stretches
out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit [ruach,
human life] of man within him [reference to the soul as opposed to the
outward material part]. (Zech. 12:16, emphasis added)
The
key to Creationism: it is impossible for a human being to generate the soul.
However, the Creationist view also has opposition. If God imputes soul life immediately, when does ensoulment take
place? If God originates the soul directly, how do we explain inherited mental
and behavioral characteristics similar to those of our parents? If God
continues to create each soul for depraved humanity after the Fall, would not
that make God the author of sin — an impossible violation of His character? And
further, if God creates a soul untainted, then puts that soul directly into a
corrupt body, would not this action make Him indirectly the author of sin?
These are major objections to the Creationist point of view which must be
clarified.
CREATIONISM
CLARIFIED
Focusing
on the differences between biological life and soul life provides answers to
these objections to Creationism. Biological life comes from our parents at
conception and soul life originates from God at birth. Once conceived,
biological life continues in two stages:
1.
The gestational stage during which time the fertilized egg becomes a
blastocyst, then an embryo, and finally a fetus;
2.
The human life stage from physical birth to physical death.
Before
the second stage there is no soul life, and consequently in theological terms,
no human life from conception. Not until the fetus emerges from the womb does
God impart soul life.
THE
ZYGOTE PRINCIPLE.[18]
At
the moment of conception a mature female egg or ovum is fertilized by a male
sperm.
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fertilized egg is called a zygote. The zygote later
splits or separates. Traducianists erroneously believe that this one fertilized
cell begins human life. In terms of molecular biology, it would be inaccurate
to maintain that the zygote possesses all the informing molecules (genetic
information) for the development of an embryo and subsequent human development.
At most, the zygote possesses molecules that have the potential to acquire
informing capacity.[19] A
zygote by itself cannot determine that a person will develop.[20]
After
conception the zygote begins to split into two cells, then into four, then into
eight, until at a certain point it becomes a cell mass or morula, capable of
undergoing differentiation. The morula then separates into specialized cells
some of which form the placenta, others the fetal membranes, and still others
become the embryo. Only the embryo is a potential human being; the placenta and
membrane are not.[21]
Thus, the zygote can give rise to biological entities, such as the placenta or
the membranes, that is not a person.[22] If
the zygote were ensouled human life at conception, it would produce only an
embryo that possesses human life. But the zygote does not produce an embryo
only. Based on the biological necessities of development, the placenta and
membranes, as well as the embryo, always originate from the same zygote after
the fertilized egg divides into a morula.
The
zygote depends heavily upon genetic information from the mother to form the
embryo. If the zygote were independent of the mother as the informing (genetic)
source, then the zygote possesses only enough information to form human tissue
(biological life) but not enough to become an individual human being.[23] The
zygote is not yet a union of the immortal soul and the corporeal matter that
constitute a human being. The zygote is not human life, and conception is not
the beginning of human life, only the beginning of biological life.
Some Creationists might argue that God
imparts soul life to the embryo when it is first formed from the specialized
cells. However, Scriptures we will examine refute this idea. Human soul life
does not begin during pregnancy. That which develops in the womb is
mother-dependent and is biological life only. Human soul life begins when the
baby is separated from the mother. In the womb the embryo and fetus are
potential human life biologically alive, genetically informed, but without soul
life and dependent on the mother.
Whereas
soul life is provided by God at the moment of physical birth and is eternal,
biological life begins in the womb and terminates at the point of physical
death. At physical death soul life and biological life again separate (Eccl.
12:7). The soul as the real but invisible creation of God is immortal, while
biological life is mortal and undergoes change and disintegration at physical
death. This is the backdrop for Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthians:
Prefer rather to be absent from the body and
to be at home with the Lord. (2 Cor. 5:8b)
Therefore,
biological life and soul life must be considered as being formed separately,
uniting at physical birth, and again separating at physical death.
FORMAT
SOUL.
If
God immediately creates the soul of
every human being at birth, then how can inherited mental and behavioral traits
be explained? The concept of a format for the soul answers this question. As
biological life develops within the mother’s womb, there develops within the
brain of the fetus a biological home for the soul called the format soul. This
developing biological home, which awaits the imparted, immaterial soul,
consists of a genetic format inherited through the transmission of genes
obtained from both parents. Not only are size, gender, and other physical
characteristics determined as biological life develops, but also every fetus
contains the potential to acquire similar mental and personal traits from the
combination of genes. Remember, the soul is a separate immaterial entity and,
although not part of the material brain, manifests itself through the
biological faculties of the brain. The format soul is biological life, the
material qualities of the developing brain. Following birth, the material brain
becomes the vehicle through which the immaterial soul expresses itself. The
Hebrew word nephesh, often translated
“soul” or “life,” refers to the soul’s fully formed, immaterial essence which
is provided by God at the moment the spark of life is given. The breath of life
transforms the fetus and its format soul into “a living soul” (Gen. 2:7). The
format soul becomes the home for the impartation of soul life. The spark of
life ignites the format soul, and only upon ignition at the moment of birth
does the fetus become a living human being. The format soul explains how we
inherit mental and behavioral traits from our parents.
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GOD IS NOT THE AUTHOR OF SIN.
The
corrupted nature of man (sin nature) is passed genetically through biological
life and resides in the cell structure of the human body. That is why this
inherent corrupter of humanity is called the “flesh” (Rom. 7:7-18; 8:3-5), the
“body of sin” (Rom. 6:6), and the “sin” that “reigns in your mortal body” (Rom.
6:12). God’s perfect character excludes any contact or compromise with sin.[24] Therefore,
it is correct to think of biological life as formed by physical laws and not
created directly by God.
During
the formation of biological life, which means the formation of the human body
and format soul in the womb, there is no active sin nature (Ps. 58:3).25 The
Bible does not teach that there are two operating sin natures in a pregnant
woman. If the fetus were a human being, Traducianists would be forced to admit
that a pregnant woman and the fetus in her womb both have active sin natures.
But, until birth the sin nature remains dormant in the fetus. The sin nature
becomes active only when soul life and biological life are united. Once united
the sentence of spiritual death is pronounced to avoid any compromise with the
holiness of God.
At birth
our activated sin nature receives the imputation of Adam’s original sin. Until
the sin nature becomes active, there is no reason for the imputation of Adam’s
sin (Rom. 5:12-21). Our sin nature is the home for Adam’s sin because there is
an affinity between the two — between Adam’s act of disobedience and the
imperfection caused by his disobedience.
As a
result of the imputation of Adam’s original sin we are born physically alive
but spiritually dead.[25] The
justice of God imputes spiritual death only where human life exists — at birth.
God’s imputation of Adam’s condemnation to us and His
simultaneous creation of our soul life make Him responsible for the spark of
human life, but not for the sin Adam committed. The cause of our imperfection
is not God but our position of spiritual death in Adam. There can be no
compromise to the holiness of God.
God
creates our soul without depravity and imparts soul life to the biological
format soul that emerges from the womb. At the same time, He imputes the guilt
of Adam’s original sin to every newly born human being. God’s perfect justice
and righteousness, therefore, are not compromised. Adam was the one who sinned
and we with him because we were seminally in Adam. God’s provision of mentality
and volition to Adam’s progeny does not make God responsible for our depravity
any more than it makes Him responsible for Adam’s original disobedience.
Therefore, God is not the perpetrator or perpetuator of sin, even indirectly.
The originator of sin and depravity has always been Adam’s volition.
God
perpetuates human life as the means to resolve the angelic conflict.[26]
Mankind was created to duplicate the conditions of that prehistoric revolt.26
Volition links man’s creation to resolve the angelic conflict with the
imputation of Adam’s sin to the sin nature at birth. Just as Satan fell through
an act of his volition, likewise Adam fell and with him the human race. The
perpetuation of the sin nature must always be attributed to the volition of
Adam. He is responsible for the imputation of sin to the human race by his
choice to disobey God. God graciously grants human life; Adam corrupts human
life with spiritual death.
God
in His grace provides a means for humanity to escape spiritual death and
ultimately the depravity of our position in Adam. Jesus Christ as our
substitute died on the cross for all our sins. One simple act of faith in Him
(Eph. 2:8-9) gives not only spiritual life, but also a way to defeat the sin
problem.
But God demonstrates His own love
toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died [as a substitute] for
us. (Rom. 5:8)
This
clarifies the Creationist view. Ensoulment takes place at birth. Human beings
inherit mental and behavioral traits from their parents through the genetically
acquired format for the soul. Finally, Adam’s original sin, not God’s creation
and impartation of the soul to every newly born child, is the cause for sin in
the human race.
THE
BOUNDARIES OF HUMAN LIFE
Human
life exists from the moment the fetus emerges from the womb, when God
“breathes” soul life into the newly born child, and continues until soul life
and biological life separate at physical
death. The Bible emphasizes physical birth as the
beginning of human life.
A time to give birth, and a time to die [birth and physical death understood as
the limits for human life]. (Eccl. 3:2a, emphasis added)
For a child will be born to us [the humanity of Jesus
Christ in hypostatic union begins at the moment of birth],[27] a son will be given to us; and the government
will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. (Isa. 9:6, emphasis
added)
Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen
anyone greater than John the Baptist. (Matt. 11:11a, emphasis
added)
And the angel said to them, “Do not
be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for
all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ
the Lord. (Luke 2:10-11, emphasis added)
The
angels rejoiced at the birth of Jesus, not at His conception (Luke 2:7-14). The
main premise of all these passages establishes birth, not conception, as the opening
moment of human life. A plethora of examples in the Old Testament Book of Job
also verify this fact. Job believes that human life commences at birth.
Man, who is born of woman, is short-lived
[birth and living equated] and full of turmoil. (Job 14:1)
What is man, that he should be pure,
or he who is born of woman, that he should be righteous [the integrity of man
assigned after birth]? (Job 15:14)
You know, for you were born then
[mentality, a part of the soul, is not available until birth], and the number
of your days is great! (Job 38:21)
Besides
these direct statements and Job 1:21, Job suggests the same belief in chapter
3.
Why did I not die at birth [separated from
the womb], come forth from the womb and expire? (Job 3:11)
In a
lament over his pitiful condition Job desires death. Rather than endure such
misery he wishes he had perished shortly after emerging from his mother’s womb.
Notice, Job knows he cannot die unless he has first been born, and he cannot be
born until he is separated from the womb. Job understands the physical death
described in Ecclesiastes 12:7 cannot occur until human life is given at birth.
Job bases his lamentation on the premise that human life exists exclusively
outside the womb. Another
passage found in Job 10 clearly expresses the boundaries of human life on
earth.
Why then hast Thou brought me out of
[outside] the womb [why have I been born]? Would that I had died and no eye had
seen me! I should have been as though I had not been [human existence], carried
from [out of] womb [birth] to tomb [physical death].
(Job 10:18-19)
As in
Job 3:11, Job declares his wish to have died at birth; never to have been given
human life. Had Job died at birth, moments after receiving the breath of life,
it would have been “as though” he had never existed. Had Job been transported
directly after separation “from womb to tomb,” no one would have ever laid eyes
on him. In other words, he would not now be enduring the continuing agony of
his circumstance.
Chapter
10 reveals Job wallowing in monumental self-pity. In a blasphemous poetic
requiem, Job blames the Lord for his trouble. The first two verses clearly
reveal that Job regards his current plight with unrestrained bitterness. While
in an overemotional, irrational state, he fails to properly distinguish between
the mediate and immediate creation of God. He falsely equates biological life
with human life, demonstrating how quickly bitterness
can destroy understanding of and dependence on the principles of Bible doctrine.
Thy hands fashioned and made me
altogether, and wouldst Thou destroy me? Remember now, that Thou hast made me
[created like Adam immediately, biological life and soul life] as clay; and
wouldst Thou turn me into dust again [death]? (Job
10:8-9)
Clothe me with skin and flesh, and knit me
together with bones and sinews {immediate biological life]? Thou hast granted
me [human] life and lovingkindness. (Job 10:11-12a)
Job
correctly identifies his human life as being immediately bestowed by God, “Thou
hast granted me [human] life.” He incorrectly perceives his biological life as
an immediate creation of God, “Thou hast made me as clay . . . and knit me
together with bones and sinews.”
In
bitterness Job perceives God as the antagonist, and becomes irresponsible in
portraying God’s character (vs. 13-17). In his distress Job does not make
precise distinctions between the origin of the different categories of life.
The direct bestowal of biological life is erroneously attributed to God.
Despite
Job’s temporary distraction and confusion he still accurately portrays human
life as not beginning until birth (vs. 18-19). Although Job temporarily blurs
the distinction between the origins of soul life and biological life, he
correctly states in chapters 1 and 3 that the parameters of human life are from
birth to death, not conception to death.
THE
HEBREW PREPOSITION MIN
JOB’S
USAGE.
Three of the above passages from the Book of Job contain the Hebrew preposition
min, “from,” followed by the noun beten, “womb.” In fact, the Hebrew
combines these two words to form one word, mibeten,
translated “from the womb.”
Naked I came from my mother’s womb.
(Job 1:21a, emphasis added)
Come forth from the womb and expire? (Job 3:11b emphasis added)
Carried from
womb to tomb. (Job 10:19b, emphasis added)
The
preposition min becomes
extraordinarily explicit when used with verbs that express or imply separation
or removal. In connection with these verbs the meaning of min is “away from,” “separated from,” or “out from.”[28]
Also of significance, the basic and primary lexical meaning of min is
separation.[29]
Therefore, mibeten, used with the
verbs “come” (Job 1:21), “come forth” (Job 3:11), and “carried” (Job 10:19),
confirm that Job specifically employs “from the womb” to mean separated from
the womb, which is birth.
DAVID’S
USAGE. In
the Psalms mibeten indicates this
same understanding of life as beginning at birth. Yet Thou art He who didst
bring me forth from [out of] the womb [mibeten].
Thou didst make me trust when upon my mother’s breasts. Upon Thee I was cast
[out] from birth [the womb]; Thou hast been my God [apart] from my mother’s
womb [mibeten]. (Ps. 22:9-10) Notice
that the first mibeten in verse 9
follows the verb of separation, “bring forth.” The second mibeten in verse 10 does not follow a verb of separation but is
certainly parallel in meaning to the mibeten
of verse 9. The second mibeten is an
example of the general use of min for
separation without being preceded by a verb of separation.
Psalm
22 is an extremely important Messianic Psalm. The prophetic topic concerns the
crucifixion of the Messiah. Although David is describing himself in the
passage, he is also prophesying the thoughts and words of his greater Son,
Jesus Christ (Ps. 22:1; cf., Matt 27:46; Mark 15:34)[30]
Verses 9-10 speak of the “birth” of Christ — His removal from the womb of His
mother. Notice that Jesus is not described as dependent upon God in the womb,
only outside of the womb. Jesus Christ could not be God-dependent inside the
womb because He was not a human being until God the Father imparted soul life
to His biological life outside of the womb. Neither does David make reference
to “trust” inside the womb because there is no human life in the womb.
The wicked are estranged [out] from
the womb; these who speak lies go astray from birth [literally, from the womb
[mibeten]. (Ps. 58:3)
“Estranged”
and “go astray” are both verbs of separation connected with the preposition
min. The prepositional phrase that follows each verb conveys removal “from the
womb.” This verse indicates there can be no wickedness until a person is
separated from the womb. At the moment of birth when soul life is imparted, the
sin nature is also activated. Adam’s original sin is imputed to the genetically
formed sin nature. The sin nature, which is passed on through biological life,
is not operational until birth. No one can be “wicked” or “speak lies” until
they are born. The axiom upon which Psalm 58:3 is built: One becomes a human
being after birth when “the wicked” acquire a soul and an activated sin nature.[31]
ISAIAH’S
USAGE.
Isaiah contains several passages in which mibeten
appears along with the verb yatsar,
“to form” or “to create.” Remember, yatsar
in Genesis 2:7 referred to the immediate divine formation of Adam’s biological
life. Yatsar often refers to
immediate creation by God (Isa. 45:18; 64:8; Jer. 33:2; Ps. 95:5; Amos 4:13. But
after Genesis 2 yatsar no longer
points to His immediate creation of biological life. Why? Because after the
Fall biological life is formed mediately through procreation. Thus, when yatsar is used with mibeten in the following verses, it describes the immediate
creation of human life by God after the fetus separates from the womb.
Thus says the Lord who made you and
formed [yatsar, created] you [your human life] from [after leaving] the womb
[mibeten], who will help you, “Do not fear, 0 Jacob My servant; and you
Jeshurun whom I have chosen.” (Isa. 44:2)
Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer,
and the one who formed [yatsar, created] you [human life] from [after leaving]
the womb [mibeten], “I, the Lord, am the maker of all things, stretching out
the heavens by Myself, and spreading out the earth all alone.”
(Isa. 44:24)
The
temporal uses of mibeten in the
excerpts above mark the point of physical birth, after which time human life
continues “the anterior limit of a continuous period.”[32] Min used temporally like this can be
translated “since” or “after.” By using this grammatical construction Isaiah
creates a dramatic image in his poetry. He depicts birth, which occurs after separation “from the womb,” as the
beginning of human life. Birth is the starting point after which life
continues. By analogy Isaiah portrays birth as the beginning point of the race
and the spiritual life of-Israel, the commencement of the Lord’s continuing
commitment to Israel in history. Isaiah uses the birth of one man, Jacob, to
personify the physical birth and spiritual birth of the entire race, the nation
of Israel (Isa. 44:1-2; 49:5). The Jewish race began with the spiritual birth
of Abraham and was perpetuated racially through the physical birth of his son,
Isaac, and grandson, Jacob. Isaiah 44:2 and 24 represent the beginning of the
new race as if it were the birth of one person. Jacob was “formed” as the
servant of God after leaving the womb, the “Jeshurun whom I have chosen.” Just
as with Jacob the existence of the Jewish race began after leaving “the womb.”
Old
Testament Jews were not just a race of people born physically with the genes of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. If they expressed the faith of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, who believed in the Lord, they could also be regenerated or “born
again.”[33] The
second birth or spiritual birth marked the beginning of the new racial species,
the true Jew.[34]
Through regeneration the Jew received the same spiritual life as Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob. This is why Jesus Christ is said to be their God (Ex. 3:6,
15-16; 4:5; cf., Matt. 22:32; Mark 12:26; Luke 20:37; Acts 7:32). True Jews
were not only born physically alive as a race of people but were also reborn
spiritually alive through faith in the Lord as the chosen people of God.
The
physical birth and spiritual birth of the nation Israel represent a point of
time after which (min) the physical
life and spiritual life of Israel continues. Isaiah’s message accepts birth as
the beginning of human life. But Isaiah’s analogy would not be effective if
birth as the beginning of human life was not accepted as true by those who
heard his message.
And now says the Lord, who formed
[yatsar, created] Me [human life, the humanity of Jesus Christ] from [after
leaving] the womb [mibeten] to be His Servant, to bring Jacob back to Him, in
order that Israel might be gathered to Him. (Isa. 49:5a)
Isaiah
49:5, another temporal use of mibeten,
portrays the birth of the One who will gather Israel and will “bring Jacob
[Israel] back to Him.” From the time of His birth this child was destined to be
the “Servant” of God for the redemption of Israel.
Listen to Me, 0 islands [Greeks],
and pay attention, you peoples from afar [Gentiles]. The Lord called Me from
[after leaving] the womb [mibeten], [out] from the body of My mother He named
Me. (Isa. 49:1)
The
One who is “called” and “named” in verse 1 is the Messiah, Jesus Christ,
identified as the Servant in verse 5. He was born not only to redeem Israel but
also the Gentiles. As eternal God He became true humanity at the time He was
separated from the womb (not before), so that the critical mission of
redemption could be accomplished for Jew and Gentile alike.[35]
Therefore,
the imagery of separation from the womb in Isaiah’s poetry using the
preposition min determines the
terminus a quo of redemption — the beginning point of the redeeming work of the
Messiah, Jesus Christ, for all humanity. Isaiah’s effective communication of
when and how this redemptive process starts depended on his readers’
understanding of birth as the beginning of life. Just as human life begins at
birth, so the work of redemption for Israel and the Gentiles began at the birth
of the Messiah and culminated at the cross.
THE
GREEK PREPOSITION EK
How
can we be certain that the Old Testament authors originally intended min to
mean “out from,” “separated from,” or “after leaving” in the above passages
from Job, the Psalms, and Isaiah? One vital consideration in answering, this
question is the evidence from the Septuagint (abbreviated LXX).
The LXX was
begun in the third century B.C., and is the most important Greek translation of
the Old Testament.[36]
Significantly, the translators of the LXX used the Greek preposition ek to represent min in Job 1:21; 3:11;
10:19; Psalm 22:9-10; Isaiah 44:2, 24; and 49:1, 5.
The
primary purpose of ek is to denote separation.
In the LXX
version of the previous verses cited from Job, Psalms, and Isaiah, mibeten is represented by two Greek
phrases, ek koilia and ek gastros.
In every reference from Job and the Psalms, a verb of motion precedes these
phrases. Ek following verbs of motion
“introduce[s] the place from which the separation takes place.[37]
Therefore, the phrases ek koilia or ek gastros in Job and the Psalms signify
“out of’ or “separated from the womb.” But the Greek preposition also has a
temporal sense. Mibeten, which is
translated ek koilia in the LXX
version of Isaiah 49:1, is noted by Arndt and Gingrich as a primary example of
the temporal interpretation of ek —
“of the time when something begins.” Their lexicon translates the temporal
Greek prepositional phrase in Isaiah 49:1 “from birth,” denoting “from birth
on.” All four of the verses cited (Isaiah 44:2, 24; 49:1, 5) are temporal
usages. Consequently, the phrase ek
koilia in each verse has a synonymous meaning: “[out] from the womb,” or
“from birth.” The LXX
translators believed that the original intent of the authors of all the
passages previously cited in Job, the Psalms, and Isaiah was to convey the
meaning of mibeten as “out of” or
“separated from the womb.”
TWO
BIRTHS — THE ANALOGY OF JOHN 3
Human
life begins with the impartation of soul life at birth. The soul is immortal.
But the immortality of the soul does not qualify a person to live with God
forever. Soul life can live forever in hell. The qualification to live with
God, to receive eternal life, is regeneration or the second birth.
Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named
Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; (John 3:1)
This man came to Him by night, and
said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one
can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”
(John 3:2)
Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly,
truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of
God.” (John 3:3)
Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a
man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s
womb and be born, can he?” (John 3:4)
Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say
to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the
kingdom of God. (John 3:5)
“That which is born of flesh is
flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
(John 3:6)
“Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must
be born again.’” (John 3:7)
In
verses 1-2 Jesus is approached at night by a Pharisee named Nicodemus.[38]
This encounter with a ruler of the Jews portrays Israel’s dependence upon their
physical birth as descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, for salvation.
Nicodemus had obviously observed Jesus’ ministry and miracles and concluded He
was worth pursuing. Like many people of his time Nicodemus was seeking
salvation, the Messiah, and the kingdom of God. Anticipating the purpose behind
Nicodemus” first question, Jesus wastes no time. He stuns Nicodemus with His
quick assessment of Nicodemus” true motive. Without any preamble Jesus curtly
instructs Nicodemus that to see the kingdom of God, a person must be “born
again” (v. 3).
Nicodemus
responds with skepticism and misunderstanding. “How can a man be born when he
is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can
he?” (v. 4). From his question it is clear that Nicodemus has focused on the
phrase “born again", which he wrongly assumes to mean physical birth. In
his error, however, Nicodemus shows he recognizes the underlying premise of the
analogy Jesus will develop: Birth, not conception, begins human life. Notice,
Jesus does not say, “You must be conceived again.”
In
verses 5 and 6 the Lord reveals His analogy. He will compare physical birth,
which Nicodemus himself introduces in verse 4, with spiritual birth. Jesus’
analogy equates the starting point of human life, which is physical birth, with
the starting point of spiritual life, which is regeneration or being born
again. For the analogy to work physical birth must initiate human life.
Certainly, the Lord Jesus Christ understood this truth and now uses the
comparison in this remarkable illustration of regeneration. Because Nicodemus
also believes that human life begins at birth, he will ultimately perceive
Jesus’ analogy that being born again is the beginning of, and the requirement
for, spiritual life.
Pride
in racial antecedence caused Israel to emphasize physical birth. But Jesus
Christ points out that entrance into the kingdom of God requires another birth,
a second birth. The genes of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are not the basis for
God’s choice (election) of Israel. Regeneration by faith in the Lord (Gen.
15:6; Rom. 4:1-3) is the basis for entrance into the kingdom of God and the
starting point for spiritual life.
“Born
of water” in verse 5 implies physical birth, not water baptism. Water baptism
is not implicated in John 3, only physical birth, which is essential to the
context. Moreover, water baptism is never a condition for entrance into “the
kingdom of God.” Spirit baptism (1 Cor. 12:13), which occurs at the moment of
faith in Christ, is a prerequisite and an integral part of being “born of the
Spirit,” not “born of water.”[39]
Water
is associated with physical birth in an obvious way. When the fetus is ready to
emerge from the womb the membrane that surrounds the fetus in the uterus
usually ruptures, releasing amniotic fluid. This amniotic fluid is essentially
water. Anyone remotely familiar with the birth of a baby understands that the
water breaking warns of the imminent emergence of the fetus and is closely
identified with birth. Therefore, “born of water” identifies physical birth;
“born of the Spirit” identifies spiritual birth.
Physical
birth includes spiritual death, a fact which Jesus ingeniously uses to introduce
the need for being “born again.” Verse 5 states that physical birth and
spiritual birth are necessary to “enter into the kingdom of God.” Verse 6
simply restates the analogy of birth in the physical realm and the spiritual
realm as the initiation point of life in each realm. Remember, every person is
born humanly alive but spiritually dead because of the inherited sin nature of
Adam. Since Nicodemus has already passed the stage of physical birth and is
spiritually dead, he is forced to rely on the only declared way to enter the
kingdom of God: the second birth by faith in Jesus Christ.
In
John 3 Jesus confirms that physical birth is the beginning of human life just
as the second birth is the beginning of spiritual-and eternal life. The
effectiveness of Jesus’ explanation of the second birth depends exclusively
upon His analogy to physical birth as the starting point of human life. Would
Jesus mislead Nicodemus or anyone else about spiritual life? No! There is only
one inescapable conclusion: The inception of life in both the physical and
spiritual realms is bound to the concept of birth, not conception or pregnancy.
The
focus in the Scripture is always on birth as the beginning of life. Conception
cannot produce human life; only the creative act of God, at birth produces
human life. At the second birth the creative act of God establishes a
regenerate human being with a spiritual life.
MISUNDERSTOOD
PASSAGES
There
are several verses in Scripture that appear to contradict the major premise of
this book that human life begins at physical birth. Let us now examine some of
the biblical texts often cited as proof that human life begins in the womb and
determine if there is any conflict or contradiction.
PSALM
139:13
For Thou didst form [qanah} my inward
parts; Thou didst weave me in my mother’s womb [bebeten] I will give thanks to
Thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Thy works, and my
soul knows it very well. (Ps. 139:13-14)
This
passage in the Psalms is often quoted as evidence that human life resides in
the womb. An expositor of verse 13 might assert that if God “weaved me in my
mother’s womb,” then God is personally concerned for the fetus before birth,
and therefore, human life resides in the womb. Such an explanation would deny
the understanding of physical birth as the starting point of human life
concluded from passages already examined.
The
presence of the Hebrew preposition be
with the noun beten in verse 13,
combined as bebeten, appears to
proclaim the womb as the weaving or nurturing place for human life. Bebeten means “in the womb.” David, the
author of this Psalm, is clearly expressing his gratitude to his Creator for
forming his “inward parts” in the womb. Undoubtedly, David meant to portray a
construction inside the womb, not outside the womb.
What
are “inward parts”? The term refers literally to physical or internal organs.
Internal organs are the most intricate and essential parts of the body. The
weaving of inward parts is analogous to the formation of the embryo and fetus
from the zygote. Therefore, “inward parts” indicate biological life in this
context. When the internal organs and format soul are sufficiently formed, the
fetus separates from the womb and God imparts soul life to the format soul. The
fetus then becomes a human being, able to exist independently of the mother.
The
verb used to designate formation of this biological life does not imply
immediate creation, but rather mediate creation — qanah, “to get” or “to acquire.” Traducianists and Creationists
would likely agree at this point. Even though this verse attributes God with
forming the inward parts of the fetus, the formation is an indirect or mediate
one. Biological life is formed through procreation and the transmission of
genetic material, a process which God Himself set in motion after the fall of
Adam. “Weave me in my mother’s womb” describes this mediate formation. But
biological life must be differentiated from soul life. No direct evidence
exists in this passage to conclude that God’s weaving of inward parts means His
mediate creation of soul life. Rather, verse 13 refers specifically to God’s
continuing mediate creation of biological life.
While
God’s viewpoint has been established with regard to the origin of human life,
passages like Psalm 139:13 clearly express exalted respect for biological life
in the womb. The meaning of such passages is related to the doctrine of divine
decrees and the omniscience of God. From eternity past God has known all that
is knowable. He knew every person who would be born and every event of their
life long before they lived. He designed and created the body and soul of
humanity and we are truly “fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Thy
works.”
Psalm
139:13-14 is a tribute to God’s everlasting knowledge and resign of each of us
even before we were in the womb. However it is not logical or judicious to
conclude from this passage that human life exists in the womb, especially with
so much scriptural evidence to the contrary.
JEREMIAH 1:5
Before I formed [yatsar] you in [by
means of] the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I
have appointed you a prophet to the nations. (Jer. 1:5)
Isolated
from its context this verse has convinced many people that God forms human life
in the womb. But, the explanation of Jeremiah 1:5, like Psalm 139:13, is
related to God’s omniscience and the doctrine of divine decrees. Jeremiah is
describing his own call to the ministry. The omniscience of God knew everything
knowable about Jeremiah even before he was conceived. In fact, the omniscience
of God knew in eternity past all the actual thoughts, decisions, and actions of
Jeremiah and every other human being. The divine decrees are the printout of
these activities. Even though many of those thoughts, decisions, and actions
are contrary to God’s desires, He nonetheless knew that these events would take
place.[40]
Jeremiah was in awe of God’s infinite knowledge and sovereignty. In verse 5 he
reports one of these decreed events — his appointment as a prophet to Israel.
The verb Jeremiah uses for “formed” is yatsar.
The use of yatsar suggests Jeremiah
is referring to the formation of his biological life. This is the same verb
found in Genesis 2:7 for the immediate creation of Adam’s biological life.
However, yatsar in Jeremiah 1:5, as
in Isaiah 44:2 and 24, does not signify immediate, but mediate creation.
Remember, God created biological life only twice before the Fall. After the
Fall biological life is reproduced at conception and is formed in the mother’s
womb. This process Jeremiah recognizes as taking place bebeten, “in the womb” or “by means of the womb.”[41] His
biological life is formed mediately by means of the womb.
Yatsar is preceded by the word “before,”
an adverb indicating a time predating the formation of Jeremiah’s biological
life and his birth. Only the omniscience of God, which set forth the divine
decrees, could “know” and “consecrate” Jeremiah before his biological life was
formed or his soul life was given, and thus his human life created.
Those
who heard Jeremiah’s message were aware that “I formed you in the womb” and
“before you were born I consecrated you” refers to a time before any human life
existed. In this statement the incomparable essence and power of the God of
Israel were proclaimed. Who but sovereign, omniscient God could designate
Jeremiah “a prophet to the nations” before Jeremiah was a human being?
The
statement of God’s omniscience in the consecration of Jeremiah before he was born
is not evidence that human life exists in the womb. The thrust of verse 5 is to
praise the omniscience and sovereignty of God in calling Jeremiah to the
ministry. Only God knew in eternity past that Jeremiah would exist, express
faith in the Lord, and become the great spiritual leader of his age. God set
him apart in eternity past to serve Israel. Even as God created Adam’s
biological life and soul life, He already knew that in 626 B.C. Jeremiah would
begin a prolific ministry that would span the rule of the Jewish kings Josiah,
Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. Those to whom Jeremiah
ministered would be impressed with these credentials: God called him even
before he was conceived (biological life) or born (human life). The message of
Jeremiah is a testimony not to human life in the womb but to the omniscience of
God.
LUKE
1:15
For he [John the Baptist] will be
great in the sight of the Lord, and he will drink no wine or liquor; and he
will be filled [empowered] with the Holy Spirit, while yet [in the future] in
his mother’s womb [ek koilias, separated from].
(Luke 1:15)
The
context of Luke 1:15 reveals the angel Gabriel’s prophecy to Zacharias, husband
of Elizabeth, concerning his future-son, John the Baptist. Critical to the
meaning of this verse is understanding the last phrase, “while yet in his
mother’s womb.”[42]
Ek koilias, used again here, is
inadequately translated in verse 15 “in the womb."48 Koilias is the ablative singular of koilia, “womb.” The ablative case preceded by the preposition ek denotes separation. Ek must be understood as connoting
separation: “out from” or “away from.” The phrase in question should be
translated, “yet [in the future] separated from his mother’s womb.” Luke, the
human author, is continuing the connotation of separation found with the use of
mibeten in the Old Testament and ek koilias in the LXX. In
other words, the ablative of separation indicates John must be born before he
can be empowered or endued by the Spirit.
The
enduement of the Holy Spirit in Old Testament times was available to only a few
believers and was a temporary bestowal for the achievement of unusual
responsibility (Num. 11:16-17; 27:8-20; Judges 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 13:25; 14:6;
15:14; 1 Sam. 10:6-10; 11:6; 16:13; Ezek. 2:2; 3:24; Micah 3:8; Zech. 7:12). In
our dispensation, the Church Age, the Holy Spirit permanently indwells every
believer. But John the Baptist was born under the dispensational policies and
procedures of the Old Testament before the commencement of the Church Age. The
announcement of John’s enduement marks him as a man with a divinely ordained
task to perform. John the Baptist will receive a special enduement of the Holy
Spirit to accomplish a unique mission, the herald of the Messiah, Jesus Christ
(Luke 3:4).
If
John the Baptist were endued with the Holy Spirit “in his mother’s womb,” this
would indicate the presence of more than just biological life in the womb. Such
is not the case! In fact, Luke 1:41 represents Elizabeth, his mother, as the
one who is endued with the Holy Spirit. The Scripture always represents the
Holy Spirit as being given to human beings (born physically alive) who are
regenerate.
There
is no biblical precedent for a fetus being filled with the Holy Spirit in the
womb. No one can be filled with the Holy Spirit until he or she is born twice.
The first birth is physical, the point at which human life begins. The second
birth is spiritual, the moment of faith in Jesus Christ and the point at which
spiritual life begins. Therefore, John the Baptist would be “yet [in the
future]” endued with the Holy Spirit after regeneration, or being born again.
Luke 1:15 and surrounding context (vs. 13-14) presents birth, not the womb, as
the beginning of human life.
LUKE
1:41
And it came about that when Elizabeth
heard Mary’s greeting, the baby [fetus which will be John the Baptist] leaped
in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
(Luke 1:41)
Verse
41 touches a resounding cord of emotion with many women who remember the
movement of the fetus in their own womb. Any woman who has been pregnant
clearly recalls those times when the developing fetus kicks or moves. However,
such poignant and emotional memories are not the foundation for understanding
this passage.
In
Luke 1:35-36 Mary has been informed by the angel Gabriel that while still a
virgin she will conceive and her “offspring” will be the “Son of God.”[43]
Mary is also told that her relative, Elizabeth, who although barren and past
childbearing age, has miraculously conceived and is in her sixth month of
pregnancy. Following the angelic announcement Mary goes to visit Elizabeth.
“For behold, when the sound of your
greeting reached my ears, the baby [brephos, fetus] leaped [moved about] in my
womb for [because of] joy [excitement that quickens the pulse].”
(Luke 1:44)
When
Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting the brephos,
“the unborn fetus,” moved about “in her womb.”[44] The
translation of this passage gives the impression that the fetus is responding
“for joy.” But if the emotion of joy were already present in the fetus, then
the fetus would be ensouled, a possessor of human life. “Joy” actually refers
to the emotional reaction of the mother which, combined with the external sound
of Mary’s voice, caused the subsequent reflexive movement of the brephos.
An
expectant mother may be aware that the fetus responds to the voice of mother,
father, music, or other sounds. Medical studies demonstrate that the fetus
responds to sounds with a startle reflex.[45] The
startle reflex is one example of reflexive movement or reflex motility.”[46]
When
Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth became excited by Mary’s presence.
This observation is confirmed by Elizabeth’s reaction:
And she [Elizabeth] cried out with a
loud voice [with great emotion], and said, “Blessed among women are you [Mary],
and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the
mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:42-43)
When
anyone becomes excited their pulse rate quickens as the body produces adrenalin
and other chemicals which enter the bloodstream. As the pulse rate quickens in
a pregnant woman, her blood passes more rapidly through the placenta. The
adrenalin enters the bloodstream of the fetus producing movement. Excitement
may also cause contractions in the uterine wall, another cause of fetal
movement. The fetus responds to the physiological effect of the mother’s
emotions and moves in response to the mother’s physiological change. The
episode is a primary example of mother- dependence, not independent action by
the fetus. The fetus is biological life responding to biological stimuli. The
sound of Mary’s voice and the corresponding emotion in Elizabeth caused the
fetal reflexive movement.
Fetal
motility is a function of biological life, which does not require the presence
of soul life. Fetal movement arouses strong emotions in the mother and
emotional experience can be unstable and misleading. Where emotional experience
conflicts with the statement of Scripture, the experience is invalid. Mother-induced
fetal movement in utero, which is evidence of biological life in the womb, is
not to be mistaken for the independent volitional action of a human being with
a living soul. Fetal movement and reflex motility are functions of biological
life, never soul life.
LUKE
11:27-28
And it came about while He [Jesus
Christ] said these things [discourse on demonism], one of the women in the
crowd raised her voice, and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You,
and the breasts at which You nursed.” (Luke 11:27)
This
woman who rudely interrupts the Lord’s teaching wishes to change His discourse
from demonism to motherhood.”[47] She
aspires to replace “the-word of God” with her own opinion. Her “raised” voice
and audacious manner indicates intensity, a woman who takes herself very
seriously. In arrogance she demands attention. Her wrath is aroused. By
mentioning “the womb” the woman attempts to manipulate Jesus into changing to a
subject she thinks He dare not neglect. She erroneously reasons, how could
Jesus not stop and praise His mother, the one who gave Him life! Sadly, this
woman does not understand the origin of human life, and is more concerned with
her own ideas than with the teachings of Jesus Christ who is God (John 1:1-2).
Whatever
the true motivation of this rude and arrogant woman, she chooses to make an
issue of the womb. By her outburst the woman implies that since Jesus came from
his mother’s womb, motherhood is to be praised for His very existence. Slyly
this woman introduces a false doctrine: the beginning of human life in the
womb. Yet unconsciously she makes a distinction between sustaining biological
life in the womb and nourishing human life at the mother’s breast.
The
Lord did not argue with her, debate with her, or humiliate her. He simply
replied with the truth.
But He said, “On the contrary,
blessed are those who hear the word of God, and observe [obey] it.”
(Luke 11:28)
Jesus’
first word to this woman is the classical Greek particle menoun “on the contrary.” Menoun
was a one-word particle the Greeks used to indicate their disagreement with an
assertion. When a person used menoun,
all or part of what was just said was wrong and a correction would soon follow.
From this particle we know Jesus opposed the woman’s outcry. Subsequently,
Jesus substitutes His own declaration for her misleading and false
proclamation. The Lord’s correction addresses the issue of blessing.
By
ignoring the woman’s contention, Jesus astutely rejects the womb as the source of
human life and blessing. This woman has stated what many people wrongly
believe: the womb supplies human life and, therefore, blessing to humanity. She
attempts to use Jesus as a pawn to advance the superiority of women because she
erroneously believes women carry human life in their womb. But Jesus discounts
the gender and womb issue, focusing instead on the real issue: hearing “the
word of God” for blessing.
This
woman’s false concept could have been corrected had she learned and obeyed the
Word of God. Ironically, the greatest blessing to the human race was standing
in front of her at that moment, speaking God’s Word. Our Lord’s reply stresses
the surpassing importance of hearing and obeying His Word. Jesus exhorts
everyone present to consider God’s absolute truth, not this woman’s opinion.
Today we hear His Word from the Bible, and from no other source.
Hearing
and obeying God’s Word is invaluable to our study of the origin of human life.
Regardless of our personal feelings or emotional involvement with the subject,
if we are to understand the truth we must accept what the Bible says. Do not
let the tender experience of pregnancy take precedence over the paramount issue
in the Christian life: blessing through hearing and obeying God’s Word.
EXODUS
21:22-25
And if men struggle with each other
and strike a woman with child so that she has a miscarriage [yatsa, her child
“comes forth"], yet there is no further [not present in the Hebrew] injury
[to mother or child who is born], he shall surely be fined as the woman’s
husband may demand of him; and he shall pay as the judges decide.
(Ex. 21:22)
But if there is any further [not
present in Hebrew] injury, then you shall appoint as a penalty life for life
[capital punishment], eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for
foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.
(Ex. 21:23-25)
Lex Talionis, the law of retaliation,
was a standard feature in Ancient Near Eastern legal codes. Any injury or death
to an individual by another person would be repaid to the offender in kind. The
Mosaic Law is the epitome of Ancient Near Eastern legal codes. Exodus 21:22-25
is an example of retaliatory law in the Mosaic code.[48] To
accurately understand the legal implications of this passage, we must correctly
differentiate between biological life in the womb and human life bestowed at
birth. The meaning of the Hebrew verb yatsa
in verse 22 provides the key to understanding the scope and aim of the judicial
retribution. Yatsa is rendered
“miscarriage” in the New American Standard translation of the Bible, but
literally means “come forth” or “go out.” When the fetus emerges or goes out
from the womb, yatsa is describing
birth. In this case yatsa carries the
same idea as mibeten, “out from the
womb.”
The premature
birth described in verse 22 was caused by two men fighting who strike a woman
so that she goes into labor and delivers.[49] The
assumption of the statute is that the mother survives the ordeal and the child
is born alive, a living, ensouled human being. There is no supposition of human
life present in the womb. The law applies only to the child after birth. The
child must receive soul life at birth before it can be legally injured or die.
Once
the child is born and has received the “breath of life” from God, the law
offers two options for retaliation. The first option requires the one who
struck the woman to pay a fine “as the husband may demand” and “as the judges
decide.” Since there is no significant damage to the mother or the now living
child other than the rigors of premature birth or some minor injury, a fine is
all the law demands.
The
second retaliation option described in Exodus 21:23-25 depends upon the extent
of the injury to either the mother or the living child after birth. A less than
mortal injury to either the mother or child or both would receive the
recompense of an “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth . . . .” The death
sentence, “life for life,” may be ruled as punishment only if the fighting men
cause a mortal injury to the mother or child.
The
blow was struck while the fetus was still in the womb. This caused the woman to
go into labor. Damage to the fetus could have occurred from the impact, and the
pregnancy could have
terminated from the shock of the blow. But Lex
Talionis in this context is clearly applied to a time after birth. The law does
not address the fetus in the womb. The fetus is biological life only and not an
issue before the law. No punishment or compensation is pronounced on the
offending party for injury to the fetus in the womb or for a stillborn child.
The
principle of protection and care of biological life in the womb is always a
concern because the fetus is a potential person. But Moses, the human author,
does not include any legal contingency concerning the fetus. The child must be
born and receive the breath of life before restitution or retribution is
exacted. If the child is stillborn there can be no restitution demanded.
However, either restitution or retribution may be demanded for the mother. The
law of retaliation was written for the protection of living human beings, not
biological life in the womb. Exodus 21:22-25 does not prove that human life
begins in the womb.
HUMAN
LIFE TO ETERNAL LIFE
The
origin of human life and subsequent depravity of our human existence have both
theological and personal repercussions. Passed down mediately to each of us
through procreation and genetics is biological life, including a format soul
and a sin nature. God Himself is the immediate author of human life. When
biological life emerges from the womb, God creates soul life and only then does
human life exist. As we have seen, no human life is generated or formed in the
womb.
The
fetus becomes a living human being only after emerging from the womb. At
physical birth sovereign, omnipotent God imparts immortal soul life to mortal
biological life. At the same time the justice of God imputes Adam’s original
sin to the dormant sin nature. We are now human beings who are spiritually
dead, unable to have fellowship with the perfect righteousness of God. We
possess human life but we need to be born again to possess spiritual life.
Just as physical birth is the beginning of
human life, so spiritual birth is the beginning of eternal life, an eternal
relationship with God. Spiritual birth takes place in only one way: faith alone
in Christ alone.
But as many as received Him [by
faith in Christ], to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to
those who believe in His name. (John 1:12)
Jesus
Christ, the only perfect human being born without a sin nature, was uniquely
qualified to pay the penalty of Adam’s sin. In God’s eyes we deserve nothing
but death because of our position in Adam. Jesus Christ sacrificed Himself to
satisfy the wrath of God’s justice. He bore our sins on the cross and they are
no longer an issue. Eternal life is open to all because He was judged in our
place. We simply believe in Christ.
He who believes in the Son has
eternal life; but he who does not obey [believe] the Son shall not see
[eternal] life, but the wrath of God abides on him.
(John 3:36)
From
the moment of birth you are destined for death, eternal separation from God.
From the moment of the second birth you are destined to live for eternity with God.
Once you have been given human life, the decision is yours: eternal
condemnation or eternal life.
The soul is immortal. Man cannot create immortality. The egg and sperm cannot generate immortality in the womb as a result of conception. Mortals can only generate biological life, perpetuate spiritual death, and ultimately surrender to physical death. Only eternal God can create the immortal soul and impart it to the fetus at birth. Mortality cannot produce immortality.