This text clearly teaches that God forms a new person before birth, not during or after birth. In Psalm 139:13, David speaks of how God formed his “inward parts” while he was in his mother’s womb. On top of established medical conviction, however, the Bible teaches that a fetus within a womb is a living human being bearing the image of God. There is now widespread consensus within the medical field that human life begins at conception, when the egg and the sperm fuse together to form a human embryo. Various views have been proposed: (1) at conception (2) at implantation and (3) at birth. The main issue concerning abortion revolves around when life and personhood begin. Moreover, both Jews and Christians in ancient times explicitly condemned the practice of abortion. Yet when we listen carefully to the teaching of the Bible regarding what it means to be a human being and what it means to take the life of another, we find that the Bible speaks very clearly on the issue of abortion. The Bible does not mention explicitly the practice of abortion. The Beginning of LifeĪbortion was a known practice in the ancient world. With this basic principle of the value of human life in place, we will consider a number of ethical issues concerning the beginning and the end of life such as abortion, euthanasia, and the treatment of children, the disabled, and the elderly. It is important to note, however, that in the Old Testament, the prohibition against taking a person’s life is to be understood as the taking of life outside of the boundaries set by God (such as capital punishment or war). 21:12, 14, 20) but also to human death caused by carelessness or negligence (e.g., Josh. The Hebrew word for “murder” ( ratsakh) in Exodus 20:13 not only refers to intentional killing (e.g., Jer. 20:13), and its explanation in Exodus 21:12–32 clearly teaches this. The sixth commandment, “You shall not murder” ( Ex. Consequently, the person who takes the life of another will be held accountable and punishable by God through his human representatives ( Gen. The value of human life is intrinsic, for it derives from God, who made human beings in his own image ( Gen. The lives of all humans, both their own and others’, are to be cherished and guarded. Since life belongs to God, humans do not have absolute autonomy over their own lives but are stewards of the life given to them by God.
2:7), and if God were to withdraw his breath from humans, they would perish ( Job 34:14–15).
Adam became a living being by the breath of God ( Gen. The Value and Dignity of Human Life Chee-Chiew Lee | Singapore
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