Innocence ?

Exploring some Bible texts relating the question of children and salvation.

An age of

Paul K. Stokes

An age of innocence ?
Some Bible texts relating to children and salvation. P.K.Stokes September 2001

Christians, Brains and Soundbytes...

It is an old joke that if God had meant Christians to think He would have given them brains! One writer describes how some Christians have detached ideas floating around in their minds [which] easily mix with the prevailing folklore that they pick up from religious and unbelieving people alike, and their own brand of theology develops.1 That is quite a contrast with the people who lived in Berea. When the apostle Paul told them the Gospel, they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. (Acts 17:1) They certainly used their brains and thought about both what they believed and why they believed it. While Jesus taught in parables, todays world is content with mere soundbytes. Parables engage the brain, forcing us to work out the meaning and the implications. They make us grow. Soundbytes are a subsitute for thinking, where the person with the cleverest one-line comment wins the day. Of course, a good one-liner can make a message memorable - but the temptation is for Christians to indulge in soundbyte theology. Its easier... we are saved from the trouble of thinking! Another old saying reminds us that if we take a text out of its context we end up with a pretext. For Christians it is essential that we base our beliefs on the Bible, and it is also essential that those beliefs are not based on odd verses, lifted out of context. This is the danger in simplistically grabbing a few proof-texts and unthinkingly pegging all kinds of ideas onto them. Rather, our beliefs must be cross-checked against the whole canvas of Scripture. This is especially true where Old Testament texts are involved, for we are people of the New Covenant, and Jesus does make a difference. This booklet deals with an issue that has surfaced in a pastoral context. It assumes that all scripture is God breathed (2 Timothy 3:16), and seeks to make sure that our views are based on what the Bible really says, so that we correctly handle the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).

Paterson Short, Sharp and Off The Point Pub 1987 by MARC Europe

Contents
Why look at this question ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 1 What have Christians said about this in the past ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 1 Making use of Old Testament narrative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 2 What the Bible passages say . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 3 A sneak preview of the conclusions ! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 4 Getting the words right . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 5 One group, or two ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 8 The knowledge of good and evil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 10 What is the age of innocence? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 11 What about the older children? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 12 What is said about each group of people? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 13 Right and wrong before the age of twenty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 14 Do children automatically go to heaven? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 14 Outline of the conclusions reached . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 16 -

An age of innocence ?
AN INTRODUCTION

Why look at this question ?

Out of the mouths of babes comes food for thought! Our seven-year old daughters news from Junior Church one Sunday was that a child who dies before they are twenty-one years old goes to heaven, regardless of whether they have personally said sorry for sin and become a friend of Jesus. This was a novel idea for us, so we decided to check her sources, were directed to two Old Testament texts, and embarked on a quest for understanding which took us deeper into the Word of God. More than once we had to modify our ideas, discovering for ourselves the truth of Pastor John Robinsons parting words to the Mayflower Pilgrims - The Lord has yet more light and truth to break forth from His Word.

What have Christians said about this in the past ?

In Medieval times church leaders believed that infants who died without being baptized were damned. This was the official view of the Roman Church, stated during its Council of Trent in 1546. However, the Council also conceded that, in the case of stillborn babies, the parents intention to have the child baptized might be enough to qualify them for heaven. The Reformer Martin Luther took this concession further and applied it to some children who survived childbirth. He taught that, if baptism of a child became impossible due to circumstances, then God would accept the intention to baptize the infant and the child would therefore not be damned. In later years, although Luthers followers did not commit themselves to belief in the salvation of all children dying in infancy, nevertheless they tended to regard it as a real hope and never argued against it. Ulrich Zwingli, one of the -1-

Swiss Reformers, argued that all children whose parents were Christian and who died in infancy would be saved because they were born within the covenant. This teaching was based mainly on Acts 2:39. In fact, Zwingli went so far as to teach that all children who died in infancy are among Gods chosen people and are therefore saved.2 Does Scripture give us any clearer guidance than appears in these contrasting viewpoints?

Making use of Old Testament narrative

The two Old Testament passages at the heart of our study tell of the Hebrew peoples arrival at the borders of the land that would later become known as Israel - the geographical area at the eastern end of the Mediterranean. In Deuteronomy 1:34-39 Moses explains that, because of the cynical and grumbling attitude displayed during their travels out of Egypt, an entire generation will miss out - set free from slavery in Egypt, but not entering this new land. He refers to the events narrated in Numbers 14:27-35. Before examining these (and other) verses in detail, a more general question has to be asked: to what extent is it right to base Christian teaching about salvation on an account of the travels of Hebrew people? The Church has a rich history of using Old Testament narrative as a pictorial description of faith, including the journey into Canaan, the good land I swore to give your forefathers (Deuteronomy 1:35). Take for instance the poetry of the final verse of William Williams wonderful hymn Guide me O Thou Great Jehovah. After drawing on the Exodus imagery of the wilderness wanderings, manna, water from rock, and the pillars of cloud and fire, he concludes with the resounding words: When I tread the verge of Jordan Bid my anxious fears subside; Death of death, and hell's destruction, Land me safe on Canaan's side: Songs of praises, songs of praises, I will ever give to Thee, I will ever give to Thee.
Information from Infant Salvation, pages 559-560 in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology Pub. 1984 by Marshall Pickering
2

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If we are to use this kind imagery, it is vitally important to realise that it is serving as an illustration. The passage does not teach a doctrine of salvation from sin, but it does provide graphic imagery to which helps express the pilgrimage of faith and the glorious hope that we have. Christians are not destined for Canaan, but for heaven; we are saved from slavery to sin, not slavery in Egypt. It is very important to note that Moses did not enter Canaan, but that he does arrive in heaven. He is one of the cloud of witnesses who will be made perfect together with Christians (Hebrews 11:40) and he appears alongside Elijah at the time of Jesus transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-9). And so it is crucial that we do read out of the passage what is already in it, rather than reading into the passage ideas we have imported from elsewhere. Truth does not need bad arguments to support it, and Biblical truth does not need to be shored-up by misused texts. Therefore when it comes to using these Old Testament texts we do so in the belief that they can give us information relating to the issue of accountability and judgement. They may helpfully serve as illustrations of the journey of faith, but they do not teach how a person can be saved from sin. An historical account of who entered the promised land does not, in itself, tell us who enters heaven.

What the Bible passages say

Numbers 14:26-35 reads (NIV): 26The LORD said to Moses and Aaron: 27"How long will this wicked community grumble against me? I have heard the complaints of these grumbling Israelites. 28So tell them, `As surely as I live, declares the LORD, I will do to you the very things I heard you say: 29In this desert your bodies will fall every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me. 30Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. 31As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected. 32But you - your bodies will fall in this desert. 33 Your children will be shepherds here for forty years, -3-

suffering for your unfaithfulness, until the last of your bodies lies in the desert. 34For forty years - one year for each of the forty days you explored the land - you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.' 35I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this desert; here they will die. Deuternomy 1:34-39 reads (NIV): 34When the LORD heard what you said, he was angry and solemnly swore: 35"Not a man of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your forefathers, 36except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly." 37Because of you the LORD became angry with me also and said, "You shall not enter it, either. 38 But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it. 39And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad - they will enter the land. I will give it to them and they will take possession of it.

A sneak preview of the conclusions !

Sometimes it can be helpful have a general idea of the line of argument it makes the details easier to understand! This, briefly, is how the argument develops... There are several Old Testament Hebrew words for children. The little ones in these passages are roughly the equivalent of the phrase toddlers and seems to refer to people up to about 5 years old. This specific group of younger children are said to not yet know good from evil, and seem not to be held accountable for sin. In the Old Testament people over 20 years old are definitely held accountable for their sin, and between the ages of 5 and 20 the situation is less clear because the Bible is silent about this. There is, however, evidence of a

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growing responsibility with age, and it seems probable that in the same way there may be a growing accountability for sin. We conclude that it is wrong to teach that a child who dies before they are twenty-one years old goes to heaven, regardless of whether they have personally said sorry for sin and become a friend of Jesus. This is not what the Bible teaches, and the idea provides a false hope. Instead, we can have confidence that Gods dealings with every person will be utterly fair, we need to take seriously the teaching that all have sinned (Romans 3:23), and we must respond with urgency to the evangelistic mission Christ gave us.

THE ARGUMENT IN GREATER DETAIL...

Getting the words right

Working merely from English translations of the Bible can be misleading because sometimes one word is translated in different ways, and sometimes different words are translated into the same English word. It is helpful to know which words are used in the original language, rather than just looking at the translation. The general Hebrew words for descendants and offspring are son (nb ben)3 and seed (erz zarah), but sometimes other more specific terms are also used. These tend to refer either to relatively younger children, or to youths and younger men (in contrast to more mature men Nqz zaqen), although the distinctions are not always rigidly maintained. Older Children and Youths. Joseph at the age of seventeen is described as ren nahar (Genesis 37:2), a word used frequently to denote servants, but also used to describe Solomon eight years after he became king (2 Chronicles 13:7) and the younger men of Sodom who came sought intimacy with Lots guests (Genesis 19:4). It also describes young women old enough for marriage (Deuteronomy 22:16) and for intercourse (Judges 21:12). It is the term used of Elis contemptuously sinful
3

Hebrew words are usually made up of three consonants (the root), with extra ones added to convey the tense, or to describe relationships. For simplicity, most Hebrew words are noted here only in their root form.

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and accountable sons (1 Samuel 2:17). Baby Moses in need of nursing is also described using this word (Exodus 2:6), and so too is Samuel shortly after weaning (1 Samuel 1:24) - thought these seem to be the exceptions. The term rwxb bawkhoor comes from the Hebrew word for choose It is used to describe: the young men over twenty years of age who would then be chosen for military service (2 Chronicles 25:5); Saul as an impressive young man without equal among the Israelites (1 Samuel 9:2); and young men old enough to marry (Isaiah 62:5). Younger Children. The word dly yeled comes from the Hebrew for childbirth, and is used also to refer to midwifery (Exodus 1:20) and a persons ancestry (Numbers 1:18). It refers mainly to the very young such as the baby Moses in need of nursing (Exodus 2:7), David & Bathshebas newborn son (2 Samuel 12:15), and Isaac before he was weaned (Genesis 21:8). Notable exceptions to this usage include the youngsters who taunt Elisha (2 Kings 2:24), others old enough to injure Lamech (Genesis 4:23), and people old enough to receive formal education (Daniel 1:4). The term lwe ool refers mainly to a breast-fed child (Isaiah 49:15), although Job also uses it of a foetus (Job 3:16). It seems not to be used in reference to older children. The word qny yaw-nak similarly refers to an infant or unweaned child (Numbers 11:12). Children in the passages under consideration. Deuteronomy 1:39 uses two words to refer to children, and these are translated in various ways by different versions of the Bible. This can be seen by comparing a few different translations of part of that verse... w And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad (New International Version) w Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil (Authorised Version) w Moreover your little ones, who you said would become a prey, and your children, who this day have no knowledge of good or evil (Revised Standard Version) -6-

w Your dependants who, you thought, would become spoils of war, and your children who do not yet know good and evil (New English Bible) w Your children, who are still too young to know right from wrong, ... the children you said would be seized by your enemies. (Good News Bible) The first word used to describe youngsters is Mkpjw wtaphkem - literally and your little ones. The word pj taph is a noun which comes from the verb taphach - meaning to skip, trip, take quick little steps. Taphach is used in Isaiah 3:16 The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, tripping along with mincing steps, with ornaments jingling on their ankles. So this word pj taph used to describe children refers to the style of their walking - the closest modern label might be toddlers. In Hosea 13:16 there is a graphic description of judgement and destruction, They will fall by the sword; their little ones will be dashed to the ground, their pregnant women ripped open. Understanding the phrase little ones (pj taph) as a reference to infants and toddlers is much more plausible than, for instance, envisaging youths being picked up and dashed to the ground. The second word used to describe youngsters is Mkynbw ubenekhem literally and your sons. The word nb ben is used in a general way to cover a wide range of descendants- son, grandson, child, member of a group, male child, children (male and female), youth, young men. It refers primarily to the relationship, rather than the age of a person - in Deuternomy 1:36, Caleb son (nb ben) of Jephunneh is an adult. Both words begin with the conjunction w, which has a range of meanings including: and, and therefore, also, then, yet. It occurs frequently Hebrew, sometimes several times in a sentence, and is not always rendered in the English (in order that a readable translation can be given). We would suggest the following as a fairly literal translation of this verse... (although it also shows why readability is an important consideration when translating the Bible into English!). w Mkpjw and the little ones rsa that Mtrma you said zbl as captives hyhy would be Mkynbw and your sons rsa that wedy-al not they know Mwyh the day bwj good erw and evil w And the little ones that you said as captives would be and your sons that not they know the day good and evil -7-

One group, or two ?

Since Deuteronomy 1:39 mentions both little ones (pj taph) and also sons (nb ben), this raises a question: Are these two descriptions of the same people, or do they refer to two different groups? Two separate groups ? The fact that they are linked by and (w) might suggest that these are two groups, A and B. For instance, these words do appear together in other Old Testament passages, and it is possible that these verses list groups of persons in order of importance and (implicitly) age: So they moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram had come out and were standing with their wives, children (nb ben) and little ones (pj taph) at the entrances to their tents. (Numbers 16:27) All the men of Judah, with their wives and children (nb ben) and little ones (pj taph) stood there before the LORD. (2 Chronicles 20:13) Interestingly, girls are mentioned separately a little later in Chronicles, although this time there is no apparent ranking of persons: They included all the little ones (pj taph), the wives, and the sons (nb ben) and daughters of the whole community listed in these genealogical records. For they were faithful in consecrating themselves. (2 Chronicles 31:18) Two descriptions of the same group ? On the other hand Deuteronomy 1:39 could be giving two descriptions of the same people. This would be quite normal, for Hebrew writing does sometimes re-state the same basic fact in two slightly different ways (an example of this would be Psalm 2:1-5 where each verse follows the pattern of repetition). In these cases using the conjunction and (w) serves to bind the two phrases together, showing they both refer to the same subject. In the three verses just mentioned the little ones (pj taph) makes most sense when they are seen as a specific group of young children within the more general category of sons (nb ben). (The only other logical alternative would be to suggest that the little ones (pj taph) are not in fact children!) We -8-

should also note that the phrase used in Deuteronomy 1:39 is also more specific than in these other verses. It mentions not just children but children who do not yet know good from bad. When we look at the verses from Numbers 14 we see that they describe the same scenario as Deuteronomy 1, but do so more briefly. This brevity can be seen very clearly in the descriptions of Caleb and Joshua: Numbers 14:
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Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.

Deuteronomy 1:
35

Not a man of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your forefathers, 36except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly. .... 38But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it In the same way, the brief account in Numbers mentions only one group of youngsters, using the same specific term for younger children as is used in Deuteronomy:31

And your little ones (pj taph) that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected

Conclusion - the passage refers to just one group Deuteronomy might be read as introducing two groups of youngsters who are both allowed to enter the land. One group would be the little ones. The other group would be the children who dont know good from bad. However the Hebrew pattern of restatement, the specific description in Deuteronomy, and the brevity of the description in Numbers mean that it makes sense to understand that the text is simply giving additional descriptive information about the little ones (pj taph). Only one group of people is being described.

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The knowledge of good and evil

In Deuteronomy Moses describes the little ones (pj taph) as those youngsters who do not know good and evil (erw bwj tov urah). This is a description of the ability to make moral judgements, as illustrated by Solomons prayer (1 Kings 3:9) in which he asks for a discerning heart in order to be able to distinguish between good and evil when making judgements. Other (older) people, described as a wicked community, which has banded together are told they will not enter the land because of their cynical and grumbling attitude - the complaints of these grumbling Israelites (Numbers 14:35,27). They are also told that, by contrast, the little ones (pj taph) certainly will enter the land. The text says that the youngsters lacked moral discernment the day (Mwyh hayom), a phrase variously translated by the versions quoted earlier: yet (NIV & NEB); in that day (AV); this day (RSV); still (GNB). The specific context helps determine how the phrase should be translated, and hence the NIV can rightly translate it as both that day (eg. Numbers 11:32) and also as today (eg. Deuteronomy 2:18). Moses speech in Deuteronomy 1 is given 40 years after Gods judgement was first passed (Numbers 14:33), and the day (Mwyh hayom) refers most naturally to that day when Gods judgement was originally passed. (The alternative - this day - would suggest that people who were now in their early 40s now lacked moral discernment and responsibility). Therefore one set of conclusions to be drawn from these passages is:w that there is a group designated little ones (pj taph) w that they are those children who do not know good from evil, w and that they are therefore innocent of the sinful attitude displayed by their elders. Theirs was an age of innocence.

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What is the age of innocence?

While Deuteronomy 1:39 specifies that the little ones (pj taph) certainly will enter the land, Numbers 14 specifies that those over the age of nineteen certainly will not do so:In this desert your bodies will fall - every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me. 30Not one of you will enter the land This might refer to the census described in Numbers 1:1-54. It has to do with listing the Israelite army, and the men twenty years old or greater are included. An earlier census, also dealing with men twenty years old or greater, is described in Exodus 30:11-16. This has to do with a ransom for atonement purposes, and also serves (in effect) as taxation: collecting the funds for maintaining the tent of worship. The age of twenty years also appears as a cut-off point in Leviticus, where the context is that of dedication. Leviticus 27 reads:
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The LORD said to Moses, 2"Speak to the Israelites and say to them: `If anyone makes a special vow to dedicate persons to the LORD by giving equivalent values, 3set the value of a male between the ages of twenty and sixty at fifty shekels of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel; 4and if it is a female, set her value at thirty shekels. 5If it is a person between the ages of five and twenty, set the value of a male at twenty shekels and of a female at ten shekels. 6If it is a person between one month and five years, set the value of a male at five shekels of silver and that of a female at three shekels of silver. 7If it is a person sixty years old or more, set the value of a male at fifteen shekels and of a female at ten shekels. These verses recognise several key stages, and differentiate between people depending on their ages:w one month to five years w five to twenty years w twenty to sixty years w more than sixty years We therefore observe that Scripture does not simply bracket together everyone under the age of twenty as a single category. - 11 -

The passages about military service and atonement ransom money regard those over the age of twenty as adults, fully accountable, and responsible for participating in national life. But below the age of twenty years there are also distinctions to be drawn, and the Lord says those aged under five years are to be treated differently from those over five. This is the only passage (apart from 2 Samuel 4:4, which notes the age of Mephibosheth) which refers specifically to children aged five years. Furthermore, the only other passage which makes an evaluation of children on the basis of their stated age4 is 2 Chronicles 31:16, where priestly families (a sub-group within the nation) received a portion for each male over three years old. It is therefore quite possible that the phrase little ones (pj taph) refers specifically to children under the age of five. However, we must not claim more than the passage allows, and this is only a very plausible possibility, not a proven definition.

What about the older children?

Numbers 14 states that a certain group are excluded from the land:29

In this desert your bodies will fall - every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me. 30Not one of you will enter the land It is clear from this statement that one group of people will certainly not enter the land: they are the ones (a) who are over the age of nineteen and (b) who were counted in the census and (c) who grumbled against God. This is a triple condition. However, since Joshua and Caleb are the only two men who did not grumble, we can simply concentrate on the first two conditions. Obviously all who were counted in the census some years previously would be over nineteen by this stage. But there would also be some older teenagers who had reached the age of twenty since then and who were not counted in the census. Only the first group is told that they will not enter the land. We should also be aware that this statement alone does not mean that all who are under the age of twenty will enter the land. Logically there could still be people under twenty who did not enter.

All references from ages 0 to 12 have been examined

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What is said about each group of people?

It is helpful to list what is said about each of the age groups that have been mentioned. It is also vitally important not to claim more than the texts actually state. w People who are twenty or older and who were counted in the census and who grumbled against God - will not enter the land. w People who are twenty or older and who were counted in the census but who did not grumble - Joshua and Caleb, and they will enter. w People who are twenty or older but who were not counted in the census because they were too young at that time - nothing is said. w People who are still under twenty (and who therefore were not counted in the census because they were too young) but who are too old to be called little ones (pj taph) - nothing is said. w People who are described as little ones (pj taph) (possibly those under five years of age at the time of the census, but certainly they are young children) - definitely will enter the land. (We should also note that by the time they entered the land they would be over forty years old according to Number 14:33).

Definitely do enter the land "Little ones" Joshua & Caleb

Definitely do NOT enter the land Over 20 when the census was taken No indication of whether or not they enter the land Now over 20, but too young to be counted when census was taken Still under 20 but too old now to be described as "little ones"

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Right and wrong before the age of twenty

It is time to refer back to the original statement that a child who dies before they are twenty-one years old goes to heaven, regardless of whether they have personally said sorry for sin and become a friend of Jesus. There is an assumption made in the statement :- that a person is not accountable for distinguishing between right and wrong until they reach twenty years of age. In fact the assumption may go further than this - that a person is not able to distinguish right and wrong until they reach twenty years of age (since the phrase on which the argument is based, used in Deuteronomy 1:39, is: do not yet know good from bad). Those who have been parents might well challenge this assumption simply on the basis of their own experience! However, we are seeking to base our understanding on what is recorded in Scripture. Having carefully examined the passages in their context and in conjunction with other passages, seeking to interpret scripture from scripture where possible, we have to conclude that this assumption cannot be justified. There are some lessons which can rightly be drawn from these verses, and they are :w There is a stage of life in which people do not yet know good from evil, and during which they might not be held accountable for sin. People at this stage are called little ones (pj taph). w There is a stage of life in which people were clearly accountable for their sin. This applied to all who were twenty years or older at the time of the census. w There is a stage of life where the issue of accountability is not stated when people are under twenty but past the stage of being called little ones (pj taph). It is possible (on the basis of Leviticus 27:5) that this covers the years from five to twenty.

Do children automatically go to heaven?

Numbers 14:27-35 and Deuternomy 1:34-39 do not address this question, and we must remember the fact that some of the adults who did not enter the promised land did, nevertheless, enter heaven. However, the reason given for why their little ones were allowed to enter the promised land is that they were

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unable to distinguish between good and evil and therefore did not share in their parents sin. Since this is the only indication in Scripture of the accountability or otherwise of young children, it seems right to conclude that God continues to deal with them in the same gracious way: An infant is, by nature, a fallen sinful human like any other person. It does not become sinful when it commits its first sinful act, but rather each and every child sins because of the fallen nature they have in common with every other person apart from Jesus. However, during its early years the Lord does not hold that child accountable for its sinfulness because it does not yet know right from wrong. This is the case even though a young child will probably not have confessed or expressed any personal faith in Christ. It seems right also to conclude that as children grow older they pass through a transitional stage of increasing responsibility until they become fully accountable for their sin and for their response to Jesus Christ. Of them, as indeed with every person, we must share Abrahams conviction that the LORD will treat each one totally fairly. Far be it from [God] to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. ...Will not the Judge of all the earth do right? (Genesis 18:25). What we are not told is what happens in the case of each individual child, and one practical pastoral consequence is that we must be wary of giving either false assurance or false condemnation. We simply do not know the fate of each. We also have the assurance that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13), a passage which goes on the state the vital importance of communicating the good news of salvation through Jesus so that people may choose to call on the name of the Lord. Therefore another practical pastoral consequence is that the church has to take seriously and urgently the issue of evangelism with children as much as with older people.

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Outline of the conclusions reached

In Deuteronomy 1:39 a group of people is allowed to enter Canaan. They are described as little ones (Hebrew taph), and the verse then clarifies this label by not using simply the general phrase children (Hebrew ben), but more specifically children who do not yet know good from bad. This is a specific, smaller group from among all the children. The term taph comes from the verb taphach, meaning to skip, trip, take quick little steps and appears to be the Hebrew equivalent of toddler. Leviticus 27:5 suggests this may refer to children up to the age of five. In particular, the statement that they do not yet know good from bad does not refer to children and youths up to the age of twenty. It applies to young children, toddlers, little ones, taph. From the age of twenty onwards, men are treated as adults without caveat. They are not permitted to enter the land since they are accountable for their actions, they are enumerated for purposes of national service, and their contribution towards the atonement ransom is significantly different from those under the age of twenty. The situation regarding the period between toddler years and twenty is not stated. It is possible that this may best be described as a transitional period during which a child becomes aware of, and accountable for, right and wrong. We do not know whether everyone under the age of twenty entered the land, only that the taph definitely did enter and those over nineteen at the census definitely did not enter. Therefore on the basis of these passages we are able to offer some assurance regarding the very young - namely that they are not held accountable for sin since they do not know right from wrong. It therefore seems that those who die in infancy will inherit heaven, even though they probably will not yet have confessed or expressed any personal faith in Christ. However, these verses do not justify giving that same assurance to older children, and so it is untrue to say that all children who die before the age of twenty will go to heaven whether or not they have personally surrendered to Christ. For these older children, as with adults, the key question is that of their personal faith and accountability. What we do have is the assurance that Gods judgement of them (as, indeed, of all people) will be unquestionably and perfectly fair and right. - 16 -

Against this background the church has a clear mandated responsibility to share with these children and young people the good news of Jesus Christ, in the hope that they too might turn to the Lord and receive His free gift of eternal life. There is, after all, no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? (Romans 10:14).

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