QandA: Bastardy, Languages, Babel, Dragons

The following question came from Christine:

What does God say about children born out of wedlock? Will they be blessed?

GodSaidManSaid responds:

King David and Bathsheba had an adulterous affair that brought about the murder of her husband Uriah. After Uriah’s death, David took Bathsheba to wife. The child that they propagated in adultery was born unto them and then taken by God shortly after its birth. David had repented of his terrible sin but he and his family paid an enormous price. David made this telling statement concerning the child born of adultery and murder, II Samuel 12:22-23:

22 And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether GOD will be gracious to me, that the child may live?

23 But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.

This child was accepted by God. It was not responsible for its parents’ sins. The following passage in James 4:17 defines sin:

Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Ezekiel 18:20:

The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

The child is not responsible for its parents’ sins.

Jesus speaks of the little ones in Matthew 18:10-11:

10 Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.

11 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.

The real issue is not the baby, but the parent or parents who raise the child. The parents’ spiritual condition will very likely be assumed by the child as it develops. The need to be born-again, as in all conditions, is paramount. Jesus said in John 3:3:

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

I John 1:7:

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

I John 2:1-2:

1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

As we repent of our sins, believing upon the Lord Jesus Christ for our atonement, the new birth begins. If you haven’t made this decision for Christ, stop now and click onto "Further With Jesus" on this website.

When one is born-again, all sins are washed away and God remembers them no more. II Corinthians 5:17-18:

17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

A Christian parent or parents have a special blessing that they give to their children. A believing parent also sanctifies his or her child. I Corinthians 7:14 reads:

For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.

A believing parent is instructed to bring up children "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord."

Chapters 11 and 12 of Judges speak of a Godly and mighty man of valor named Jephthah. Jephthah was born to a harlot.

You might be surprised to know that the official position of unbelieving Jews is that Jesus Christ was a bastard, a fatherless child. They refuse to believe Isaiah 7:14:

Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

If Isaiah 7:14 is true, and of course it is, they crucified their Messiah. Remember, children are beloved of God.

The following question came from Leonard:

Let me tell you up front that I am not as well educated in these matters as I should be. If my question sounds silly or flippant, please accept my apologies. I understand your argument about the King James Bible. It is very enlightening. But it got me to think about other languages. How do those who have Bibles translated into Russian or German or Chinese or whatever know they have the right translation? I am sure God doesn’t punish them for not reading English. Any explanation would be appreciated.

GodSaidManSaid responds:

The question of Bible translations is not what language it is translated into but what manuscripts were used when it was translated. The New Testament found in the Authorized King James Version was translated by 50 to 60 of the English speaking world’s finest language experts. They translated from the over 5,000 hand-written Greek manuscripts existing in their day. If the vast majority (well over 90%) of the manuscripts recorded that a passage existed, it was accepted as God’s Word. Thus, the concept known as the majority-text was created. All other modern day English translations are a product of Westcott and Hort’s 1881 minority-text version of the Bible, which was from one or two contaminated manuscripts. On grounds of age, scholarship, manuscripts, and geography, the King James Version stands alone. The issue is manuscripts and not language.

The following e-mail was from Cliff:

Some of your logic accounting for interracial marriages seems illogical and contradictory. First, God dispersed the people of Babel in all directions to keep them from their evil intents. But now it’s alright to bring them together through interracial marriages, undoing God’s work? Duh!

GodSaidManSaid responds:

Cliff is responding to an article on this website titled, "What God Said About Bi- Racial Marriages." Click on if you haven’t visited this message.

Cliff, God did not scatter the people of Babel because of their differing racial traits, simply because we have no Scriptural record of any. He scattered them for their evil designs. It is sin, Cliff, not skin. We are all the offspring of Adam and Eve, whether some of us like to hear that or not.

The following e-mail came from Cathy:

Could you explain to me about dragons? My son and I are always at odds about them. He wants to collect them but I tell him that the Bible tells us that Satan is the biggest dragon. Are dragons good or bad?

GodSaidManSaid responds:

Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language defines "dragon: a kind of winged serpent, much celebrated in the romances of the middle ages. Also: a genus of animals, the Draco. They have four legs, a cylindrical tail, and membranacious wings, radiated like the fins of a flying fish." [End of quote] The Word of God speaks about fiery flying serpents. See "Fire Breathing Dragons and Fiery Flying Serpents" as well as "Dinosaurs," "Marvin — Dinosaurs and Fossils," and "Snakes Had Legs" on this website.

Dragons and serpents are not evil in themselves. Satan used the serpent in the temptation of Eve. God then makes a very interesting statement in Genesis 3:1:

Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

This word "subtle" means "cunning or crafty," thus Satan chose it as the appropriate candidate for his devious purposes.

In Job, chapter 41, God speaks favorably about leviathan, the seagoing dragon. Also read Isaiah 27:1. Another dragon or dinosaur-like creature that God called behemoth is found in Job 40:15-24. It is described with an enormous tail, like the cedar tree.

Cathy, your son’s fondness for any of God’s creatures would not be wrong, but some of the dragon (dinosaur, terrible lizard) art carries Satanic implications. Be sure that you and your son discern between the two.




References:

King James Bible

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