*** Watchtower 1988 March 1 pp.18-22 Childbearing Among God's People ***
Childbearing Among God's People
[…] Childbearing Today
15 How should Christians view marriage and childbearing today, in this "time of the end"? (Daniel 12:4) It is truer than ever that "the scene of this world is changing," or, as another translation puts it, "the present scheme of things is rapidly passing away."-1 Corinthians 7:31, Phillips.
16 Now, as never before, "the time left is reduced." Yes, only a limited time remains for Jehovah's people to finish the work he has given them to do, namely: "This good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come." (Matthew 24:14) That work must be accomplished before the end comes. It is, therefore, appropriate for Christians to ask themselves how getting married or, if married, having children will affect their share in that vital work.
An Ancient Example
17 Jesus likened the time of "the presence of the Son of man" to "the days of Noah." (Matthew 24:37) Noah and his three sons had a specific work to accomplish before the Flood. It involved building a gigantic ark and preaching. (Genesis 6:13-16; 2 Peter 2:5) When Jehovah gave instructions about the building of the ark, Noah's sons were apparently already married. (Genesis 6:18) We do not know exactly how long it took to build the ark, but it seems likely that it took several decades. Interestingly, during all this pre-Flood period, Noah's sons and their wives had no children. The apostle Peter specifically states that 'eight souls were carried safely through the water,' that is, four married couples but no children. (1 Peter 3:20) The sons' remaining childless was possibly for two reasons. First, in view of the approaching destruction by a deluge of waters, they had a divinely appointed job to do that required their undivided attention. Second, they doubtless felt disinclined to bring children into a world where "the badness of man was abundant in the earth and every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only bad all the time," a world "full of violence."-Genesis 6:5, 13.
18 This is not to say that the course of action taken by Noah's sons and their wives before the Deluge was meant to set the rule for married couples living today. Nevertheless, since Jesus compared Noah's day to the period in which we are now living, their example can provide food for thought.
"Critical Times"
19 Like Noah and his family, we are also living in "a world of ungodly people." (2 Peter 2:5) Like them, we are in "the last days" of a wicked system of things that is about to be destroyed. The apostle Paul prophesied that "the last days" of Satan's system would bring "critical times hard to deal with." Showing that raising children would be one of the things hard to deal with, he added that children would be "disobedient to parents." He stated that people in general, not excluding children and adolescents, would be "unthankful, disloyal, having no natural affection." (2 Timothy 3:1-3) While Paul was here prophesying of conditions among worldly people, obviously such prevalent attitudes would make the rearing of children increasingly difficult for Christians, as many have experienced.
20 All the foregoing shows that it is necessary to have a balanced view of childbearing. While it can bring many joys, it can also bring many heartaches. It has advantages and disadvantages. Some of these will be considered in the following article.
[Picture on page 21]
Quick flight from Jerusalem would be more difficult for those with young children
