13:24 Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.

23:13 Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die. 14 If you strike him with the rod, you will save his soul from Sheol.

Proverbs 13:24; 23:13-14 (ESV)

In today’s world, spanking has become very controversial. Some opponents of the practice, however, come from a seemingly unlikely group: Bible scholars. Writing for the journal Interpretation, Randall J. Heskett of the Toronto School of Theology concludes that “it is sad that many people assert their right to spank their children because ‘the Bible’ offers a warrant to do so.”1 In his opinion, practices such as spanking are outmoded, one of numerous unfortunate “pitfalls in the biblical text.”2 Rather than trying to make the “rod” mean something other than corporal punishment, Heskett thinks that the instruction in Proverbs 13 and 23 is just simply wrong.3

Those who ignore biblical wisdom, however, do so at their own peril. Solomon explicitly reasons that love results in godly discipline. Indeed, the book presents parents with the options. If they hate their children, they will avoid spanking them (13:24). But if they love their son, they will be diligent to discipline him. (Of course, one must not let the pain of punishment shift to the harm of abuse.) But why, one may wonder, is the sting of a “rod” necessary? Two principles come to mind.

First of all, pain is part of a built-in warning system that human beings have. It alerts them to the fact that something is wrong that needs to be fixed. When a parent spanks a child on the behind, that adult is able to provide just the right amount of discomfort necessary to get the little one’s attention. In that moment, the parent can get to the heart problem that prompted the child’s wrong behavior, whether that root cause be rebellion against authority, pride, or selfishness. Explaining why what the son did was wrong deepens the child’s own moral reservoir and prepares him for a life of virtue as opposed to the dangers of living a life of sin. As the seventh-century B.C. Aramaic sage Ahiqar taught, “If I strike you, my son, you will not die, but if I allow you to follow your heart, you will not live.”4

Second, the act of spanking, if done properly, can better prepare a young person to understand the gospel. Godly family discipline follows this outline: the child disobeys and commits a wrong; restitution is made by a painful cost; consequently, reconciliation can occur between the two parties involved. Later on in life, by God’s grace, the child will remember this pattern and thus more clearly see that a payment must be made for all sin, and that only one act of obedience can wipe away guilt: the work of the Lord Jesus on the cross. That is one reason the proverb says that such discipline “will save his soul from Sheol” (23:14).

Spanking is ultimately about the care of the soul. Parents get but a few short years to do what it takes to save their little boy or girl from a life of trouble. In a world that has so little regard for spiritual things, it is not surprising that respect for traditional family discipline has fallen into disrepute too. But let the critics take their shots. Through obedience, the people of God and their children press toward the good life, both now, and in the life that is to come.
 
Footnotes:
 
1  Ronald J. Heskett, “Proverbs 23:13-14,” Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology 55, #2 (April 2001): 181.
 
2  Ibid.
 
3  See also Kairos Journal article, “To Spank or Not to Spank.”
 
4  As cited in John H. Walton, Victor Matthews, Mark Chavalas, IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 567.
 

article form Kairos Journal

First Baptist Church of Perryville is located on Route 40 across from the new Principio Health Center.