Child Abuse and Threats of Reporting to Authorities
Biblical texts address the protection of the vulnerable and the administration of justice, which can be understood to encompass concerns related to child abuse and the reporting of such offenses. The Old Testament law, for instance, includes cautions regarding judicial proceedings and the importance of truthful testimony [4]. Exodus 23:1 warns against raising or receiving a false report, emphasizing the need for integrity in legal matters and protecting individuals from unjust accusations [4, 8]. This principle underscores a broader concern for justice and the prevention of harm caused by deceit.
The concept of reporting to authorities appears in various contexts within the biblical narrative. In some instances, it is presented as a negative act, particularly when it involves betrayal or persecution. For example, Jesus warns his disciples that family members will betray one another, with children even lodging information against their parents with authorities, leading to their death [5]. This passage in Matthew 10:21 highlights the extreme hostility that the early followers of Christ would face, where even the closest family ties would be severed due to religious opposition [5]. Similarly, Job laments that even "young children" (or "wicked" individuals, depending on the translation) would speak against him, indicating a breakdown of social order and respect [6].
However, the role of authorities in maintaining order and justice is also recognized. Proverbs 19:12 suggests that the king's wrath is like the roaring of a lion, serving as a "motive to submission to lawful authority" [2]. This implies that authorities have a legitimate role in upholding justice and that their power should be respected. In the New Testament, the public authorities are seen as those who might be "called in question" by their superiors if order is not maintained, as seen in Acts 19:40 [3]. This indicates an expectation that authorities are accountable for their actions and for ensuring proper administration of justice.
The biblical emphasis on teaching children to fear God and to remember divine acts (Psalm 78:6-8; Exodus 13:8; Joshua 4:7) suggests a parental responsibility for moral and spiritual instruction [1]. This instruction is intended to guide children toward righteous living and away from actions that would incur divine punishment [1]. While not directly addressing child abuse, the broader biblical framework promotes the well-being and proper upbringing of children within a just society. The warnings to "watch" and "pray" in Luke 21:36, in anticipation of judgment and vengeance, extend to personal and eternal accountability, suggesting a divine oversight of all actions, including those that harm the vulnerable [7].
The biblical texts, therefore, present a complex view of reporting and authority. While they acknowledge the potential for malicious reporting and betrayal, they also uphold the importance of truthful testimony, the role of lawful authority in maintaining justice, and the divine expectation of righteous conduct, particularly concerning the vulnerable.
Sources
- Joel (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Joel 1:3: Tell ye your children--in order that they may be admonished by the severity of the punishment to fear God (Psa 78:6-8; compare Exo 13:8; Jos 4:7).”
- Proverbs (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Proverbs 19:12: (Compare Pro 16:14-15; Pro 20:2). A motive to submission to lawful authority.”
- Acts (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Acts 19:40: For we--the public authorities. are in danger of being called in question--by our superiors. Next: Acts Chapter 20”
- Exodus (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Exodus 23:1: Here are, I. Cautions concerning judicial proceedings; it was not enough that they had good laws, better than ever any nation had, but care must be taken for the due administration of justice according to those laws. 1. The witnesses are here cautioned that they neither occasion an innocent man to be indicted, by raising a false report of him and setting common fame against him, nor assist in the prosecution of an innocent man, or one whom they do not know to be guilty, by putting their hand in swearing as witnesses against him, Exo 23:1. Bearing false witness aga”
- Matthew (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Matthew 10:21: And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death--for example, by lodging information against them with the authorities. The deep and virulent hostility of the old nature and life to the new--as of Belial to Christ--was to issue in awful wrenches of the dearest ties; and the disciples, in the prospect of their cause and themselves being launched upon society, are here prepared for the worst.”
- Job (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Job 19:18: young children--So the Hebrew means (Job 21:11). Reverence for age is a chief duty in the East. The word means "wicked" (Job 16:11). So UMBREIT has it here, not so well. I arose--Rather, supply "if," as Job was no more in a state to stand up. "If I stood up (arose), they would speak against (abuse) me" [UMBREIT].”
- Luke (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Luke 21:36: Watch . . . pray, &c.--the two great duties which in prospect of trial are constantly enjoined. These warnings, suggested by the need of preparedness for the tremendous calamities approaching, and the total wreck of the existing state of things, are the general improvement of the whole discourse, carrying the mind forward to Judgment and Vengeance of another kind and on a grander and more awful scale--not ecclesiastical or political but personal, not temporal but eternal--when all safety and blessedness will be found to lie in being able to "STAND BEFOR”
- Exodus (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Exodus 23:1: Thou shalt not raise a false report,.... Of a neighbour, or of any man whatever, either secretly by private slanders, whispers, backbiting and tale bearing, by innuendos, detracting from his good name and credit, suggesting things false and wicked concerning him; or publicly in a court of judicature, bringing a false accusation, laying a false charge, and bearing a false testimony against him: or "thou shall not receive a false report" (p); if there were not so many, that say, Report, and we will report it, that are ready to receive every ill thing of their neighbours”