Why Does God Kill Children?

When God Forsakes His Own
Or: God Felt Like Killing Your Children Today
December 15, 2007
Revised from a draft written on October 12, 2005

Mary Rowlandson’s The Grace and Glory of God tells the story of how, after witnessing the murder of her friends, the death of one of her children, and suffering starvation and depression, she is finally ransomed back to her husband for the cost of twenty pounds. How did she reconcile her traumatic experiences with her devout faith? Perhaps her husband can explain.

Following her return to her colony, on November 21, 1678, her husband, Joseph Rowlandson, gave a sermon entitled “The Possibility of God’s Forsaking a people”. The preface to Joseph’s sermon argues that, “As God’s presence is the greatest glory to a People on this side of Heaven, so his absence is the greatest misery on this side hell.” Why would God ever condemn man to this hell?

Well, as Joseph tells it, “When God forsakes his own, yet they cry after him, he withdraws himself from them sometimes.” Now it all makes sense. No, but really, Joseph asks, “why doth the Lord forsake such a People?” Well, Joseph is happy enough to provide “The Reasons” to his own rhetorical question.

“To Shew that he hath no need of any, he hath forsaken many, and may forsake many more, to shew that he hath no need of any. God would have all the world to take notice, (that though all men have need of him, yet) he hath no need of any man.” In other words, God forsakes man to show that God don’t need no one. God’s an independent man. You need God, God doesn’t need you.

“To testifie his Sanctity, and severity against sin. He will not spare them, that have been near him, if they will not spare their sins for him. He will not spare them, that have been near him, if they will not spare their sin for him.” God doesn’t need you, and if you don’t do what God tells you to do, he’ll up and blow town. In other words, “Do what I tell ya, OR ELSE.” Maybe God enjoys ordering people around?

“To be a warning to all that enjoy his gracious presence. That they see that they make much of it, and that they take heed that they do not sin against him, and forsake him, and provoke him to forsake them also.” Basically, if you like God, then you better enjoy him while you have him, because if you don’t love God enough, he’s outta here. Going, going, gone!

God will forsake you if you sin. Why is there injustice? Why do the Others come for you, kill your children, steal you from your home, and starve you? Because God felt like reminding you that no matter where you are, no matterwho you are, he might forsake you just to prove that he can. Even in spite of, or perhaps especially if, you love him.