Life in the Womb: Part 1

The Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson has renewed and reenergized the debate over abortion in our country. It is important that Christians know what God states in the Bible regarding this issue. Simply stated the Bible teaches that life begins at conception, that God is actively involved in our development in the womb and that he knows us as persons even before we are born.

Basic biology and medical science both teach that life begins at conception. Life comes from life. Cells cannot grow, divide and differentiate if they are not living.

Life begins with the formation of the zygote – the combining into 1 cell of the sperm and the egg. These cells divide to form a blastocyst – the structure that is embedded into the wall of the uterus (womb). The blastocyst will become the placenta and the embryo.

An embryo is the structure of the baby during the stage of life that organ structures and body parts (e.g. limbs) are formed. The embryo grows and develops into a fetus (Latin for “offspring”). A fetus is the fully formed child which continues to grow until birth. The fetus is clearly recognizable as a human child by 5 to 6 weeks after conception.

The heart starts to beat at 5-6 weeks and this was the basis of so-called “heart beat” legislation. Heart beat bills are bills that limit abortion to the first six weeks of life. Ending a human life in its earliest stages is still a violation of Biblical truth.

In Psalm 139, David recognized God’s role in his development in the womb. “For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;” (vv. 13-14). In verse 16, David goes on to make a remarkable statement that recognizes the earliest forms of human life (zygote and embryo) as being human and known by God: “Your eyes have seen my unformed substance.” The Hebrew word used is “golem” which indicates something that is not completely formed. It is something that is wrapped up in itself and needs to be unfolded.

A tent used in camping is a good analogy of this principle. When it is folded up in a backpack it is a tent but it needs to be “unfolded” and to be set up in order to be useful. The zygote (single cell human) has all of the genetic code needed to multiply and “unfold” itself into a complete child.

Even in this incomplete state of development, God already recognized David and God was actively involved in the process of David’s development. God was responsible for taking David (and each of us) from a form that is recognizable to the human eye as a child, to a fully formed child.

Left undisturbed, the zygote will develop into a baby. A baby that is clearly recognizable as a human life and more importantly that is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26).