One of the most common arguments against an older AoA is that children do know when they are doing something wrong. If they know that what they are doing is wrong, then it follows that they can be held accountable for their actions and should be punished. But to whom are they accountable? The Bible is very clear that they are accountable to their parents.
Proverbs 13:24 He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly.
Proverbs 19:18 Chasten your son while there is hope, And do not set your heart on his destruction.
Proverbs 22:15 Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.
Proverbs 23:13 Do not withhold correction from a child, For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.
Proverbs 23:14 You shall beat him with a rod, And deliver his soul from hell.
Prov 29:15 The rod and rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.
It is the parent to whom the child must answer. God puts children into our care and under our tutelage. When the Bible says that children under twenty years old do not yet know good and evil, it means that the law does not condemn them. It doesn’t mean that they don’t know right from wrong or that they never act sinfully. It means that they are innocent in the eyes of God.
Romans 5:13 …but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
If, as science has demonstrated, a child’s brain, especially the part that is responsible for executive thinking, is not fully developed until he/she reaches twenty years old, then it stands to reason that God will not hold them accountable until they have the capacity to truly understand the consequences of their actions. For some children, this might occur at a younger age, for others it might not happen until they’re older. But God, in His wisdom, has chosen the age of twenty to be the point at which humans are developed enough to make choices pertaining to their eternal life.
In fact, when looking at the command of the holy half shekel, God acknowledges the differences that exist between individuals. In His command to the Israelites, He said, “The rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when you give an offering to the LORD, to make atonement for yourselves.” (Exodus 30:15) Regardless of a person’s station in life, each had to give the same amount to make atonement for himself. This is a beautiful demonstration of God’s mercy and justice.
Proverbs 13:24 He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly.
Proverbs 19:18 Chasten your son while there is hope, And do not set your heart on his destruction.
Proverbs 22:15 Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.
Proverbs 23:13 Do not withhold correction from a child, For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.
Proverbs 23:14 You shall beat him with a rod, And deliver his soul from hell.
Prov 29:15 The rod and rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.
It is the parent to whom the child must answer. God puts children into our care and under our tutelage. When the Bible says that children under twenty years old do not yet know good and evil, it means that the law does not condemn them. It doesn’t mean that they don’t know right from wrong or that they never act sinfully. It means that they are innocent in the eyes of God.
Romans 5:13 …but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
If, as science has demonstrated, a child’s brain, especially the part that is responsible for executive thinking, is not fully developed until he/she reaches twenty years old, then it stands to reason that God will not hold them accountable until they have the capacity to truly understand the consequences of their actions. For some children, this might occur at a younger age, for others it might not happen until they’re older. But God, in His wisdom, has chosen the age of twenty to be the point at which humans are developed enough to make choices pertaining to their eternal life.
In fact, when looking at the command of the holy half shekel, God acknowledges the differences that exist between individuals. In His command to the Israelites, He said, “The rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when you give an offering to the LORD, to make atonement for yourselves.” (Exodus 30:15) Regardless of a person’s station in life, each had to give the same amount to make atonement for himself. This is a beautiful demonstration of God’s mercy and justice.