Proverbs 23:13

Corporal punishment for children is a law from heaven. It is not an option, suggestion, or theory. Its purpose is simple – save children from premature and unnecessary death. Debating or opposing this command makes you an accomplice in child murder, for you reject God’s means of saving children’s lives. Let God be true, but every man a liar!

The world assumes and believes it has a better idea – let children do whatever they wish, and the freedom will motivate them to be disciplined and wise on their own. Add a daily dose of the public zoo, MTV, revolutionary music, and texting moronic peers, and they will grow like weeds into the weed-smoking educators that invented the anti-God idea!

The fruit of this experiment is obvious to all but the willfully blind – youth today, and the so-called adults they become, are narcissistic, snotty, ignorant, lazy, and rebellious fools, as the Bible warned and defined (Pr 22:15; 29:15; Ps 14:1). The proof of this indictment is beyond the scope of this commentary, but the moral degeneration of the last few generations is easily observed and quantified by nearly any measure of social integrity.

The correction here is corporal punishment, for it involves the use of a rod. Your grandparents understood it well, for spanking was obvious to their sober minds. The rod had much to do with the former greatness of America and the tranquility of its society. Let Britannica Encyclopedia (14th Edition) remind the ignorant or effeminate:

FLOGGING has been one of the most universally utilized methods of punishing public crimes, as well as a means of preserving family, domestic, military and academic discipline.

The instruction from God and Solomon is to use this form of correction with children. It must be administered to save their lives, and it should be done early (Pr 13:24; 19:18). It is the mark of true love (Pr 3:12; 13:24), for parents with a great desire for their children’s futures will want to drive foolishness out of their hearts (Pr 22:15; 29:15,17).

Parents rejecting the use of a rod hate their children and will cause them harm, for they will grow up with innate folly ruling them to their own hurt. Any sentimental drivel or twaddle to the contrary is irrelevant, for the permissive actions of the parents prove disregard for their children’s futures. Sober obedience to authority saves lives, but merely grounding a child or withholding an allowance for a day or two will not train it into them.

How can children die? A thousand ways! Suicide is self-murder by unruled emotion. Undisciplined children disobey speed limits, drug laws, gun laws, and police authority. They flaunt anger, envy, and pride, which can cause fatal conflicts. Undisciplined children violate marital and other contracts, which can bring murder or public execution. Of course, Solomon wrote under a government practicing capital punishment.

But there are other ways to die as well. Some jobs are dead end, because an untrained child will not obey authority, get along with others, or pursue a transferable skill. Some marriages are dead, because childish pride and selfishness destroyed the union designed for peace and pleasure. Fools can ruin other relationships, and a soul can practically die from the pain and trouble caused by his own foolishness (Pr 5:7-14; 7:21-23; 9:16-18).

Corporal punishment consistently and lovingly administered will prevent these different ways people die. Thankfully, God loves His children enough to chasten and scourge them (Heb 12:5-10). Turning a person back to truth saves a soul from death and hides a multitude of sins (Jas 5:19-20), and sometimes it may take stronger methods to get them to turn (Pr 26:3; 29:19). God has spoken; this issue is not debatable (Ps 119:128; Is 8:20).