| Age of Accountability (AOA) |
Created Date: 5-May-2015 |
| Hope for the loss of a child, young adults and others |
Last updated: 5-Oct-2023 |
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Age of Accountability (AOA) is a term that conveys a specific point that someone becomes responsible for their sinful actions in their life. The question is the Age of Accountability a scriptural validated truth? The answer is yes where Christians cannot simply follow some of the traditions that are not scriptural.
Many Biblical Scholars state that Hope, in the English, has taken on a different meaning from its the original Hebrew and Greek meaning. Hope in English means having a positive feeling that something possibly will happen. In the scriptural sense, hope meant the target of faith which will occur. Hope is important for our understanding of who we are when we are Christians and for knowledge of those who die under the AOA.
Many well-meaning people, without required detailed explanation, state the following concerning the Age of Accountability:
There are many questions concerning AOA for someone who had died. These are just the top eight questions:
| Jeremiah 1:5 | Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations. |
Note that the Scriptures do point out that there is not a single person who is deserving of Eternity with God, and not one of us would chose God if He didn't reveal Himself to us first and give us to the Faith, through the Holy Spirit, that Saves us. This is because of our sinful nature rejects God and our nature requires God to first come to each us. God initiates the process where we still have a choice and unfortunately many do not ask and receive the free gift of Salvation through Jesus Christ.
| Psalm 14:2-3 | 2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. 3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one. |
Many Biblical Scholars and this author believe that AOA is scriptural:
There are at least three reasons why there is not an exact age that AOA expires:
| Our knowledge of God's Purpose of all History, gives us comfort that those who have died in the status of AOA, would chose and be with God after death, as discussed further in this topic. Anything that Lucifer, Satanic Forces and evil mankind do in this world, will not stop the ultimate goals of God's plan for all of us, which any suffering including death that we go through in this life will be rewarded in eternity. Those who died under AOA, prior to Jesus Christ on the Cross, would have gone to Upper Sheol just as the Old Testament period people. |
To fully appreciate the gift of AOA, it is important to understand one aspect for those who are not covered under AOA:
Some Biblical Scholars state that God is showing mercy to those who are destined to the Lake of Fire by allowing (or providing) them an earlier death after the AOA. The longer that anyone lives in an unforgiven state (no Salvation) then that person is accumulating more punitive consequences in the Lake of Fire.
There is a similar assertion by many Biblical Scholars, that Jesus Christ spoke in Parables after a specific point in His ministry so that the Pharisees, and others, could not understand the full impact of the truth so that they would be less accountable in:
As you are most likely aware, the Disciples had to ask Jesus Christ for the interpretation and meaning of the Parables on several occasions or Jesus would explain it privately after speaking publicly.
| Matthew 13:10-11 | 10 Then the disciples came and said to him, Why do you speak to them in parables? 11 And he answered them, To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. |
| Luke 8:9-10 | 9 And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, 10 he said, To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand. |
| Mark 4:34 | and He did not speak to them without a parable; but He was explaining everything privately to His own disciples. |
As already stated, there are many Biblical Scholars that state that the preponderance of scriptures shows that AOA is absolutely true where we can find comfort and reassurance! This author agrees and if there is any doubt in the reader's mind then it is my hope that this topic will erase all doubts.
The following is a list of some of the scripture references:
As you will see from the scripture references listed below, there is no definitive age given by God.
Note that the full context of the verses listed below are often dealing with another primary topic, but the age given in the scriptures are a reference point indicating accountabilities and responsibilities.
| 1 | Numbers 1:45 | "So all the numbered men of the sons of Israel by their fathers' households, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war in Israel," (This was including those of 20 years of age and older.) |
| 2 | Numbers 14:29 | your corpses will fall in this wilderness, even all your numbered men, according to your complete number from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against Me. (This was excluding those under 20 years of age who would eventually see the promise land and inherit. The 19 and younger people of Israel were not held accountable for the grumbling of the older.) |
| 3 | Deuteronomy 1:39 | 'Moreover, your little ones who you said would become a prey, and your sons, who this day have no knowledge of good or evil, shall enter there, and I will give it to them and they shall possess it. (These were the offspring of Exodus who were 19 years or younger along with Joshua and Calib. Notice also that God is calling those of 19 years and younger as "little one" and "son with no knowledge of good and evil.") |
| 4 | 1 Chronicles 27:23 | "But David did not count those twenty years of age and under, because the LORD had said He would multiply Israel as the stars of heaven." (Notice that God had told David, not to count those of 20 years or younger. He was allowed to count everyone older.) |
| 5 | Isaiah 7:16 | For before the boy will know enough to refuse evil and choose good, the land whose two kings you dread will be forsaken. |
| 6 | 2 Samuel 12:23 | (This is concerning David's son from adultery with Bathsheba which is born and dies quickly is indicated to have gone to upper Sheol, paradise). "But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me." |
| 7 | Matthew 19:14 | But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. |
| 8 | Jonah 4:11 | (In this verse, God is saying to Jonah that He should have pity on those who are not old enough to recognize their right and left hand): And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle? |
| 9 | Luke 2:42 | (This is speaking of Jesus where the custom of 12 years old is shown to be an age of responsibility of Judaism.) "And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem." |
| 10 | Matthew 18:3 | And said, Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. |
| 11 | 1 Corinthians 7:14 | "For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy." (This indicates the children are holy.) |
| 12 | Roman 7:9 | Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. (The Apostle Paul is telling us he was alive until the age when he understood there was laws and then he became dead and condemned. In other words, he was not accountable until he could recognize the law.) |
| 13 | Romans 10:14 | How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? |
Some scripture references which may apply in the negative sense of there even being an AOA. These are listed, but in this author's opinion are taken out of context if being applied to AOA being true.
| Proverbs 20:11 | Even a child makes himself known by his acts, by whether his conduct is pure and upright. |
| Psalms 58:3 |
(This seems to indicate
damnation from birth but there is a qualifier as the wicked where there
is no word used such as "all".)
"The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies." |
As already mentioned, the scripture references were
(a) collected from multiple sources, and
(b) additional scriptural references that were brought into remembrance by the
Holy Spirit, that may not be in any list the reader has seen before,
that indirectly or directly apply in the positive
sense of an AOA.
These are some additional explanations, that amplify, the list above and also points out the order of most relevance to proving AOA is scripturally tenable and true:
For the Christian, we seem to forget or somehow get confused that we were deserving to receive the Salvation Process, from God, so that we would accept Salvation through Jesus Christ. The scriptures inform us that no one is deserving, but thank God for the point of John 3:16 and many other scriptures.
| John 3:16 | For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. |
| Romans 3:11 | None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. |
| As already stated above: Our knowledge of God's Purpose of all History, gives us comfort that those who have died in the status of AOA, would chose and be with God after death, as discussed further in this topic. Anything that Lucifer, Satanic Forces and evil mankind do in this world, will not stop the ultimate goals of God's plan for all of us, which any suffering including death that we go through in this life will be rewarded in eternity. Those who died under AOA, prior to Jesus Christ on the Cross, would have gone to Upper Sheol just as the Old Testament period people. |
There are numerous comforting scriptural passages that let us know that God is always and absolutely in control of all the moment by moment lives of everyone. God exists outside of all the Time Domains that He created, where He knows the events before they happen. God sometimes takes the Righteous in death where it is a blessing, where we do not understand it.
| Isaiah 57:1-2 | 1The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; devout men are swept away, while no one considers that the righteous are guided from the presence of evil. 2 Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest, lying down in death. |
The satanic forces are limited by the Holy Spirit on what they are allowed to do, where knowing of their limitations will evilly act when they are allowed to do so. All satanic forces, along with evil done by human-beings:
See the topic on suffering for more information.
From a human perspective, when considering the love of God for all of us with
scriptures like 2 Peter 3:9 (shown below) and many others, if the Satanic Realm only
has to kill someone:
before the person could make a Salvation decision, then that actually gives small victories to the Satanic Realm, which is not tenable. That is not logical for God to have not anticipated this and not have made provisions through the Age of Accountability. |
In Ezekiel 33:11, God lets us know that He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. We all fall short of the Glory of God and are sinful creatures, no matter what age and mental ability. God set a plan for Salvation to be available for the world, which is given in the scriptures, but in this author's opinion and inferred by some Biblical Scholars, that the whole plan of God is not revealed in the entirety in the scriptures so that it will give God more Glory to be shared when God acts and reveals more. What will be revealed will also occur in eternity as we will see those who we didn't know who obtained Salvation, that we loved or had concerns.
In Ephesians 1:4, we learn that we were chosen before the foundation of the Earth, which means God would select all those who fall into the Age of Accountability if they would have chosen God had they had the ability to do so for Salvation.
| 2 Peter 3:9 | The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. |
| Romans 5:8 | But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. |
| Ezekiel 33:11 | Say to them, As I live! declares the Lord God, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel? |
| Ephesians 1:4 | just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love |
Even more than God knowing who would chose Him, that die prematurely under the AOA as discussed in the last section of this Topic, there are two scriptural passages that indicate the possibility that all or most individuals that are covered under AOA are automatically granted entrance into Eternity with God.
In the Book of Job, there is testing and many incredible insights given in the Book. An overlooked insight is Job had ten children, and after their death with many other calamites as part of testing, God said he would bless Job and double everything he posed before testing Job. The question is how did God double everything Job had before that was lost when there was only ten new children, and the ten children is the same number that were lost in a calamity?
God did double everything.
| Job 1:2 | Job had 7 sons and 3 daughters. |
| Job 1:19 | when suddenly a windstorm from the desert blew the house down, crushing all of your children. I am the only one who escaped to tell you. |
| Job 42:10-13 | 10 After Job had prayed for his three friends,
the Lord made Job twice as rich as he had been before. 11 Then
Job gave a feast for his brothers and sisters and for his old friends.
They expressed their sorrow for the suffering the Lord had brought on
him, and they each gave Job some silver and a gold ring. 12 The Lord now blessed Job more than ever; he gave him 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 pair of oxen, and 1,000 donkeys. 13 In addition to seven sons, Job had three daughters, 14 whose names were Jemimah, Keziah, and Keren Happuch. 15 They were the most beautiful women in that part of the world, and Job gave them shares of his property, along with their brothers. |
The Apostle Paul, in the Book of Romans, makes a remark in Roman7:9 that before Paul knew the Law of God, that Paul was "alive". After Paul is aware of the Law of God then sin came to life and he "died" which means he was under God's judgment that would lead to exile from God's presence.
Paul continues to explain more about the law in the Book of Romans, but the fascinating and interesting point that can be missed from verse 9 and 10 is the secondary implication. The secondary implication is the understanding that in order for Paul be alive, not dead to trespasses of sin which the Law of God does to make all of us understand the need for a Savior Jesus Christ, then that can only be possible for Paul being under AOA. Any person older than the AOA, even if they had not heard of the Laws of God, are condemned by Romans 1:20, which reinforces Romans 7:9-10 as pertaining to being under AOA.
| Romans 1:20 | For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. |
| Roman 7:9-10 | 9 Before I knew about the Law, I was alive. But as soon as I heard that command, sin came to life, 10 and I died. The very command that was supposed to bring life to me, instead brought death. |
| Ephesians 2:5 | But God was merciful! We were dead because of our sins, but God loved us so much he made us alive with Christ, and God's gift of undeserved grace is what saves you. |
| Matthew 19:14 | But Jesus said, Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these. |
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Many Biblical Scholars point to some of the scriptures and reasons listed above and the implications that if God gives a special dispensation to those who are under the AOA, then it very reasonable to see how God will also:
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This is a reassuring thought possibility! God used Faith to justify those who would obtain Salvation in the times before Jesus Christ's death on the Cross as discussed in the topic on Dispensations of mankind.
We always need to remember that there are Scriptures that point to everything visible in the universe, points to a the Creator who is God. The universe is a witness, as part of God's Creation, for all of mankind and especially for those who are called by God and will seek Him.
This author has heard and read many well-respected Biblical Scholars who have brought up this line of reasoning that someone can potentially have the start of God's revelation through His Creation. These Biblical Scholars postulate that God will give everyone who has died, without the opportunity of hearing of Jesus the Christ, the opportunity to accept Jesus Christ, if their soul looked for God in their life. This does not excuse those who heard and rejected Jesus Christ.
The other point made by many Biblical Scholars, is if someone who did not try to live an accountable life knowing there must be a God then that person would also reject Jesus Christ if presented with the Gospel after death. This negative aspect, is perhaps demonstrated best in the Scriptures by the example given at the end of the 1000 Year Millennial Kingdom of Jesus Christ that when given the chance, there will be people who will reject God even after being exposed to the God of Love in a Perfect Rule.
| Romans 1:20 | For since the creation of the world God s invisible qualities his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. |
| Revelation 20:7-10 | 7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. 9 And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, 10 and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. |
From our earthly viewpoint of life on earth, many of us tend to think that the death, of anyone that is young, is a horrible event and indeed it is. When we, as Christians, get on the other side of our earthly lives, we will see so much more from the correct perspective of God.
God will reveal and show us His marvelous plans, rewards and reasons which we all need to rest in comfort that "all things will work for the good of God and those who are called by Him" as read in Romans 8:28. God's directions in our lives will always show that God made a way for those that would chose God, to enter into His Presence for eternity through Jesus Christ, which may have included a premature exit from our viewpoint. Those plans and paths that God chooses will be perfect, expedient and with rewards.
A premature death of a child or someone we loved, which we thought would have many years of life remaining, may be a Blessing in Eternity that we need to patient to understand. There are many times in history when:
which included those under the AOA, that are:
We need always remember that we live in a Fallen World that is in a Battle against Satanic Forces. It is reassuring to know that God is giving everyone the opportunity to accept Him and God will initiate the process and will give rewards that we cannot understand God's ways.
| Revelation 3:20 | Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. |
| Jeremiah 29:11 |
This scripture was written to Israel as they were about to go into
captivity and God is letting them know that He still has plans for them
after 70 years. This meant that some of them would taste earthly death
before exiting captivity but they are included in God's promise that
does include eternity.
"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." |
| Romans 8:28 | And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. |
It is fascinating to realize that because AOA is a principle of God's Salvation then is there a possibility that God will also include all people under AOA in the future Rapture, before the 70th Week of Daniel that contains the Great Tribulation Period? Some Biblical Scholars state it is a strong possibility with God's Grace and Mercy. The scriptures do not detail how and what will be said concerning the disappearance of people all over the world, where the addition of those under AOA can have these two affects:
While It is not written in any commentaries, that this author has read, I believe that there are many parables such as the Foolish Virgins, which teach us that there will be people who know about the Rapture and the Tribulation Period from a intellectual aspect, but are not Believers. They will recognize many events and the disappearances across the Earth at that time, that can include those under AOA, which will be the catalyst to recognize and ask Jesus Christ to be their Savior.
What to read next?
What is Salvation? Is it is possible to lose Salvation? We have eternal life. Evolution is not real. When a Christian suffers is there benefits from it. Rewards in heaven. Do we Tithe? What does the 3rd Commandment tell us? What is Grace and Mercy? Is there a place of unending punishment and exile form God?