If a child has not reached a mental state where he can distinguish between God and Satan (both of which are adult concepts) and is unable to make a clear choice for one or the other, then it seems incompatible with the known nature of God that He would cast such a one into hell.

     Further, we have to take into account those who are under extreme mental retardation. Would a "Downs Syndrome" baby, unable to move much less express herself, die and be cast into hell for refusing to accept Jesus Christ as Savior?

     In my mind I cannot see the justice of God served by such an action. True, all are born in sin (Romans 3:23; 5.12), but if God allowed Jesus to suffer such anguish for our sins, wouldn't it be expected that He make a way for the extremely retarded to be given a choice?

     If Jesus preached to the Old Testament saints (Ephesians 4:7-10) and offered them the choice of redemption in Him while He was between death and resurrection, then couldn't He find a way to save the child who died before he had the chance to choose? To me, this is compatible with the great Grace of God.

     Some Christians actually use the following verse to prove that children under the "age of accountability" will go to hell should they die:

Galatians 4:19 "My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you"

     However, this passage does not deal with the "Age of Accountability" in children, but instead deals with the suffering that the Pastor undergoes with his flock. Paul referred to the Galatians as "my little children", not because they were in reality little children, or because he was addressing little children, but because each member of that flock were placed under his care (as their Pastor) and their disobedience (in following the Law instead of Christ) was as painful to him as the labor of birth would be to a mother. The writer of Hebrews had this to say concerning this:

Hebrews 13:17 "Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you."

     Paul had to labor with the Galatians twice: the first time was when he led them to Christ, and the second time is now, when he is having to lead them away from the Law as a means of salvation. Each Pastor labors and suffers with his God given flock, trying to lead them to accept and apply the truths of God's Word to their hearts. This is often an uphill battle, especially when the flock deviates into false doctrine as the Galatians had done. All Godly Pastors will literally labor, just as a mother in birth labors, focusing on their flock to the exclusion of all else. The sad thing was, Paul's labor was twice as bad because of the apostasy of the Galatians.

The Bible does say that we bear accountability for our own sins in the following two verses:

Ezekiel 18:20 "The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him."

Matthew 12:37 "For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."

Jesus also told us that the "blind" or unknowing were not accountable for their sin:

John 9:39-41 "And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind. And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also? ; Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth."

     And that once "we see" our sin remains, or is accountable. The Bible also says we shall receive our own reward according to our own labor in the following two verses:

I Corinthians 3:8 "Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor."

Galatians 6:5 "For every man shall bear his own burden."

     Which seems to suggest that there is an "age of accountability" among mankind. Jesus went on to say:

Luke 12:47 "And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more."

     That if the servant knows little, little punishment is due him, but to he who knows more more is expected. The early orthodox Jews believed in an age of accountability, and to this day have a Bar Mitzvah to celebrate a child's passage into the age of accountability (the Jews fix this at about 13 years old). This is a quotation from one of their scholars:

Dear Rabbi (Ohr Somayach),  My son and I are trying to research the Biblical age of accountability and the Bar Mitzvah. We would appreciate any help. Thank You, Sharon."

Dear Sharon,  The age thirteen for a boy is derived from a verse about Yaakov's son Levi. Referring to Shimon and Levi, the Torah says "each man took his sword ...." At that time Levi was thirteen years old. He is thus the youngest person the Torah calls a "man." The Torah specifically referred to him as a "man" in order to imply that thirteen is the age of male adulthood.

By age thirteen, it can be assumed that a boy has reached physical and mental maturity and is therefore responsible for his actions. For a girl this is at age 12. By Torah law, a 12 year-old girl or a 13 year-old boy can enter into legal contracts, incur legal obligations and must observe all the commandments, like keeping kosher and observing Shabbat.

Sources: Rashi Tractate Nazir 29b; Tractate Sanhedrin chapter 8

     So, is there an age of accountability for children? I believe that the Scripture supports this as true, though there is no one clear passage in Scripture that directly states this. Again, this is, to my knowledge, an "inferred doctrine".

     I believe that the character of God demands that people make an informed choice for or against salvation, and a child under a certain age cannot make this choice. Finally, the orthodox Jews, who were the stewards of the Old Testament, believed in an age of accountability for all people. You may not believe in an "age of accountability": disagree with me if you will. Let God be your guide!

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