What the Bible Says about Euthanasia & Assisted Dying

God clearly opposes active euthanasia, whether it involves plunging a sword into the bleeding body of a king on a battlefield (2 Samuel 1:9-10) or plunging a syringe full of phenobarbital into the veins of a dying patient. The prohibition against murder in the Ten Commandments logically includes murder of the self (Exodus 20:13). 

Mercy killing, whether committed actively or passively, is always presented in a negative light in the Bible. In Scripture, people who either killed themselves or sought to be put out of their misery are always seen as disobedient (See Judges 9:54-57; 1 Kings 16:15-19; Matthew 27:5). 

And as for those who will say, “I’ll do with my body as I wish,” God has a re-sponse: “You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). 

No, there’s no biblical account of someone refusing medical treatment to cause death. But what we do have is the example of Jesus and the choices He made in His dying. When Jesus was hanging on His cross, He was offered one drink - which He refused - and a second, which He accepted. 

Did He change His mind? No, the first drink offered Him was wine mixed with myrrh, a narcotic drink (Mark 15:23). The second was a sour wine vinegar, a drink intended to relieve thirst more effectively than plain water (John 19:29). 

David Mathis writes, “This first wine represented an offer to ease the pain, to opt for a small shortcut... But this offer Jesus refused... And the second (sour) wine was given to keep him ‘conscious for as long as possible,’ and thus have the effect of prolonging his pain. This is the wine Jesus drank.” 

Similarly, Dr. John MacArthur says of the second offered drink, “On the one hand this would quench a momentary thirst but over the long haul it could... [bring] the kind of refreshment that allowed a person to live a little bit longer.” 

A great deal was accomplished in the death of Jesus, and I’m not saying that in His death, Jesus made a definitive statement on end-of-life choices. Yes, Jesus was an example for us, as 1 Peter 2:21 tells us, but His example encompasses far more than our end-of-life choices. What I am saying is that Jesus did not allow the threat of prolonged suffering to influence His decisions. Jesus chose not to sidestep suffering - not to take a shortcut - but instead to meet pain head-on. 

In short? The Bible teaches that any means to produce or has-ten death in order to alleviate suffering is never justified. Or in the language of the Bible, it is never right to do evil. 

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Excerpt taken from Joni Eareckson Tada’s book, “When Is It Right To Die?” Zondervan, 2018.