Quiverfull - the Blessings of Children
by Mrs. Traci Knoppe
Quiverfull - perhaps you’ve heard the term before, and wondered what exactly it meant. Quiverfull means leaving your family planning up to God: no birth control, no natural family planning, no rhythm method - nothing but God’s timing and spacing in regards to the blessing of children. The term ‘quiverfull’ itself is derived from the verse in Psalms:
Psalms 127:3-5 “Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.”
A quiver is what holds arrows. In the above comparison to a warrior, where it is best to go into battle with a full quiver of arrows, so to is a man blessed to have many children in his ‘quiver’.
God clearly sees children as blessings, this is indicated all throughout scripture. It is through his own son (Jesus) that salvation came to the world! (here are just a few verses: Genesis 24: 60; Genesis 22:49; Psalms 37: 25-26; Psalms 112:2; Psalms 128:2-3; Matthew 18:3-6; Matthew 19:14-15; Mark 10:13-16; 1Timothy 2:15)
So why the quiverfull way of life? Let me ask you this, have you ever met anyone more trustworthy than God? Do you like to receive blessings of money, clothing, food and so on from God? Would you refuse such blessings? Then why not trust God to give you blessings of children? Often people worry about providing for the children, but God’s word tells us not to worry about such things.
Luke 12:27-31 “Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you. O you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.”
Not only does God see children as blessings, He also commands us to be fruitful and multiply, it is one of the main purposes for marriage. (see verses: Genesis 1:22, 9:1 and 35:11; Exodus 1:7; Psalms 128:3). Having children is a God’s desire for married couples, and the reason they ‘become one’:
Malachi 2: 15 “Has not the Lord, made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring.”
Just imagine the impact on the world, for the Kingdom of God, that Christian families could make if they all had as many blessings (read: children) as God would give them, and they trained them all up to love the Lord. What an awesome thought!!
I do want to mention something, just because you leave your family planning up to God, doesn’t mean he will give you lots of children. He may choose to give you none. I personally do not believe that the New Testament teaches that a barren woman is being cursed by God! I believe that God has plans for us that we do not know or understand, and that’s where faith comes in. It could also be that God will fill your quiver through adoption!
Let me stress: this is an area where both the husband and wife must agree! I’ve seen many women convicted in this area, and their husbands are not, and it causes great strife in their marriage. Ladies, obey your husbands!!
Learn More About the Quiverful Movement
The Duggars: 20 and Counting!: Raising One of America’s Largest Families–How they Do It
A Full Quiver : Family Planning and the Lordship of Christ
Does the Birth Control Pill Cause Abortions?
Ten P’s in a Pod : A Million-Mile Journal of the Arnold Pent Family
It Takes a Family: Conservatism and the Common Good
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Written by Traci Knoppe ©: Aside from her roles as wife, mother of six, mother-in-law and grandmother, Traci also works at home as a business owner.
Traci, I’ve only heard of ‘quiverful’ since I found CHK and other American christian sites. This is not mentioned at all in my church, there simply is no teaching on it! Our pastor and elders (and in fact most of the mainstream English churches) say that these things are best left to the believer to decide for their-selves, kind of, your own God-given conscience be your guide (Am I making sense?)..so this means most families in our churches have 2-3 children in each family.
I have found this is on my mind a lot, and although having Rosie 6yrs ago was a tremendous blessing for me, it was not for my dh. Add to that I am now 44 and dh is going to be 47 this november.. well, anyway, I commit all to the Lord and He will be my guide no matter what…I really love your writing, it’s a wonderful site and it must really bless the Lord to see what you are doing here!
God bless you and Marks ministry and thankyou!
[...] apparently do as well, in part, because of the size of their family; but also because we too are a quiverful family. I’ve read some on other forums, some of these forums are Christian (some not), and what I [...]
Is Quiverful a organized religion? do you have special rules you have to follow? I noticed quiverful families have the girls wearing dresses all the time why is this? Thank you
Hi Alison,
No quiverful isn’t a religion, it’s just how some interpret scripture and choose to live their lives fully relying on God to control how many children they have. Call it conviction, preference or whatever – there is not a ‘quiverful church’ or denomination.
As for the modest dress, that is also a literal interpretation of scripture and how these families define ‘modest’ as scripture tells us we’re to dress. These families interpret modest = dresses for women/girls.
Not all quiverful families wear only dresses, and there are many dresses-only families that are not quiverful. But more often than not, a family that will choose to interpret scripture so outside the non-church (or even within the church in many cases!) norm, will do so in other areas as well.
Thank you!! Thank you!!! Thank you!! I have tried to explain my husband and my stance on birth control only to be met with blank stares and warnings of needing to provide for all my children or not getting to know or invest in each of my children. Your article perfectly explains my husband and my view of childbearing! At this point God has blessed us with our beautiful daughter Sophia!! And she is every bit of a blessing! Any time the fear of what other people has told me creeps up on my I remember that “(God) has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind!” We have been walking through a difficult financial time this last year and I am here to say that Jesus had provided for us and blessed us in many ways. In short I know that God will provide for the children He gives us just like he has done so far.