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Bible Study Discussions with Gary Panell

Question: What does the Bible say about suicide?

Answer: The reason I have taken so long to answer this question is because I wanted to do some research on the causes and statistics, etc. before I answered with what the Bible has to say. I do believe the Bible message is clear on the subject and I will give those references, but I believe that this is such an important subject that Christians should get on top of it. I would first highly recommend Jerry Johnston's website, to go to it just put in the search Suicide Jerry Johnston. Also, I would suggest that you read Jerry's book Why Suicide?

The Bible says in the Ten Commandments “You shall not murder.” (Exodus 20:13 NKJV) Some people will say, “Well this just applies to other people other than yourself.” I would ask, “Are you sure that it is alright to murder yourself?” Are you willing to take the chance that you will die with the sin of murder? There are even Christian ministers who will tell people, trying to console them, “God will forgive a person who commits suicide.”

The Bible says, "Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him." ( 1 John 3:15)

I, for one, am not willing to take the chance with my eternal destiny, nor to encourage others that you are still going to heaven if you take your own life. I believe it is a terrible thing to give people a false assurance that is not found in the Word of God!

Every single case of people who committed suicide in the Bible were men away from God. Let's look at just two. King Saul, the first king of Israel is one of the men in the Bible who committed suicide. King Saul was pestered by a demon, he became a murderer, he consulting a witch, and then he died in battle, not fighting, but by taking his own life. “Then Saul said to his armorbearer, "Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised men come and thrust me through and abuse me. But his armorbearer would not, for he was greatly afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword and fell on it.” (I Samuel 31:4)

The other person in the Bible that we want to look at that committed suicide was Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Jesus. “Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve. So he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he promised and sought opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude.” (Luke 22:3-6)…

“And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. But Jesus said to him, ‘Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?' (Luke 22:47-48)…

“Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood. And they said, ‘What is that to us? You see to it!' Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.” (Matthew 27:3-5)… After Jesus' resurrection the other eleven Apostles got together and had a discussion about Judas, here is the gist of it:

“Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus; 17 for he was numbered with us and obtained a part in this ministry.

(Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out. And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.)

"For it is written in the Book of Psalms: Let his dwelling place be desolate, and let no one live in it; and, let another take his office.” (Acts 1:16-20)

This is what you will find in the Bible, not only are we told not to murder, this includes ourselves, it also shows people who committed suicide were either possessed by Satan as Judas was or at least opressed by a demon as King Saul was before he committed suicide. So I think you will find this is often the case today. At any rate we need to get this information out to people and try to help them before it is too late. Below I have given some useful information that you should know about on this subject of suicide.

I hope this helps,

Gary T. Panell

Suicide - Teens

By Jerry Price - Nov 1, 2006 - 3

Evangelist Jerry Johnston spends a lot of time talking to teenagers in high school assemblies about suicide. He says, “There are several ways in which teenagers are broken, and each one indicates a need for caution and concern. Experts refer to the trigger mechanism, some negative experience that is the final impetus to commit suicide. The trigger mechanism is a severe disappointment that finally pushes a teenager to the decision for suicide.”

Johnston lists 5 areas of brokenness that can cause a teenage suicide:

1. Broken dreams. Teenagers, who are probably the most idealistic people on earth, expect friendships and romances to last forever. They expect that everything will be great. When those relationships fall apart, the teen can be devastated.
2. Broken romances. Too many teenagers feel that when a romantic relationship ends, their opportunity for a fulfilled life ends as well. A sense of hopelessness sets in. Suicide may be a way to strike back at the one who ended the relationship.
3. Broken ideals. The most common broken ideal among teens is the loss of virginity. They feel the ache inside of having given up something forever that was very precious.
4. Broken expectations. The unfaithfulness of a friend, the loss of something that was greatly desired, and when carefully laid plans fail, there is a deep sense of hurt that can lead to suicidal thoughts.
5. Broken hearts. The death of someone very close, whether by suicide, accident, or natural causes may trigger thoughts of suicide.

Adapted from Jerry Johnston, Why Suicide? (Nashville: Oliver Nelson, 1987), 114-119.

“A preoccupation with death is indicative of several mental health conditions—depression, bipolar disorder, and others—and may be a warning sign of suicide, particularly among emotionally vulnerable teenagers. Aggregated data from two recent Gallup Youth Surveys allow a closer look at how often teens think about dying.

“The data show that just 9% of teens often think about their own deaths, while the majority of them think about it sporadically or not at all. But according to U.S. Census estimates, there are about 21 million teens (aged 13 to 17) living in the United States today, so 9% represents quite a large number of teens who have frequent thoughts about dying … There is virtually no difference between boys and girls, whites and nonwhites, or younger and older teens when it comes to thoughts about death. However, there are strong relationships between these thoughts and Gallup questions on social alienation.

“Thirty-five percent of teens choose the statement ‘I often wonder why I exist' over the statement ‘I always see a reason for my being here on Earth' to best describe how they feel. Within that group, more than one in five (22%) say they ‘often' or ‘almost always' think about their own death—compared with just 4% of those who choose the alternate statement. Similarly, 25% of teens choose the statement ‘I wish I were somebody else' over the statement ‘I would choose my life the way it is right now.' Within that group, 21% say they ‘often' or ‘almost always' think about their own death, versus 7% of those who choose the more positive statement.”

Excerpted from Linda Lyons, One in 10 Teens Thinks Often about Own Death, (Gallup Poll), June 29, 2004 [Subscription required for access]

Warning signs in teens:

1. Withdrawal—the teen pulls away.
2. Moodiness—the teen who's up and down.
3. Depression—the teen who holds in.
4. Aggression—the teen who lashes out.
5. Alcohol and drug abuse—the teen who turns on.
6. Sexual activity—the teen who lets go.
7. Eating disorders—the teen who punishes self.
8. Gift giving—the teen who gives up and gives away.
9. Trauma—the teen who's been hit hard.
10. Personality change—the teen who's not the same.
11. Threat—the teen who speaks out.

Jerry Johnston, Why Suicide? (Nashville: Oliver Nelson, 1987), 140-144.

• “As reported in SAMHSA's 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated 14% of youths aged 12 to 17, approximately 3.5 million youths, had experienced at least one major depressive episode in their lifetime.
• Over 7%, an estimated 1.8 million youths, had lifetime major depressive episode and thought about killing themselves at the time of their worst or most recent episode.
• An estimated 712,000 youths had tried to kill themselves during their worst or most recent major depressive episode; this represents 2.9% of those aged 12 to 17.”

Suicidal Thoughts among Youths Aged 12 to 17 with Major Depressive Episode , (National Survey on Drug Use and Health), September 9, 2005

“Suicidal compulsion does not happen out of the blue. It builds through a long process fraught with despairing, negative thoughts. There is, without question, a predisposition toward suicide before the act occurs. Generally, it begins with the idea that life is just not going to get any better. Then, with that fatalistic lie boiling in the mind like a witch's brew, the depressed person thinks: I am helpless to change my circumstances. The only thing to do is give up. This sense of utter helplessness then produces an abject hopelessness, which is even worse. In that state, there is the potential for serious, suicidal thoughts.

“The thought strikes suddenly, and it appears so logical: Why not kill myself? Once the idea enters the brain, the predisposed person can become obsessed with it, dwelling on it for days, weeks, even months. Some suicidal people tell others what they are thinking or at least give hints. The majority say nothing, though they may express other signs. When the thinking begins to focus on the actual time and method of death, the predisposition is about to bear its bitter fruit. If not prevented, the person will go through with the plans.”

Jerry Johnston, Why Suicide? (Nashville: Oliver Nelson, 1987), 127-128.

“One of the few attempts Hollywood has made to film a serious, thoughtful look at teenage suicide was the 1980 movie Ordinary People , based on the 1976 novel of the same name by Judith Guest. The book and movie examined the struggles of the Jarrett family, torn by the accidental death of one son and the attempted suicide of another. The movie garnered many Academy Awards, including the Oscar for Best Picture; Timothy Hutton, who played 17-year-old Conrad Jarrett, the suicidal son, won the Oscar as Best Supporting Actor.

“Ordinary People brought national attention to the issue of teenage suicide. The only problem with the book and movie, though, is that they make some people think teenage suicide is a problem strictly for the white middle class. The fictional Jarrett's are an otherwise successful white family living in a comfortable suburb of Chicago; Calvin, the father, is a tax attorney.

“The truth is teenage suicide cuts across economic as well as racial lines. Indeed, more and more young blacks, Hispanics, and members of other minority groups are resorting to suicide. Ironically, one factor believed to be responsible for the rise in the teenage suicide rate among minorities is the ability of their parents to join the middle class. According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 1980 the suicide rate among young whites was 157 percent higher than young blacks. In 1998, the CDC reported that while the suicide rate for whites was still higher, it was then just 47 percent higher. ‘The whole mythology that blacks don't kill themselves needs to be shattered,' said psychiatrist Carl Bell … The Centers for Disease Control found that the suicide rate among blacks between the ages of 10 and 14 increased by a whopping 233 percent between 1980 and 1995. During that same period, the suicide rate among black teenagers between 15 and 19 increased by 126 percent. In that same period, the suicide rate for young whites between 10 and 14 increased by 120 percent, while the rate for older white teenagers increased by 19 percent.”

Hal Marcovitz, Teens & Suicide (Broomall, PA: Mason Crest Publishers, 2004), 87-89.

U.S. Suicide Statistics (2005)

U.S. Suicide Statistics (2005)

Actual Suicides

1.3% of all deaths are from suicide.

On average, one suicide occurs every 16 minutes.

Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death for all Americans.

Suicide is the third leading cause of death for young people aged 15-24 year olds.
(1st = accidents, 2nd = homicide)

Suicide is the second leading waus of death for 25-34 year olds.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students.

More males die from suicide than females.
(4 male deaths by suicide for each female death by suicide.)

More people die from suicide than from homicide.
(Suicide ranks as the 11th leading cause of death; Homicide ranks 13th.)

There were over 800,000 suicide attempts in 2005

U.S. Suicide Rates, 1950–2003
(per 100,000 population)

Note that:

The suicide rate has decreased from the 1950-1980 rate of 13.2 to the present rate of about 11.

The suicide rate for ages 5-24 (youth suicide) increased dramatically from 1950 to the early to mid 1990s but then began to decrease thereafter.

The suicide rate for ages 45-85+ decreased significatnly from 1950 to present.

Suicide.org

For more information e-mail me at

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Gary Tomás Panell
1211 Pollock Avenue
Zillah, Washington  98953
Email

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