Bible Verses About Adoption

I had a plan for my life. I was going to have two car seats and a minivan all before the age of 30. However, God had a different plan for my life. Instead, I would endure a long journey through infertility, resulting in a miscarriage and longing for the dream of what my life was supposed to be. I cried out to God many times. Wondering. Questioning. In anger. In sadness. In frustration. In doubt. However, He opened my eyes to the gift of adoption. Our family didn’t start the traditional way, but looking back, I can tell you I am thankful for the journey we went through. Of course, no one says that while they are going through a painful situation, but hindsight is always 20/20 and if you are asking me, God’s plan is always better than any plan I could have come up with for my life. Let’s explore what the Bible says about adoption and see if we can find some Bible verses about adoption. 

I painted a wooden sign during our “waiting” period of becoming parents that read, “For this child I prayed.” It came from the verse: 

“I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him.” 1 Samuel 1:27 

I didn’t know at the time what this meant. I prayed for a child for what seemed like a lifetime. It is amazing to look back and enjoy the journey and our time together as a family of three. I had no idea what our ultimate plan was going to look like, but I trusted in the Lord and that he would provide THE child that was meant to be ours and that could not be truer. We waited almost six years to become parents through the gift of adoption and our child is exactly who was meant to be ours. It is a beautiful thing when we wait on the Lord’s timing and not our own. 

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27 

It is no doubt that if you read through the Bible, Jesus wants us to care for orphans and widows in this world. I had no idea the impact of this verse on my life until I was faced with a situation where I had a very close friend lose her husband suddenly, and she was left to care for their three young children. I dropped all that I knew in my ordinary life to be there for her, for them. I slept next to her as she wept over losing her husband. I got up with her kids when she couldn’t. I walked alongside her as she mourned. Of course, this was all before we were blessed with our son through the gift of adoption. Crazy how that worked out? No, it was exactly the plan God had for our lives and her life. If we had a child before this, we would not have been able to drop everything we knew and be there for her the way she and her children needed us to be there for. And at the same time, we were planning for our adoption, the care of an orphan. Well, not exactly in our case. But you get where I am coming from. Jesus calls us to look after the widows and orphans of the world. It is a great blessing to do so. 

“For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” Romans 8:15

I love this verse, as it may not be a direct relation to the gift of adoption here on Earth, but rather the gift of adoption from our heavenly Father. What this verse is telling us is that God does not see us as his slave or servant, rather He has freed us from that and has welcomed us as His child. That is, when you come to know Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, he legally changes your status to a son and daughter of His. That is something we cannot take lightly. This spirit of adoption allows us to cry out to our Heavenly Father as a loving dad. In this verse, the word Abba is a Greek word meaning father. It would have been used by young children in terms of our modern-day papa or daddy. This is what the Lord wants from us. He wants us to call out to daddy, our Heavenly Father. This is one of the most beautiful Bible verses about adoption. 

“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families…” Psalm 68:5-6a

Again, Jesus is reminding us that we are to care for the widows and orphans of this world. Back then a woman without a husband and a child without parents were outcasts. Caring for them is an essential part of our spiritual purpose. In this verse, God is indicating that He protects them. He will defend them. They may be viewed as outcasts but God will lead them out of it. This is also the call for your life, to protect and defend those that have less than you. You are called to a life of defending and protecting orphans and widows. 

“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love, he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will…” Ephesians 1:4-5 

Similar to the verse above, this verse indicates that Jesus predestined us to be adopted as his sons and daughters. He wants nothing more than for us to call upon Him as our dad. The grace of adoption which is His love for us, a blessing that is secured in the covenant of grace. Also, by means of inheritance. We inherit what He has given us. Just as our adopted children here on earth would inherit what we leave them, just as if they were born to us naturally. 

“Learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, defend the orphans, plead for the widow.” Isaiah 1:17

This short little verse packs a bigger message. Learning to do well. Learn to be accustomed to and be opposed to all kinds of evil. Parents are children’s natural protectors when you are left without, you have no one to guide you, no one to protect you. Be their protectors. Be their defenders. Plead for the widow, meaning aid her, defend her, protect her rights. We are to be His hands and feet here on earth. Go, and take care of orphans and widows. Along the same lines, is the verse, “Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.” Psalm 82:3

“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'” Matthew 25:40 

One of my favorite Bible verses of all times, not only because it pertains to the gift of adoption, but because it is a great life lesson. There is something about doing something for someone else without expecting anything in return. No payment can be made for the gift of doing something for someone else. You don’t need to do it to get recognition or praise. We do it because Jesus called us to do these things in His name. Can you imagine standing face to face with Jesus and Him telling you that the action you performed when no one else was looking or for the least of them, you did for Him? Whew. That gives me goosebumps. I strive to live my life that way. The way Jesus called us to. Remember than when you are deciding to pursue adoption or even foster care. Whatever you are doing for the least of these, the ones that don’t have a voice, you are doing for Jesus. Remember that when you are changing diapers, feeding mouths, teaching your children, enjoying life here on earth, that what you are doing for them, you are doing for Jesus. It changes the way you look at daily tasks and child-raising when you know you are doing it as if He were standing there in their shoes. 

“’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.’” Jeremiah 29:11 

Along the same lines as the verse above, this is meant to reach greater than adoption. This was the very first Bible verse that I memorized. I had no idea the impact it would have on my life. I also had no idea how it would possibly be one of the best Bible verses about adoption. If I have said it once, I have said it a thousand times, God’s plan for your life is greater than anything you could come up with on your own. This verse also became our son’s life verse when we dedicated him to the church as a baby. We prayed for him for years. We wondered what his face would look like. We wondered what kind of personality he would have. All while keeping this verse in the back of our minds. That God has a plan for him and part of that plan is for us to be his parents. I will never forget the magnitude of that. And I urge you to try to remember that while going through the adoption process. It may seem like a long road. Some days, it may not seem worth it. Some days, it may seem easy. Some days, it may seem unbearable. In any case, try to remember that there is a plan for your life and for becoming parents. 

“And when he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son.” Acts 7:21 

This verse goes to show that even back then someone could take a child not born to her and become a mother to that child as if she had birthed him herself. That concept always weighs heavy on my heart as well. “A child born to another woman calls me mom. The depth of the tragedy and the magnitude of the privilege are not lost on me.” – Jody Landers  I could not have said it better myself. There is something incredibly powerful about the gift of adoption. And the fact that it even occurred during Jesus’ time and that He encouraged it as well, is an even greater blessing. 

These are just a few of my favorite Bible verses about adoption and life getting through the adoption process. It may not always feel like it, but the pain through the journey is going to make you a stronger person. A better person. A better mom. A better dad. If someone would have told me that while we were going through the process, I would have shrugged it off. Oh, wait, someone did tell me that while we were going through the process. And I thought they were crazy. I didn’t find their help very helpful at all. But, I am here to tell you that I lived through it and made it through to the other side of the journey. And, well, they were right. The pain, the years of infertility, the waiting for a birth mom to pick us, the miscarriage, the questioning, the crying out to God, it was worth it. It has made me appreciate what we have so much more. It has carried me through sleepless nights better than I could have had I not gone through it. It has made me appreciate being a mom that much more. I hope that you found these Bible verses about adoption to be encouraging. What are some of your favorite Bible verses about adoption? Please share!

Are you and your partner ready to start the adoption process? Visit Adoption.org or call 1-800-ADOPT-98 to begin your adoption journey. We have 130+ years of adoption experience and would love to help you.