space is devoted in the Christian Greek Scriptures to instructions regarding family relationship. Again the man is dignified with the headship of the family, the wife being in subjection to her husband, managing the household under his general oversight. (1 Cor. 11:3; 1 Tim. 2:11-15; 5:14) Likening Jesus to the husband and family head over his congregational ‘wife,’ Paul admonishes husbands to exercise headship in love and wives to respect and subject themselves to their husbands. (Eph. 5:21-33) Children are commanded to obey their parents, and fathers particularly are charged with the responsibility of bringing them up in the discipline and authoritative advice of Jehovah.—Eph. 6:1-4.

The man used as an overseer in the Christian congregation, if married, must exhibit high standards as a family head, presiding properly and having his children in subjection, these not being unruly or charged with debauchery, for, asks Paul: “If indeed any man does not know how to preside over his own household, how will he take care of God’s congregation?” the congregation being similar to a family. (1 Tim. 3:2-5; Titus 1:6) Wives are exhorted to love their husbands and children, to be workers at home, and to subject themselves to their own husbands.—Titus 2:4, 5.

The apostle Paul strongly admonished against breaking up the family relationship, appealing to the believer on the basis of the welfare of the unbelieving mate as well as of the children. He stressed the great value of the family relationship when he pointed out that God views the young children as holy, even though the unbelieving mate has not been cleansed from his sins by faith in Christ. The unbeliever may be practicing some of the same things that Paul says some Christians had practiced before accepting the good news about the Christ. (1 Cor. 7:10-16; 6:9-11) The apostle also guards the unity of the Christian family by giving instructions to husbands and wives regarding the rendering of marriage dues.—1 Cor. 7:3-5.

Association in family relationships proved to be a blessing to many in connection with Christianity, “for, wife, how do you know but that you will save your husband? Or, husband, how do you know but that you will save your wife?” (1 Cor. 7:16) This is also evidenced by the contents of the apostle Paul’s greetings to several households. Some believers were privileged to use the family home as a place for the congregation to meet. (Rom. 16:1-15) The Christian missionary Philip was a family man, having four faithful Christian daughters. He was blessed by being able to entertain the apostle Paul and his fellow workers for a time in his home in Caesarea. (Acts 21:8-10) The Christian congregation itself is termed “God’s household.” Its principal member and head is Jesus Christ and this “household” recognizes him as the Seed by means of whom all the families of the earth will bless themselves.—1 Tim. 3:15; Eph. 2:19; Col. 1:17, 18; Gen. 22:18; 28:14.

The inspired Scriptures have foretold a vicious attack on the family institution with a consequent breaking down of morality and of human society outside the Christian congregation. Paul classifies among demon-inspired doctrines in “later periods of time” that of “forbidding to marry,” and foretells for the “last days” a condition in which disobedience to parents, disloyalty and absence of “natural affection” would be rife, even among those “having a form of godly devotion.” He warns Christians to turn away from such ones. (1 Tim. 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:1-5) Jesus earlier had foretold that opposition to God’s truth would split families.—Matt. 10:32-37; Luke 12:51-53.

Babylon the Great, the enemy of God’s “woman” (Gen. 3:15; Gal. 4:27) and of Christ’s “bride” (Rev. 21:9), is a great “harlot” organization, committing fornication with the kings of the earth. Being “the mother of the harlots and of the disgusting things of the earth” evidently indicates that she causes great disregard for Jehovah God’s institutions and commands and the principle of family integrity. (Rev. 17:1-6) She has made efforts to induce others to harlotry and has succeeded in producing many ‘harlot’ daughters, with attempts against Christ’s being able to have a clean “bride.” Nevertheless, his “bride” comes through victorious, clean and righteous, worthy of being in Jehovah’s “family” as the “wife” of Jesus Christ, to the blessing and rejoicing of all the universe.—2 Cor. 11:2, 3; Rev. 19:2, 6-8; see MARRIAGE and other family relationships under their respective names.

FAMINE

An extreme food shortage; also, a scarcity of hearing the words of Jehovah, that is, a spiritual famine. (Amos 8:11) Famine is one of the plagues to come upon symbolic Babylon the Great.—Rev. 18:8.

CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF FAMINES

Drought, destructive hailstorms (Ex. 9:23-25), pests, scorching and mildew of crops, as well as war, were among the common causes of famine in Bible times. (Amos 4:7-10; Hag. 2:17) Locusts, sometimes coming in huge hordes, were especially devastating to crops. (Ex. 10:15) Sometimes the problem was not lack of rain, but rain at the wrong season, as during the wheat or barley harvest.—Compare Leviticus 26:4; 1 Samuel 12:17, 18.

Temporary hunger is a natural sensation but prolonged hunger, as by famine is very detrimental to mental and physical health As The Encyclopædia Britannica (1959 ed., Vol. 9, pp. 63 and 64) shows, marked lethargy sets in, the emotions are dulled and there is mental apathy. The mind is dominated by a desire for food. (Compare Exodus 16:3.) Moral standards fall. (Compare Isaiah 8:21.) Actual starvation may have a dehumanizing effect, resulting in theft, murder and even cannibalism. Famine is often accompanied by sickness and epidemics due to the weakened condition of those affected.—Compare Deuteronomy 32:24.

ANCIENT FAMINES

The first truly historical famine is the one that forced Abram (Abraham) to leave Canaan and take up alien residence in Egypt. (Gen. 12:10) In Isaac’s day another famine occurred, but Jehovah told him not to go to Egypt. (Gen. 26:1, 2) The seven-year famine that came upon Egypt while Joseph served as prime minister and food administrator evidently reached far beyond the boundaries of Egypt, for “people of all the earth came to Egypt to buy [food] from Joseph.”—Gen. 41:54-57.

While the Egyptian inscriptions scrupulously avoid any reference to Israel’s sojourn in Egypt, there are ancient Egyptian texts that describe periods of famine due to insufficient rising of the Nile River. One text describes a period of seven years of low Nile risings and the resulting famine. According to the account, certain portions of land were granted to the priesthood when relief from the famine came. Although the question is raised as to whether the document is “a priestly forgery of some late period, justifying their claim to territorial privileges,” at least we see reflected a tradition of a period of seven lean years. (Pritchard’s Ancient Near Eastern Texts, p. 31) During the eleventh century of the Common Era, a seven-year famine took place in Egypt, and the account by an eyewitness of the extremities to which the people were driven, eating animals that died of themselves and even human flesh, gives some idea of what could have taken place had God not provided for the conservation of food through Joseph.—M’Clintock and Strong’s Cyclopaedia, Vol. III, p. 480.

Before Israel entered the Promised Land, Jehovah, through Moses, assured them that they would have an abundance of food if they continued serving Him in faithfulness. (Deut. 28:11, 12) However, famine would be one of the fearful results to come upon Israel for unfaithfulness. (Deut. 28:23, 38-42) A famine in the days of the judges prompted Naomi’s husband Elimelech