Many parents have been there. A child talking back. Most children talk back at some point in their childhood. Most children who talk back to parents are punished for it. However, there are better ways to deal with a defiant child, with these methods found in the Bible. The Bible deems all punishment of a child, including for back talk, to be a form of child abuse.
God's Law on child abuse is stated in Colossians 3:21 KJV:
Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.
The Greek root word translated "provoke...to anger" is ερεθιζο (Latin: erethizo) and refers here to offenses or damages, namely the slightest of personal offense perceived by a child, including, but not limited to, the slightest of offensive touch or speech perceived by a child, stemming from entitlement, with this entitlement including any parent anger directed towards a child. The key behind not abusing your child is to avoid offense in children. Avoiding offense in children is the same as avoiding offense in other adults - be willing to give a meaningful apology whenever you hurt the feeling of another, especially in the case of children. One way that children's feelings are hurt is if they cannot accept a limit. This is when children, in many cases, talk back. The idea behind responding to back talk is to give a meaningful apology for setting a limit. Usually, all that is necessary in parenting is a reassurance of good intent, such as "I'm sorry, but I had to set X limit for Y reasons". However, if you ever lose your cool with your child as a parent, including when setting a limit, you definitely need to give a formal apology for hurting their feelings such as "I apologize for losing my temper with you", and then commit to never losing your cool with your child ever again, as losing your cool alone with a child is entitlement, and was seen as entitlement in the Early Church. This passage implies the fact that all punishment of a child is sin. This commandment cross-references the Eighth and the Tenth Commandments, with the Apostle Paul here convicting a group of Greek Christian parents who brought into the church their pagan custom of patrias potestas, which is a Latin term roughly translated to "power to the parent", namely the power to impose punitive sanctions onto children, such as spanking or other punishment of children. Paul, contrary to popular legend, was anti-spanking, and opposed any and all punitive parenting in his secular writings. Attachment parenting was banned under Roman law, but the Early Christians did it anyway, obeying God over men.
In attachment parenting, in the context of the Early Church, children usually listened to their parents, not out of fear of punishment, but out of vulnerable trust in parents. Most limits were accepted in this way. But, when a child could not accept a limit, parents were quick to apologize. When children were given a meaningful apology, they always accepted it. Sometimes, the child needed some time in with mom to help them through disappointment, but they always accepted the apology of parents at some point. If they refuse to listen to a set limit past that point, do it for them, and quit your complaining in the process. If they are truly endangering themselves, such as running into the street, pick them up and hold them, whispering "don't scare me like that" into their ear.
The depraved and entitled parents who provoke their children to anger through punitive parenting will not inherit the Kingdom of God! Let them be cast forever into the lake of fire and burning sulfur, which is the second death prepared for Satan and his accomplices! Let them descend into the abyss which is the ever-burning Hell of fire and torment, suffering God's Wrath day and night forever and ever! Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!