Temper tantrums: Why temper tantrums in children are not bad behavior

Many parents have been there. A child kicking and screaming while throwing a temper tantrum. This is a common and normal occurrence in American home. However, most parents punish their children merely for temper tantrums alone. But, the fact of the matter is that temper tantrums are not bad behavior. 

God's Law on dealing with temper tantrums is spelled out 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 not just to spanking or otherwise punishing children. It refers to entitlement in parents, leading to offense in children. Offense in children consists of hurt feelings that parents refuse to apologize for, at minimum. Children cry for various reasons, including when they are petitioning for vulnerable needs. Refusing to tend to a crying child was seen then as offense by way of omission. Any time you hurt your child's feelings while not tending to your child, you offend them. This includes punitive measures imposed on children when they cry. If you ever lose your cool with your child, including when they cry, you definitely need to give a formal apology for hurting your child's feelings with your anger, such as "I apologize for reacting like that to your tears", and then commit never to lose your cool with your child ever again, as any parent anger directed towards a child alone is entitlement, and was seen as entitlement in the Early Church. 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 translating to "power to the parent", namely the power to impose punitive sanctions on children, such as spanking or other forms of punishment of children. However, this commandment ultimately was received by the parish at Colossae as prohibiting causing offenses in children as perceived by the child, at minimum. 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.

For the first 6 years of childhood, children in the Early Church were in constant closeness to mothers. Wherever mom went, so did her child. Whenever a child cried, mothers responded to the every cry of her child, giving the child nourishment and sustenance. Mothers then never ignored a crying child, and never punished their children for crying. 

Temper tantrums are normal and natural behaviors in children. Most all children throw temper tantrums once and a while, at least. There is no need to spank or punish a child for crying or tantrumming. They grow out of that type of behavior on their own. Usually, by the time children have mastered self-control, they have developed religious beliefs of their own.

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!