How do you feel about capital punishment?

Hello am ha'aretz. Thank you for your reply and terrific thoughts. I appreciate your taking the time and effort to think these questions through. Like you, I’m also thankful that so many on the Board know the Bible. I’m also very impressed with your excellent understanding of it too am ha'aretz.

I agree with you that the Bible contains commandments (and wisdom) for mankind. Of course, GOD is free to do as he sees fit. Yet, GOD has given us HIS inerrant Bible as a place to find truth and understanding so that we may discover much about such insight (Amos 3: 7).

IF the death penalty is Biblical, does the lack of a death penalty for David, Moses, Cain (and others in the Bible) open up the question of “preferential treatment” for some? Are we to believe that some men have privilege over others in matters Biblical? I see justice as designed to be perfect and equally balanced for all (Lev. 19: 15, Deut. 1: 17). I see GOD’s forgiveness and pardon as available to all (Jonah chapters 3 & 4, Rom. 10: 13).

This seems to be so, since David, Moses, and Cain were chastised severely by GOD. They DID receive justice, yet none of them to the point of the death penalty.

Consider that David lost his kingdom almost immediately after his killing of Uriah the Hittite. Thereafter, David’s own son Absalom betrayed him terribly (2 Samuel chapters 15-18). David’s first child with Bathsheba tragically did not survive (2 Samuel 12: 9-19). All of this is nearly unspeakable sorrow that David received. BUT – it was not the death penalty.

Moses promptly went into exile in Midian after he killed the Egyptian (Exodus 2). David went into exile too! (2 Sam. chapters 15-18). Symbolically, this reminds me of a “prison sentence" (prison mimics exile from society). Could this piece of information from the inerrant Bible be pointing us to the concept of prison sentences rather than the death penalty? Just a thought.

It is true that Exo. 33:19 says that GOD will have mercy on whom he will have mercy. However, I do not believe that having “mercy” and being a “respecter of persons” are the same. Quite the contrary, I view having mercy on someone as showing compassion in the absence of respect for the person. For example, GOD did not respect David when he murdered Uriah, but HE did show mercy to David anyway. 2 Samuel 14: 14 and 2 Chron. 19: 7 (KJV) also suggests the same.

While GOD may not give anyone injustice – mankind in his frailty most assuredly does. History is replete with horror after horror all showing mankind’s depraved injustice toward one another (often done in the name of so-called justice). It is with this aspect of the human condition in mind that we must be extremely sensitive to the issue of the death penalty.

The Bible is perfect, yet mankind’s interpretations of it are flawed. And so it is with mankind’s interpretations of judicial law. Flawed human minds can bring flawed human judgments (no matter how well meaning). “DNA technologies” have illustrated just how MANY death row inmates were NOT guilty after all.

I feel that mankind should show mercy and compassion to one another (Exo. 2: 6, Prov. 14: 31, Prov. 21: 21, Matt. 5: 7, Luke 6: 36). GOD’s perfect examples of granting mercy are a glorious “blueprint” for mankind to emulate (though admittedly man's practice of mercy is flawed).

I see some problems with the idea that there may be “two different meanings” of killing in Gen. 9: 6. Who would determine if someone was "killing a man with God's permission" or "killing a man without God's permission"?

Suppose that a decent and honorable court of law sends a man to death, and later it is determined that the man was innocent. Was this killing done “with” or “without” GOD’s permission? I would say without. Would the court then be required to sentence those who shed this man’s blood? The death penalty issue is a tough one – though there is surely a solution to the question in the inerrant Bible.

I tend to see killing generally as wrong. Perhaps THIS is what Gen. 9: 6 is referring to?

I thank you for seeing the point about Gen. 4: 14-15 am ha'aretz. I find these verses to be very specific to the question of the death penalty (though I’m not yet certain of it’s full application).

Thank you again for your comments and input am ha'aretz. It is very much appreciated. Please keep up your terrific contributions on the board.

latterrain77

[ November 03, 2002, 09:33 AM: Message edited by: latterrain77 ]