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Tuesday, August 18 2009
The Sixth Commandment:
"20:13 Thou shalt not kill." (Exodus 20:13 KJV)
Many over the centuries have used "thou shalt not kill" to justify pacifism, or "conscientious objectors" in the military, or opposition to capital punishment for those who committed heinous crimes. And yet, if they read all of the Bible, Old Testament and New Testament, they would see that there were occasions when God not only permitted the taking of human lives, but commanded it. Examples:
"32:27 And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour." (Exodus 32:27 KJV)"15:2 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. 15:3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass." (1 Samuel 15:2-3 KJV)
God is not a hypocrite. He means what He says, and says what He means - consistently. When the Israelites were given the Sixth Commandment, they knew from everyday life that it prohibited murder, not lawful killing, such as in self-defense, or in defense of one's nation, within legally-prescribed rules. In matters of criminal law, the guilty were punished in kind - in ancient times, prisons were merely places where accused people were held until trial and punishment - prisons were not the punishment itself. Murderers were put to death, not, ironically, and unjustly, sentenced to life:
"35:16 And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. 35:17 And if he smite him with throwing a stone, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. 35:18 Or if he smite him with an hand weapon of wood, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death." (Numbers 35:16-18 KJV)
What is the Christian view, according to the Scriptures, on murderers?
"3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." (1 John 3:15 KJV)"21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." (Revelation 21:8 KJV)
Fact Finder: The greatest miscarriage of justice that ever occurred was when the completely innocent Jesus Christ was executed. As part of that miscarriage of justice, was a murderer set free?
Mark 15:7-11, Acts 3:14
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This Day In History, August 18
1227: Mongol conquerer Genghis Khan died.
1503: Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) died. His corrupt behavior contributed to the Protestant Reformation.
1559: Pope Paul IV, pope from 1555 to 1559, died. His reign was marked by his implacable opposition to Spain, renewing the war between France and the Hapsburgs.
1587: Virginia Dare became the first child of English parents to be born in America. She along with the rest of the early settlement at Roanoke later disappeared without a trace.
1698: After invading Denmark and capturing Sweden, Charles XII of Sweden forced Frederick IV of Denmark to sign the Peace of Travendal.
1759: A French fleet was destroyed at Lagos, Portugal, by the British under Admiral Boscawen.
1825: Scottish explorer Alexander Gordon Laing became the first European to reach Timbuktu, now in Mali. He was murdered there the following month.
1862: The Sioux Indians began an uprising in Minnesota.
1932: Scottish aviator Jim Mollison made the first westbound transatlantic solo flight, from Portmarnock, Ireland, to Pennfield, New Brunswick, Canada.
1943: The Royal Air Force Bomber Command completed the first major strike against the German missile development facility at Peenemunde.
1961: Construction of the Berlin Wall was completed.
1969: The first commercially-produced oral contraceptive, Enovid 10, was launched in Skokie, Illinois.
1976: Two U.S. soldiers were killed by North Korean soldiers in a skirmish in the Joint Security Area in Panmunjom. Both sides immediately placed their forces on a state of war-readiness but the situation was resolved.
