It is true that Deuteronomy 13:6-9 says,
“If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; Namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people.”
But we have to understand several things here.
#1. This was said to Israelite nation and not believers under the New Covenant today.
#2. The Israelites literally witnessed God concealed in a cloud coming upon the tabernacle by day (and within the fire by night) (Exodus 40:38) (Numbers 9:15), and they witnessed His great miracles like the red sea being parted (Exodus 14:21-22), etc.; So they seen the power of God up close. So the Israelite was in a situation where they were being more directly commanded by God personally. It wasn't like they had not encountered God up close, and His great miracles and He was commanding them to do such a difficult thing.
#3. The destruction of the wicked back in the OT times was a way of showing of how God will punish evil in order to establish peace in the future. God has a right to end sin or evil (sinful people) in His universe because He created that life to begin with.
#4. Pagan nations in OT times and or unbelievers in God were seeking to also harm God's people both physically and spiritually.
#5. Pagan nations or unbelievers in OT times were not innocent and they did great sins in the eyes of God.
#6. God is the ultimate giver and taker of life (Deuteronomy 32:39), and He could have simply given everyone who is evil in having heart attacks. But God wanted the Israelites to have faith in what He said and commanded (even when it may be difficult for them to accept).
#7. Jesus and His followers (the apostles) taught Non-Resistance as a part of the New Covenant (i.e. the New Testament) (See this CF thread
here;
Note: you may need to log out in order to see the thread). Anyways, the point here is that things have changed. Believers today are to love their enemies, do good towards them, and to pray for them. For believers today fight spiritual battles and not physical ones (2 Corinthians 10:4). Gentile believers are told that they are not to keep circumcision and the Law of Moses to be saved (See: Acts of the Apostles 15:1, Acts of the Apostles 15:5, and Acts of the Apostles 15:24) (
Important Note: This does not mean Christians are lawless. Christians are to follow the commands that come from Jesus and His followers; For Jesus said if you love me, keep my commandments - John 14:15). After Christ's death, the New Covenant and it's own unique applicable commands went into effect, and the Old Covenant ended. For the temple veil was torn from top to bottom letting us know that the priesthood and the sacrifices had ended. Also, Luke 16:16 says, “The law and the prophets
were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.”
So I am sure this guy could have opened his Bible to this passage and acted upon what it said, but he was not rightly dividing the Word of truth. That would be like a guy walking into the middle of a movie and assuming what is going on. He would be like a child who has no real understanding because he did not take the time to watch the whole film from start to finish. This is what many people today do with the Bible, they read and or quote it out of context; And in other cases, they act upon the Bible in what it says out of context. This guy who set fire to his family's house was not an Israelite living in OT times.
