- Jun 29, 2019
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The story in the Bible is well-known. In Genesis 4:8, Cain kills his brother Abel. The killing wasn’t in self-defense, since Abel didn’t lay a hand on Cain. One possible motive might be Cain’s jealousy of Abel, who was more in God’s favor than Cain was, but no matter...the killing was premeditated.
Now we know that the U.S. and some of its states has the death penalty on their books for someone found guilty of murder other than in self-defense. And it makes one wonder six ways from Sunday...
First of all, the Bible says in Romans 12:19 and Deuteronomy 32:35 that vengeance is the Lord’s. Romans 12:19 goes a step further, saying we shouldn’t take it upon ourselves to enact vengeance. So what basis do jurisdictions in the U.S. have for enacting vengeance on murderers?
Arguably, that power is given to those jurisdictions via Romans 13:1, in which God has enabled any government to rule as an extension of Himself. That is, governments have been empowered to do what they believe God would do. And there is no doubt that throughout the OT, God has laid his vengeance on those who’ve killed some of His Chosen People.
But should those same jurisdictions not consider why God didn’t enact His Vengeance on Cain for murdering Abel? What earthly reason would God have for sparing Cain from His death penalty? Isn’t it something that jurisdictions who have the death penalty should consider before executing a condemned prisoner?
How did God deal with Cain after he murdered Abel? Genesis 4:14–16 reflects that God drives Cain away, causing him to settle somewhere east of Eden. Well, jurisdictions who don’t have the death penalty condemn murderers to live away from the general populace, in prison for the rest of their lives.
Consider that God has both enacted vengeance, and, in Cain’s case, merely drives him away from Eden. In each case, is there a certain criteria that God follows in determining when to put a person to death and when to drive him away? Should jurisdictions that oversee with God in mind consider that, within the Bible, a certain criteria emerges?
It may be easy to just go by what it says in Isaiah 55:8, about God’s thoughts not being our thoughts and God’s ways being not our ways. But if we lean heavy on this, it leaves a void, and enables jurisdictions that have the death penalty to exercise such power that they may not rightfully have, since the Bible says that any vengeance to be carried out is God’s and God’s alone...similar to people carping in the U.S. about government agencies who make up regulations that are not in line with what the Law empowers those agencies to do.
Now we know that the U.S. and some of its states has the death penalty on their books for someone found guilty of murder other than in self-defense. And it makes one wonder six ways from Sunday...
First of all, the Bible says in Romans 12:19 and Deuteronomy 32:35 that vengeance is the Lord’s. Romans 12:19 goes a step further, saying we shouldn’t take it upon ourselves to enact vengeance. So what basis do jurisdictions in the U.S. have for enacting vengeance on murderers?
Arguably, that power is given to those jurisdictions via Romans 13:1, in which God has enabled any government to rule as an extension of Himself. That is, governments have been empowered to do what they believe God would do. And there is no doubt that throughout the OT, God has laid his vengeance on those who’ve killed some of His Chosen People.
But should those same jurisdictions not consider why God didn’t enact His Vengeance on Cain for murdering Abel? What earthly reason would God have for sparing Cain from His death penalty? Isn’t it something that jurisdictions who have the death penalty should consider before executing a condemned prisoner?
How did God deal with Cain after he murdered Abel? Genesis 4:14–16 reflects that God drives Cain away, causing him to settle somewhere east of Eden. Well, jurisdictions who don’t have the death penalty condemn murderers to live away from the general populace, in prison for the rest of their lives.
Consider that God has both enacted vengeance, and, in Cain’s case, merely drives him away from Eden. In each case, is there a certain criteria that God follows in determining when to put a person to death and when to drive him away? Should jurisdictions that oversee with God in mind consider that, within the Bible, a certain criteria emerges?
It may be easy to just go by what it says in Isaiah 55:8, about God’s thoughts not being our thoughts and God’s ways being not our ways. But if we lean heavy on this, it leaves a void, and enables jurisdictions that have the death penalty to exercise such power that they may not rightfully have, since the Bible says that any vengeance to be carried out is God’s and God’s alone...similar to people carping in the U.S. about government agencies who make up regulations that are not in line with what the Law empowers those agencies to do.
