Capital Punishment and an Important Distinction...

One of the most controversial issues in society revolves around whether or not capital punishment should be allowed and enforced. And many different religious systems either promote or prohibit capital punishment. Those who follow the teaching of the Bible, however, seem to be able to make arguments, from the Bible, on both sides of this issue. Now a natural question that arises here is "how can that be?" In a section of a letter in our Bible called the book of Joshua, we see the issue of capital punishment come to the forefront. And it is in this story that we see an important distinction that needs to be made when talking about this issue from a Biblical perspective. So let's look at this story, beginning in Joshua 20:1:

Then the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying, "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'Designate the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, that the manslayer who kills any person unintentionally, without premeditation, may flee there, and they shall become your refuge from the avenger of blood.

Upon finishing the task of dividing the Promised Land amongst the twelve tribes that formed the Jewish people, which we looked at last week, God commands Joshua to designate cities of refuge. Now, in order to fully understand what God is commanding Joshua to do in these verses, we first need to understand what cities of refuge were and their significance to the Jewish people.

In another letter that is recorded for us in our Bibles, called the Book of Numbers, God commanded Moses, who was the previous leader of the Jewish people, that upon entering into and settling the Promised Land, the Jewish people were to set aside six cities that were to be called cities of refuge. These cities of refuge were designed to be a place where a person could seek asylum while awaiting trial for their actions that resulted in the death of another person.

You see, the Bible makes a clear distinction between killing and murder. From a Biblical perspective, there is a significant difference between a person whose actions accidentally cause the death of another, which is defined as killing, and a person who plots and plans to take the life of another, which is defined as murder. The words unintentionally and without premeditation here literally mean something that occurs accidentally or without previous thought or knowledge. And just like today, there were tragic times when death occurs as a result of the accidental and unplanned actions of others. Unfortunately and tragically, there are occasions that people are killed as a result of the accidental and unplanned behavior of others. And just like today, there were occasions where people act by taking the life of another human being as a result of a plot and plan that flowed from selfish rebellion and sin. The Bible refers to that act as murder.

In addition, the Bible is also very clear about the consequences that should occur when one human being acts on a thought out plan to murder another human being. In the first book of the Bible, called the book of Genesis, we see God provide clear instructions as to the consequences that the person who had committed murder was to face. We see these consequences revealed for us in Genesis 9:6:

"Whoever sheds man's blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man.

God’s consequence for willingly and thoughtfully taking another’s life was death. Murder was to receive a punishment that matched the crime. Today, we call this capital punishment. And as you might imagine, the subject of capital punishment provokes strong and heated debate from those on both side of the issue. And while a full discussion on capital punishment would easily involve several posts, I want to take a minute to address the most common objection that I hear from those who oppose capital punishment, which is that capital punishment is inhumane and devalues life. If you would identify with that statement, I would like to lovingly challenge that objection.

And my loving challenge to that objection comes from this verse. Notice the reason why God calls for the death of the person who committed murder: "for in the image of God He made man". God established capital punishment to demonstrate how much He values life. God cares and values life so much that He demands the life of those who would take another’s life. Let me say that again. Because mankind is created in the image of God; because mankind was designed to represent and reflect the nature and character of God on earth; and because God values all human life; God demands the life of those who would take another’s life by the act of murder.

How God demanded the life of those who took the life of another through the act of murder in the Old Testament was through the avenger of blood. The avenger of blood usually was the closest male relative of the one who had been slain. The avenger of blood was responsible to seek retribution, or justice, and not vengeance, for the death of a member of the Jewish people. The avenger, however, was not expected to make the distinction between murder and an accidental killing; he was simply the instrument to execute justice and punishment upon the murderer by killing the murderer.

So because of the distinction that exists between killing and murder, there needed to be these cities of refuge that would provide the opportunity to be able to determine the motivation behind the actions of the accused in the death of another human being. Tomorrow, we will look at how the Jewish people were to make the distinction between killing and murder and the role that Cities of Refuge played in determining that distinction.

So, where do you stand on capital punishment? Does this clear up, or cloud up, the issue for you?