The sixth commandment

Deuteronomy 19.11-13

“‘But if anyone hates his neighbor and lies in wait for him and attacks him and strikes him fatally so that he dies, and he flees into one of these cities, then the elders of his city shall send and take him from there, and hand him over to the avenger of blood, so that he may die. Your eye shall not pity him, but you shall purge the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, so that it may be well with you.’”

See how God Himself guards against hastily taking the life of one who is responsible for the death of another. Prosecutors must be able to prove that hate was present, and that the attacker deliberately planned to strike his neighbor down. In this passage it appears as though the “avenger of blood” – a relative of the deceased – has the right to take matters into his own hands. However, that’s not the case, as the first part of the text indicates. A judgment has to be rendered by proper authorities, and only after careful deliberation and consideration of the facts.

However, when the death penalty is appropriate, it must be applied without hesitation or pity. It may grieve us to have to put a murderer to death, but the wellbeing of the community is at stake in magistrates acting swiftly and appropriately against all murder.

This series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.ailbe.org and click on our Book Store.