Immanuel Bulletin Series:
A common scene unfolds at the site of many criminal executions that take place in the United States: Protesters line up outside the penitentiary gates carrying signs that say “Thou shalt not kill.” Many people feel, with good intent, that God would never be in favor of anyone intentionally taking a human life. God’s commandment is misquoted, however, when people fail to recognize who the Lord means by the “thou” in “Thou shalt not kill.” God makes it plain that it is the individual, who takes it upon himself to end a human life, who is guilty of murder:
Genesis 9:6: “Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man.”
Because human beings are made in God’s image, He alone has the ultimate authority to end a human life. Yet, this passage also shows that it is God’s will to delegate this authority when He says “By man his blood shall be shed.” Just who is it that is given this authority? In Old Testament times, the Lord empowered the government of Israel to inflict capital punishment on those who were found guilty of murder (Exodus 21:12), adultery (Leviticus 20:10), sodomy (Leviticus 20:13), rape (Deuteronomy 22:25), kidnapping (Exodus 21:16), witchcraft (Exodus 22:18), teaching false doctrine (Deuteronomy 13:1-10), and other crimes. In those days, it was God Himself who governed Israel directly, giving them not only moral laws to live by, but also their civil laws of property, crime, punishment, and even diet. Today we are not bound by these Old Testament civil laws. Instead, the Lord has delegated these civil matters to earthly governments, as Paul relates in the book of Romans:
Romans 13:1,4: “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God—For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil.”
Thus, the Bible unmistakably gives to our government the authority to punish evildoers, even to the extent of putting them to death. Our Lutheran Confessions weigh in on this matter, in Luther’s discussion of the 5th Commandment:
“Therefore neither God nor the government is included in this commandment, yet their right to take human life is not abrogated. God has delegated His authority of punishing evil-doers to civil magistrates—Therefore what is forbidden here applies to private individuals, not to governments. (Large Catechism I, 180 to 181 [Tappert, p. 389])
But now the question arises do the Scriptures require governments to enforce the death penalty, and if so, for which crimes? Based on Biblical principles, a strong argument can be made that it is wise for our government to do so when the nature of the crime is heinous. When justice for horrible crimes is exacted fairly and swiftly there is the beneficial effect of deterrence, that is, obedience to the law because of the fear of punishment. The Bible describes this in the case of a man who gives false witness against his neighbor in court. He is to receive the punishment that would have been inflicted on the one who was falsely accused, “And those who remain shall hear and fear, and hereafter they shall not again commit such evil among you.” (Deuteronomy 19:20). Nevertheless, since the Bible does not require the practice of capital punishment for our civil governments, the state is free to enact it or not.
If capital punishment is practiced, is it possible that, at times, an innocent person might be put to death? Sadly, yes. Our judicial system is far from perfect and there are times when the guilty are acquitted and the innocent are condemned. We must remember that there is in heaven a true and righteous Judge who someday will make right all that is wrong (see Luke 16:25 for an example of this). The greatest example of an innocent man being put to death is that of the Lord Jesus Himself, “Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:22). The only sinless Man who ever lived was condemned to death by crucifixion! As we think about Christ’s death, we must remember that it was for our sins that He suffered and died. We are the guilty ones who deserved the death penalty (Romans 6:23), but Jesus paid it all. He died so that we might live (John 5:24)!