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God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (Berkeley version). It is the firm conviction of this writer, after lengthy research and study, that the Bible has consider able to declare on the subject of capital punishment,* and that those ’“According to the Encyclopedia of Social Sciences, capital punishment is "the practice of deliberately putting to death an offender as a measure of social security imposed by the governing authority of the community." responsible for the making of our laws and the administration of jus tice would do well to heed the pre cepts found therein. Many well-meaning people who profess to accept scriptural authority disagree on what they think the Bible teaches about capital punish ment. This study is aimed at finding out what the Scriptures actually say on the subject which might be ap plicable today. The Bible verses quoted herein are all from the Berkeley version,f an tThe Holy Bible: The Berkeley Version in Modern English, edited by Gerrit Verkuyl, of Berkeley,. Cali fornia; copyright 1959 by Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan,- used by permission of publisher. easily-read modern English transla tion, so that the average reader might better understand the topic under consideration in language similar to the wording of laws of today; but the King James and other older versions in use are equally reliable. NO DEATH PENALTY A T BEG INN ING We find that very early in man’s history, as told in the fourth chap ter of Genesis, the first recorded murder was committed by the first person born on earth when Abel was slain by his brother Cain. However, we do not read of the taking of life as punishment until after the flood of Noah’s time, a few generations later, which came as God’s judgment upon a corrupt civilization. In Genesis 6:5 we read these star tling words: “God saw the human wickedness was growing out of bounds on earth; that the intention of all human thinking produced nothing but evil all day.” This de plorable condition may well have been accelerated by the fact that there was no capital punishment at that time. The first mention in the Bible of the subject is Genesis 9:6: “Whoever sheds a person’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed; because God made man in His likeness.” This verse es tablishes the death penalty for mur der, and gives the logical reason for
By Ronald A. Warford jP>
ikriptural
R i p e t i s i CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
I t is a lm o s t im p o s sib l e to read a daily newspaper or listen to a newscast on radio or television nowa days without hearing of murders, kidnappings, and other vicious and heinous crimes. Crime rates are steadily increasing at an alarming pace and law enforcement officials are rightly concerned. The problem of how to deal with the criminal of fenders is one that deserves and re ceives much consideration from law makers and other officials.
The principle of sentencing men and women convicted of crimes is basically that the punishment should be in proportion to the severity of the crime. This applies to the death penalty which demands that one who has taken another’s life wilfully must forfeit his own life as a con sequence. Bible believers accept the Scrip tures as the source of doctrine and faith and know that II Timothy 3:16 states: “ All Scripture is inspired of
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THE KING'S BUSINESS
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