A The Baptist Deacon

COMMANDMENT SIX

deaconfarley | July 28, 2008 10:39

Thou shalt not kill. ~ Exodus 20:13 ~ The Sixth Commandment.

This is a four word commandment. It is very simple and easy to understand or is it? This particular commandment even though it only has four words is a lot bigger and harder to understand than you might think. 

Just about any given day you can turn on the news and one of the headlines will be man or woman found murdered.  Another headline may be a member of the One – Hundred and First Airborne (or any branch in the military) killed in Afghanistan (or somewhere else in the world) today. There is a difference in the two examples I just gave.

First of all when we referrer to “kill” or “thou shalt not kill” the bible is speaking about cold blooded murder. The bible records the first murder in Genesis 4:8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. God did not hold Cain guiltless look at verses 11 and 12: And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.

As we are studying the Ten Commandments we must keep in mind that this is only the beginning. The law given by God is more complex than what we are studying. There are consequences for breaking any law. My state (Tennessee… VOLS) has the death penalty, which we use.

You may be thinking, isn’t the death penalty murder? The answer is no, the death penalty is not murder. Genesis 9:6 Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.  This was from Noah’s time and the sixth commandment expands and explains. This establishment of capital punishment, administered judicially by man, has never been changed or withdrawn. It is still God's law today and forms the basic authorization of the institution of human government. ~ KJV Defenders Notes.

 Exodus 21:12 He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death. If you will read several verses past the 12th you will see that murder is not the only offence that carries the penalty of death. In my last post on the previous commandment, we studied honoring your parents. Did you realize that disobedience such as smiting or cursing your parents also carried a penalty of death? You need to read a little further than just the 12th verse just to see what you could do under the law that carried the death penalty.

I also mentioned the military, aren’t there deaths, or lives they take in service to be considered murder? My answer is not to make anyone mad or to hurt feeling, but it is not murder to fight for ones country. It has to be considered as a form of self defense, which is acceptable. There will be war and rumors of war until Jesus comes back. There will continue to be men and women killed in wars.

This will sum the sixth commandment up: The sixth commandment requires that we regard the life and the safety of others as we do our own. Magistrates and their officers, and witnesses testifying the truth, do not break this command. Self-defence is lawful; but much which is not deemed murder by the laws of man, is such before God. Furious passions, stirred up by anger or by drunkenness, are no excuse: more guilty is murder in duels, which is a horrible effect of a haughty, revengeful spirit. All fighting, whether for wages, for renown, or out of anger and malice, breaks this command, and the bloodshed therein is murder. To tempt men to vice and crimes which shorten life, may be included. Misconduct, such as may break the heart, or shorten the lives of parents, wives, or other relatives, is a breach of this command. This command forbids all envy, malice, hatred, or anger, all provoking or insulting language. The destruction of our own lives is here forbidden. This commandment requires a spirit of kindness, longsuffering, and forgiveness. ~ Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary

God Bless You!

To be continued…

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Comments

Re: COMMANDMENT SIX

Frank | 07/28/2008, 12:07

Absolutely, Brent! I could just say, "eating "the" fruit from "the" tree requires the death penalty. But that was not murder, it was suicide. It's all down hill from there. And you know… we die only because Adam chose to align himself with Eve (and satan) rather than God. Adam did the same thing all the seduced angels did… follow satan. Well he (Adam) followed him (satan) right into his world of death, and took us with him. But the redeemed will not be held by satan or death, hallelu yah. I don't care what any progressive liberal says… the death penalty DOES deter, if we would only use it expeditiously. Me too… if I sin (already have), I will die. (sort of looking forward to it)
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