Thesis: The case for capital punishment has been widely debated for centuries.

For the Christian though, the Holy Bible makes it clear that the use of capital punishment is a legitimate response to crime.

Exemplification Essay Keith R. Kirchner Anderson University

Crime has been a constant companion of mankind, plaguing societies in every corner of the globe since we first walked the earth. Throughout the centuries, nations have experimented with ways to relieve themselves of this burden especially the ones that are particularly heinous. One such method to address particularly brutal criminals is the use of capital punishment. The case for capital punishment has been widely debated for centuries. For the Christian though, the Bible makes it clear that the use of capital punishment is a legitimate response to crime.

A man and his wife enjoy a quiet evening at home watching television and talking to friends on the phone. It is a Friday evening after a long week of work but this one is different from the others. It is the mans first day of retirement. He is in his 60s now and is looking forward to a new life that does not involve the drudgery of work. Looking forward is not exactly correct though because the man is nearly blind. A knock at the door interrupts their evening. The man makes his way to the door without stumbling because he has memorized the path to get there. As the door opens, two figures appear. Despite his failing vision, he recognizes the men as two employees of his business that was to be fading into the past. A struggle ensures, brief for sure because of his inability to resist, and within minutes than man and woman are dead. Beaten with a hammer and a brick, the chosen instruments to bring an end to their lives by men desperate for money to fulfill their desire for crack cocaine. All they had worked for, everything they had saved for is now gone leaving two families grieving, wondering how such evil could exist and what to do with the offenders. On another evening, a wife waits for her husband to return home after an extended absence. He is not on deployment in Iraq or Afghanistan, he is not of town on business, he is on a three day binge on crack. When he finally returns home, the meeting is not joyous. Her nights and days spent worrying have now turned her mood bitter. It is like two junkyard dogs spying each other for the first time. They become entangled immediately, uncontrollably until he produces a knife. He has the upper hand but she does not give in easily. The first knife and the second bend and break unable to bring her life to an end. A third is wielded by the man who she loved and now she is dead. Her body is covered in so much blood the wounds that riddled her body cannot be easily

located. The husband can now be on his way, the obstacle to his desires now eliminated. Find her pocket book and the cash it holds and off to the local crack dealer for his real love. When we hear about crimes such as these, the case for capital punishment should become easier to support. Cries for rehabilitation are quickly silenced by the families who want justice for their lost loved ones. Could we convince the families of the victims of Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer that they do not deserve to die? They would likely only object if the penalty were carried out in a human and painless way. The purpose here is not to become entangled in the endless debate over the effectiveness of capital punishment to properly deter crime or whether it can be carried out in an efficient and accurate manor. The debate is not intended to discuss the possible contributing factors for wrongful convictions or to quantify their number. The purpose here is to determine if capital punishment is supported from a Christian perspective and more specifically by the Holy Bible. One doesnt need to read very far in the Holy Bible to find an example to support this conclusion. Genesis 9:6 (Holy Bible-English Standard Version) states whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image. The verse does not complicate the issue, nor does debate the details. If you take a life, you pay with your life. Exodus 21:23 provides additional guidance and states, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand. The verse provides a vivid comparison between the crime committed and the just penalty for it. For a direct explanation of the destiny of offenders, Ezekiel 18:20 makes a very clear case, the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

Alexander Williams Jr. (1992) identifies specifically Leviticus 24:17 he who kills a man shall be put to death and Genesis 4:15 if any one slays Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold as biblical support of capital punishment. He also points to Numbers 35:30 if anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death on evidence of witnesses. Here the verse even provides a method to determine guilt. Williams correctly concludes that nowhere in the bible does it expressly forbid the use of the death penalty. Additionally, since the bible identifies several examples of legitimate self-defense killings and killing in times of war, capital punishment should not be such a great leap. While Christianity professes love, this does not prevent resistance to violence even if taking a life is necessary. We can love our enemy and still require their life for atonement (Williams Jr., 1992). Randall Styers (2007) suggest an interesting position on the use of capital punishment. Capital punishment may actually aid in evangelistic efforts by encouraging the condemned to accept Gods grace and repent. If the possibility of death were not eminent, the offender may not consider their impending eternal doom and continue a life of sin. Styers also references Justice Antonin Scalia that death is essentially of no concern to the Christian believer. The point is that death is an escape from the flesh as Israel escaped from the Pharaoh. In the end, for the believer, the reward is the promised land of heaven. From this point of view, it can be concluded that God actually instituted the death penalty. For deliverance to be achieved, death must occur. Styer also recognizes that the bible does not forbid the practice of capital punishment. In fact, it permits the use by governing authorities and encourages its use for premeditated

murder. Styer relies upon Genesis 9:6, Exodus 20-21, Romans 13, and Numbers 35:33 for evidence. Perhaps Styers most convincing argument surrounds the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The price Jesus paid for the sins of man was death. His death was not like the conventional, merciful death penalty of today. His was a death was profoundly brutal. His death was also required by God, the authority behind scripture. God required death for sin, for atonement, for salvation, even if it meant the death of his own son (Styers, 2007). To look at the issue from a biblical perspective can provide remarkable clarity but many attempt to cloud the issue and avoid the obvious. God does not expressly forbid the use of capital punishment and has provided several examples in scripture where it was applied. God himself used it as a penalty so it should not be a stretch for us to do the same. As Jesus said to Peter in the Garden of Gethsemane, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword, Matthew 26:52.

References

Styers, R. (2007). Capital punishment, atonement, and the Christian right. Differences: A Journal of Feminist Cultural Studies, 18(3), 97-127. Williams Jr., A. (1992). Christian ethics and capital punishment: A reflection. Journal of Religious Thought, 49(1), 59.