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Difference between revisions of "Question: Do the scriptures endorse murder?"
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11 And because they did cast them all out, that there were none righteous among them, <b>I did send down fire and destroy them, that their wickedness and abominations might be hid from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints whom I sent among them might not cry unto me from the ground against them.</b></blockquote> | 11 And because they did cast them all out, that there were none righteous among them, <b>I did send down fire and destroy them, that their wickedness and abominations might be hid from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints whom I sent among them might not cry unto me from the ground against them.</b></blockquote> | ||
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| + | This ethic is much, much more palatable from a Latter-day Saint’s [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/doctrine-and-covenants-student-manual/section-76-the-vision-of-the-degrees-of-glory?lang=eng soteriological point of view] where no one is damned to hell unless under very, very harsh and unique circumstances. | ||
===Considerations for any case=== | ===Considerations for any case=== | ||
Revision as of 20:33, 28 August 2019
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Contents
Question: Do the scriptures endorse murder?
The scriptures contain explicit references against murder
It is claimed that murder is endorsed by the scriptures. There is explicit mention against innocent killing in the scriptures. A small sampling includes:
- Exodus 20:13
- Deuteronomy 5:17
- Matthew 5:21
- Mark 10:19
- Mosiah 13:21
- D&C 59:6
The Challenging Texts
Capital Punishment
Elisha
Canaanite Conquest
The Flood
Serpents and the Children of Israel
The Passover
Abraham and Jesus
Nephi and Laban
A Moral Philosophical Note for Consideration
Many people are-- very understandably-- troubled with the portrayal of many people losing their lives in the scriptures and other pericopes that appear to condone some form of murder. When taken from their mortal sojourn, it may be that God is showing mercy to people by allowing them not to make any more bad choices. That may allow us to see the scriptures in a new light. God is the creator of the universe including our spirits and bodies (2 Nephi 2:13) and it is his right to act upon us according to his will since he is the author of our life. When he causes destruction, he is acting in mercy by not allowing a person to sin more. Consider what Christ spoke to the Nephites before his appearance to them at Bountiful (3 Nephi 9:5-11):
5 And behold, that great city Moronihah have I covered with earth, and the inhabitants thereof, to hide their iniquities and their abominations from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints shall not come any more unto me against them.
6 And behold, the city of Gilgal have I caused to be sunk, and the inhabitants thereof to be buried up in the depths of the earth;
7 Yea, and the city of Onihah and the inhabitants thereof, and the city of Mocum and the inhabitants thereof, and the city of Jerusalem and the inhabitants thereof; and waters have I caused to come up in the stead thereof, to hide their wickedness and abominations from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints shall not come up any more unto me against them.
8 And behold, the city of Gadiandi, and the city of Gadiomnah, and the city of Jacob, and the city of Gimgimno, all these have I caused to be sunk, and made hills and valleys in the places thereof; and the inhabitants thereof have I buried up in the depths of the earth, to hide their wickedness and abominations from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints should not come up any more unto me against them.
9 And behold, that great city Jacobugath, which was inhabited by the people of king Jacob, have I caused to be burned with fire because of their sins and their wickedness, which was above all the wickedness of the whole earth, because of their secret murders and combinations; for it was they that did destroy the peace of my people and the government of the land; therefore I did cause them to be burned, to destroy them from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints should not come up unto me any more against them.
10 And behold, the city of Laman, and the city of Josh, and the city of Gad, and the city of Kishkumen, have I caused to be burned with fire, and the inhabitants thereof, because of their wickedness in casting out the prophets, and stoning those whom I did send to declare unto them concerning their wickedness and their abominations.
11 And because they did cast them all out, that there were none righteous among them, I did send down fire and destroy them, that their wickedness and abominations might be hid from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints whom I sent among them might not cry unto me from the ground against them.
This ethic is much, much more palatable from a Latter-day Saint’s soteriological point of view where no one is damned to hell unless under very, very harsh and unique circumstances.
Considerations for any case
No matter what text of the scriptures is claimed to support murder, it is important to remember three things:
- A good hermeneutic for reconciling the scriptures. See here for our suggested tools.
- Read scripture in context. Grab a thorough scholarly commentary on the book in question and dive into it to see what you can know about it.
- Read scripture holistically. If scripture talks about anything, we should read everything that scripture has to say about that person, place, or thing. It helps us gain a composite understanding of how the prophets understood God’s word in a particular context and how we can understand it today through the lense of revelation.
This is the pattern that we have followed for the other responses we have written for moral questions about the scriptures.
Additional Reading
- Wikipedia “Thou Shalt Not Kill”
- Net Bible
- The Oxford Annotated Study Bible