Update on "And they are God's chosen people?"

I posted a note awhile back on Israel's government creating a law allowing euthanasia by machine (click here to see it). As I was writing it, I was aware that there was an increasing amount of info floating around regarding the death penalty and the then-upcoming execution in California. I half-expected that someone would take what I had written and go a step further based only on the one verse I quoted from the Old Testament. If done, the conclusion that one would naturally reach is that the death penalty is biblically wrong.

Here is the verse I quoted: "The Lord kills and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and brings up." 1 Samuel 2:6, NKJV

The point I was making was two-fold. One, that it was a case of justifying actions and two, that the taking or the giving of life is under God's direction. In the context of 1 Samuel 2, this verse comes from Hannah's prayer for a child -- a prayer directed to the One who has control over life or death. In other words, it is the Lord's (and His only) prerogative to take or give life. That being the case, unless God says otherwise, the taking of life by machine is no different than the taking of life by human hands. To my knowledge, there is no biblical reference stating otherwise.

Apparently, my expectation was confirmed. What I had intended to be specifically applied to Israeli law has been taken to apply to the death penalty as well. Please understand--that was not my intention. If it had been, I would have written more concerning that issue. To take a verse of Scripture and direct it toward something it was not intended to be directed toward is unwise, if not dangerous biblically and theologically.

If I would have gone further and written of the death penalty, here is what I would have written:

God is the creator of life. It is His decision whether one lives or dies. Thus, we must look to His Word to determine what is written regarding the taking of life. That is the standard by which we must abide. Human beings are not to make decisions about the taking of life (and allowing machines under the direction of human beings to do so is the same as human beings taking the life).

That being so, what does God have to say about the matter?

"Whoever sheds man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God He made man." Genesis 9:6 This is the institution of the death penalty for murder, given by God to mankind through Noah. NOTE: this is God making the decision for death, not man.

"He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death." Exodus 21:12

Although there are others, these will suffice. It is clear: for the taking of life, God directs mankind to take the killer's life. NOTE: this is God making the decision for death, not man! Man is never given the right to decide.

Sure, some will argue that these are Old Testament verses applying to the Law of Moses, and that we are no longer under the Law, but under Grace. True, we are no longer under the Law. So, let's remove Exodus 21:12 (given under the law) from the equation. That still leaves Genesis 9:6, given long before the Law was given. And notice the basis of the charge: In Genesis 9:6, God says the reason for the death penalty in the case of murder is because man is made in God's image. Has that changed? No! If the sanctity of life due to mankind being made in God's image has not changed, then perhaps the charge of Genesis 9:6 still remains. It appears that God has not rescinded that verse.

By the way...If the commandment to not kill (given under the law, which has a specific consequence) is repeated in the New Testament (which it is--see Romans 13:9), why should we change the consequence?