“Someone who says I’m against abortion but is in favor of the death penalty is not really pro-life,” he said on Tuesday. “Someone who says I’m against abortion but I’m in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States, I don’t know if that’s pro-life.”
A universal command. In the book of Genesis before the Mosaic Law was given.
Genesis 9:1-7
9 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. 2 And the fear of you and the terror of you will be on every beast of the earth and on every bird of the [a]sky; with everything that creeps on the ground, and all the fish of the sea, into your hand they are given. 3 Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; as with the green plant, I give all to you. 4 However, flesh with its life, that is, its blood, you shall not eat. 5 Surely I will require [b]your lifeblood; [c]from every living thing I will require it. And [d]from every man, [e]from each man’s brother I will require the life of man.
6 Whoever sheds man’s blood,
By man his blood shall be shed,
For in the image of God
He made man.
7 As for you, be fruitful and multiply;
[f]Swarm on the earth and multiply in it.”
Footnotes
- Genesis 9:2 Lit heavens
- Genesis 9:5 Lit your blood of your lives
- Genesis 9:5 Lit from the hand of
- Genesis 9:5 Lit from the hand of
- Genesis 9:5 Lit from the hand of
- Genesis 9:7 Or increase, cf. Ex 1:7
Exodus 21:12-27
Judgments About Personal Injuries
12 “He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death. 13 But [j]if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint you a place to which he may flee. 14 If, however, a man acts presumptuously toward his neighbor, so as to kill him by deceit, you shall take him even from My altar, that he may die.
15 “And he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.
16 “He who [k]kidnaps a man, whether he sells him or he is found in his hand, shall surely be put to death.
17 “And he who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.
18 “And if men contend with each other and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but [l]remains in bed, 19 if he gets up and walks around outside on his staff, then he who struck him shall go unpunished; he shall only pay for [m]his loss of time, and [n]he shall take care of him until he is completely healed.
20 “And if a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod and he dies [o]at his hand, he shall surely [p]be punished. 21 But if for a day or two he is able to stand, no punishment shall be taken; for he is his [q]property.
22 “And if men struggle with each other and [r]strike a woman with child so that [s]she gives birth prematurely, yet there is no injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband [t]will set for him, and he shall pay [u]as the judges decide. 23 But if there is any further injury, then you shall pay life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.
26 “And if a man strikes the eye of his male or female slave and ruins it, he shall let him go free on account of his eye. 27 And if he [v]knocks out a tooth of his male or female slave, he shall let him go free on account of his tooth.
Footnotes
- Exodus 21:13 Lit he who
- Exodus 21:16 Lit steals
- Exodus 21:18 Lit lies
- Exodus 21:19 Lit his sitting
- Exodus 21:19 Lit healing, he shall cause to be healed
- Exodus 21:20 Lit under
- Exodus 21:20 Lit suffer vengeance
- Exodus 21:21 Lit money
- Exodus 21:22 Lit smote
- Exodus 21:22 Or an untimely birth occurs; lit her children come out
- Exodus 21:22 Lit lays on him
- Exodus 21:22 Lit by arbitration
- Exodus 21:27 Lit causes to fall
Leviticus 24:17-23
An Eye for an Eye
17 ‘If a man strikes down the life of any human being, he shall surely be put to death. 18 And the one who strikes down the life of an animal shall make restitution for it, life for life. 19 If a man [f]injures his neighbor, just as he has done, so it shall be done to him: 20 fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; just as he has [g]injured a man, so it shall be [h]inflicted on him. 21 Thus the one who strikes down an animal shall make restitution for it, but the one who strikes down a man shall be put to death. 22 There shall be one standard of judgment for you; it shall be for the sojourner as well as the native, for I am Yahweh your God.’” 23 Then Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and they brought the one who had cursed outside the camp and stoned him with stones. Thus the sons of Israel did, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses.
Footnotes
- Leviticus 24:19 Lit gives a blemish
- Leviticus 24:20 Lit given a blemish
- Leviticus 24:20 Lit given
Romans 13
Be Subject to Government
13 Every [a]person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except [b]from God, and those which exist have been appointed by God. 2 Therefore [c]whoever resists that authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. 3 For rulers are not a cause of fear for [d]good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of that authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same; 4 for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword in vain, for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. 5 Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of that wrath, but also because of conscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. 7 Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.
8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves [e]his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9 For this, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this word, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does not work evil against a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the Law.
11 And do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now [f]salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. 12 The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
Footnotes
- Romans 13:1 Or soul
- Romans 13:1 Lit by
- Romans 13:2 Lit he who
- Romans 13:3 Lit good work
- Romans 13:8 Lit the other
- Romans 13:11 Or our salvation is nearer than when
This is the most notable passage in the NT on Christian civic responsibility. It probably reflects the famous saying of Jesus: “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s” (Mt 22:21). That Paul lived in conformity with his own teaching is apparent from his relation to various rulers as recorded in Acts. Because he realized that this subject had a definite bearing on the spread of the Gospel (cf. 1Ti 2:1-7), he saw its relevance to the theme of salvation and included it here in Romans. These verses are an expansion and special application of the teaching about good and evil (12:17, 21) and living “at peace with everyone” (12:18). The word “wrath” in 12:19 seems to anticipate the same Greek word in 13:5 (translated “punishment” in NIV).
More important, however, is the broader connection in terms of thought. (1) There is the natural connection with 12:1-2, where the foundation is laid for Christian service in its various ramifications. The believer’s relation to the state is one of those areas. (2) Another possible connection is with chs. 9-11; Paul may be intent on warning the Roman church, which contained some Christian Jews as well as Gentile believers who sympathized with them over the plight of their nation, not to identify with any revolutionary movement advocating rebellion against Rome. As is well known, Jews had been expelled from Rome by Claudius (see comment on Ac 18:2), and it is possible that the Jews who later returned to Rome (including some Christian Jews) were hostile toward the state because of the way Claudius had treated them. These needed to be mollified.
Leviticus 24:17-23
An Eye for an Eye
17 ‘If a man strikes down the life of any human being, he shall surely be put to death. 18 And the one who strikes down the life of an animal shall make restitution for it, life for life. 19 If a man [f]injures his neighbor, just as he has done, so it shall be done to him: 20 fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; just as he has [g]injured a man, so it shall be [h]inflicted on him. 21 Thus the one who strikes down an animal shall make restitution for it, but the one who strikes down a man shall be put to death. 22 There shall be one standard of judgment for you; it shall be for the sojourner as well as the native, for I am Yahweh your God.’” 23 Then Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and they brought the one who had cursed outside the camp and stoned him with stones. Thus the sons of Israel did, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses.
Footnotes
- Leviticus 24:19 Lit gives a blemish
- Leviticus 24:20 Lit given a blemish
- Leviticus 24:20 Lit given
Numbers 35:16-21
16 ‘But if he struck him down with an iron object, so that he died, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. 17 And if he struck him down with a stone in the hand, by which he would die, and as a result he died, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. 18 Or if he struck him with a wooden object in the hand, by which he would die, and as a result he died, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. 19 The blood avenger himself shall put the murderer to death; he shall put him to death when he meets him. 20 And if he pushed him of hatred or threw something at him lying in wait and as a result he died, 21 or if he struck him down with his hand in enmity, and as a result he died, the one who struck him shall surely be put to death; he is a murderer; the blood avenger shall put the murderer to death when he meets him.
Exodus 21:12-36
Judgments About Personal Injuries
12 “He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death. 13 But [j]if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint you a place to which he may flee. 14 If, however, a man acts presumptuously toward his neighbor, so as to kill him by deceit, you shall take him even from My altar, that he may die.
15 “And he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.
16 “He who [k]kidnaps a man, whether he sells him or he is found in his hand, shall surely be put to death.
17 “And he who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.
18 “And if men contend with each other and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but [l]remains in bed, 19 if he gets up and walks around outside on his staff, then he who struck him shall go unpunished; he shall only pay for [m]his loss of time, and [n]he shall take care of him until he is completely healed.
20 “And if a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod and he dies [o]at his hand, he shall surely [p]be punished. 21 But if for a day or two he is able to stand, no punishment shall be taken; for he is his [q]property.
22 “And if men struggle with each other and [r]strike a woman with child so that [s]she gives birth prematurely, yet there is no injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband [t]will set for him, and he shall pay [u]as the judges decide. 23 But if there is any further injury, then you shall pay life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.
26 “And if a man strikes the eye of his male or female slave and ruins it, he shall let him go free on account of his eye. 27 And if he [v]knocks out a tooth of his male or female slave, he shall let him go free on account of his tooth.
28 “And if an ox gores a man or a woman [w]to death, the ox shall surely be stoned and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall go unpunished. 29 If, however, an ox was previously in the habit of goring and its owner has been warned, yet he does not confine it and it puts a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death. 30 If a ransom is [x]demanded of him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is [y]demanded of him. 31 Whether it gores a son or [z]a daughter, it shall be done to him according to [aa]the same judgment. 32 If the ox gores a male or female slave, [ab]the owner shall give his or her master [ac]thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.
33 “And if a man opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and does not cover it over, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34 the owner of the pit shall make restitution; he shall [ad]give money to its owner, and the dead animal shall become his.
35 “And if one man’s ox [ae]hurts another’s so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide its price equally; and also they shall divide the dead ox. 36 Or if it is known that the ox was previously in the habit of goring, yet its owner has not confined it, he shall surely pay ox for ox, and the dead animal shall become his.
Footnotes
- Exodus 21:18 Lit lies
- Exodus 21:19 Lit his sitting
- Exodus 21:19 Lit healing, he shall cause to be healed
- Exodus 21:20 Lit under
- Exodus 21:20 Lit suffer vengeance
- Exodus 21:21 Lit money
- Exodus 21:22 Lit smote
- Exodus 21:22 Or an untimely birth occurs; lit her children come out
- Exodus 21:22 Lit lays on him
- Exodus 21:22 Lit by arbitration
- Exodus 21:27 Lit causes to fall
- Exodus 21:28 Lit so that he dies
- Exodus 21:30 Lit laid on him
- Exodus 21:30 Lit laid on him
- Exodus 21:31 Lit gores a daughter
- Exodus 21:31 Lit this
- Exodus 21:32 Lit he
- Exodus 21:32 Approx. 12 oz. or 330 gm, a shekel was approx. 0.4 oz. or 11 gm
- Exodus 21:34 Lit give back
- Exodus 21:35 Lit smites
