Responses to the Skeptic's Annotated Bible Cruelty Short List - Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy:

Deuteronomy 2:34 - "So we captured all his cities at that time and utterly destroyed the men, women and children of every city. We left no survivor."

The people of Heshbon, in connection with the other nations God defeated, were a wicked people. Note that God spared the nations that were not beyond repentance throughout chapter two. Heshbon’s king would not allow Israel to pass through peacefully, though Israel had not threatened them. In fact, Heshbon was the first to attack Israel (2:32). Nevertheless, while military conflict is expected, the annihilation of the nation seems extreme. There are several points to consider. First, if God indeed intended for Israel to do this, He had good reason and is just in ending any life He upholds. In many cases, cultures had become so wicked that they were no longer redeemable. This wickedness, if not stamped out, would be a cancer to Israel, through whom God would save the world. As for the innocent children, they were likely taken to heaven never to suffer again or become as evil as their parents. On the other hand, this passage does not directly say that God told Israel to annihilate these people. At times, the Bible reports things which it does not necessarily condone. If God commanded it, then it was just. If not, the Bible merely reports what was done, and does not seem to either condone or condemn the actions.

Deuteronomy 3:3-6 - "So the LORD our God delivered Og also, king of Bashan, with all his people into our hand, and we smote them until no survivor was left. We captured all his cities at that time… We utterly destroyed them, as we did to Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women and children of every city."

Like Heshbon, Bashan attacked Israel first (3:1). The situation here was nearly identical with the one in Deut. 2:34. Please see the comments on that passage.

Deuteronomy 4:25-26 - "When you become the father of children and children's children and have remained long in the land, and act corruptly, and make an idol in the form of anything, and do that which is evil in the sight of the LORD your God so as to provoke Him to anger, I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will surely perish quickly from the land where you are going over the Jordan to possess it. You shall not live long on it, but will be utterly destroyed."

The Skeptics Annotated Bible misrepresents this passage, saying “If someone makes an image of anything (like a bird or flower) then God will destroy the entire nation.” The issue is not simply making an image of a flower. It is forsaking the pure worship of the One God, and worshipping an earthly image. That is the meaning of “idol.” God did not want to destroy Israel, and He lovingly warns them of that fate here. It is God’s power and protection that has caused Israel to prosper. If they turn from God, they would also forsake the benefit of His protection. Other nations would “destroy” them with God’s permission, but He would not forsake them, preserving a remnant until the day of restoration.

Deuteronomy 7:2 - "and when the LORD your God delivers them before you and you defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them and show no favor to them."

Verse 4 clearly spells out the reason that Israel was to destroy the people God would deliver to them: otherwise, those people would corrupt Israel’s worship, leading to their downfall. The destiny of the world and the success of God’s plan of redemption go hand-in-hand with Israel’s past, present, and future (Genesis 12:3). Those who criticize this passage apparently long for an age of perfect peace, and for the absence of violence and pain. Yet they fail to see that for God to fulfill this desire, He must destroy evil. He could wipe out all evil from existence, but He would also have to destroy all of humanity. Yet He has chosen instead to transform humanity as well as the whole earth through His Son, the Messiah of Israel. This will one day finally be accomplished. Yet if Israel, God’s instrument of salvation, had been corrupted as thoroughly as the Hittites and Canaanites, it would have interrupted God’s plan for salvation, and humankind would be destroyed for good. The command to kill was only meant for that particular people, at that particular time, under those particular circumstances, and is not universally applicable. God is the giver of life and is free to take it through whatever instrument He chooses (in this case, Israel). Which is better, that a wicked people who stand against God’s plan of redemption be destroyed, or all of humanity?

For more on God’s command to utterly destroy evil nations, including children, see the comments on Joshua 6:21.

Deuteronomy 13:6-10 - "If your brother, your mother's son, or your son or daughter, or the wife you cherish, or your friend who is as your own soul, entice you secretly, saying, 'Let us go and serve other gods'…you shall not yield to him or listen to him… But you shall surely kill him; your hand shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. So you shall stone him to death because he has sought to seduce you from the LORD your God…"

It should not be a surprise that God would punish those who oppose Him. What should be surprising is the patience and grace by which He deals with humanity in the present. This we take for granted, though God is under no obligation to grant life or any good thing to the rebellious. Death might seem to be too harsh a punishment, but any threat to true worship among Israel could have been disastrous, since they were the sole worshippers of the One true God and His instrument for salvation for the world. Notice that in this passage, an individual was not to bring the death sentence alone. He was merely to be the first to strike, with the authority of the entire community, and on the basis of two to three witnesses (17:6). God is the source of life. Those who rejected Him knowingly rejected life itself, since they had this gracious warning. If they reject life, God is willing to grant their wish.

Deuteronomy 13:15 - "you shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying it and all that is in it and its cattle with the edge of the sword."

In context, those to be killed are those who would try to seduce Israel away from unadulterated worship of God. As argued in response to 7:2 and 13:6-10, God’s purpose for Israel necessitated purity in their worship. His plan to save humanity depended on it. God gives life and has the right to take it. It is better for a wicked person to die than for all of humanity to be destroyed by evil.

Deuteronomy 17:12 - "The man who acts presumptuously by not listening to the priest who stands there to serve the LORD your God, nor to the judge, that man shall die; thus you shall purge the evil from Israel."

Though it seems harsh to kill someone for rebelling against the priest, to do so would have been understood as openly opposing God. God is patient with many people. He apparently allowed wicked people throughout the world to live for generations during this time, but He is under no obligation to tolerate evil. The person in Israel who knowingly opposed the God of life was required to forfeit his life or repent. Surely this passage leaves room for the rebel to change his mind before his assassination. If he didn’t, he openly chose death. In the community of God’s people, through which salvation was to come to the world, it was especially important that evil be eradicated. It should not amaze us that God would have a rebel put to death. It should amaze us that He allows most to live as He patiently awaits our repentance, filling us with gratitude and humility.

Deuteronomy 20:13-14 - "When the LORD your God gives it into your hand, you shall strike all the men in it with the edge of the sword. Only the women and the children and the animals and all that is in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty for yourself; and you shall use the spoil of your enemies which the LORD your God has given you."

This passage describes what Israel was to do if a particular people not living in the land that God gave Israel will not accept their offer of peace. God allowed Israel to go to war against them if they refused to recognize the sovereignty of Israel’s God and were thus willing participants in war, knowing they might die. The men (all of which would have presumably been fighting against Israel) were to be killed under God’s direction. God, who gives life, saw fit to take these lives, while sparing the lives of the women and children. Perhaps, though these were a wicked people, their wickedness was not of the kind that would have seduced Israel into idolatry if the women and children were allowed to live. Of course, in that culture, women and children were dependent on men to meet their needs. Israel was to care for them as their own. They would mercifully be given the opportunity to learn the religion of the One true God.

Deuteronomy 20:16 - "Only in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, you shall not leave alive anything that breathes."

This passage is parallel with Deut.7:2. See the response to that passage for a more complete comment. God gives the reason for the annihilation of these people. The practice great wickedness, and might otherwise teach Israel to do the same. God, who sustains life, has the right to take it from whomever He wishes, through any means He wishes. These people would die for their wickedness. As for the children, those without guilt are eternally safe in the arms of God, whereas they may not have been if they had been trained to be corrupt like their parents.

Deuteronomy 22:20-21 - "But if this charge is true, that the girl was not found a virgin, then they shall bring out the girl to the doorway of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death because she has committed an act of folly in Israel by playing the harlot in her father's house; thus you shall purge the evil from among you."

As God’s chosen people, Israel was to exhibit exceptional holiness. They were to be a light to the world. God is under no obligation to overlook grievous sin. Sexual sin has always been an abomination, but in this context, it was necessary that the sin was purged from those people, who were to be kept holy for the salvation of the world. By demanding the fornicator’s life, the law protected Israel from such sin, as only those who wished to boldly defy God would dare to do it, in full knowledge that the punishment was death. While in our standards, the punishment may seem harsh, God may demand the life of anyone to whom He has given it, especially in a society entrusted with the revelation of God. With greater knowledge and blessing comes greater responsibility. Ultimately, God is just in determining the punishment for sin. He is the standard for measuring right and wrong. Humans should not impose our standards on Him. The development of salvation history was too high stakes to allow Israel to become defiled.

Deuteronomy 22:22 - "If a man is found lying with a married woman, then both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman; thus you shall purge the evil from Israel."

Notice here that there is no favoritism given to the man. Equal sin yields equal punishment. For further comment, please see the response to Deut. 22:20-21.

Deuteronomy 22:23-24 - "If there is a girl who is a virgin engaged to a man, and another man finds her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and you shall stone them to death; the girl, because she did not cry out in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor's wife. Thus you shall purge the evil from among you."

These verses are to be contrasted with 22:25, in which a woman is raped. Because the sexual activity takes place in a populated location, it is clear that the woman consented: she was not raped. In cases of rape, the woman is held innocent (22:25-26). If she was guilty of fornication, she and the man were punished according to the law. For more comments about capital punishment in cases of fornication, see the response to Deut. 20:20-21.

Deuteronomy 25:11-12 - "If two men, a man and his countryman, are struggling together, and the wife of one comes near to deliver her husband from the hand of the one who is striking him, and puts out her hand and seizes his genitals, then you shall cut off her hand; you shall not show pity."

It is clear from 25:5-10 that the carrying on of one’s name through having children was of great importance in Israel. In that context, the law about attacking a man’s genitals is found. It would certainly seem excessive to cut off a hand for simply touching a man there, but the context suggests a violent struggle in which there is a risk of the man’s loss of the ability to procreate. The woman is not otherwise prevented from helping her husband, but if she knowingly puts that man’s progeny in danger, she violates him and defies God’s command put in place to protect the line of Israel. She would know what the penalty is, and would likely not do it. There is no record in Scripture of it happening (which is not proof, of course, that it did not). It is interesting that though mutilation was common in the ancient Near East, this is the only occurrence of such a law in the Bible.

Deuteronomy 28:21 - "The LORD will make the pestilence cling to you until He has consumed you from the land where you are entering to possess it."

In this section of Scripture, Moses has given Israel the laws of God, and now sets before them their options. If they obey and remain faithful to God, they will be blessed. Yet if they rebel against God and refuse to keep the covenant they made with Him, they will be punished. It is difficult to understand how punishment from God for high treason against the King of the universe can be considered cruelty. It is the epitome of human arrogance for people to judge God’s just acts in punishing wickedness. There is nothing good that Israel had, including their lives, that was not graciously given by God. He even promised greater blessing, if they would only remain faithful to Him, and He graciously warned them about the consequences of rebellion. God is just in punishing sin. It is amazing that He ever patiently gives sinners the opportunity to repent.

Deuteronomy 28:26 - "Your carcasses will be food to all birds of the sky and to the beasts of the earth, and there will be no one to frighten them away."

In the same context as 28:21, this is one of the consequences to befall Israel if they should commit treason against God. Verse 25 describes Israel fleeing from their enemies. This verse, then, should be understood as the aftermath of the deaths of many Israelites in war against foreign nations. Other men would kill Israel, and animals would eat their flesh, since no one would remain to stop them. How could this be considered cruel on the part of God? If Israel abandons God, should they expect Him to still provide a hand of protection from their enemies? They would be given what they asked for: existence in a harsh world without God’s help.

Deuteronomy 28:27-28 - "The LORD will smite you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors and with the scab and with the itch, from which you cannot be healed. The LORD will smite you with madness and with blindness and with bewilderment of heart."

Please see the response to 28:21, which appears in the same context. Once again, God is under no obligation to treat with mercy those who openly rebel against Him. He is right in giving people what they deserve.

Deuteronomy 28:32 - "Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people, while eyes look on and yearn for them continually; but there is nothing you can do."

Notice that what happens in this verse is done by other people. By rejecting the God who protected them, Israel would eventually become vulnerable to the Babylonians, which indeed carried off the sons and daughters of Israel. God simply made a prediction that this will happen if they turn back on their covenant with Him and thus forsake the protection He offered them. Nevertheless, even when they were carried off, God still watched over and protected those faithful to Him, such as Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (see Daniel chapters 3, 6).

Deuteronomy 28:35 - "The LORD will strike you on the knees and legs with sore boils, from which you cannot be healed, from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head."

In Moses’ discourse warning Israel from deserting their covenant with God by rejecting Him to worship others, he lists several curses against those who commit high treason against God. This curse is one of them. God is just in punishing wickedness. See the response to 28:21.

Deuteronomy 28:53-57 - "Then you shall eat the offspring of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters whom the LORD your God has given you, during the siege and the distress by which your enemy will oppress you. The man who is refined and very delicate…will not give even one of them any of the flesh of his children which he will eat…The refined and delicate woman…shall be hostile toward the husband she cherishes…for she will eat them (the newborn and afterbirth) secretly…"

If the allegation against this passage is that it describes brutally cruel acts, than it is guilty. However, the integrity of neither God nor the Bible should be challenged based on this passage any more than the newspaper editor ought to be maligned for reporting rape or murder. Certainly, God does not condone such hideous acts. He merely predicts that wicked people would do such things, proving their wickedness and God’s justice for punishing them.

Deuteronomy 32:23-25 - "I will heap misfortunes on them; I will use My arrows on them. They will be wasted by famine, and consumed by plague and bitter destruction; And the teeth of beasts I will send upon them, With the venom of crawling things of the dust. Outside the sword will bereave, And inside terror--Both young man and virgin, The nursling with the man of gray hair."

God is just in His actions against Israel. All good gifts, including life, food, and protection are given by God. Those who reject God also reject His gifts; He is free to take them. God is merciful and compassionate, but He is also holy, separating Himself from wickedness. He cannot tolerate it. To do so would be to act against His character. God always shows compassion on the truly repentant, but those who openly and stubbornly reject Him, including His mercy, are owed none of it. Sadly, even infants suffer because of the sins of others. This passage describes God’s hand of protection against foreign invaders being taken away. Other evil people would (and later did) carry out violence against Israel, including the children. Nevertheless, God grants mercy to the innocent children in the afterlife. He gives life to our mortal bodies and may take it, though the soul lives on until the day it is finally reunited with a perfect body (1 Thes. 4:14). Those children from whom temporal life is taken may be far better off than they would have been otherwise.

Deuteronomy 32:41-42 - "If I sharpen My flashing sword, And My hand takes hold on justice, I will render vengeance on My adversaries, And I will repay those who hate Me. I will make My arrows drunk with blood, And My sword will devour flesh, With the blood of the slain and the captives, From the long-haired leaders of the enemy."

Certainly this is a violent passage, but no one can claim that it is a cruel one. Those who set themselves against God in (literally) violent opposition should expect God to fight against them. The modern mindset which assumes that all violence must be morally wrong has no compass by which to make such judgments. For if there is no transcendent God to be the source of moral truth, then all is relative, and the skeptic has no means to judge any passage of Scripture as morally wrong. God, however, has given life and is free to take it from those who hate Him. Wickedness requires punishment. This is the just nature of God, for which neither He nor His followers need to apologize.

Recommended Resource: When Critics Ask by Norm Geisler.

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