Verses 12-19 “12He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death.
13And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into his hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee.
14But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die.
15And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death.
16And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.
17And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.
18And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed:
19If he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.”
13And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into his hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee.
14But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die.
15And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death.
16And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.
17And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.
18And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed:
19If he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.”
The death penalty is not too cruel to be practiced in certain situations by governments in our own day. Premeditated murder is such a terrible crime that the death penalty seems to be the only appropriate punishment. Life is very precious because it can come only from God, the Giver of Life. To take a human life unjustly is to strike right at the God who gave it.