Different Life: 5th CommandmentSample

Here’s the fifth commandment, short and sweet: “You shall not murder” (Exod 20:13; Deut 5:17). Older versions say “You shall not kill.” Bible scholars will tell you that the translation “murder” is better because there are certain times in the Old Testament when God permitted killing, like in the case of capital punishment or the conquest of Canaan. But none of that should lead us to believe killing is good.

Anytime we kill a person, we destroy someone unique who is precious to God. Even if they’re bad. Even if they’ve done bad things. Even if they really deserve it. Anytime we kill, we destroy someone made in the image of God. Someone who is meant to reflect His image and carry out His goodness in the world. To kill a person is to strike at the very image of God Himself. Human life is sacred. No matter how corrupt it gets.

Perhaps under certain circumstances it is better to kill someone than not, but death and killing were never part of God’s original design. God brings life. This commandment reminds us to do the same.