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What Israel Did

A few examples:

Deut. 2:  They destroyed towns of King Sihon...killing men, women, and children...leaving no survivors.  The context would seem to indicate this was done with God's blessing.

Numbers 31: Instructed by God to take vengeance on the Midianites, Moses gives instructions to kill all boys and non-virgin girls while saving the virgin girls for themselves.

1 Samuel 15: God instructs Saul to destroy the Amalekites, not sparing children and infants.

I think it safe to say that the followers of Jesus are unanimous in considering infanticide to be a gross violation of God's moral code.  How does that square with these passages of God-sanctioned infanticide?  I don't have a good answer.  One unsatisfying answer is that these sorts of things represent an ancient people using God to justify there barbaric actions.  I'm not ready to accept what that says about the reliability of scripture.  Another answer is "who is the clay to question the potter", God can do what he will regarding life and death.  That's not satisfying either, but is probably where I am at this point.

Comments

Even though I don't have letters after my name, I will comment and risk having my comment dismissed. I don't think we can comprehend the heart and mind of God. Good questions to ask when you see Him face to face. When I read through the OT what struck me most was that we as humans just don't get it. Didn't then and don't now. We repeat the same mistakes over and over and over. I think the passages you mentioned deal with God keeping His people - namely the Israelites and the lineage of Christ - alive. They are His chosen people. God was very present in the OT. He was right there in battle. Told them exactly what was going to happen and it did. They still didn't believe or live according to His rules. He defeated their enemies, yet they still turned away. It is hard to read that God destroyed people like He did in the OT. Those people turned away from Him and were going to destroy His chosen. The wages of sin is death.

Many of today's Churches teach that God is love. Nothing but love. He's going to give you everything you want if you just ask. Yes, He is love and can give you many riches, but He is also a jealous and judgmental God as shown throughout the OT. We forget that.

I think the OT teaches and reminds us that there is no way we can do what God commands us. It is not in our human nature. That is why He sent Christ to be the sin for us. He does it all - we do nothing. For me that is the focus of being a believer. I can't know the answer to every question the Bible brings up. I do know that Jesus paid the sacrifice for me and all believers to spend eternity with Him in heaven. Good enough for me, but then I don't have a lot of letters after my name. My humble opinion.

I pretty much agree but still can't really imagine any Godly justification for slaughtering children during conquest.

But we justify the slaughter of innocent children everyday in this country.

No I don't.

Yes, I know you think you don't.

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