Salvation Summaries

I believe a number of people may have a negative view of God after hearing or reading about violence in the Old Testament, especially stoning. How could a loving and compassionate God allow, let alone command, such a barbaric act? If God condones this, why would a person believe in Him?

I must confess, I did not want to write about this topic and found it difficult to do so, as just the thought of a person being stoned is graphic and unsettling for me. I started and stopped several times, but in the end felt it was important to help those who might have withdrawn from or even rejected God because of this issue.

What, How, Who and Why

What is stoning? In the Bible, stoning was one means of killing a person (or an animal) who had done something evil in the eyes of God or wrong according to others.  Shooting of arrows was another (Ex 19:13). Stoning was practiced by Israel in both the Old and New Testaments. It was carried out by a person, group or village (Lev 20, 24; Numbers 15, Deuteronomy 13). Egypt apparently did this during the time of the Old Testament (Ex 8:25-27), and some middle eastern countries still do it today.

The Bible does not describe how people were stoned, but through other sources we know it was done in various ways (throw a person off of a building onto rocks, take a large rock and hit a person’s chest with it, wrap a person completely with cloth and place them partway in a hole then cast rocks on them, etc.).

In several books of the Old Testament – namely Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy – God commanded that an Israelite be killed from stoning if that person committed certain acts that God considered to be evil. These included:  

• Sacrificing their son or daughter to the false god Molech (Lev 20:1-3)
• Enticing an Israelite to worship false gods (Deut 13:6-11; 17:2-5).
• Blaspheming God (Lev 24:14-16).
• Gathering wood on the Sabbath day (Nu 15:32-36). 
• Committing adultery (Deut 22:20-24)
• Acting (a son) disrespectfully towards one’s parents (e.g., was stubborn, rebellious, disobedient, a drunkard and refused to change his ways) (Deut 21:18-21).

From this list, some acts, such as those about sacrificing a child to a false god or worshiping false gods, are more severe than others, and as a result, would seem to justify a harsher penalty. Gathering wood on the Sabbath would not seem to warrant death at all, though from reading a commentary on this there is more to the story that might change one’s view of the crime. Still, do any of these really justify death, and death by stoning? And what does this say about the character of God?

Making Sense of Stoning

Why God commanded stoning is not easy to answer, but because He did, there must be a valid (or understandable) reason. Here are my thoughts:

Different way of life back then. Living conditions three thousand years ago in the middle east were harsh and violent. Battles and killing often took place. Certain Old Testament books, such as Judges and 2 Kings, contain plenty of graphic violence. In addition, evil seemed pervasive back then… just look at so many of Israel’s kings, and how people acted before the global flood. As a result, stoning (and other means of killing) may not have been viewed as barbaric as it seems to us today.

Appears infrequently carried out. There are only a handful of recorded instances of stoning in the Bible. I counted four times in the Old Testament and two in the New. Some people were threatened with stoning (Jesus) or stoned and not killed (Paul). While it’s likely that some stonings took place that were not recorded in the Bible, what was recorded suggests that this barbaric form of capital punishment may have been rarely carried out.

Jesus did not approve. Jesus did not seem to approve of stoning (“Let he who is without sin cast the first stone…”, John 8:7). As such, Christians were not to stone anyone in the New Testament (pray for your enemies) or anytime after this.

Deterrent seemed to be its real purpose. While it’s true that stoning was used as one form of capital punishment, I believe its main purpose was as a strong deterrent. We see in Deuteronomy 13:11, 21:21 and 22:21-22 that the purpose of stoning was to “purge the evil” among the Israelites and make them so afraid that they would not commit this evil act going forward. Deuteronomy 13: 10 says, “Then all Israel will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such a wicked thing among you.”

I also believe that early in Israel’s life, God had to set up strict rules to be followed and harsh punishments for violators in order for Israel to survive as a race and for the Messiah to eventually be born. If Israel started to go down a path of sin and rebellion (especially a belief in false gods and adoption of other cultures), there’s no guarantee Israel would have survived. Harsh deterrents and penalties were thus apparently necessary to prevent sinful Israel from being completely wiped off the map as a people group.

Need to reconcile with God’s mercy and grace. Stoning can certainly cause one to question God’s character, but we must not lose sight of the verses that portray Him in a completely opposite way, or as One who is loving, gracious, merciful and just. For example, Psalm 146 and 147 show that God executes justice for the oppressed, gives food to the hungry, opens the eyes of the blind, lifts up those who are bowed down, and heals the brokenhearted. Psalm 145 says that He is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.

Jesus’ penalty was worse, and God allowed this. We should not forget that Jesus’ penalty was worse than stoning. After a severe flogging, He was crucified. Jesus experienced a more brutal, graphic and violent death than any of the Israelites who were stoned. One could rightly ask, “How could a loving God allow this to take place?” It’s because God is loving.

Conclusion

Did stoning take place in the Old Testament and New Testament periods? Yes. Was it a form of capital punishment? Yes. Was it barbaric and cruel? Yes. Did God command that it be done for certain offenses? Yes. Was it primarily meant to be a harsh deterrent to prevent a cancerous, sinful lifestyle from spreading? It appears so. Did Jesus approve of it? No. Is it practiced anymore in Israel? No. Are Christians to practice it? No. Does it mean that God is barbaric and violent? No.

Don’t let an outdated form of capital punishment from 2,000 – 3,000 years ago for Israel deter you from believing in the goodness and love of God, or in His Son, who died so that you might be saved.