Humans are made in God’s image, and the murder of a human therefore requires the supreme penalty. Animals are not made in God’s image, and there is no penalty for killing them. Made in God’s image, all humans necessarily have an inherent dignity.Īccording to Genesis, the inherent dignity of man is the reason why murder is forbidden, and why the death penalty is required in the case of murder. God forbade murder, and required the death penalty in cases of murder: “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.”3 The rule helps explain why human life is sacred: because man is made in God’s image.4 The concept of imago Dei would become a foundation for the development of human rights. The laws are sometimes called “the Noahide commandments,” “Jewish natural law” or the “Rainbow Commandments.” Unlike laws which are given later in the Torah, the Rainbow Commandments are considered applicable to God’s relationship with all of humanity, not just with the Hebrews. The first legal code in the Bible was given to Noah and his family after the Great Flood wiped out the entire human race, except for the people on Noah’s Ark. The article concludes that the Torah clearly creates a right and a duty to defend oneself and others. Part V turns to the Sixth Commandment, whose language “Thou shalt not kill,” has been frequently, but implausibly, misconstrued as a prohibition on self-defense. Part IV looks at Torah laws regarding home defense against burglars, and the duty of bystanders to rescue third parties who are being attacked by a “pursuer.” The examination of the Torah laws includes analysis of the extensive Jewish scholarly commentary on the Torah. Part III studies Moses and the Exodus of the Hebrew people from Egypt. Part II examines the Book of Genesis, in particular, the “Jewish natural law” which was given to Noah, and the story of Abraham, the patriarch of the Jewish people. This article surveys the Torah’s teachings on the right and the duty to defend oneself and others. The Jewish Bible contains the same books as what Christians call the “Old Testament.” Accordingly, the Torah is the foundation of Christian scriptures. Jews call them the Torah, which means “teaching” or “instruction.” The Torah is by far the most important of Jewish scriptures. The first five books of the Bible are sometimes called the Pentateuch.
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