"You shall not murder.” Exodus 20:13

The commandment prohibits murder, not all killing. What is the difference?

First, it is not murder to kill a plant or an animal. Human beings have a responsibility before God to care for the planet, which means managing plant life and animal life for God’s glory (Genesis 1:28-29). God’s Word allows for killing animals for food. (Genesis 9:1-4). Additionally, because animals have feelings (though not souls), cruelty to animals is a sin (Proverbs 12:10). Therefore, killing animals humanely, particularly for food is not murder.

Second, killing a human being is not always murder either. The Old Testament Law called for capital punishment for certain offenses. In the New Testament, Romans 13:1-4 teaches that God has ordained government to reward those who do good and punish evildoers for doing bad. One of the most important ways government is to reward those who do good is by maintaining law and order—including punishing evil doers. Punishing evil doers includes the use of the “sword,” referring to capital punishment. When the government does this biblically, killing is not murder.

Third, killing as a part of war is not necessarily murder. Not all wars are just wars. Killing human beings even as a part of war is murder if the warfare is not just. What constitutes just warfare? Simply stated (and there is much more to it than space here allows), (a) Just warfare is defensive, not offensive. (b) Just warfare is not undertaken to steal territory from another nation. And (c) just warfare involves enemy combatants, never non-combatant civilians. In a sense, just warfare is an extension of government using the “sword” to protect its people. Want a current example of just v. unjust warfare? Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is not just warfare, and the killing they are doing is murder. The Ukrainian government’s defense of its people and land is just warfare.

Next Time, intentional killing v. unintentional killing.