Christians should support the notion of capitol punishment. The Bible supports it.

Sorry about that. I didn't know the set response time. Totally my fault on that. Oh well. Thanks for debating this with me. It is such an important issue that so many people who claim to be Christians condemn as evil. I'll start by addressing the issues that you bring up in your argument. You stated that "muder is not [justified]. To suggest that murder is ethical is not only unChristianly but unHumanly". I agree with that statement. Murder is evil and goes entirely against the Old Testament law and the teachings of Christ. I never made the claim that murder is anything other than wrong and evil and anyone who commits murder should be punished. I must admit that it is a tad frustrating to see you making claims regarding things that I never stated. I never stated that it is acceptable for individuals to take revenge on another. Again in Matthew 5, Jesus comands us to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us. Romans 12:19 says, "Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord". Therefore it is wrong for an individual to take revenge against another person and I never claimed otherwise. Since God does not want individuals to take revenge on others and as He is the ultimate judge, how does one understand the concept of an "eye for an eye" as stated in Exodus 21:24? The latter half of Exodus as well as a great portion of Leviticus is the law that God passed down to the Israelites. Again, in Matthew 5, Jesus states that He did not come to abolish the law. His teaching is meant that we might know better His ideal plan by which we are to live our lives. This includes no revenge and to love our enemies. You must also remember that God is just and does not allow sin to go unpunished. 2 Thessalonians 1:6a says, "God is just" and Luke 18:7-8 states, "And will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, He will see that they get justice, and quickly". "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 3:23). Granted God gives us the gift of eternal life if we accept Him but we still must physically die. Sin has consequences. He is the ultimate authority to punish wrongdoers. You yourself stated that "If he [God] says something that should be followed. Governments should punish but they should not abandon his laws". I agree with that. Governments should follow the precepts layed out by God within the Bible. Romans 13 then gives the description of God's plan for the govenment. Your argument that "Civil government was not around 'in the beginning'" is not true. God was the law by which people lived in the beginning. He set the laws. As people pulled away from him and set their own rules, God chose the nation of Israel through which to accomplish His plan. He directly governed them through Moses, Joshua, and the Judges. Then the people wanted their own king that they could all see. God allowed this. Paul, through the inspiration of God, outlines God's plan for governments in Romans 13. Verse 1 and 2 od chapter 13 state that "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves". These verses show that God is in ultimate control and He is the one that institutes governments. Verse 4 of Romans 13 states that "For he [the government or the authority] is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. You yourself stated that war can be justified by the Bible. Why? Because an all-knowing God has ordained it as punishment. Same thing is to be said of capitol punishemnt. The above verse calls the government "God's servant" or other translations say God's agent to do His bidding. In Romans 13, God ordainded capitol punishment when He mentions that the government holds the sword. That sword is to be used. Not swing it around and look treatening. God is not one to make empty threats. He has shown time and again that He will punish those who oppose Him. Romans 13:4 tells wrongdoers to "be afraid". Why would the wrongdoer be afraid if it weren't for the fact there is punishment for their crime. The government does not hold the sword in vain but it is meant to be used. When it is used it teaches people that the laws are enforced and that violators will be punished severely. If people do not fear the punishment then the crimes will continue. It is the government's job to uphold justice in all situations including murder and God requires that from the government. Murder requires justice and justice for murder, according to the Bible, is the death penalty. Lets say that someone again stole one hundred dollars from you. The government catches the crook and he is brought to you to make restitution. You expect to get your one hundred dollars back but the government tells you that the crook is not going to pay you the one hundred dollars that he stole but they are going to have him pay thirty dollars. As the offended party wouldn't you consider that to be unfair and a failure of the judicial system to uphold the law and to make sure that justice is done? I would think that most people would. The punishment for murder should match the crime. Murder, not j-walking or speeding, should be punishable by death. I appreciate the sarcasm but I would think that a person who has studied the Word could think logically and realize that the Bible teaches that the punishment should match the crime. Over and over that teaching is shown. Through out the old testament law, there are specific punishments that perfectly match the crime. All crime is not to be punished the same. As I mentioned before, the Bible states that God is a just God. Punishing someone with death for speeding is not justice. Granted, I am not sure that you put as much authority on the teachings of Romans as you do the 10 Commandments. Granted, when you made the statement that "The Bible is not meant literally" that would seem to void any argument that you may have made using the Bible as a foundation. I realize that this debate may seem foolish to someone who does not believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God. Yet, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 states, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.". Therefore if you believe that a portion of the Word is true, then you must believe that it is all true. God ordained the government to be His agent and to do His will. He gave the government the sword to punish offenders and to kill offenders when necessary. It is not murder, as God Himself has ordained it. It is murder if an individual takes matters into their own hands and kills another for they are not God's agent to uphold these laws for a nation. Remember that God is just and that the punishment must match the crime. Therefore someone who kills another should be punished in the same way, by their own death through capitol punishment. The death penalty is God's idea and should be upheld through the government system.