The Ten Commandments

Biblical Doctrine of Self Defense

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: Biblical Law

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2023-08-02

Synopsis: John Weaver argues that the sixth commandment, 'Thou shalt not kill,' is properly understood as a prohibition against murder, not all taking of life. He demonstrates from Scripture that life may be lawfully taken on God's terms, including in self-defense. The positive duty of the commandment is to preserve life, making self-defense and the defense of others obligatory. Historical examples from colonial America and modern church attacks illustrate the practical application of this doctrine.

[John Weaver] art or the biblical doctrine of self-defense. And the text is, of course, Exodus 20 and verse 13, where God literally says, Thou shalt not kill.

[John Weaver] Now, I will tell you this. I have a second part to this message, which I'm not going to be able to preach here, but you can go online to sermonaudio.com forward slash Weaver. And you type in the biblical doctrine of self-defense and you'll get the first message and the second message as well. Also, let me tell you this. First of all, this is something that you need to know. You need to have this worked out in your mind. You need to have this understood, because if you ever get into a position where you have to defend your life or the life of anyone else, It is too late for you to sit there and try to figure out now, Lord, what can I do with this?

[John Weaver] What do you allow in this situation? It's too late. Usually when you get in a life and death situation, you have about 30 seconds to maybe 60 seconds to respond. So you better already know what the word of God says and you better know how to defend yourself. One of my favorite stories is about the old pilgrim pastor who was going to church. And as he was walking in church, he was carrying his blunderbuss on his shoulder. And one of the men came up alongside him and said, Preacher, he said, let me ask you a question. Do you believe in the absolute sovereignty of God? And the preacher said, well, most certainly I do. Well, he said, Preacher, let me ask you another question. Do you believe that God is in control of everything? And the pastor said, well, most certainly I do. Well, he said, Pastor, let me ask you one more question. Do you believe that when it comes your time to die, that you're going to die and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it?

[John Weaver] He said, absolutely. The man was pushing and he said, now, Pastor, let me ask you, if you believe that God is absolutely sovereign and you believe that God is in control and you believe when it's come your time to die, that you're going to die and there's nothing you can do about it, why are you carrying that blunderbuss on your shoulder? The pastor said, that's simple. In case I meet an Indian whose time it is to die.

[John Weaver] So very clearly, he was informing and teaching that individual. Obviously, there are a lot of people that have misunderstood our forefathers because all of them not only carried weapons everywhere they went, they went to church armed. There is a book that I would encourage you to get if you have not ever read it. I found an old copy, and I bought the old copy, and then I found out that the book has just recently been reprinted, and the title of the book is The Sabbath of Church of New England, written by Alice Morse Earl. The book has been reproduced. It's a very informative book, and chapter two is really, really informative. Because it tells us in that chapter, not only that our forefathers always went armed to church, but also why they went armed to church, even on the Lord's Day. And it was pointed out that in order to sanctify the loading of their weapons on the Lord's Day, that they were instructed by their pastors not to discharge those weapons on the Lord's Day, unless it was at an Indian or a wolf, which at that time were the two greatest dangers to anyone.

[John Weaver] Trumbull, the historian of Connecticut, in his Mac Fingal, writes in jest concerning this Sunday armed bearing. His simple poem is this. So once for fear of Indian beating, our grandsires wore their guns to meeting. Each man equipped each Sunday morn with psalm book shot in powder horn and looked in form as almost grand like the ancient church militant. And of course, that's what he was saying, making fun of the carrying of arms to church. But in the formation of our nation, all bore arms to church, even on the Lord's Day.

[John Weaver] In fact, what many people do not understand is it was required for you to do so. There were laws. For instance, in 1640 in Massachusetts, it was ordered that the attendants at church should carry a competent number of pieces, fixed and complete, with powder and shot and sword every Lord's Day to the meeting house. So, swords were demanded then as rifles. In Connecticut, in 1643, those who failed to bring their arms to church were fined 12 cents for each offense.

[John Weaver] Now, we laugh at 12 cents, but 12 cents was a lot of money back then. In 1644, there was a law that demanded the fourth part of an armed a band of trained men trained fighting men were obligated to come to church each Sunday and the sentinels were ordered to keep their matches lit for those match locks that they had. I don't know if you can imagine this sitting in a church and smelling maybe the lighter notes or whatever they had that they kept lit the whole time in case they had to use those weapons for an Indian attack in 1692. The Connecticut legislature ordered that one-fifth of the soldiers in each town must attend the Sunday meeting. One-fifth of the soldiers in each town were ordered to attend so that the churches might be protected. In colonial America, Cranmer, a historian, shows that church security was often mandated by law.

[John Weaver] Hence, in 1619 here in Virginia, Not only required church attendance, but also, and I'm quoting, all such as bear arms shall bring their pieces, swords, powder, and shot with them under penalty of a three shilling fine if they did not. This was phrased in 1623 to require that all men that are fitting to bear arms shall bring their pieces to the church, a requirement that was restated and made law in 1738. The approach of bearing arms in church was certainly not limited to southern colonies.

[John Weaver] An account of the Plymouth colony in 1627 tells of a Sabbath day procession up the hills of worship in every man armed and marching three abreast. This reality is captured by George H. Bolton's famous 1867 painting of pilgrims going to church. So in the mid-17th century, church gun carrying was mandated by law in Plymouth. So here is the law. It is enacted that every township within this government do carry a competent number of pieces fixed and complete with powder and shot and swords every Lord's Day to the meetings, one of a house from the first of September to the middle of November, except there be some just and lawful impediment. Connecticut required church attendees to bring a musket, a pistol, or some piece with powder and shot to each meeting.

[John Weaver] So these early requirements then to keep and bear arms was primarily against the defense of Indians at that particular time. However, there were other reasons as well. In fact, here in South Carolina, a 1743 statute required every male to bring a gun and at least six rounds of ammunition for it to the church. Other provisions require church wardens, deacons, or elders to check each man coming in to make sure that he was armed. Isn't that amazing?

[John Weaver] And many of our modern day habits And customs actually are derived from these old days, and I noticed this when I was a boy. Of course, I mentioned to you I was raised in church. We went to church every Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, any night there was a special meeting. And when I was a boy, I noticed that all men in our church sat on the ends of the pews.

[John Weaver] I didn't know why, but when I grew up, I started sitting on the edge of the pew as well. When I got married, I still sat on the edge of the pew. And come to find out, there's a reason. Because in colonial America, every man carried his weapon to church. Those weapons were usually stacked in the aisle, and all the men sat on the ends of the pews, all the women and children on the inside of the pew. So if the church was attacked, The men could just simply reach over and grab their weapons and go out in order to fight. The women and children would not be in the way, and they would be protected then by the pews as well. So all these weapons were basically kept an arm's length.

[John Weaver] Now, I particularly like this next little tidbit of history. Have you noticed that it's the custom of the pastor after the sermon to walk to the back door or the front door? Now, he walks wherever that door is. and opens the door and someone says, yes, we know that. I mean, we've done that for years. The pastor, he goes back there so he can shake hands with everyone. Really? Do you know something? I don't have to walk for that door over there to shake your hand. If you want to shake my hand, you could walk up here just as easily as I could walk over that door. Do you know why that custom arose where, you know, Somebody's praying and the pastor slips out during the prayer and stands there by the door. You know why? Because the pastor was the under shepherd under Christ.

[John Weaver] He was responsible for his people and what he would do. And he was armed. He would always go to the door first and open that door and look out to make sure there were no Indians or wolves and later on, British soldiers. And once he was safely out and he believed that everything was safe, he would summon the men and the men would then come out and then the women and children. So this habit, this custom of going to the door first for the pastor, that was simply because of the custom. And I particularly like this because the pastor always preached with his loaded weapon by his side. on the pulpit.

[John Weaver] All the other weapons were stacked in the aisle. But the pastor usually, listen carefully, who was the best shot of the community and had the best rifle. He always preached with that weapon right beside him. It was his responsibility to protect his sheep. And that was exactly what he was going to do.

[John Weaver] Now, this Custom certainly proved excellent, especially in 1775 at the outset of the war for independence. In fact, the Provincial Congress or the Continental Congress recommended that men within 20 miles of the seacoast carry their arms and ammunition with them to the meeting house on the Lord's Day and all other days for public worship. And the wisdom of that enactment was found many times over before the war ended in 1783.

[John Weaver] So let me ask you this question. Were our forefathers right and biblical in carrying those arms? And were they right and biblical in carrying them to church? And the answer is, I can assure you they were right and they were biblical. So here's another good question. Is there any precaution that we should take In light of the violence and everything that's happening today, in light of what our forefathers experienced. Now, let me give you a good example.

[John Weaver] I'm going to read this. This happened in Cape Town, South Africa, July the 25th, 1993. Now you say Cape Town, South Africa, that has nothing to do with me. Yes, it does. Yes, it does. It was Peter Hammond from that area in Frontline Fellowship. Had one missionary in that church, Charles Van Wick. You can read his book on it. But that church was attacked by a group of terrorists. Listen carefully. A group of five terrorists came to St. James Church, the largest evangelical church in Cape Town, shortly after the evening service began. One of the terrorists, wearing a ski mask, rolled a hand grenade into the packed assembly without warning.

[John Weaver] and then open fire with an AK-47. Shooting from the hip as he sprayed the worshippers in a deadly attack that left 12 people dead at that particular account and more than 50 severely wounded. As the terrorist, and by the way, there was another terrorist which was about to lob a grenade and open up with his AK-47, but he was deterred and he did not get to do so and there was a reason. By the way, these terrorists were with the Communist ANC, which was Nelson Mandela's group. The missionary, Charles Van Wick, he began firing at the second terrorist who was about to throw in the hand grenade and open up with his AK-47, and the only thing that he had was a.38 revolver. And so he pulled out that revolver and began shooting. And of course, the terrorists then began ducking.

[John Weaver] And finally, all of them fled and got into a Mercedes and was fleeing away. And Charles Van Wick went out and was emptying his revolver in that Mercedes as they went away.

[John Weaver] Now, that church averaged over a thousand in attendance on Sunday evening. So the reason the other terrorists did not get to throw his hand grenade was simply because of Charles, is what it amounts to. He was ducking for cover. And the police are actually giving one armed Christian man the credit for saving a hundred lives.

[John Weaver] Now, let me tell you something. If you will study a little bit of history, you will find out that the communists and terrorists always like to attack churches and they always like to attack homes. And the reason for that is that's where you feel the most secure. That's where you believe you're the safest. And that's usually where people are unarmed, usually speaking, on Sunday morning. There are exceptions, I can assure you, but they're always known to terrorize churches.

[John Weaver] So we have to ask this question. Was this missionary right in carrying his weapon to church? And was he right in defending his life? And was he right in defending the lives of other people? Or we could ask some other questions. Were these Christians in South Africa wrong because they did not want to die? I mean, you know, if they're Christians and they understand to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. I mean, were they unspiritual in the fact that they did not want to die at that particular time at the hands of the terrorists? Or we could ask it like this. Was it right for the Christians to be killed and the communists to live? Had you not rather the Christians live and the communists die? Before we answer some of these questions, I want to give you something that happened in America. I want you to listen carefully.

[John Weaver] Here are different dates, but February the 14th, 2010, Richmond, California, three hooded men walk into the Gethsemane Church of God in Christ and open fire and then fled. The two victims, 14 year old boy and 19 year old man, were shot. March 8, 2009, Maryville, Illinois. Suspect Terry Joe Sadelik, 27 of Troy, walks into the First Baptist Church and shoots Pastor Fred Winters dead point blank. Several church members were injured by a knife because they were struggling to control him and he had a knife and he actually cut them before he was subdued. July 27, 2008, Knoxville, Tennessee, a gunman opens fire in a church during a youth performance, killing two people and injuring seven. December 9, 2007, Colorado, three people were killed and five wounded in two shooting rampages, one in a missionary school in suburban Denver and one in a church in Colorado Springs. The gunman in the second incident was killed by a guard. On August 12, 2007, a lone gunman Icon Eliam Simon opened fire at a Missouri Micronesian church, killing the pastor and two other church goers.

[John Weaver] May the 20th, 2007, a standoff between police and a suspect in the shooting of three people in Moscow, Idaho, Presbyterian Church, ended with three dead, including one police officer. Although not a church building, on October 2, 2006, attack in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania by a gunman who killed five girls and then himself at an Amish school, which he targeted. On May 21, 2006, Louisiana, four were killed by a man at the Jesus Christ Church. February 26, 2006, Michigan, two people were killed at Zion Hope Missionary Baptist Church by a man who reportedly went to the church looking for his girlfriend. And he later killed himself. April 9, 2005, a 27-year-old airman died after being shot at a church in College Park, Georgia, about three hours from us, where he once worked as a security guard. March 12, 2005, a man walked into the service of the Living Church of God in Milwaukee and opened fire, immediately killing seven people. October the 5th, 2003, a woman opened fire in Turner Monumental AME Church in Kirkwood, east of Atlanta, killing the pastor and two others.

[John Weaver] September the 16th, 1999, seven young people were killed when a man opened fire during a prayer service for teens at Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Brook, Texas. And then 9-18-2011, Lakeland, Florida, authorities and family members say a man shot and killed his wife, at their Lakeland home and then shot two others at a nearby church. And these are just some, there have been a multitude of others.

[John Weaver] So the question says, or ask is this, is it right to defend yourself? Is it right to defend other people? Is it right to bring a weapon to church? Is it right to use it at church? I guess you heard recently, and by the way, I commend him so greatly and I forget his name right now. But when the church in Texas was attacked by a man who carried a shotgun under his long coat and there were any targeted, first of all, the church security team and they were just unobservant and he killed two men who were armed.

[John Weaver] before they could ever get their weapons out. And one man from 15 yards away, walking, made a headshot and killed him and took him out and stopped him from killing anyone else. And that was just one of the last year. I'm just simply pointing out the fact we have to deal with these issues. You need to know what in the world you can do and what you cannot do based upon the word of God.

[John Weaver] So when you look at Exodus chapter 20 and verse 13, the Bible says thou shalt not kill literally. I want you to understand this is God's law. This is not Jewish law. This is not the Gomorrah. This is not the Mishnah. This is not the Talmud. No, no, no. This is God's law. God says thou shalt not kill. What in the world does that mean? Well, let me try to put it to you like this. Thou shalt not kill literally means thou shalt not murder. Or it means thou shalt not take life unjustly. Or to say this another way, thou shalt not take life except it is on God's terms. When you look at that sixth commandment in the New Testament, the Greek word there also means thou shalt not murder. Now, taking a life can be murder, but taking life is not always murder. There are lawful reasons given in the Bible where life can be taken. Life may be taken justly. Life may be taken righteously. Life may be taken biblically as long as it's taken upon God's terms.

[John Weaver] Without me going into depth on any of these and without me commenting on these, I want to give you very quickly 18 reasons why life may be lawfully and legitimately taken on God's terms. I won't quote all the scripture, but I've just given to you. Number one, life is to be taken for murder, but not for accidental killings. Exodus chapter 21. Number two, life is to be forfeited for striking or cursing a parent.

[John Weaver] Young people, listen to that. Life is to be taken for striking or cursing a parent. You'll find that in Exodus 21, verse 15, Leviticus 20, verse 9, Proverbs 20, 20, Matthew 15, verse 4, and Mark chapter 7, verse 10. Our Lord quotes that as well. Number three, life is to be taken For kidnapping, you kidnap and God says you deserve the death penalty. You'll find that in Exodus 21 and Deuteronomy 24. The death penalty is given for adultery in Leviticus chapter 20. Fifthly, the death penalty is given for incest. You'll find that in Leviticus chapter 20. Sixthly, the death penalty is required and pronounced for bestiality. You'll find that in Exodus 22 and Leviticus 20. Seventhly, the death penalty is required for sodomy or homosexuality. You'll find that in Leviticus 20 in verse 13. The death penalty is required for unchastity. You'll find that in Deuteronomy 22 verses 20 through 21. You will find also the death penalty is required ninthly for the rape of a virgin, which we'll talk about a little bit later.

[John Weaver] Deuteronomy 22. Then the death penalty is required for witchcraft. Exodus 22 in verse 18. Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. Number 11, the death penalty is required for offering human sacrifice. Leviticus chapter 20 and verse 11 or 21 it is. And then number 12, the death penalty is demanded for incorrigible delinquency or habitual criminality. You'll find that in Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 18 through 21. Number 13, the death penalty is required for blasphemy in Leviticus chapter 24. Then it's also required for Sabbath desecration. Oh, that's a sermon in itself, in Exodus 35, in Numbers chapter 15. And then number 15, the death penalty is required for the propagation of false doctrine, Deuteronomy chapter 13. Number 16, the death penalty is required for sacrificing unto false gods, Exodus 22. Number 17, listen to this one, refusing to abide by the decision of a biblical court. And denying God's law, the death penalty is required. Deuteronomy chapter 17. Verses 8 through 13. And number 18, failing to restore the veil of the pledge or the bailment in Exodus 18 verses 12 through 13.

[John Weaver] Now, there's 18 reasons given in the Bible why life may be lawfully and justly taken on God's terms. Now, whether you understand these or not, whether you Agree with them are not in your mind right away. The fact is, they're biblical. There are listed here in the Bible. So here are 18 reasons why life may be lawfully taken on God's terms.

[John Weaver] Now, the sixth commandment also forbids all unjust violence as well as murder. Let me explain something to you. When God forbids any act At the same time, he forbids anything and everything that would lead up to that act. Hang on. So if God says thou shalt not steal. At the same time, he's forbidding me to cut it. At the same time, he's forbidding me to lust. At the same time, he's forbidding me to think about stealing. When God says thou shalt not murder, He forbids hatred. He forbids anger. He forbids ill will and anything that would lead up to that act. OK, so when you've got the Sixth Amendment now, we're talking about thou shalt not kill or thou shalt not murder. Thou shalt not take life, but except on God's terms. And I've just given you 18 reasons why life can be lawfully taken on God's terms.

[John Weaver] Now I'm going to add one more and give you the 19th reason. And this is not adding to Scripture, which you're going to see. But the 19th reason why life may be lawfully taken on God's terms is because of self-defense. Self-defense. Now, God's law is given in negative terms. If you look at the Ten Commandments, you'll notice that there are only two commandments that are positive. The fourth one is what? Remember the seventh day to keep it holy and the fifth one, honor thy father and thy mother. Those are positives. However, Those two positives are undergirded by a lot of negatives as well. Usually God's law is couched in negative terms for a specific reason. Because a negative law deals with a specific crime or sin, thou shalt not steal.

[John Weaver] So that is dealing then with theft in any form whatsoever. It could be fraud, it could be deception, it could be taking, but it's thou shalt not steal, so it's dealing with a particular crime or a particular sin. Now, here's the thing. Every time you see a negative, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not bear false witness, thou shalt not commit adultery, you have to stop and ask yourself, what is the positive? Because every negative has a positive. And every positive has a negative. Whenever you read a positive in the word of God, you should ask yourself, what is the negative? You cannot have a positive without a negative, and you cannot have a negative without a positive. So when you look at thou shalt not commit adultery, what would be the positive? Thou shalt live a holy, righteous, godly, sanctified life. Thou shalt not steal.

[John Weaver] Of course, the New Testament answers this. What would be the positive? That you're to work with your hands, laboring that which is good, that you may not only provide for yourself, but that you may have to give to those that need it. So the opposite of theft is not just simply not stealing, but it's having a generous, gracious attitude according to the word of God. So when God says in the sixth commandment, thou shalt not kill, that's the negative. The positive is thou shalt preserve life. In other words, you have a duty, you have a responsibility to preserve life. So based on the sixth commandment, self-defense is obligatory. We must defend ourselves and the lives of others, even if it involves taking the life of another individual.

[John Weaver] So I try to use this yesterday as an illustration. I was talking to someone. So let's say that Brother Lacey comes up to me and says, Brother Weaver, I'm upset with you. I'm going to kill you. And I look at him and I say, well, go ahead, brother. That'll just put me in the presence of the Lord a whole lot sooner. Just do whatever spins your wheels. If it's going to make you happy, just go ahead and kill me. If I allowed him to do that, now I'm guilty of self-murder. I have a duty.

[John Weaver] I have a responsibility to preserve my life. And if it means taking his life to preserve my life, then I'm required to do it. If I do not do it, then I am in violation of the sixth commandment myself. So if we do not defend ourselves, we're guilty of self-murder. If we don't defend our families, we're guilty of self-murder. I preached on Romans 13 one time in Indianapolis, Indiana, and I just mentioned in passing self-defense. And one man came up to me afterwards, a young man, wife and four or five children. And he looked at me and said, Brother Weaver, he said, you know, I agree with everything that you said, except this business of self-defense. I said, what? He said, I don't think you should want to hurt anybody. I said, well, I don't want to hurt anybody, but I don't want anyone to hurt me either. He said, well, he said, I would never do anything like that. I would never, ever try to defend myself or my wife or my children.

[John Weaver] I looked at him, I said, sir, the only thing I can say to you is I'm so thankful I'm not married to you and I'm not your child. You know, I really am. I'm glad I'm not your child. Listen to me. Those of you who are in the military or were in the military, you remember Article three of the United States military code. Listen to it. If I am captured.

[John Weaver] I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and to aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy.

[John Weaver] Now, why in the world is that in the military code? It's not just so that if you could escape, you can get back to your officer in charge and get him the information. No, no, no, no. You have a duty to escape. Why? Because you have a duty to preserve your life. You have a duty to help others to escape from the enemy. Why? Because you have a duty to help preserve their lives. And that's in the military code of justice. We're taught that we have a duty to escape.

[John Weaver] So is self-defense wrong? Well, I'm going to give you some scriptures. I want you to listen, because if you think self-defense is wrong, Then you have to take an issue up with God himself, because God defended his people. Here we go. Listen to 2 Kings 19, verse 34. Here's what God tells Hezekiah. I will defend this city to save it for my own sake and for my servant David's sake.

[John Weaver] Now we're talking about Jerusalem. God said, I will defend this city. So God tells Hezekiah, don't you worry about this. I'm going to defend this city. The Assyrians are not going to come in here. I'm going to defend this city. Then when you get to 2 Kings chapter 20 and verse 6, again, God said, and I will add in the by days 15 years. That's Hezekiah. And I will deliver thee of this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria. And I will defend this city for mine own sake and for my servant David's sake. Then when you get to Isaiah chapter 31 in verse 5, God says it like this. As birds fly, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem. Defending also he will deliver it, and passing over he will preserve it. Now when you get to Isaiah 37 in verse 35, God says again, for I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David's sake. One more time. Isaiah 38 and verse 6, God said, I will defend thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Syria, and I will defend this city.

[John Weaver] Five times God said, I will defend this city. I will defend my people, not only for my honor, but for my servant David's sake. I'm going to defend Jerusalem. So here's my question. Did God defend Jerusalem? And the answer is yes, he did. Here's another question. Did God take lives in defending Jerusalem? Yes, yes. All you have to do is read Isaiah 37 and verse 36. Let me read it to you. Then the angel of the Lord went forth and smoked in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and eighty five thousand.

[John Weaver] And when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. So out of all the Assyrians, God slew 185,000 soldiers. Now, here's my question. Did God have to slay them? No. Do you remember when those lepers were at the gate there in Jerusalem? Not in Jerusalem, I'm sorry, in Samaria. They were at the gates in Samaria. And there was a famine because they had been surrounded by the Assyrians. And those five lepers looked at each other and said, why should we here till we die? If we go in the city, we're going to die of starvation. If we sit here, we're going to die because the lepers usually live from the food that was thrown over the wall, the garbage.

[John Weaver] They said, come, let us fall to the Syrians. If they kill us, we will but be dead. But it may be they will save us alive. And so they went and all the tents were empty. All the food was there. And you know what God had done? God had made the Syrians hear the host of a great army and they thought the king of Samaria had hired the Ethiopians against them and they fled. There were no Ethiopians coming. There was no great army. God just caused them to hear the noise and they fled. Could God have done that?

[John Weaver] With the Assyrians, and the answer is absolutely. But he did not. He killed 185,000 of them. Did you know that David said in Psalm 7 in verse 10, my defense is of God who saved the upright in heart. You read the book of Psalms, you'll find over and over David is claiming that God is his defense. In fact, in Psalm 89 in verse 18, he said, for the Lord is our defense and the Holy One of Israel is our king. Notice the Lord is our defense. We may rightly conclude that God does indeed defend his people.

[John Weaver] It is never wrong to emulate our heavenly father. Now, someone's going to object. Someone's going to say, yes, but Brother Weaver, what God does and what we do are two different things. That is certainly true in one sense of the word. But you're not God, I am not God, I never will be God. Only God is God. But let me ask you a question. Have you ever noticed and have you ever read the book of Judges? Do you know why God raised up Judges? Listen to Judges chapter 10 and verse one.

[John Weaver] And after Abimelech, there arose to defend Israel, Tola, the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, and he dwelt in Shamir in Mount Ephraim. Did you hear that? And after Abimelech, there arose to defend Israel. Who raised up those judges? God did. And he raised them up for one reason, and that was to defend his people. Did these judges take the lives of the enemy who were trying to destroy the people?

[John Weaver] And the answer is yes, they did. Just read it. Read about Gideon. Read about all of these judges. You'll find out they took life after life after life.

[John Weaver] Now, let me show you the other one. I want you to turn to this one, if you would, please. I want you to turn in your Bibles. to 2 Samuel, chapter 23, because in 2 Samuel, chapter 23, you have a listing of David's mighty men. And I want you to see particularly. What the Bible says, look in 2 Samuel, chapter 23, and let's begin reading there with verse eight, look at this 2 Samuel, chapter 23 and verse eight. These be the names of the mighty men whom David had.

[John Weaver] The Tachamite that sat in the seat chief among the captains, the same was Adino, the Esnite. He lift up his spear against 800, whom he slew at one time. Now, that doesn't mean he threw the spear one time and it went through 800 people. But he took that spear to one battle. He killed 800 people. Watch verse 9. And after him was Eliezer, the son of Dodo, the Jehoiach, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, And the men of Israel were going away. And he, we're talking about Eleazar, and he arose and smoked the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clave unto his sword.

[John Weaver] And the Lord brought a great victory that day and the people returned after him only to spoil. I'm going to come back to that, but look in verse 11. And after him was Shammah, the son of A.G., the Harahite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop where was a piece of ground full of lentils. And the people fled from the Philistines. But he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines. And the Lord brought a great victory. Now, go back, if you would, please. And look what happened to Eleazar in verse 10. He arose and smoked the Philistines until his hand was weary. And his hand clave into the sword.

[John Weaver] Now, let me stop right there. That means his hand literally cramped around his sword handle. In other words, to get that sword out of his hand, they basically would have to pry the fingers apart. His hand clave into the sword. It was it was frozen there. He thought so. But watch verse 10 again. He arose and smoked the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clave into the sword. Watch this.

[John Weaver] And the Lord wrought a great victory that day, and the people returned after him only to spoil. The Lord wrought a great... What? I thought it was Eliezer that was doing the fighting. It was. Well, how did the Lord work a great victory? Because it was the Lord who was enabling and empowering and strengthening him to fight, you'll find the same thing down in verse 12 about Shammah.

[John Weaver] And he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great victory. Note, if you would, the Lord wrought a great victory, but it was Shammah who was doing the fighting. In other words, here is God who enabled these men who strengthened these men, who gave them a fighting spirit and the ability to fight. One of my favorite verses is Psalm 144, verse one. Blessed be the Lord God who teaches my fingers to fight and my hands to war. In other words, God is the one who taught David how to fight. He taught these men how to fight.

[John Weaver] Now, here's the principle that we've got to understand. We have to use the means that God has ordained while at the same time trusting in the Lord. These great men use their swords, their bows, their other weapons, and yet at the same time they trusted in the Lord to make them effectual. Let me say this another way, means are worthless in and of themselves. So let me give you an illustration. You can ask me, Brother Weaver, do you keep loaded weapons in your house? My answer is yes. Every weapon I have is loaded. You say, well, you're trusting in those weapons. No, I'm not. A weapon is nothing more than a tool. I am trusting in the Lord. Do you realize if someone broke into my home with the intent on murdering me, If God did not awaken me in time, and if God did not allow me to get my weapon, and if God did not allow me to shoot straight, my weapon would be worthless and useless.

[John Weaver] I could have a dozen cannons in my room. I could have a tank in my room. That wouldn't matter if God doesn't awaken me in time, if God does not enable me to fight against the enemy. I'm not trusting in a weapon just because I have a weapon. I'm trusting in the Lord. May I remind you of Moses? I'm going to read to you from the book of Acts, because Stephen is giving his testimony, and he's quoting there, beginning in verse 22. The Bible says, And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was mighty in words and in deeds.

[John Weaver] And when he was full 40 years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel, and seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him and avenged him that was oppressed and smote the Egyptian, for he supposed that his brother, Brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them, but they understood not.

[John Weaver] Now, notice, if you would, the Bible says that Moses saw this Israelite being beaten and he defended him. Do you realize there is not one word of condemnation in the Old Testament concerning what Moses did? There is not one word of condemnation in the New Testament concerning what Moses did. In fact, I could say that there is a commendation in the New Testament because God listed Moses in the heroes of faith in Hebrews chapter 11. But you say that Moses had to flee. Yes, he did. But not because he violated the law of God, but because Pharaoh was a tyrant and Pharaoh was after him to destroy him in five ways. I don't have time to preach it and teach it tonight, but what Moses did in fleeing was in obedience to the sixth commandment.

[John Weaver] He was getting out of Dodge. He was getting out of trouble. He was getting out of the way of the tyrant. If I can avoid trouble, that's exactly what I'm going to do. So the point being is he was never, ever condemned in the Old Testament or in the New Testament.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would. to 1 Samuel chapter 17. This one is so wonderful. Everybody knows this story, but I want you to see this. Look at it in light of the biblical doctrine of self-defense. Look in 1 Samuel chapter 17. You know the story of David and Goliath. But I want you to notice, if you would, beginning there in 1 Samuel chapter 17, verse 43, how Goliath, the enemy, purposely, deliberately presses the attack. Look what he says. 1 Samuel 17, verse 43, And the Philistines said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistines cursed David by his gods. And the Philistines said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field. Now, here's Goliath. Remember, he was not only much, much larger and stronger than David, he was a man of war from his youth. David was probably around 17 at this time.

[John Weaver] If that old. Remember, he's still a shepherd. He's still at home. But I want you to know, if you would please. The response that David gives to Goliath, skip down to verse 45. Then David said to the Philistine, watch carefully. Then David said to the Philistine, thou comest to me with a sword and with a spear and with a shield. But I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand. And I will smite thee and take thy head from thee, and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day to the fowls of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel." Note, if you would, there is a God in Israel. Note plainly what David said. You're threatening me? You're coming to me with all this weaponry? I'm coming to you with a little sling, but I'm coming to you in the name of the Lord of hosts.

[John Weaver] It is God who's going to give me your head. It's God who's going to give me the victory. It's God who's going to fight for me. You're the one that's in trouble. The Philistines are the ones that's in trouble. Did David intend a death blow upon Goliath? Well, of course. He said, I'm going to cut your head off. Did he intend the death blow on those Philistines?

[John Weaver] And the answer is yes. What was David doing? David was defending himself and he was also defending the people of Israel. So notice, if you would, it's still self-defense.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Exodus, Chapter 22. Exodus, Chapter 22. Exodus 22. And notice, if you would, beginning there with verse one. This is a very important passage, Exodus chapter 22, verse one. God says, if a man shall steal an ox or sheep and kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep.

[John Weaver] If a thief be found breaking up and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him, for he should make full restitution. If you have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. This whole section is on restitution. But I want you to know what God says. God says if a man shall steal an ox or a sheep or kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox, four sheep for a sheep. In other words, the ratio of restitution is based upon the value and the usefulness of that which is stolen. Now watch verse two. If a thief be found breaking up or breaking in, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.

[John Weaver] So God's law, God's law allows the taking of life in certain situations. If a thief breaks in your home during the night, you don't know who he is. You don't know whether he's armed or not. You have no intention of what he he's going to do. And God says in verse two, If you kill him, if you smite him, that he die, there shall be no bloodshed for you.

[John Weaver] In other words, you are free, biblically speaking. Now watch verse three. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be bloodshed for him, for he should make full restitution. If he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his death.

[John Weaver] Now notice what God says. If the sun be risen up, don't kill him. Why? Number one, you can see him and identify him. Number two, you can see whether or not he has a weapon or not. And God says in this instance, in this case, then don't kill him. Just hold him. He's to make full restitution.

[John Weaver] Now, there would be a way that you could lawfully kill him during the daytime. And that would be if he was armed and he turned around and pointed that weapon at you or tried to harm you, then you would still be able to defend yourself. But here's what God is saying. God is saying if someone's breaking in and stealing, he said, and it's night, you don't know who he is. You don't know where he is or what he's got shooting. In other words, he shouldn't be there, by the way, notice what's being stolen, oxen, sheep, Those things don't live in the house.

[John Weaver] They're usually in the barn. So you're talking about somebody just simply breaking in on your property is what it amounts to. So what God says, if the sun is risen on him, you don't kill him if he's not armed. He used to make full restitution.

[John Weaver] Now, life may be lawfully taken on God's terms. Years ago, I was in Greenville, South Carolina. And a Christian, or at least a professing Christian, came to me and said, I need to ask you a question. I said, ask away. He said, what would you do if you woke up during the night and someone was breaking in your bedroom window? I said, well, that depends. He said, what does it depend upon? I said, it depends upon whether or not I get my hands on a gun or not. If I get my hands on a gun, I'd shoot him. If I couldn't get my hands on the gun, I'd pick up a baseball bat and hit him upside the head.

[John Weaver] He said, I don't think you ought to do that. I said, well, tell me what you think I ought to do. He said, I think you ought to go in another room and pray about it. I said, you mean to tell me I should be in another room while a man's in there raping my wife and murdering my children? I said, I'd pray. I'd pull that baseball bat back and I'd say, dear Lord, don't let me miss him this time. That's exactly how I'd be praying.

[John Weaver] Come on, this is what the Scripture says. Now, if someone's breaking in at night, you don't know who they are. You don't know what they're up to. You don't know whether they're armed or not. This is exactly what God says. He should not have been there to begin with. I get so aggravated. All these people. These young teenage boys and young men break into homes at night. And then they get shot and killed by the homeowner. And the parents of that young man or those young men who broke in said, well, he didn't have to kill him. No, he didn't have to. He could have sat there and beaten the guilt himself because those teenagers were armed as well.

[John Weaver] You see what I'm saying? You've got to be stupid to break in at night. You've got to be stupid to do anything like that. And if you break in at night, you're just asking for judgment. That's what you're asking for. Don't do that now. I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 22, Deuteronomy, chapter 22. I want you to see this. This is important.

[John Weaver] This answers a question that was asked of me yesterday. So if you look in Deuteronomy 22 and let's begin reading there with verse 23. We'll read through verse 27 and then I'm going to come back and deal with it. So look, if you would, Deuteronomy 22, verse 23, if a damsel, there's a virgin be betrothed and husband and a man finder in the city and lie with her, then you shall bring them both out into the gate of that city and you shall stone them with stones. If they die, the damsel, because she cried not being in the city and the man, because she had humbled his neighbor's wife.

[John Weaver] So shall thou put evil away from among you. But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, And the man force her and lie with her, when the man, then the man only that lay with her shall die. But in the damsel thou shalt do nothing. There is in the damsel no sin worthy of death. For as when a man rises up against his neighbor and slayeth him, even so it is in this matter. For he found her in the field, and the troth damsel cried, and there was none to save her."

[John Weaver] Now, let's go back, if you would please, to verse 22. He said, If a man be found lying with a woman married to a husband, Then they both shall die by verse 23. If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto a husband, engaged, and a man find her in the city and lie with her, then you shall bring them both out of the gate of that city and you shall stone them with stones that they die. The damsel, because she cried not being in the city. And the man, because he is humble, his neighbor's wife, so shall not put evil away from among you.

[John Weaver] Now, let me stop there. Note, if you would, the damsel, because she cried nothing in the city. So if the woman did not cry out, that meant she was consenting to the sin and therefore she was just as guilty as the man and deserved the death penalty. But watch this. What did he say? Listen to it again. Listen to it again. He said. If she cried out, in other words. If that woman was not consenting, she is in the city and she cries, what does that imply? Listen carefully. Anyone who hears her cries has the duty and the responsibility and the obligation to save her.

[John Weaver] Now, if you'll skip down to verse twenty five, He said, But if a man findeth a troth damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her shall die. Why? But if the damsel thou shalt do nothing, there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death. And he tells you why. Verse 27, For he found her in the field, and the troth damsel cried, and there was none to save her.

[John Weaver] In other words, in the city, the woman could cry out. And anyone who hurt her would have the responsibility and the duty to protect her and preserve her. In the field, it's the man who's put to death. Why? Because, obviously, clearly, the woman cried out and there was no one around to defend her. There was no one around to save her. So the obligation to protect the lives of others is the same as the obligation and duty to protect our lives.

[John Weaver] Now, let me give you a good illustration. Some of you may remember this. This happened back in 1964. There's a woman by the name of Kenny Kitty Genovese. She was brutally murdered. She was stabbed 17 times, raped, robbed, left for dead on the city sidewalk. She screamed, she cried, she pleaded for help. 38 people had either heard her screams and cries or observed some part of the crime, but never lifted a finger to save her.

[John Weaver] According to God's law, Those who did nothing to preserve life are just as guilty as the one who took her life. Because the sixth commandment has as its positive, thou shalt preserve life. I want to show you how fastidious God is, and I will close with this, but I want you to look in your Bibles to Deuteronomy 22 and then Exodus chapter 23, OK? Deuteronomy 22, then we're going to turn back to Exodus chapter 23.

[John Weaver] So hang on with me. Look, if you would. Exodus 22. Find it, but we're going to look at Deuteronomy chapter 22 first and then Exodus 23. Deuteronomy 22, look, if you would please be getting there. Oh, with verse one. Thou shalt not see thy brother's ox or sheep go astray, and hide thyself from them. Thou shalt in any case bring them again unto thy brother. If thy brother be not nigh unto thee, or if thou know him not, then thou shalt bring it into thine own house, and it shall be with thee until thy brother seek after it, and thou shalt restore it unto him again. In like manner shalt thou do with his ass, and so shalt thou do with his ramage, And with all lost things of thy brothers, which ye have lost, and thou hast found, shalt thou do likewise, and mayest not hide thyself. Thou shalt not see thy brother's ass or his ox fall down by the way, and hide thyself from them. Thou shalt surely help to lift them up again."

[John Weaver] So God says, if you see your brother's animal out of the fence, walking along the road, God says you better help your brother get that animal back in. You can't hide yourself. I'll tell you a funny story. I preached on this text years and years ago. All my girls were small and my girls, like myself, we've always loved animals. We were coming home from church. My wife and the girls were in one car and I was behind because I was the pastor and I was always later. And there was a scraggly old dirty, stinking goat beside the road. Everybody tried to catch that goat, nobody could catch the goat. The goat was in danger of being hit by a vehicle. Well, my girls have always had a wonderful way with animals. They caught that goat. And I just happened to come by just as they caught that goat.

[John Weaver] And I was in the truck. And they said, Daddy, this goat's wandering around in the highway, we don't know who This goat belongs to and she's going to get killed. Can we take her home with us? And before I could ever answer, they said, you remember what you preached this morning, don't you? I said, yes, we'll take her home. I said, but how did you catch her? Because evidently no one else could catch her.

[John Weaver] Well, they said it's easy. We just knelt down and called her and she came to us. Well, we picked her up and took her home. It was two days later before my neighbor came looking for the goat that he had bought at the sale on Saturday, and she got out on Saturday night and we restored the goat. This is what God said. You can't hide yourself. And if you see you come to visit me and you see my cow down having trouble delivering a calf, God says, hey, you're obligated to help me. I'm going to tell you why in just a little bit.

[John Weaver] But I want you to watch this. You say, well, brother, I don't mind helping you. I don't mind helping Pastor Brink. I don't mind helping Bill Potter. I don't mind helping my brothers. Really? Well, look, if you would, in Exodus chapter 23, if you would please. And let's begin reading there. With verse four, look at this. If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass of him that hated thee lying under his burden and was forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him." Whoa! Now it's not your brother. Now it's your enemy.

[John Weaver] Now it's the man that hates you and has caused you all kind of heartache. And God says if you see his animal going astray, you cannot hide yourself. You must capture that animal. You must bring it back to him. If you see his ass or his cow lying under his burden, you cannot say, I'm going to pretend I didn't see that. No, no. God said you must help him. Why? Why? Listen to me.

[John Weaver] In the Bible, this is what is known as arguing from the lesser to the greater. If I have a duty, an obligation, To help preserve Pastor Brink's sheep, if they get out in the road. If I have a duty and obligation to help preserve the lives of his animals, how much more obligation and duty do I have to help preserve his life and the life of his wife and children? If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's life's animals, How much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life? So God is arguing from the lesser to the greater. We have a duty given to us, and that is we must protect our lives, we must protect our lives of our families and the lives of our friends and the lives of our neighbors, because the sixth commandment isn't only negative, it's a positive as well.

[John Weaver] I want you to consider this. Would it not be a horrible anomaly if God allowed all of the animals to protect their lives and their families, and did not allow us to do the same? Years ago, when I was at the university, our neighbor had an old tomcat. We didn't have a cat, but our neighbor had a tomcat. And in one of the bushes in our front yard, there was a mockingbird with her nest. And that old tomcat came strolling by, close to that bush. That mama mockingbird came out of that bush, pecked that cat's head until she ran out of the yard.

[John Weaver] You know what she was doing? She was defending her family. She's defending the lives of her children. If God allows animals to do that, do you not think that He will allow us to do that? Did our Lord not say in Matthew chapter 10 and verse 31, fear you're not therefore, for you're worth more than many sparrows. We have a duty. We have a responsibility. We have an obligation to protect our lives and the lives of others.

[John Weaver] So whoever get into a position You just remember, the sixth commandment has a positive as well as a negative. God requires us to preserve life. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. We ask that You would teach us, that You would build us up in the most holy faith, that You would give us, Lord, Your grace and Your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.

Biblical Doctrine of Self Defense

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	8423144404125
Subject	Biblical Law
Course	The Ten Commandments
Genre	Sermon
Date	2023-08-02
Dictation Name
Book	Book 004: The Biblical Doctrine of Self-Defense — Chapter 4
Source Timed Segments	96

Formatted Transcript

Introduction: The Need for a Worked-Out Doctrine

Weaver stresses the urgency of understanding self-defense biblically before a crisis occurs, as life-and-death situations allow only seconds to respond.

Our topic is the biblical doctrine of self-defense. And the text is, of course, Exodus 20 and verse 13, where God literally says, "Thou shalt not kill." Now, I will tell you this. I have a second part to this message, which I'm not going to be able to preach here, but you can go online to sermonaudio.com forward slash Weaver. And you type in "the biblical doctrine of self-defense" and you'll get the first message and the second message as well. Also, let me tell you this. First of all, this is something that you need to know. You need to have this worked out in your mind. You need to have this understood, because if you ever get into a position where you have to defend your life or the life of anyone else, it is too late for you to sit there and try to figure out, "Now, Lord, what can I do with this?"

Historical Precedent: Armed Church Attendance in Colonial America

Colonial laws and customs required men to bring weapons to church for defense against Indians and other threats, with pastors often leading the way.

"What do you allow in this situation?" It's too late. Usually when you get in a life and death situation, you have about 30 seconds to maybe 60 seconds to respond. So you better already know what the Word of God says and you better know how to defend yourself. One of my favorite stories is about the old pilgrim pastor who was going to church. And as he was walking to church, he was carrying his blunderbuss on his shoulder. And one of the men came up alongside him and said, "Preacher, let me ask you a question. Do you believe in the absolute sovereignty of God?" And the preacher said, "Well, most certainly I do." Well, he said, "Preacher, let me ask you another question. Do you believe that God is in control of everything?" And the pastor said, "Well, most certainly I do." Well, he said, "Pastor, let me ask you one more question. Do you believe that when it comes your time to die, that you're going to die and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it?"

He said, "Absolutely." The man was pushing and he said, "Now, Pastor, let me ask you, if you believe that God is absolutely sovereign and you believe that God is in control and you believe when it's come your time to die, that you're going to die and there's nothing you can do about it, why are you carrying that blunderbuss on your shoulder?" The pastor said, "That's simple. In case I meet an Indian whose time it is to die." So very clearly, he was informing and teaching that individual. Obviously, there are a lot of people that have misunderstood our forefathers because all of them not only carried weapons everywhere they went, they went to church armed. There is a book that I would encourage you to get if you have not ever read it. I found an old copy, and I bought the old copy, and then I found out that the book has just recently been reprinted, and the title of the book is "The Sabbath in Puritan New England," written by Alice Morse Earle. The book has been reproduced. It's a very informative book, and chapter two is really, really informative. Because it tells us in that chapter, not only that our forefathers always went armed to church, but also why they went armed to church, even on the Lord's Day. And it was pointed out that in order to sanctify the loading of their weapons on the Lord's Day, that they were instructed by their pastors not to discharge those weapons on the Lord's Day, unless it was at an Indian or a wolf, which at that time were the two greatest dangers to anyone.

Trumbull, the historian of Connecticut, in his "McFingal," writes in jest concerning this Sunday arm-bearing. His simple poem is this: "So once for fear of Indian beating, our grandsires wore their guns to meeting. Each man equipped each Sunday morn with psalm book, shot, and powder horn, and looked in form as almost grand, like the ancient church militant." And of course, that's what he was saying, making fun of the carrying of arms to church. But in the formation of our nation, all bore arms to church, even on the Lord's Day. In fact, what many people do not understand is it was required for you to do so. There were laws. For instance, in 1640 in Massachusetts, it was ordered that the attendants at church should carry a competent number of pieces, fixed and complete, with powder and shot and sword every Lord's Day to the meeting house. So, swords were demanded then as rifles. In Connecticut, in 1643, those who failed to bring their arms to church were fined 12 cents for each offense.

Now, we laugh at 12 cents, but 12 cents was a lot of money back then. In 1644, there was a law that demanded the fourth part of an armed band of trained fighting men were obligated to come to church each Sunday and the sentinels were ordered to keep their matches lit for those matchlocks that they had. I don't know if you can imagine this, sitting in a church and smelling maybe the lighter notes or whatever they had that they kept lit the whole time in case they had to use those weapons for an Indian attack. In 1692, the Connecticut legislature ordered that one-fifth of the soldiers in each town must attend the Sunday meeting. One-fifth of the soldiers in each town were ordered to attend so that the churches might be protected. In colonial America, Cranmer, a historian, shows that church security was often mandated by law.

Hence, in 1619 here in Virginia, not only required church attendance, but also, and I'm quoting, "all such as bear arms shall bring their pieces, swords, powder, and shot with them" under penalty of a three shilling fine if they did not. This was phrased in 1623 to require that "all men that are fitting to bear arms shall bring their pieces to the church," a requirement that was restated and made law in 1738. The approach of bearing arms in church was certainly not limited to southern colonies. An account of the Plymouth colony in 1627 tells of a Sabbath day procession up the hill to worship, with every man armed and marching three abreast. This reality is captured by George H. Boughton's famous 1867 painting of pilgrims going to church. So in the mid-17th century, church gun carrying was mandated by law in Plymouth. So here is the law: "It is enacted that every township within this government do carry a competent number of pieces fixed and complete with powder and shot and swords every Lord's Day to the meetings, one of a house from the first of September to the middle of November, except there be some just and lawful impediment." Connecticut required church attendees to bring a musket, a pistol, or some piece with powder and shot to each meeting.

So these early requirements then to keep and bear arms were primarily for defense against Indians at that particular time. However, there were other reasons as well. In fact, here in South Carolina, a 1743 statute required every male to bring a gun and at least six rounds of ammunition for it to the church. Other provisions require church wardens, deacons, or elders to check each man coming in to make sure that he was armed. Isn't that amazing? And many of our modern day habits and customs actually are derived from these old days, and I noticed this when I was a boy. Of course, I mentioned to you I was raised in church. We went to church every Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, any night there was a special meeting. And when I was a boy, I noticed that all men in our church sat on the ends of the pews.

I didn't know why, but when I grew up, I started sitting on the edge of the pew as well. When I got married, I still sat on the edge of the pew. And come to find out, there's a reason. Because in colonial America, every man carried his weapon to church. Those weapons were usually stacked in the aisle, and all the men sat on the ends of the pews, all the women and children on the inside of the pew. So if the church was attacked, the men could just simply reach over and grab their weapons and go out in order to fight. The women and children would not be in the way, and they would be protected then by the pews as well. So all these weapons were basically kept an arm's length.

Now, I particularly like this next little tidbit of history. Have you noticed that it's the custom of the pastor after the sermon to walk to the back door or the front door? Now, he walks wherever that door is and opens the door and someone says, "Yes, we know that. I mean, we've done that for years. The pastor, he goes back there so he can shake hands with everyone." Really? Do you know something? I don't have to walk to that door over there to shake your hand. If you want to shake my hand, you could walk up here just as easily as I could walk over to that door. Do you know why that custom arose where, you know, somebody's praying and the pastor slips out during the prayer and stands there by the door? You know why? Because the pastor was the under-shepherd under Christ.

He was responsible for his people and what he would do. And he was armed. He would always go to the door first and open that door and look out to make sure there were no Indians or wolves and later on, British soldiers. And once he was safely out and he believed that everything was safe, he would summon the men and the men would then come out and then the women and children. So this habit, this custom of going to the door first for the pastor, that was simply because of the custom. And I particularly like this because the pastor always preached with his loaded weapon by his side on the pulpit. All the other weapons were stacked in the aisle. But the pastor usually, listen carefully, who was the best shot of the community and had the best rifle, he always preached with that weapon right beside him. It was his responsibility to protect his sheep. And that was exactly what he was going to do.

Now, this custom certainly proved excellent, especially in 1775 at the outset of the war for independence. In fact, the Provincial Congress or the Continental Congress recommended that men within 20 miles of the seacoast carry their arms and ammunition with them to the meeting house on the Lord's Day and all other days for public worship. And the wisdom of that enactment was found many times over before the war ended in 1783. So let me ask you this question. Were our forefathers right and biblical in carrying those arms? And were they right and biblical in carrying them to church? And the answer is, I can assure you they were right and they were biblical. So here's another good question. Is there any precaution that we should take in light of the violence and everything that's happening today, in light of what our forefathers experienced? Now, let me give you a good example.

Modern Examples of Church Attacks

Weaver recounts attacks on churches in South Africa and the United States, highlighting cases where armed congregants saved lives.

I'm going to read this. This happened in Cape Town, South Africa, July the 25th, 1993. Now you say Cape Town, South Africa, that has nothing to do with me. Yes, it does. Yes, it does. It was Peter Hammond from that area in Frontline Fellowship. Had one missionary in that church, Charles Van Wyk. You can read his book on it. But that church was attacked by a group of terrorists. Listen carefully. A group of five terrorists came to St. James Church, the largest evangelical church in Cape Town, shortly after the evening service began. One of the terrorists, wearing a ski mask, rolled a hand grenade into the packed assembly without warning.

and then opened fire with an AK-47, shooting from the hip as he sprayed the worshippers in a deadly attack that left 12 people dead at that particular account and more than 50 severely wounded. As the terrorist—and by the way, there was another terrorist which was about to lob a grenade and open up with his AK-47, but he was deterred and he did not get to do so and there was a reason. By the way, these terrorists were with the Communist ANC, which was Nelson Mandela's group. The missionary, Charles Van Wyk, he began firing at the second terrorist who was about to throw in the hand grenade and open up with his AK-47, and the only thing that he had was a .38 revolver. And so he pulled out that revolver and began shooting. And of course, the terrorists then began ducking.

And finally, all of them fled and got into a Mercedes and were fleeing away. And Charles Van Wyk went out and was emptying his revolver into that Mercedes as they went away. Now, that church averaged over a thousand in attendance on Sunday evening. So the reason the other terrorist did not get to throw his hand grenade was simply because of Charles, is what it amounts to. He was ducking for cover. And the police are actually giving one armed Christian man the credit for saving a hundred lives.

Now, let me tell you something. If you will study a little bit of history, you will find out that the communists and terrorists always like to attack churches and they always like to attack homes. And the reason for that is that's where you feel the most secure. That's where you believe you're the safest. And that's usually where people are unarmed, usually speaking, on Sunday morning. There are exceptions, I can assure you, but they're always known to terrorize churches.

So we have to ask this question. Was this missionary right in carrying his weapon to church? And was he right in defending his life? And was he right in defending the lives of other people? Or we could ask some other questions. Were these Christians in South Africa wrong because they did not want to die? I mean, you know, if they're Christians and they understand to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. I mean, were they unspiritual in the fact that they did not want to die at that particular time at the hands of the terrorists? Or we could ask it like this. Was it right for the Christians to be killed and the communists to live? Had you not rather the Christians live and the communists die? Before we answer some of these questions, I want to give you something that happened in America. I want you to listen carefully.

Here are different dates, but February the 14th, 2010, Richmond, California, three hooded men walk into the Gethsemane Church of God in Christ and open fire and then fled. The two victims, a 14-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man, were shot. March 8, 2009, Maryville, Illinois. Suspect Terry Joe Sedlacek, 27, of Troy, walks into the First Baptist Church and shoots Pastor Fred Winters dead point blank. Several church members were injured by a knife because they were struggling to control him and he had a knife and he actually cut them before he was subdued. July 27, 2008, Knoxville, Tennessee, a gunman opens fire in a church during a youth performance, killing two people and injuring seven. December 9, 2007, Colorado, three people were killed and five wounded in two shooting rampages, one in a missionary school in suburban Denver and one in a church in Colorado Springs. The gunman in the second incident was killed by a guard. On August 12, 2007, a lone gunman, Eiken Elam Simon, opened fire at a Missouri Micronesian church, killing the pastor and two other churchgoers.

May the 20th, 2007, a standoff between police and a suspect in the shooting of three people in Moscow, Idaho, Presbyterian Church, ended with three dead, including one police officer. Although not a church building, on October 2, 2006, an attack in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania by a gunman who killed five girls and then himself at an Amish school, which he targeted. On May 21, 2006, Louisiana, four were killed by a man at the Jesus Christ Church. February 26, 2006, Michigan, two people were killed at Zion Hope Missionary Baptist Church by a man who reportedly went to the church looking for his girlfriend. And he later killed himself. April 9, 2005, a 27-year-old airman died after being shot at a church in College Park, Georgia, about three hours from us, where he once worked as a security guard. March 12, 2005, a man walked into the service of the Living Church of God in Milwaukee and opened fire, immediately killing seven people. October the 5th, 2003, a woman opened fire in Turner Monumental AME Church in Kirkwood, east of Atlanta, killing the pastor and two others.

September the 16th, 1999, seven young people were killed when a man opened fire during a prayer service for teens at Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas. And then 9-18-2011, Lakeland, Florida, authorities and family members say a man shot and killed his wife at their Lakeland home and then shot two others at a nearby church. And these are just some, there have been a multitude of others. So the question says, or ask is this, is it right to defend yourself? Is it right to defend other people? Is it right to bring a weapon to church? Is it right to use it at church? I guess you heard recently, and by the way, I commend him so greatly and I forget his name right now. But when the church in Texas was attacked by a man who carried a shotgun under his long coat and there were any targeted, first of all, the church security team and they were just unobservant and he killed two men who were armed.

before they could ever get their weapons out. And one man from 15 yards away, walking, made a headshot and killed him and took him out and stopped him from killing anyone else. And that was just one of the last year. I'm just simply pointing out the fact we have to deal with these issues. You need to know what in the world you can do and what you cannot do based upon the Word of God.

The Sixth Commandment: 'Thou Shalt Not Kill'

The commandment prohibits murder, not all killing. Life may be taken justly on God's terms, as outlined in 18 biblical capital offenses.

So when you look at Exodus chapter 20 and verse 13, the Bible says "Thou shalt not kill" literally. I want you to understand this is God's law. This is not Jewish law. This is not the Gemara. This is not the Mishnah. This is not the Talmud. No, no, no. This is God's law. God says "Thou shalt not kill." What in the world does that mean? Well, let me try to put it to you like this. "Thou shalt not kill" literally means "Thou shalt not murder." Or it means "Thou shalt not take life unjustly." Or to say this another way, "Thou shalt not take life except it is on God's terms." When you look at that sixth commandment in the New Testament, the Greek word there also means "Thou shalt not murder." Now, taking a life can be murder, but taking life is not always murder. There are lawful reasons given in the Bible where life can be taken. Life may be taken justly. Life may be taken righteously. Life may be taken biblically as long as it's taken upon God's terms.

Without me going into depth on any of these and without me commenting on these, I want to give you very quickly 18 reasons why life may be lawfully and legitimately taken on God's terms. I won't quote all the scripture, but I've just given to you. Number one, life is to be taken for murder, but not for accidental killings. Exodus chapter 21. Number two, life is to be forfeited for striking or cursing a parent. Young people, listen to that. Life is to be taken for striking or cursing a parent. You'll find that in Exodus 21, verse 15, Leviticus 20, verse 9, Proverbs 20:20, Matthew 15, verse 4, and Mark chapter 7, verse 10. Our Lord quotes that as well. Number three, life is to be taken for kidnapping. You kidnap and God says you deserve the death penalty. You'll find that in Exodus 21 and Deuteronomy 24. The death penalty is given for adultery in Leviticus chapter 20. Fifthly, the death penalty is given for incest. You'll find that in Leviticus chapter 20. Sixthly, the death penalty is required and pronounced for bestiality. You'll find that in Exodus 22 and Leviticus 20. Seventhly, the death penalty is required for sodomy or homosexuality. You'll find that in Leviticus 20 in verse 13. The death penalty is required for unchastity. You'll find that in Deuteronomy 22 verses 20 through 21. You will find also the death penalty is required ninthly for the rape of a virgin, which we'll talk about a little bit later.

Scripture Reading — Exodus 21:16

Deuteronomy 22. Then the death penalty is required for witchcraft. Exodus 22 in verse 18: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." Number 11, the death penalty is required for offering human sacrifice. Leviticus chapter 20 and verse 11 or 21 it is. And then number 12, the death penalty is demanded for incorrigible delinquency or habitual criminality. You'll find that in Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 18 through 21. Number 13, the death penalty is required for blasphemy in Leviticus chapter 24. Then it's also required for Sabbath desecration—oh, that's a sermon in itself—in Exodus 35, in Numbers chapter 15. And then number 15, the death penalty is required for the propagation of false doctrine, Deuteronomy chapter 13. Number 16, the death penalty is required for sacrificing unto false gods, Exodus 22. Number 17, listen to this one, refusing to abide by the decision of a biblical court and denying God's law, the death penalty is required. Deuteronomy chapter 17, verses 8 through 13. And number 18, failing to restore the veil of the pledge or the bailment in Exodus 18 verses 12 through 13.

Now, there's 18 reasons given in the Bible why life may be lawfully and justly taken on God's terms. Now, whether you understand these or not, whether you agree with them or not in your mind right away, the fact is, they're biblical. They are listed here in the Bible. So here are 18 reasons why life may be lawfully taken on God's terms.

Self-Defense as the 19th Lawful Reason

Self-defense is a biblically lawful reason to take life, derived from the positive duty of the sixth commandment to preserve life.

Now, the sixth commandment also forbids all unjust violence as well as murder. Let me explain something to you. When God forbids any act, at the same time, He forbids anything and everything that would lead up to that act. Hang on. So if God says "Thou shalt not steal," at the same time, He's forbidding me to covet. At the same time, He's forbidding me to lust. At the same time, He's forbidding me to think about stealing. When God says "Thou shalt not murder," He forbids hatred. He forbids anger. He forbids ill will and anything that would lead up to that act. OK, so when you've got the sixth commandment now, we're talking about "Thou shalt not kill" or "Thou shalt not murder." "Thou shalt not take life, but except on God's terms." And I've just given you 18 reasons why life can be lawfully taken on God's terms.

Now I'm going to add one more and give you the 19th reason. And this is not adding to Scripture, which you're going to see. But the 19th reason why life may be lawfully taken on God's terms is because of self-defense. Self-defense. Now, God's law is given in negative terms. If you look at the Ten Commandments, you'll notice that there are only two commandments that are positive. The fourth one is what? "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy" and the fifth one, "Honor thy father and thy mother." Those are positives. However, those two positives are undergirded by a lot of negatives as well. Usually God's law is couched in negative terms for a specific reason. Because a negative law deals with a specific crime or sin, "Thou shalt not steal."

So that is dealing then with theft in any form whatsoever. It could be fraud, it could be deception, it could be taking, but it's "Thou shalt not steal," so it's dealing with a particular crime or a particular sin. Now, here's the thing. Every time you see a negative—"Thou shalt not steal," "Thou shalt not kill," "Thou shalt not bear false witness," "Thou shalt not commit adultery"—you have to stop and ask yourself, what is the positive? Because every negative has a positive. And every positive has a negative. Whenever you read a positive in the Word of God, you should ask yourself, what is the negative? You cannot have a positive without a negative, and you cannot have a negative without a positive. So when you look at "Thou shalt not commit adultery," what would be the positive? "Thou shalt live a holy, righteous, godly, sanctified life." "Thou shalt not steal."

Of course, the New Testament answers this. What would be the positive? That you're to work with your hands, laboring that which is good, that you may not only provide for yourself, but that you may have to give to those that need it. So the opposite of theft is not just simply not stealing, but it's having a generous, gracious attitude according to the Word of God. So when God says in the sixth commandment, "Thou shalt not kill," that's the negative. The positive is "Thou shalt preserve life." In other words, you have a duty, you have a responsibility to preserve life. So based on the sixth commandment, self-defense is obligatory. We must defend ourselves and the lives of others, even if it involves taking the life of another individual.

So I try to use this yesterday as an illustration. I was talking to someone. So let's say that Brother Lacey comes up to me and says, "Brother Weaver, I'm upset with you. I'm going to kill you." And I look at him and I say, "Well, go ahead, brother. That'll just put me in the presence of the Lord a whole lot sooner. Just do whatever spins your wheels. If it's going to make you happy, just go ahead and kill me." If I allowed him to do that, now I'm guilty of self-murder. I have a duty.

I have a responsibility to preserve my life. And if it means taking his life to preserve my life, then I'm required to do it. If I do not do it, then I am in violation of the sixth commandment myself. So if we do not defend ourselves, we're guilty of self-murder. If we don't defend our families, we're guilty of self-murder. I preached on Romans 13 one time in Indianapolis, Indiana, and I just mentioned in passing self-defense. And one man came up to me afterwards, a young man, wife and four or five children. And he looked at me and said, "Brother Weaver," he said, "you know, I agree with everything that you said, except this business of self-defense." I said, "What?" He said, "I don't think you should want to hurt anybody." I said, "Well, I don't want to hurt anybody, but I don't want anyone to hurt me either." He said, "Well," he said, "I would never do anything like that. I would never, ever try to defend myself or my wife or my children."

Biblical Examples of God Defending and Using Human Agents

God defended Jerusalem and raised up judges to defend Israel. David and his mighty men fought with God's enablement, demonstrating that using means and trusting God are compatible.

I looked at him, I said, "Sir, the only thing I can say to you is I'm so thankful I'm not married to you and I'm not your child." You know, I really am. I'm glad I'm not your child. Listen to me. Those of you who are in the military or were in the military, you remember Article three of the United States military code. Listen to it. "If I am captured, I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and to aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy."

Now, why in the world is that in the military code? It's not just so that if you could escape, you can get back to your officer in charge and get him the information. No, no, no, no. You have a duty to escape. Why? Because you have a duty to preserve your life. You have a duty to help others to escape from the enemy. Why? Because you have a duty to help preserve their lives. And that's in the military code of justice. We're taught that we have a duty to escape.

So is self-defense wrong? Well, I'm going to give you some scriptures. I want you to listen, because if you think self-defense is wrong, then you have to take an issue up with God himself, because God defended His people. Here we go. Listen to 2 Kings 19, verse 34. Here's what God tells Hezekiah: "I will defend this city to save it for My own sake and for My servant David's sake."

Now we're talking about Jerusalem. God said, "I will defend this city." So God tells Hezekiah, "Don't you worry about this. I'm going to defend this city. The Assyrians are not going to come in here. I'm going to defend this city." Then when you get to 2 Kings chapter 20 and verse 6, again, God said, "And I will add unto thy days fifteen years"—that's Hezekiah—"and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria. And I will defend this city for Mine own sake and for My servant David's sake." Then when you get to Isaiah chapter 31 in verse 5, God says it like this: "As birds flying, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem; defending also He will deliver it; and passing over He will preserve it." Now when you get to Isaiah 37 in verse 35, God says again, "For I will defend this city for My own sake and for My servant David's sake." One more time. Isaiah 38 and verse 6, God said, "I will defend thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Syria, and I will defend this city."

Five times God said, "I will defend this city. I will defend My people, not only for My honor, but for My servant David's sake. I'm going to defend Jerusalem." So here's my question. Did God defend Jerusalem? And the answer is yes, He did. Here's another question. Did God take lives in defending Jerusalem? Yes, yes. All you have to do is read Isaiah 37 and verse 36. Let me read it to you. "Then the angel of the Lord went forth and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and eighty-five thousand."

"And when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses." So out of all the Assyrians, God slew 185,000 soldiers. Now, here's my question. Did God have to slay them? No. Do you remember when those lepers were at the gate there in Jerusalem? Not in Jerusalem, I'm sorry, in Samaria. They were at the gates in Samaria. And there was a famine because they had been surrounded by the Syrians. And those five lepers looked at each other and said, "Why should we here till we die? If we go in the city, we're going to die of starvation. If we sit here, we're going to die because the lepers usually live from the food that was thrown over the wall, the garbage."

They said, "Come, let us fall to the Syrians. If they kill us, we will but be dead. But it may be they will save us alive." And so they went and all the tents were empty. All the food was there. And you know what God had done? God had made the Syrians hear the host of a great army and they thought the king of Samaria had hired the Ethiopians against them and they fled. There were no Ethiopians coming. There was no great army. God just caused them to hear the noise and they fled. Could God have done that?

With the Assyrians, and the answer is absolutely. But He did not. He killed 185,000 of them. Did you know that David said in Psalm 7 in verse 10, "My defense is of God who saveth the upright in heart"? You read the book of Psalms, you'll find over and over David is claiming that God is his defense. In fact, in Psalm 89 in verse 18, he said, "For the Lord is our defense and the Holy One of Israel is our king." Notice the Lord is our defense. We may rightly conclude that God does indeed defend His people.

It is never wrong to emulate our heavenly Father. Now, someone's going to object. Someone's going to say, "Yes, but Brother Weaver, what God does and what we do are two different things." That is certainly true in one sense of the word. But you're not God, I am not God, I never will be God. Only God is God. But let me ask you a question. Have you ever noticed and have you ever read the book of Judges? Do you know why God raised up judges? Listen to Judges chapter 10 and verse one.

"And after Abimelech, there arose to defend Israel Tola, the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, and he dwelt in Shamir in Mount Ephraim." Did you hear that? "And after Abimelech, there arose to defend Israel." Who raised up those judges? God did. And He raised them up for one reason, and that was to defend His people. Did these judges take the lives of the enemy who were trying to destroy the people? And the answer is yes, they did. Just read it. Read about Gideon. Read about all of these judges. You'll find out they took life after life after life.

Now, let me show you the other one. I want you to turn to this one, if you would, please. I want you to turn in your Bibles to 2 Samuel, chapter 23, because in 2 Samuel, chapter 23, you have a listing of David's mighty men. And I want you to see particularly what the Bible says. Look in 2 Samuel, chapter 23, and let's begin reading there with verse eight. Look at this: 2 Samuel, chapter 23 and verse eight. "These be the names of the mighty men whom David had."

"The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time." Now, that doesn't mean he threw the spear one time and it went through 800 people. But he took that spear to one battle. He killed 800 people. Watch verse 9. "And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were going away. And he"—we're talking about Eleazar—"and he arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clave unto his sword." "And the Lord wrought a great victory that day and the people returned after him only to spoil." I'm going to come back to that, but look in verse 11. "And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentils. And the people fled from the Philistines. But he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great victory." Now, go back, if you would, please. And look what happened to Eleazar in verse 10. "He arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary. And his hand clave unto the sword."

Now, let me stop right there. That means his hand literally cramped around his sword handle. In other words, to get that sword out of his hand, they basically would have to pry the fingers apart. His hand clave unto the sword. It was frozen there. He fought so. But watch verse 10 again. "He arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clave unto the sword." Watch this.

"And the Lord wrought a great victory that day, and the people returned after him only to spoil." The Lord wrought a great... What? I thought it was Eleazar that was doing the fighting. It was. Well, how did the Lord work a great victory? Because it was the Lord who was enabling and empowering and strengthening him to fight. You'll find the same thing down in verse 12 about Shammah.

"And he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great victory." Note, if you would, the Lord wrought a great victory, but it was Shammah who was doing the fighting. In other words, here is God who enabled these men, who strengthened these men, who gave them a fighting spirit and the ability to fight. One of my favorite verses is Psalm 144, verse one: "Blessed be the Lord my God who teacheth my fingers to fight and my hands to war." In other words, God is the one who taught David how to fight. He taught these men how to fight.

Now, here's the principle that we've got to understand. We have to use the means that God has ordained while at the same time trusting in the Lord. These great men used their swords, their bows, their other weapons, and yet at the same time they trusted in the Lord to make them effectual. Let me say this another way, means are worthless in and of themselves. So let me give you an illustration. You can ask me, "Brother Weaver, do you keep loaded weapons in your house?" My answer is yes. Every weapon I have is loaded. You say, "Well, you're trusting in those weapons." No, I'm not. A weapon is nothing more than a tool. I am trusting in the Lord. Do you realize if someone broke into my home with the intent on murdering me, if God did not awaken me in time, and if God did not allow me to get my weapon, and if God did not allow me to shoot straight, my weapon would be worthless and useless.

Case Studies: Moses, David, and the Nighttime Thief

Moses' defense of the Israelite, David's battle with Goliath, and the law in Exodus 22:2-3 all support the right of self-defense.

I could have a dozen cannons in my room. I could have a tank in my room. That wouldn't matter if God doesn't awaken me in time, if God does not enable me to fight against the enemy. I'm not trusting in a weapon just because I have a weapon. I'm trusting in the Lord. May I remind you of Moses? I'm going to read to you from the book of Acts, because Stephen is giving his testimony, and he's quoting there, beginning in verse 22. The Bible says, "And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was mighty in words and in deeds."

"And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him and avenged him that was oppressed and smote the Egyptian. For he supposed that his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them, but they understood not." Now, notice, if you would, the Bible says that Moses saw this Israelite being beaten and he defended him. Do you realize there is not one word of condemnation in the Old Testament concerning what Moses did? There is not one word of condemnation in the New Testament concerning what Moses did. In fact, I could say that there is a commendation in the New Testament because God listed Moses in the heroes of faith in Hebrews chapter 11. But you say that Moses had to flee. Yes, he did. But not because he violated the law of God, but because Pharaoh was a tyrant and Pharaoh was after him to destroy him in five ways. I don't have time to preach it and teach it tonight, but what Moses did in fleeing was in obedience to the sixth commandment.

He was getting out of Dodge. He was getting out of trouble. He was getting out of the way of the tyrant. If I can avoid trouble, that's exactly what I'm going to do. So the point being is he was never, ever condemned in the Old Testament or in the New Testament.

Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to 1 Samuel chapter 17. This one is so wonderful. Everybody knows this story, but I want you to see this. Look at it in light of the biblical doctrine of self-defense. Look in 1 Samuel chapter 17. You know the story of David and Goliath. But I want you to notice, if you would, beginning there in 1 Samuel chapter 17, verse 43, how Goliath, the enemy, purposely, deliberately presses the attack. Look what he says. 1 Samuel 17, verse 43: "And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field." Now, here's Goliath. Remember, he was not only much, much larger and stronger than David, he was a man of war from his youth. David was probably around 17 at this time.

If that old. Remember, he's still a shepherd. He's still at home. But I want you to note, if you would please, the response that David gives to Goliath. Skip down to verse 45. "Then David said to the Philistine," watch carefully, "Then David said to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword and with a spear and with a shield. But I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand. And I will smite thee and take thy head from thee, and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day to the fowls of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel." Note, if you would, there is a God in Israel. Note plainly what David said. "You're threatening me? You're coming to me with all this weaponry? I'm coming to you with a little sling, but I'm coming to you in the name of the Lord of hosts."

"It is God who's going to give me your head. It's God who's going to give me the victory. It's God who's going to fight for me. You're the one that's in trouble. The Philistines are the ones that's in trouble." Did David intend a death blow upon Goliath? Well, of course. He said, "I'm going to cut your head off." Did he intend the death blow on those Philistines?

And the answer is yes. What was David doing? David was defending himself and he was also defending the people of Israel. So notice, if you would, it's still self-defense.

Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Exodus, chapter 22. Exodus, chapter 22. Exodus 22. And notice, if you would, beginning there with verse one. This is a very important passage, Exodus chapter 22, verse one. God says, "If a man shall steal an ox or sheep and kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep."

Scripture Reading — Exodus 22:2-3

"If a thief be found breaking up and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him, for he should make full restitution. If he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft."

This whole section is on restitution. But I want you to note what God says. God says if a man shall steal an ox or a sheep or kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox, four sheep for a sheep. In other words, the ratio of restitution is based upon the value and the usefulness of that which is stolen. Now watch verse two.

Scripture Reading — Exodus 22:2-3

"If a thief be found breaking up"

or breaking in,

Scripture Reading — Exodus 22:2-3

"and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him."

So God's law, God's law allows the taking of life in certain situations. If a thief breaks in your home during the night, you don't know who he is. You don't know whether he's armed or not. You have no intention of what he's going to do. And God says in verse two, "If you kill him, if you smite him, that he die, there shall be no bloodshed for you." In other words, you are free, biblically speaking. Now watch verse three. "If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be bloodshed for him, for he should make full restitution. If he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft."

Now notice what God says. "If the sun be risen up, don't kill him." Why? Number one, you can see him and identify him. Number two, you can see whether or not he has a weapon or not. And God says in this instance, in this case, then don't kill him. Just hold him. He's to make full restitution.

Now, there would be a way that you could lawfully kill him during the daytime. And that would be if he was armed and he turned around and pointed that weapon at you or tried to harm you, then you would still be able to defend yourself. But here's what God is saying. God is saying if someone's breaking in and stealing, He said, "and it's night, you don't know who he is. You don't know where he is or what he's got." In other words, he shouldn't be there. By the way, notice what's being stolen: oxen, sheep. Those things don't live in the house.

They're usually in the barn. So you're talking about somebody just simply breaking in on your property is what it amounts to. So what God says, "If the sun is risen on him, you don't kill him if he's not armed. He is to make full restitution."

Now, life may be lawfully taken on God's terms. Years ago, I was in Greenville, South Carolina. And a Christian, or at least a professing Christian, came to me and said, "I need to ask you a question." I said, "Ask away." He said, "What would you do if you woke up during the night and someone was breaking in your bedroom window?" I said, "Well, that depends." He said, "What does it depend upon?" I said, "It depends upon whether or not I get my hands on a gun or not. If I get my hands on a gun, I'd shoot him. If I couldn't get my hands on the gun, I'd pick up a baseball bat and hit him upside the head."

Duty to Defend Others: The Crying Damsel and the Lost Animal

Deuteronomy 22 and Exodus 23 teach a duty to preserve life, arguing from the lesser (animals) to the greater (human life).

This answers a question that was asked of me yesterday. So if you look in Deuteronomy 22 and let's begin reading there with verse 23. We'll read through verse 27 and then I'm going to come back and deal with it. So look, if you would, Deuteronomy 22, verse 23: "If a damsel"—that is a virgin—

Scripture Reading — Deuteronomy 22:23-27

"be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city and lie with her, then ye shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbor's wife." "So shalt thou put evil away from among you. But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her shall die. But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death. For as when a man riseth up against his neighbor and slayeth him, even so is this matter. For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her."

Now, let's go back, if you would please, to verse 22. He said, "If a man be found lying with a woman married to a husband, then they both shall die." By verse 23: "If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto a husband"—engaged—"and a man find her in the city and lie with her, then ye shall bring them both out of the gate of that city and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbor's wife. So shalt thou put evil away from among you." Now, let me stop there. Note, if you would, "the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city." So if the woman did not cry out, that meant she was consenting to the sin and therefore she was just as guilty as the man and deserved the death penalty. But watch this. What did he say? Listen to it again. Listen to it again. He said, if she cried out—in other words, if that woman was not consenting, she is in the city and she cries, what does that imply? Listen carefully. Anyone who hears her cries has the duty and the responsibility and the obligation to save her.

Now, if you'll skip down to verse 25, he said, "But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her shall die." Why? "But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death." And he tells you why. Verse 27: "For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her." In other words, in the city, the woman could cry out. And anyone who heard her would have the responsibility and the duty to protect her and preserve her. In the field, it's the man who's put to death. Why? Because, obviously, clearly, the woman cried out and there was no one around to defend her. There was no one around to save her. So the obligation to protect the lives of others is the same as the obligation and duty to protect our lives.

Now, let me give you a good illustration. Some of you may remember this. This happened back in 1964. There's a woman by the name of Kitty Genovese. She was brutally murdered. She was stabbed 17 times, raped, robbed, left for dead on the city sidewalk. She screamed, she cried, she pleaded for help. 38 people had either heard her screams and cries or observed some part of the crime, but never lifted a finger to save her.

According to God's law, those who did nothing to preserve life are just as guilty as the one who took her life. Because the sixth commandment has as its positive, "Thou shalt preserve life." I want to show you how fastidious God is, and I will close with this, but I want you to look in your Bibles to Deuteronomy 22 and then Exodus chapter 23, OK? Deuteronomy 22, then we're going to turn back to Exodus chapter 23. So hang on with me. Look, if you would, Exodus 22. Find it, but we're going to look at Deuteronomy chapter 22 first and then Exodus 23. Deuteronomy 22, look, if you would please be getting there. Oh, with verse one. "Thou shalt not see thy brother's ox or sheep go astray, and hide thyself from them. Thou shalt in any case bring them again unto thy brother. If thy brother be not nigh unto thee, or if thou know him not, then thou shalt bring it into thine own house, and it shall be with thee until thy brother seek after it, and thou shalt restore it unto him again. In like manner shalt thou do with his ass, and so shalt thou do with his raiment, and with all lost things of thy brother's, which he hath lost, and thou hast found, shalt thou do likewise, and mayest not hide thyself. Thou shalt not see thy brother's ass or his ox fall down by the way, and hide thyself from them. Thou shalt surely help to lift them up again."

So God says, if you see your brother's animal out of the fence, walking along the road, God says you better help your brother get that animal back in. You can't hide yourself. I'll tell you a funny story. I preached on this text years and years ago. All my girls were small and my girls, like myself, we've always loved animals. We were coming home from church. My wife and the girls were in one car and I was behind because I was the pastor and I was always later. And there was a scraggly old dirty, stinking goat beside the road. Everybody tried to catch that goat, nobody could catch the goat. The goat was in danger of being hit by a vehicle. Well, my girls have always had a wonderful way with animals. They caught that goat. And I just happened to come by just as they caught that goat.

And I was in the truck. And they said, "Daddy, this goat's wandering around in the highway, we don't know who this goat belongs to and she's going to get killed. Can we take her home with us?" And before I could ever answer, they said, "You remember what you preached this morning, don't you?" I said, "Yes, we'll take her home." I said, "But how did you catch her? Because evidently no one else could catch her." Well, they said it's easy. We just knelt down and called her and she came to us. Well, we picked her up and took her home. It was two days later before my neighbor came looking for the goat that he had bought at the sale on Saturday, and she got out on Saturday night and we restored the goat. This is what God said. You can't hide yourself. And if you see—you come to visit me and you see my cow down having trouble delivering a calf, God says, "Hey, you're obligated to help me." I'm going to tell you why in just a little bit.

But I want you to watch this. You say, "Well, brother, I don't mind helping you. I don't mind helping Pastor Brink. I don't mind helping Bill Potter. I don't mind helping my brothers." Really? Well, look, if you would, in Exodus chapter 23, if you would please. And let's begin reading there with verse four. Look at this. "If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him." Whoa! Now it's not your brother. Now it's your enemy.

Now it's the man that hates you and has caused you all kind of heartache. And God says if you see his animal going astray, you cannot hide yourself. You must capture that animal. You must bring it back to him. If you see his ass or his cow lying under his burden, you cannot say, "I'm going to pretend I didn't see that." No, no. God said you must help him. Why? Why? Listen to me.

In the Bible, this is what is known as arguing from the lesser to the greater. If I have a duty, an obligation, to help preserve Pastor Brink's sheep, if they get out in the road. If I have a duty and obligation to help preserve the lives of his animals, how much more obligation and duty do I have to help preserve his life and the life of his wife and children? If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's animals, how much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life? So God is arguing from the lesser to the greater. We have a duty given to us, and that is we must protect our lives, we must protect the lives of our families and the lives of our friends and the lives of our neighbors, because the sixth commandment isn't only negative, it's a positive as well.

Conclusion: The Obligation to Preserve Life

Just as animals defend their young, humans, being of more value, have a duty to protect life. The sixth commandment requires preserving life.

I want you to consider this. Would it not be a horrible anomaly if God allowed all of the animals to protect their lives and their families, and did not allow us to do the same? Years ago, when I was at the university, our neighbor had an old tomcat. We didn't have a cat, but our neighbor had a tomcat. And in one of the bushes in our front yard, there was a mockingbird with her nest. And that old tomcat came strolling by, close to that bush. That mama mockingbird came out of that bush, pecked that cat's head until she ran out of the yard.

You know what she was doing? She was defending her family. She's defending the lives of her children. If God allows animals to do that, do you not think that He will allow us to do that? Did our Lord not say in Matthew chapter 10 and verse 31, "Fear ye not therefore, for ye are of more value than many sparrows." We have a duty. We have a responsibility. We have an obligation to protect our lives and the lives of others.

So whenever you get into a position, you just remember, the sixth commandment has a positive as well as a negative. God requires us to preserve life. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. We ask that You would teach us, that You would build us up in the most holy faith, that You would give us, Lord, Your grace and Your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

The Sixth Commandment as Prohibition of Murder

Summary: The commandment 'Thou shalt not kill' means 'Thou shalt not murder' or take life unjustly, except on God's terms.

Evidence: Weaver states: 'Thou shalt not kill literally means Thou shalt not murder. Or it means Thou shalt not take life unjustly. Or to say this another way, Thou shalt not take life except it is on God's terms.'

Positive Duty to Preserve Life

Summary: Every negative command implies a positive duty; the sixth commandment requires the preservation of life, making self-defense obligatory.

Evidence: Weaver says: 'So when God says in the sixth commandment, Thou shalt not kill, that's the negative. The positive is Thou shalt preserve life... self-defense is obligatory.'

Lawful Taking of Life on God's Terms

Summary: Scripture lists 18 capital offenses where life may be taken justly, and self-defense is a 19th lawful reason.

Evidence: Weaver enumerates 18 reasons from the Law and adds: 'the 19th reason why life may be lawfully taken on God's terms is because of self-defense.'

Historical Practice of Armed Church Attendance

Summary: Colonial American laws and customs required men to bring weapons to church for defense, a practice rooted in biblical principles.

Evidence: Weaver cites laws from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Virginia, and Plymouth requiring arms at church, and explains the custom of men sitting on aisle ends.

God's Defense and Human Agency

Summary: God defends His people and uses human agents, enabling them to fight while they trust in Him.

Evidence: Weaver points to God defending Jerusalem, raising up judges, and David's mighty men: 'the Lord wrought a great victory' through their fighting.

Duty to Defend Others

Summary: The obligation to preserve life extends to defending others, as illustrated by the crying damsel and the law of the lost animal.

Evidence: Weaver explains Deuteronomy 22: 'anyone who hears her cries has the duty and the responsibility and the obligation to save her.'

Key Arguments

Self-defense is not murder but a lawful taking of life

Summary: The sixth commandment forbids murder, not all killing. Scripture provides lawful reasons for taking life, including self-defense.

Evidence: Weaver says: 'taking a life can be murder, but taking life is not always murder. There are lawful reasons given in the Bible where life can be taken.'

The positive command to preserve life mandates self-defense

Summary: Since the sixth commandment positively requires preserving life, failing to defend oneself or others is a violation of the commandment.

Evidence: Weaver argues: 'If we do not defend ourselves, we're guilty of self-murder. If we don't defend our families, we're guilty of self-murder.'

Using means and trusting God are not contradictory

Summary: Biblical figures like David and his mighty men used weapons while trusting God for victory; means are tools, not objects of trust.

Evidence: Weaver states: 'I am not trusting in a weapon just because I have a weapon. I'm trusting in the Lord.'

Exodus 22:2-3 permits killing a nighttime intruder

Summary: God's law allows killing a thief breaking in at night because the homeowner cannot know the intruder's intent, but forbids it in daylight when identification is possible.

Evidence: Weaver explains: 'If a thief breaks in your home during the night... God says in verse two, If you kill him... there shall be no bloodshed for you.'

The duty to preserve life extends to enemies

Summary: Exodus 23 commands helping an enemy's animal, arguing from lesser to greater that we have an even greater duty to preserve human life.

Evidence: Weaver says: 'If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's animals, how much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life?'

Scripture References

Exodus 20:13

Context: The sixth commandment, 'Thou shalt not kill,' is the foundational text for the doctrine of self-defense.

Exodus 21:15

Context: Listed as a capital offense: striking or cursing a parent.

Leviticus 20:9

Context: Capital offense for cursing a parent.

Exodus 21:16

Context: Capital offense for kidnapping.

Leviticus 20:10

Context: Capital offense for adultery.

Leviticus 20:11

Context: Capital offense for incest.

Exodus 22:19

Context: Capital offense for bestiality.

Leviticus 20:13

Context: Capital offense for sodomy/homosexuality.

Deuteronomy 22:20-21

Context: Capital offense for unchastity.

Deuteronomy 22:25-27

Context: Capital offense for rape of a betrothed virgin; also used to show duty to defend.

Exodus 22:18

Context: Capital offense for witchcraft.

Leviticus 20:2

Context: Capital offense for offering human sacrifice.

Deuteronomy 21:18-21

Context: Capital offense for incorrigible delinquency.

Leviticus 24:16

Context: Capital offense for blasphemy.

Exodus 35:2

Context: Capital offense for Sabbath desecration.

Deuteronomy 13:5

Context: Capital offense for propagating false doctrine.

Exodus 22:20

Context: Capital offense for sacrificing to false gods.

Deuteronomy 17:8-13

Context: Capital offense for refusing to abide by a biblical court's decision.

Exodus 22:2-3

Context: Law concerning killing a thief breaking in at night versus daytime; supports self-defense.

Deuteronomy 22:23-27

Context: Law of the betrothed damsel, illustrating the duty to defend those crying out for help.

Historical References

Colonial American laws requiring arms at church (Massachusetts 1640, Connecticut 1643, Virginia 1619, Plymouth 1627)

Context: Weaver cites these laws to show that armed church attendance was mandated and considered a biblical practice.

Alice Morse Earle, 'The Sabbath in Puritan New England'

Context: Weaver recommends this book for understanding why Puritans carried weapons to church.

Trumbull's 'McFingal' poem

Context: A satirical poem about Sunday arm-bearing, quoted to illustrate the custom.

George H. Boughton's 1867 painting 'Pilgrims Going to Church'

Context: Mentioned as capturing the reality of armed pilgrims marching to worship.

St. James Church massacre, Cape Town, South Africa, July 25, 1993

Context: An attack by ANC terrorists where an armed missionary, Charles Van Wyk, saved lives by returning fire.

Church shootings in the United States (2005-2011)

Context: Weaver lists multiple church attacks to emphasize the modern need for self-defense.

Kitty Genovese murder, 1964

Context: Used as an example of the failure to preserve life; 38 witnesses did nothing to help.

Important Quotes

Thou shalt not kill literally means Thou shalt not murder. Or it means Thou shalt not take life unjustly. Or to say this another way, Thou shalt not take life except it is on God's terms.

Significance: Defines the sixth commandment as a prohibition of murder, not all killing, establishing the foundation for lawful self-defense.

So when God says in the sixth commandment, Thou shalt not kill, that's the negative. The positive is Thou shalt preserve life.

Significance: Introduces the positive duty of the commandment, making self-defense obligatory.

If we do not defend ourselves, we're guilty of self-murder. If we don't defend our families, we're guilty of self-murder.

Significance: Argues that failure to defend life is a violation of the sixth commandment.

If a thief be found breaking up and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.

Significance: Quotes Exodus 22:2 to show biblical permission for killing a nighttime intruder.

Anyone who hears her cries has the duty and the responsibility and the obligation to save her.

Significance: Derives the duty to defend others from the law of the crying damsel in Deuteronomy 22.

If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's animals, how much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life?

Significance: Uses the lesser-to-greater argument from Exodus 23 to establish the duty to preserve human life.

Discussion Questions

How does understanding the sixth commandment as 'Thou shalt not murder' rather than an absolute prohibition on killing change your view of self-defense?

Context: Weaver explains the Hebrew and Greek meaning of the commandment.

In what ways does the positive command to preserve life challenge a passive response to threats?

Context: Weaver argues that failing to defend oneself or others is self-murder.

How do the colonial American laws requiring arms at church inform our understanding of the relationship between faith and preparedness?

Context: Weaver details historical mandates for armed church attendance.

What does the example of David and his mighty men teach us about using human means while trusting in God's sovereignty?

Context: Weaver discusses 2 Samuel 23 and Psalm 144:1.

How should Exodus 22:2-3 guide a Christian's response to a home invasion today?

Context: Weaver explains the distinction between nighttime and daytime intruders.

What responsibilities do we have to intervene when we hear someone crying for help, based on Deuteronomy 22?

Context: Weaver applies the law of the betrothed damsel to the duty to defend others.

How does the command to help an enemy's animal (Exodus 23) expand our understanding of loving our neighbor?

Context: Weaver argues from lesser to greater regarding the duty to preserve life.

Applications

Prepare a biblical understanding of self-defense before a crisis

Summary: Believers must study and settle the issue of self-defense in their minds beforehand, because life-threatening situations require immediate response.

Evidence: Weaver says: 'You need to have this worked out in your mind... it is too late for you to sit there and try to figure out, Now, Lord, what can I do with this?'

Recognize the duty to preserve life as a positive command

Summary: Christians should actively seek to protect their own lives and the lives of others, viewing it as obedience to the sixth commandment.

Evidence: Weaver states: 'self-defense is obligatory. We must defend ourselves and the lives of others, even if it involves taking the life of another individual.'

Use lawful means of defense while trusting God

Summary: Believers should employ weapons or other means of defense as tools, while ultimately relying on God for protection and enablement.

Evidence: Weaver explains: 'I am not trusting in a weapon just because I have a weapon. I'm trusting in the Lord.'

Defend others as an expression of love and duty

Summary: When able, Christians must intervene to protect those in danger, following the biblical pattern of defending the oppressed.

Evidence: Weaver says: 'anyone who hears her cries has the duty and the responsibility and the obligation to save her.'

Apply the lesser-to-greater principle in ethical decisions

Summary: If God requires care for animals, how much more does He require care for human life; this principle should guide our actions toward others.

Evidence: Weaver argues: 'If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's animals, how much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life?'

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-06T04:29:43Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T16:47:11Z

Clean Transcript

Biblical Doctrine of Self Defense

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

Our topic is the biblical doctrine of self-defense. And the text is, of course, Exodus 20 and verse 13, where God literally says, "Thou shalt not kill."
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Now, I will tell you this. I have a second part to this message, which I'm not going to be able to preach here, but you can go online to sermonaudio.com forward slash Weaver. And you type in "the biblical doctrine of self-defense" and you'll get the first message and the second message as well. Also, let me tell you this. First of all, this is something that you need to know. You need to have this worked out in your mind. You need to have this understood, because if you ever get into a position where you have to defend your life or the life of anyone else, it is too late for you to sit there and try to figure out, "Now, Lord, what can I do with this?"
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"What do you allow in this situation?" It's too late. Usually when you get in a life and death situation, you have about 30 seconds to maybe 60 seconds to respond. So you better already know what the Word of God says and you better know how to defend yourself. One of my favorite stories is about the old pilgrim pastor who was going to church. And as he was walking to church, he was carrying his blunderbuss on his shoulder. And one of the men came up alongside him and said, "Preacher, let me ask you a question. Do you believe in the absolute sovereignty of God?" And the preacher said, "Well, most certainly I do." Well, he said, "Preacher, let me ask you another question. Do you believe that God is in control of everything?" And the pastor said, "Well, most certainly I do." Well, he said, "Pastor, let me ask you one more question. Do you believe that when it comes your time to die, that you're going to die and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it?"
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He said, "Absolutely." The man was pushing and he said, "Now, Pastor, let me ask you, if you believe that God is absolutely sovereign and you believe that God is in control and you believe when it's come your time to die, that you're going to die and there's nothing you can do about it, why are you carrying that blunderbuss on your shoulder?" The pastor said, "That's simple. In case I meet an Indian whose time it is to die."
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So very clearly, he was informing and teaching that individual. Obviously, there are a lot of people that have misunderstood our forefathers because all of them not only carried weapons everywhere they went, they went to church armed. There is a book that I would encourage you to get if you have not ever read it. I found an old copy, and I bought the old copy, and then I found out that the book has just recently been reprinted, and the title of the book is "The Sabbath in Puritan New England," written by Alice Morse Earle. The book has been reproduced. It's a very informative book, and chapter two is really, really informative. Because it tells us in that chapter, not only that our forefathers always went armed to church, but also why they went armed to church, even on the Lord's Day. And it was pointed out that in order to sanctify the loading of their weapons on the Lord's Day, that they were instructed by their pastors not to discharge those weapons on the Lord's Day, unless it was at an Indian or a wolf, which at that time were the two greatest dangers to anyone.
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Trumbull, the historian of Connecticut, in his "McFingal," writes in jest concerning this Sunday arm-bearing. His simple poem is this: "So once for fear of Indian beating, our grandsires wore their guns to meeting. Each man equipped each Sunday morn with psalm book, shot, and powder horn, and looked in form as almost grand, like the ancient church militant." And of course, that's what he was saying, making fun of the carrying of arms to church. But in the formation of our nation, all bore arms to church, even on the Lord's Day.
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In fact, what many people do not understand is it was required for you to do so. There were laws. For instance, in 1640 in Massachusetts, it was ordered that the attendants at church should carry a competent number of pieces, fixed and complete, with powder and shot and sword every Lord's Day to the meeting house. So, swords were demanded then as rifles. In Connecticut, in 1643, those who failed to bring their arms to church were fined 12 cents for each offense.
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Now, we laugh at 12 cents, but 12 cents was a lot of money back then. In 1644, there was a law that demanded the fourth part of an armed band of trained fighting men were obligated to come to church each Sunday and the sentinels were ordered to keep their matches lit for those matchlocks that they had. I don't know if you can imagine this, sitting in a church and smelling maybe the lighter notes or whatever they had that they kept lit the whole time in case they had to use those weapons for an Indian attack. In 1692, the Connecticut legislature ordered that one-fifth of the soldiers in each town must attend the Sunday meeting. One-fifth of the soldiers in each town were ordered to attend so that the churches might be protected. In colonial America, Cranmer, a historian, shows that church security was often mandated by law.
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Hence, in 1619 here in Virginia, not only required church attendance, but also, and I'm quoting, "all such as bear arms shall bring their pieces, swords, powder, and shot with them" under penalty of a three shilling fine if they did not. This was phrased in 1623 to require that "all men that are fitting to bear arms shall bring their pieces to the church," a requirement that was restated and made law in 1738. The approach of bearing arms in church was certainly not limited to southern colonies.
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An account of the Plymouth colony in 1627 tells of a Sabbath day procession up the hill to worship, with every man armed and marching three abreast. This reality is captured by George H. Boughton's famous 1867 painting of pilgrims going to church. So in the mid-17th century, church gun carrying was mandated by law in Plymouth. So here is the law: "It is enacted that every township within this government do carry a competent number of pieces fixed and complete with powder and shot and swords every Lord's Day to the meetings, one of a house from the first of September to the middle of November, except there be some just and lawful impediment." Connecticut required church attendees to bring a musket, a pistol, or some piece with powder and shot to each meeting.
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So these early requirements then to keep and bear arms were primarily for defense against Indians at that particular time. However, there were other reasons as well. In fact, here in South Carolina, a 1743 statute required every male to bring a gun and at least six rounds of ammunition for it to the church. Other provisions require church wardens, deacons, or elders to check each man coming in to make sure that he was armed. Isn't that amazing?
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And many of our modern day habits and customs actually are derived from these old days, and I noticed this when I was a boy. Of course, I mentioned to you I was raised in church. We went to church every Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, any night there was a special meeting. And when I was a boy, I noticed that all men in our church sat on the ends of the pews.
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I didn't know why, but when I grew up, I started sitting on the edge of the pew as well. When I got married, I still sat on the edge of the pew. And come to find out, there's a reason. Because in colonial America, every man carried his weapon to church. Those weapons were usually stacked in the aisle, and all the men sat on the ends of the pews, all the women and children on the inside of the pew. So if the church was attacked, the men could just simply reach over and grab their weapons and go out in order to fight. The women and children would not be in the way, and they would be protected then by the pews as well. So all these weapons were basically kept an arm's length.
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Now, I particularly like this next little tidbit of history. Have you noticed that it's the custom of the pastor after the sermon to walk to the back door or the front door? Now, he walks wherever that door is and opens the door and someone says, "Yes, we know that. I mean, we've done that for years. The pastor, he goes back there so he can shake hands with everyone." Really? Do you know something? I don't have to walk to that door over there to shake your hand. If you want to shake my hand, you could walk up here just as easily as I could walk over to that door. Do you know why that custom arose where, you know, somebody's praying and the pastor slips out during the prayer and stands there by the door? You know why? Because the pastor was the under-shepherd under Christ.
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He was responsible for his people and what he would do. And he was armed. He would always go to the door first and open that door and look out to make sure there were no Indians or wolves and later on, British soldiers. And once he was safely out and he believed that everything was safe, he would summon the men and the men would then come out and then the women and children. So this habit, this custom of going to the door first for the pastor, that was simply because of the custom. And I particularly like this because the pastor always preached with his loaded weapon by his side on the pulpit.
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All the other weapons were stacked in the aisle. But the pastor usually, listen carefully, who was the best shot of the community and had the best rifle, he always preached with that weapon right beside him. It was his responsibility to protect his sheep. And that was exactly what he was going to do.
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Now, this custom certainly proved excellent, especially in 1775 at the outset of the war for independence. In fact, the Provincial Congress or the Continental Congress recommended that men within 20 miles of the seacoast carry their arms and ammunition with them to the meeting house on the Lord's Day and all other days for public worship. And the wisdom of that enactment was found many times over before the war ended in 1783.
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So let me ask you this question. Were our forefathers right and biblical in carrying those arms? And were they right and biblical in carrying them to church? And the answer is, I can assure you they were right and they were biblical. So here's another good question. Is there any precaution that we should take in light of the violence and everything that's happening today, in light of what our forefathers experienced? Now, let me give you a good example.
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I'm going to read this. This happened in Cape Town, South Africa, July the 25th, 1993. Now you say Cape Town, South Africa, that has nothing to do with me. Yes, it does. Yes, it does. It was Peter Hammond from that area in Frontline Fellowship. Had one missionary in that church, Charles Van Wyk. You can read his book on it. But that church was attacked by a group of terrorists. Listen carefully. A group of five terrorists came to St. James Church, the largest evangelical church in Cape Town, shortly after the evening service began. One of the terrorists, wearing a ski mask, rolled a hand grenade into the packed assembly without warning.
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and then opened fire with an AK-47, shooting from the hip as he sprayed the worshippers in a deadly attack that left 12 people dead at that particular account and more than 50 severely wounded. As the terrorist—and by the way, there was another terrorist which was about to lob a grenade and open up with his AK-47, but he was deterred and he did not get to do so and there was a reason. By the way, these terrorists were with the Communist ANC, which was Nelson Mandela's group. The missionary, Charles Van Wyk, he began firing at the second terrorist who was about to throw in the hand grenade and open up with his AK-47, and the only thing that he had was a .38 revolver. And so he pulled out that revolver and began shooting. And of course, the terrorists then began ducking.
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And finally, all of them fled and got into a Mercedes and were fleeing away. And Charles Van Wyk went out and was emptying his revolver into that Mercedes as they went away.
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Now, that church averaged over a thousand in attendance on Sunday evening. So the reason the other terrorist did not get to throw his hand grenade was simply because of Charles, is what it amounts to. He was ducking for cover. And the police are actually giving one armed Christian man the credit for saving a hundred lives.
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Now, let me tell you something. If you will study a little bit of history, you will find out that the communists and terrorists always like to attack churches and they always like to attack homes. And the reason for that is that's where you feel the most secure. That's where you believe you're the safest. And that's usually where people are unarmed, usually speaking, on Sunday morning. There are exceptions, I can assure you, but they're always known to terrorize churches.
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So we have to ask this question. Was this missionary right in carrying his weapon to church? And was he right in defending his life? And was he right in defending the lives of other people? Or we could ask some other questions. Were these Christians in South Africa wrong because they did not want to die? I mean, you know, if they're Christians and they understand to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. I mean, were they unspiritual in the fact that they did not want to die at that particular time at the hands of the terrorists? Or we could ask it like this. Was it right for the Christians to be killed and the communists to live? Had you not rather the Christians live and the communists die? Before we answer some of these questions, I want to give you something that happened in America. I want you to listen carefully.
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Here are different dates, but February the 14th, 2010, Richmond, California, three hooded men walk into the Gethsemane Church of God in Christ and open fire and then fled. The two victims, a 14-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man, were shot. March 8, 2009, Maryville, Illinois. Suspect Terry Joe Sedlacek, 27, of Troy, walks into the First Baptist Church and shoots Pastor Fred Winters dead point blank. Several church members were injured by a knife because they were struggling to control him and he had a knife and he actually cut them before he was subdued. July 27, 2008, Knoxville, Tennessee, a gunman opens fire in a church during a youth performance, killing two people and injuring seven. December 9, 2007, Colorado, three people were killed and five wounded in two shooting rampages, one in a missionary school in suburban Denver and one in a church in Colorado Springs. The gunman in the second incident was killed by a guard. On August 12, 2007, a lone gunman, Eiken Elam Simon, opened fire at a Missouri Micronesian church, killing the pastor and two other churchgoers.
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May the 20th, 2007, a standoff between police and a suspect in the shooting of three people in Moscow, Idaho, Presbyterian Church, ended with three dead, including one police officer. Although not a church building, on October 2, 2006, an attack in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania by a gunman who killed five girls and then himself at an Amish school, which he targeted. On May 21, 2006, Louisiana, four were killed by a man at the Jesus Christ Church. February 26, 2006, Michigan, two people were killed at Zion Hope Missionary Baptist Church by a man who reportedly went to the church looking for his girlfriend. And he later killed himself. April 9, 2005, a 27-year-old airman died after being shot at a church in College Park, Georgia, about three hours from us, where he once worked as a security guard. March 12, 2005, a man walked into the service of the Living Church of God in Milwaukee and opened fire, immediately killing seven people. October the 5th, 2003, a woman opened fire in Turner Monumental AME Church in Kirkwood, east of Atlanta, killing the pastor and two others.
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September the 16th, 1999, seven young people were killed when a man opened fire during a prayer service for teens at Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas. And then 9-18-2011, Lakeland, Florida, authorities and family members say a man shot and killed his wife at their Lakeland home and then shot two others at a nearby church. And these are just some, there have been a multitude of others.
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So the question says, or ask is this, is it right to defend yourself? Is it right to defend other people? Is it right to bring a weapon to church? Is it right to use it at church? I guess you heard recently, and by the way, I commend him so greatly and I forget his name right now. But when the church in Texas was attacked by a man who carried a shotgun under his long coat and there were any targeted, first of all, the church security team and they were just unobservant and he killed two men who were armed.
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before they could ever get their weapons out. And one man from 15 yards away, walking, made a headshot and killed him and took him out and stopped him from killing anyone else. And that was just one of the last year. I'm just simply pointing out the fact we have to deal with these issues. You need to know what in the world you can do and what you cannot do based upon the Word of God.
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So when you look at Exodus chapter 20 and verse 13, the Bible says "Thou shalt not kill" literally. I want you to understand this is God's law. This is not Jewish law. This is not the Gemara. This is not the Mishnah. This is not the Talmud. No, no, no. This is God's law. God says "Thou shalt not kill." What in the world does that mean? Well, let me try to put it to you like this. "Thou shalt not kill" literally means "Thou shalt not murder." Or it means "Thou shalt not take life unjustly." Or to say this another way, "Thou shalt not take life except it is on God's terms." When you look at that sixth commandment in the New Testament, the Greek word there also means "Thou shalt not murder." Now, taking a life can be murder, but taking life is not always murder. There are lawful reasons given in the Bible where life can be taken. Life may be taken justly. Life may be taken righteously. Life may be taken biblically as long as it's taken upon God's terms.
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Without me going into depth on any of these and without me commenting on these, I want to give you very quickly 18 reasons why life may be lawfully and legitimately taken on God's terms. I won't quote all the scripture, but I've just given to you. Number one, life is to be taken for murder, but not for accidental killings. Exodus chapter 21. Number two, life is to be forfeited for striking or cursing a parent.
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Young people, listen to that. Life is to be taken for striking or cursing a parent. You'll find that in Exodus 21, verse 15, Leviticus 20, verse 9, Proverbs 20:20, Matthew 15, verse 4, and Mark chapter 7, verse 10. Our Lord quotes that as well. Number three, life is to be taken for kidnapping. You kidnap and God says you deserve the death penalty. You'll find that in Exodus 21 and Deuteronomy 24. The death penalty is given for adultery in Leviticus chapter 20. Fifthly, the death penalty is given for incest. You'll find that in Leviticus chapter 20. Sixthly, the death penalty is required and pronounced for bestiality. You'll find that in Exodus 22 and Leviticus 20. Seventhly, the death penalty is required for sodomy or homosexuality. You'll find that in Leviticus 20 in verse 13. The death penalty is required for unchastity. You'll find that in Deuteronomy 22 verses 20 through 21. You will find also the death penalty is required ninthly for the rape of a virgin, which we'll talk about a little bit later.
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Deuteronomy 22. Then the death penalty is required for witchcraft. Exodus 22 in verse 18: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." Number 11, the death penalty is required for offering human sacrifice. Leviticus chapter 20 and verse 11 or 21 it is. And then number 12, the death penalty is demanded for incorrigible delinquency or habitual criminality. You'll find that in Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 18 through 21. Number 13, the death penalty is required for blasphemy in Leviticus chapter 24. Then it's also required for Sabbath desecration—oh, that's a sermon in itself—in Exodus 35, in Numbers chapter 15. And then number 15, the death penalty is required for the propagation of false doctrine, Deuteronomy chapter 13. Number 16, the death penalty is required for sacrificing unto false gods, Exodus 22. Number 17, listen to this one, refusing to abide by the decision of a biblical court and denying God's law, the death penalty is required. Deuteronomy chapter 17, verses 8 through 13. And number 18, failing to restore the veil of the pledge or the bailment in Exodus 18 verses 12 through 13.
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Now, there's 18 reasons given in the Bible why life may be lawfully and justly taken on God's terms. Now, whether you understand these or not, whether you agree with them or not in your mind right away, the fact is, they're biblical. They are listed here in the Bible. So here are 18 reasons why life may be lawfully taken on God's terms.
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Now, the sixth commandment also forbids all unjust violence as well as murder. Let me explain something to you. When God forbids any act, at the same time, He forbids anything and everything that would lead up to that act. Hang on. So if God says "Thou shalt not steal," at the same time, He's forbidding me to covet. At the same time, He's forbidding me to lust. At the same time, He's forbidding me to think about stealing. When God says "Thou shalt not murder," He forbids hatred. He forbids anger. He forbids ill will and anything that would lead up to that act. OK, so when you've got the sixth commandment now, we're talking about "Thou shalt not kill" or "Thou shalt not murder." "Thou shalt not take life, but except on God's terms." And I've just given you 18 reasons why life can be lawfully taken on God's terms.
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Now I'm going to add one more and give you the 19th reason. And this is not adding to Scripture, which you're going to see. But the 19th reason why life may be lawfully taken on God's terms is because of self-defense. Self-defense. Now, God's law is given in negative terms. If you look at the Ten Commandments, you'll notice that there are only two commandments that are positive. The fourth one is what? "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy" and the fifth one, "Honor thy father and thy mother." Those are positives. However, those two positives are undergirded by a lot of negatives as well. Usually God's law is couched in negative terms for a specific reason. Because a negative law deals with a specific crime or sin, "Thou shalt not steal."
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So that is dealing then with theft in any form whatsoever. It could be fraud, it could be deception, it could be taking, but it's "Thou shalt not steal," so it's dealing with a particular crime or a particular sin. Now, here's the thing. Every time you see a negative—"Thou shalt not steal," "Thou shalt not kill," "Thou shalt not bear false witness," "Thou shalt not commit adultery"—you have to stop and ask yourself, what is the positive? Because every negative has a positive. And every positive has a negative. Whenever you read a positive in the Word of God, you should ask yourself, what is the negative? You cannot have a positive without a negative, and you cannot have a negative without a positive. So when you look at "Thou shalt not commit adultery," what would be the positive? "Thou shalt live a holy, righteous, godly, sanctified life." "Thou shalt not steal."
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Of course, the New Testament answers this. What would be the positive? That you're to work with your hands, laboring that which is good, that you may not only provide for yourself, but that you may have to give to those that need it. So the opposite of theft is not just simply not stealing, but it's having a generous, gracious attitude according to the Word of God. So when God says in the sixth commandment, "Thou shalt not kill," that's the negative. The positive is "Thou shalt preserve life." In other words, you have a duty, you have a responsibility to preserve life. So based on the sixth commandment, self-defense is obligatory. We must defend ourselves and the lives of others, even if it involves taking the life of another individual.
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So I try to use this yesterday as an illustration. I was talking to someone. So let's say that Brother Lacey comes up to me and says, "Brother Weaver, I'm upset with you. I'm going to kill you." And I look at him and I say, "Well, go ahead, brother. That'll just put me in the presence of the Lord a whole lot sooner. Just do whatever spins your wheels. If it's going to make you happy, just go ahead and kill me." If I allowed him to do that, now I'm guilty of self-murder. I have a duty.
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I have a responsibility to preserve my life. And if it means taking his life to preserve my life, then I'm required to do it. If I do not do it, then I am in violation of the sixth commandment myself. So if we do not defend ourselves, we're guilty of self-murder. If we don't defend our families, we're guilty of self-murder. I preached on Romans 13 one time in Indianapolis, Indiana, and I just mentioned in passing self-defense. And one man came up to me afterwards, a young man, wife and four or five children. And he looked at me and said, "Brother Weaver," he said, "you know, I agree with everything that you said, except this business of self-defense." I said, "What?" He said, "I don't think you should want to hurt anybody." I said, "Well, I don't want to hurt anybody, but I don't want anyone to hurt me either." He said, "Well," he said, "I would never do anything like that. I would never, ever try to defend myself or my wife or my children."
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I looked at him, I said, "Sir, the only thing I can say to you is I'm so thankful I'm not married to you and I'm not your child." You know, I really am. I'm glad I'm not your child. Listen to me. Those of you who are in the military or were in the military, you remember Article three of the United States military code. Listen to it. "If I am captured,
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I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and to aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy."
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Now, why in the world is that in the military code? It's not just so that if you could escape, you can get back to your officer in charge and get him the information. No, no, no, no. You have a duty to escape. Why? Because you have a duty to preserve your life. You have a duty to help others to escape from the enemy. Why? Because you have a duty to help preserve their lives. And that's in the military code of justice. We're taught that we have a duty to escape.
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So is self-defense wrong? Well, I'm going to give you some scriptures. I want you to listen, because if you think self-defense is wrong, then you have to take an issue up with God himself, because God defended His people. Here we go. Listen to 2 Kings 19, verse 34. Here's what God tells Hezekiah: "I will defend this city to save it for My own sake and for My servant David's sake."
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Now we're talking about Jerusalem. God said, "I will defend this city." So God tells Hezekiah, "Don't you worry about this. I'm going to defend this city. The Assyrians are not going to come in here. I'm going to defend this city." Then when you get to 2 Kings chapter 20 and verse 6, again, God said, "And I will add unto thy days fifteen years"—that's Hezekiah—"and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria. And I will defend this city for Mine own sake and for My servant David's sake." Then when you get to Isaiah chapter 31 in verse 5, God says it like this: "As birds flying, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem; defending also He will deliver it; and passing over He will preserve it." Now when you get to Isaiah 37 in verse 35, God says again, "For I will defend this city for My own sake and for My servant David's sake." One more time. Isaiah 38 and verse 6, God said, "I will defend thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Syria, and I will defend this city."
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Five times God said, "I will defend this city. I will defend My people, not only for My honor, but for My servant David's sake. I'm going to defend Jerusalem." So here's my question. Did God defend Jerusalem? And the answer is yes, He did. Here's another question. Did God take lives in defending Jerusalem? Yes, yes. All you have to do is read Isaiah 37 and verse 36. Let me read it to you. "Then the angel of the Lord went forth and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and eighty-five thousand."
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"And when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses." So out of all the Assyrians, God slew 185,000 soldiers. Now, here's my question. Did God have to slay them? No. Do you remember when those lepers were at the gate there in Jerusalem? Not in Jerusalem, I'm sorry, in Samaria. They were at the gates in Samaria. And there was a famine because they had been surrounded by the Syrians. And those five lepers looked at each other and said, "Why should we here till we die? If we go in the city, we're going to die of starvation. If we sit here, we're going to die because the lepers usually live from the food that was thrown over the wall, the garbage."
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They said, "Come, let us fall to the Syrians. If they kill us, we will but be dead. But it may be they will save us alive." And so they went and all the tents were empty. All the food was there. And you know what God had done? God had made the Syrians hear the host of a great army and they thought the king of Samaria had hired the Ethiopians against them and they fled. There were no Ethiopians coming. There was no great army. God just caused them to hear the noise and they fled. Could God have done that?
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With the Assyrians, and the answer is absolutely. But He did not. He killed 185,000 of them. Did you know that David said in Psalm 7 in verse 10, "My defense is of God who saveth the upright in heart"? You read the book of Psalms, you'll find over and over David is claiming that God is his defense. In fact, in Psalm 89 in verse 18, he said, "For the Lord is our defense and the Holy One of Israel is our king." Notice the Lord is our defense. We may rightly conclude that God does indeed defend His people.
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It is never wrong to emulate our heavenly Father. Now, someone's going to object. Someone's going to say, "Yes, but Brother Weaver, what God does and what we do are two different things." That is certainly true in one sense of the word. But you're not God, I am not God, I never will be God. Only God is God. But let me ask you a question. Have you ever noticed and have you ever read the book of Judges? Do you know why God raised up judges? Listen to Judges chapter 10 and verse one.
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"And after Abimelech, there arose to defend Israel Tola, the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, and he dwelt in Shamir in Mount Ephraim." Did you hear that? "And after Abimelech, there arose to defend Israel." Who raised up those judges? God did. And He raised them up for one reason, and that was to defend His people. Did these judges take the lives of the enemy who were trying to destroy the people?
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And the answer is yes, they did. Just read it. Read about Gideon. Read about all of these judges. You'll find out they took life after life after life.
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Now, let me show you the other one. I want you to turn to this one, if you would, please. I want you to turn in your Bibles to 2 Samuel, chapter 23, because in 2 Samuel, chapter 23, you have a listing of David's mighty men. And I want you to see particularly what the Bible says. Look in 2 Samuel, chapter 23, and let's begin reading there with verse eight. Look at this: 2 Samuel, chapter 23 and verse eight. "These be the names of the mighty men whom David had."
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"The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time." Now, that doesn't mean he threw the spear one time and it went through 800 people. But he took that spear to one battle. He killed 800 people. Watch verse 9. "And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were going away. And he"—we're talking about Eleazar—"and he arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clave unto his sword."
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"And the Lord wrought a great victory that day and the people returned after him only to spoil." I'm going to come back to that, but look in verse 11. "And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentils. And the people fled from the Philistines. But he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great victory." Now, go back, if you would, please. And look what happened to Eleazar in verse 10. "He arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary. And his hand clave unto the sword."
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Now, let me stop right there. That means his hand literally cramped around his sword handle. In other words, to get that sword out of his hand, they basically would have to pry the fingers apart. His hand clave unto the sword. It was frozen there. He fought so. But watch verse 10 again. "He arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clave unto the sword." Watch this.
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"And the Lord wrought a great victory that day, and the people returned after him only to spoil." The Lord wrought a great... What? I thought it was Eleazar that was doing the fighting. It was. Well, how did the Lord work a great victory? Because it was the Lord who was enabling and empowering and strengthening him to fight. You'll find the same thing down in verse 12 about Shammah.
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"And he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great victory." Note, if you would, the Lord wrought a great victory, but it was Shammah who was doing the fighting. In other words, here is God who enabled these men, who strengthened these men, who gave them a fighting spirit and the ability to fight. One of my favorite verses is Psalm 144, verse one: "Blessed be the Lord my God who teacheth my fingers to fight and my hands to war." In other words, God is the one who taught David how to fight. He taught these men how to fight.
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Now, here's the principle that we've got to understand. We have to use the means that God has ordained while at the same time trusting in the Lord. These great men used their swords, their bows, their other weapons, and yet at the same time they trusted in the Lord to make them effectual. Let me say this another way, means are worthless in and of themselves. So let me give you an illustration. You can ask me, "Brother Weaver, do you keep loaded weapons in your house?" My answer is yes. Every weapon I have is loaded. You say, "Well, you're trusting in those weapons." No, I'm not. A weapon is nothing more than a tool. I am trusting in the Lord. Do you realize if someone broke into my home with the intent on murdering me, if God did not awaken me in time, and if God did not allow me to get my weapon, and if God did not allow me to shoot straight, my weapon would be worthless and useless.
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I could have a dozen cannons in my room. I could have a tank in my room. That wouldn't matter if God doesn't awaken me in time, if God does not enable me to fight against the enemy. I'm not trusting in a weapon just because I have a weapon. I'm trusting in the Lord. May I remind you of Moses? I'm going to read to you from the book of Acts, because Stephen is giving his testimony, and he's quoting there, beginning in verse 22. The Bible says, "And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was mighty in words and in deeds."
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"And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him and avenged him that was oppressed and smote the Egyptian. For he supposed that his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them, but they understood not."
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Now, notice, if you would, the Bible says that Moses saw this Israelite being beaten and he defended him. Do you realize there is not one word of condemnation in the Old Testament concerning what Moses did? There is not one word of condemnation in the New Testament concerning what Moses did. In fact, I could say that there is a commendation in the New Testament because God listed Moses in the heroes of faith in Hebrews chapter 11. But you say that Moses had to flee. Yes, he did. But not because he violated the law of God, but because Pharaoh was a tyrant and Pharaoh was after him to destroy him in five ways. I don't have time to preach it and teach it tonight, but what Moses did in fleeing was in obedience to the sixth commandment.
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He was getting out of Dodge. He was getting out of trouble. He was getting out of the way of the tyrant. If I can avoid trouble, that's exactly what I'm going to do. So the point being is he was never, ever condemned in the Old Testament or in the New Testament.
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Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to 1 Samuel chapter 17. This one is so wonderful. Everybody knows this story, but I want you to see this. Look at it in light of the biblical doctrine of self-defense. Look in 1 Samuel chapter 17. You know the story of David and Goliath. But I want you to notice, if you would, beginning there in 1 Samuel chapter 17, verse 43, how Goliath, the enemy, purposely, deliberately presses the attack. Look what he says. 1 Samuel 17, verse 43: "And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field." Now, here's Goliath. Remember, he was not only much, much larger and stronger than David, he was a man of war from his youth. David was probably around 17 at this time.
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If that old. Remember, he's still a shepherd. He's still at home. But I want you to note, if you would please, the response that David gives to Goliath. Skip down to verse 45. "Then David said to the Philistine," watch carefully, "Then David said to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword and with a spear and with a shield. But I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand. And I will smite thee and take thy head from thee, and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day to the fowls of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel." Note, if you would, there is a God in Israel. Note plainly what David said. "You're threatening me? You're coming to me with all this weaponry? I'm coming to you with a little sling, but I'm coming to you in the name of the Lord of hosts."
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"It is God who's going to give me your head. It's God who's going to give me the victory. It's God who's going to fight for me. You're the one that's in trouble. The Philistines are the ones that's in trouble." Did David intend a death blow upon Goliath? Well, of course. He said, "I'm going to cut your head off." Did he intend the death blow on those Philistines?
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And the answer is yes. What was David doing? David was defending himself and he was also defending the people of Israel. So notice, if you would, it's still self-defense.
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Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Exodus, chapter 22. Exodus, chapter 22. Exodus 22. And notice, if you would, beginning there with verse one. This is a very important passage, Exodus chapter 22, verse one. God says, "If a man shall steal an ox or sheep and kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep."
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"If a thief be found breaking up and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him, for he should make full restitution. If he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft." This whole section is on restitution. But I want you to note what God says. God says if a man shall steal an ox or a sheep or kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox, four sheep for a sheep. In other words, the ratio of restitution is based upon the value and the usefulness of that which is stolen. Now watch verse two. "If a thief be found breaking up" or breaking in, "and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him."
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So God's law, God's law allows the taking of life in certain situations. If a thief breaks in your home during the night, you don't know who he is. You don't know whether he's armed or not. You have no intention of what he's going to do. And God says in verse two, "If you kill him, if you smite him, that he die, there shall be no bloodshed for you."
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In other words, you are free, biblically speaking. Now watch verse three. "If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be bloodshed for him, for he should make full restitution. If he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft."
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Now notice what God says. "If the sun be risen up, don't kill him." Why? Number one, you can see him and identify him. Number two, you can see whether or not he has a weapon or not. And God says in this instance, in this case, then don't kill him. Just hold him. He's to make full restitution.
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Now, there would be a way that you could lawfully kill him during the daytime. And that would be if he was armed and he turned around and pointed that weapon at you or tried to harm you, then you would still be able to defend yourself. But here's what God is saying. God is saying if someone's breaking in and stealing, He said, "and it's night, you don't know who he is. You don't know where he is or what he's got." In other words, he shouldn't be there. By the way, notice what's being stolen: oxen, sheep. Those things don't live in the house.
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They're usually in the barn. So you're talking about somebody just simply breaking in on your property is what it amounts to. So what God says, "If the sun is risen on him, you don't kill him if he's not armed. He is to make full restitution."
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Now, life may be lawfully taken on God's terms. Years ago, I was in Greenville, South Carolina. And a Christian, or at least a professing Christian, came to me and said, "I need to ask you a question." I said, "Ask away." He said, "What would you do if you woke up during the night and someone was breaking in your bedroom window?" I said, "Well, that depends." He said, "What does it depend upon?" I said, "It depends upon whether or not I get my hands on a gun or not. If I get my hands on a gun, I'd shoot him. If I couldn't get my hands on the gun, I'd pick up a baseball bat and hit him upside the head."
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He said, "I don't think you ought to do that." I said, "Well, tell me what you think I ought to do." He said, "I think you ought to go in another room and pray about it." I said, "You mean to tell me I should be in another room while a man's in there raping my wife and murdering my children? I'd pray. I'd pull that baseball bat back and I'd say, 'Dear Lord, don't let me miss him this time.' That's exactly how I'd be praying."
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Come on, this is what the Scripture says. Now, if someone's breaking in at night, you don't know who they are. You don't know what they're up to. You don't know whether they're armed or not. This is exactly what God says. He should not have been there to begin with. I get so aggravated. All these people. These young teenage boys and young men break into homes at night. And then they get shot and killed by the homeowner. And the parents of that young man or those young men who broke in said, "Well, he didn't have to kill him." No, he didn't have to. He could have sat there and beaten the guilt himself because those teenagers were armed as well.
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You see what I'm saying? You've got to be stupid to break in at night. You've got to be stupid to do anything like that. And if you break in at night, you're just asking for judgment. That's what you're asking for. Don't do that. Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 22. Deuteronomy, chapter 22. I want you to see this. This is important.
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This answers a question that was asked of me yesterday. So if you look in Deuteronomy 22 and let's begin reading there with verse 23. We'll read through verse 27 and then I'm going to come back and deal with it. So look, if you would, Deuteronomy 22, verse 23: "If a damsel"—that is a virgin—"be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city and lie with her, then ye shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbor's wife."
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"So shalt thou put evil away from among you. But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her shall die. But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death. For as when a man riseth up against his neighbor and slayeth him, even so is this matter. For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her."
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Now, let's go back, if you would please, to verse 22. He said, "If a man be found lying with a woman married to a husband, then they both shall die." By verse 23: "If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto a husband"—engaged—"and a man find her in the city and lie with her, then ye shall bring them both out of the gate of that city and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbor's wife. So shalt thou put evil away from among you."
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Now, let me stop there. Note, if you would, "the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city." So if the woman did not cry out, that meant she was consenting to the sin and therefore she was just as guilty as the man and deserved the death penalty. But watch this. What did he say? Listen to it again. Listen to it again. He said, if she cried out—in other words, if that woman was not consenting, she is in the city and she cries, what does that imply? Listen carefully. Anyone who hears her cries has the duty and the responsibility and the obligation to save her.
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Now, if you'll skip down to verse 25, he said, "But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her shall die." Why? "But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death." And he tells you why. Verse 27: "For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her."
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In other words, in the city, the woman could cry out. And anyone who heard her would have the responsibility and the duty to protect her and preserve her. In the field, it's the man who's put to death. Why? Because, obviously, clearly, the woman cried out and there was no one around to defend her. There was no one around to save her. So the obligation to protect the lives of others is the same as the obligation and duty to protect our lives.
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Now, let me give you a good illustration. Some of you may remember this. This happened back in 1964. There's a woman by the name of Kitty Genovese. She was brutally murdered. She was stabbed 17 times, raped, robbed, left for dead on the city sidewalk. She screamed, she cried, she pleaded for help. 38 people had either heard her screams and cries or observed some part of the crime, but never lifted a finger to save her.
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According to God's law, those who did nothing to preserve life are just as guilty as the one who took her life. Because the sixth commandment has as its positive, "Thou shalt preserve life." I want to show you how fastidious God is, and I will close with this, but I want you to look in your Bibles to Deuteronomy 22 and then Exodus chapter 23, OK? Deuteronomy 22, then we're going to turn back to Exodus chapter 23.
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So hang on with me. Look, if you would, Exodus 22. Find it, but we're going to look at Deuteronomy chapter 22 first and then Exodus 23. Deuteronomy 22, look, if you would please be getting there. Oh, with verse one. "Thou shalt not see thy brother's ox or sheep go astray, and hide thyself from them. Thou shalt in any case bring them again unto thy brother. If thy brother be not nigh unto thee, or if thou know him not, then thou shalt bring it into thine own house, and it shall be with thee until thy brother seek after it, and thou shalt restore it unto him again. In like manner shalt thou do with his ass, and so shalt thou do with his raiment, and with all lost things of thy brother's, which he hath lost, and thou hast found, shalt thou do likewise, and mayest not hide thyself. Thou shalt not see thy brother's ass or his ox fall down by the way, and hide thyself from them. Thou shalt surely help to lift them up again."
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So God says, if you see your brother's animal out of the fence, walking along the road, God says you better help your brother get that animal back in. You can't hide yourself. I'll tell you a funny story. I preached on this text years and years ago. All my girls were small and my girls, like myself, we've always loved animals. We were coming home from church. My wife and the girls were in one car and I was behind because I was the pastor and I was always later. And there was a scraggly old dirty, stinking goat beside the road. Everybody tried to catch that goat, nobody could catch the goat. The goat was in danger of being hit by a vehicle. Well, my girls have always had a wonderful way with animals. They caught that goat. And I just happened to come by just as they caught that goat.
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And I was in the truck. And they said, "Daddy, this goat's wandering around in the highway, we don't know who this goat belongs to and she's going to get killed. Can we take her home with us?" And before I could ever answer, they said, "You remember what you preached this morning, don't you?" I said, "Yes, we'll take her home." I said, "But how did you catch her? Because evidently no one else could catch her."
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Well, they said it's easy. We just knelt down and called her and she came to us. Well, we picked her up and took her home. It was two days later before my neighbor came looking for the goat that he had bought at the sale on Saturday, and she got out on Saturday night and we restored the goat. This is what God said. You can't hide yourself. And if you see—you come to visit me and you see my cow down having trouble delivering a calf, God says, "Hey, you're obligated to help me." I'm going to tell you why in just a little bit.
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But I want you to watch this. You say, "Well, brother, I don't mind helping you. I don't mind helping Pastor Brink. I don't mind helping Bill Potter. I don't mind helping my brothers." Really? Well, look, if you would, in Exodus chapter 23, if you would please. And let's begin reading there with verse four. Look at this. "If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him." Whoa! Now it's not your brother. Now it's your enemy.
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Now it's the man that hates you and has caused you all kind of heartache. And God says if you see his animal going astray, you cannot hide yourself. You must capture that animal. You must bring it back to him. If you see his ass or his cow lying under his burden, you cannot say, "I'm going to pretend I didn't see that." No, no. God said you must help him. Why? Why? Listen to me.
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In the Bible, this is what is known as arguing from the lesser to the greater. If I have a duty, an obligation, to help preserve Pastor Brink's sheep, if they get out in the road. If I have a duty and obligation to help preserve the lives of his animals, how much more obligation and duty do I have to help preserve his life and the life of his wife and children? If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's animals, how much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life? So God is arguing from the lesser to the greater. We have a duty given to us, and that is we must protect our lives, we must protect the lives of our families and the lives of our friends and the lives of our neighbors, because the sixth commandment isn't only negative, it's a positive as well.
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I want you to consider this. Would it not be a horrible anomaly if God allowed all of the animals to protect their lives and their families, and did not allow us to do the same? Years ago, when I was at the university, our neighbor had an old tomcat. We didn't have a cat, but our neighbor had a tomcat. And in one of the bushes in our front yard, there was a mockingbird with her nest. And that old tomcat came strolling by, close to that bush. That mama mockingbird came out of that bush, pecked that cat's head until she ran out of the yard.
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You know what she was doing? She was defending her family. She's defending the lives of her children. If God allows animals to do that, do you not think that He will allow us to do that? Did our Lord not say in Matthew chapter 10 and verse 31, "Fear ye not therefore, for ye are of more value than many sparrows." We have a duty. We have a responsibility. We have an obligation to protect our lives and the lives of others.
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So whenever you get into a position, you just remember, the sixth commandment has a positive as well as a negative. God requires us to preserve life. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. We ask that You would teach us, that You would build us up in the most holy faith, that You would give us, Lord, Your grace and Your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-06T04:29:43Z

Biblical Doctrine of Self Defense

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

John Weaver argues that the sixth commandment, 'Thou shalt not kill,' is properly understood as a prohibition against murder, not all taking of life. He demonstrates from Scripture that life may be lawfully taken on God's terms, including in self-defense. The positive duty of the commandment is to preserve life, making self-defense and the defense of others obligatory. Historical examples from colonial America and modern church attacks illustrate the practical application of this doctrine.

Introduction: The Need for a Worked-Out Doctrine

Weaver stresses the urgency of understanding self-defense biblically before a crisis occurs, as life-and-death situations allow only seconds to respond.

Historical Precedent: Armed Church Attendance in Colonial America

Colonial laws and customs required men to bring weapons to church for defense against Indians and other threats, with pastors often leading the way.

Modern Examples of Church Attacks

Weaver recounts attacks on churches in South Africa and the United States, highlighting cases where armed congregants saved lives.

The Sixth Commandment: 'Thou Shalt Not Kill'

The commandment prohibits murder, not all killing. Life may be taken justly on God's terms, as outlined in 18 biblical capital offenses.

Scripture Reading — Exodus 21:16

Deuteronomy 22. Then the death penalty is required for witchcraft. Exodus 22 in verse 18: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." Number 11, the death penalty is required for offering human sacrifice. Leviticus chapter 20 and verse 11 or 21 it is. And then number 12, the death penalty is demanded for incorrigible delinquency or habitual criminality. You'll find that in Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 18 through 21. Number 13, the death penalty is required for blasphemy in Leviticus chapter 24. Then it's also required for Sabbath desecration—oh, that's a sermon in itself—in Exodus 35, in Numbers chapter 15. And then number 15, the death penalty is required for the propagation of false doctrine, Deuteronomy chapter 13. Number 16, the death penalty is required for sacrificing unto false gods, Exodus 22. Number 17, listen to this one, refusing to abide by the decision of a biblical court and denying God's law, the death penalty is required. Deuteronomy chapter 17, verses 8 through 13. And number 18, failing to restore the veil of the pledge or the bailment in Exodus 18 verses 12 through 13.

Self-Defense as the 19th Lawful Reason

Self-defense is a biblically lawful reason to take life, derived from the positive duty of the sixth commandment to preserve life.

Biblical Examples of God Defending and Using Human Agents

God defended Jerusalem and raised up judges to defend Israel. David and his mighty men fought with God's enablement, demonstrating that using means and trusting God are compatible.

Case Studies: Moses, David, and the Nighttime Thief

Moses' defense of the Israelite, David's battle with Goliath, and the law in Exodus 22:2-3 all support the right of self-defense.

And the answer is yes. What was David doing? David was defending himself and he was also defending the people of Israel. So notice, if you would, it's still self-defense.

Scripture Reading — Exodus 22:2-3

"If a thief be found breaking up and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him, for he should make full restitution. If he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft."

Scripture Reading — Exodus 22:2-3

"If a thief be found breaking up"

or breaking in,

Scripture Reading — Exodus 22:2-3

"and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him."

Duty to Defend Others: The Crying Damsel and the Lost Animal

Deuteronomy 22 and Exodus 23 teach a duty to preserve life, arguing from the lesser (animals) to the greater (human life).

Scripture Reading — Deuteronomy 22:23-27

"be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city and lie with her, then ye shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbor's wife." "So shalt thou put evil away from among you. But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her shall die. But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death. For as when a man riseth up against his neighbor and slayeth him, even so is this matter. For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her."

Conclusion: The Obligation to Preserve Life

Just as animals defend their young, humans, being of more value, have a duty to protect life. The sixth commandment requires preserving life.

Biblical Doctrine of Self Defense

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	8423144404125
Subject	Biblical Law
Course	The Ten Commandments
Genre	Sermon
Date	2023-08-02
Dictation Name
Book	Book 004: The Biblical Doctrine of Self-Defense — Chapter 4
Source Timed Segments	96

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction: The Need for a Worked-Out Doctrine: Weaver stresses the urgency of understanding self-defense biblically before a crisis occurs, as life-and-death situations allow only seconds to respond.
Historical Precedent: Armed Church Attendance in Colonial America: Colonial laws and customs required men to bring weapons to church for defense against Indians and other threats, with pastors often leading the way.
Modern Examples of Church Attacks: Weaver recounts attacks on churches in South Africa and the United States, highlighting cases where armed congregants saved lives.
The Sixth Commandment: 'Thou Shalt Not Kill': The commandment prohibits murder, not all killing. Life may be taken justly on God's terms, as outlined in 18 biblical capital offenses.
Self-Defense as the 19th Lawful Reason: Self-defense is a biblically lawful reason to take life, derived from the positive duty of the sixth commandment to preserve life.
Biblical Examples of God Defending and Using Human Agents: God defended Jerusalem and raised up judges to defend Israel. David and his mighty men fought with God's enablement, demonstrating that using means and trusting God are compatible.
Case Studies: Moses, David, and the Nighttime Thief: Moses' defense of the Israelite, David's battle with Goliath, and the law in Exodus 22:2-3 all support the right of self-defense.
Duty to Defend Others: The Crying Damsel and the Lost Animal: Deuteronomy 22 and Exodus 23 teach a duty to preserve life, arguing from the lesser (animals) to the greater (human life).
Conclusion: The Obligation to Preserve Life: Just as animals defend their young, humans, being of more value, have a duty to protect life. The sixth commandment requires preserving life.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

Self-defense is not murder but a lawful taking of life

The sixth commandment forbids murder, not all killing. Scripture provides lawful reasons for taking life, including self-defense.

Weaver says: 'taking a life can be murder, but taking life is not always murder. There are lawful reasons given in the Bible where life can be taken.'

The positive command to preserve life mandates self-defense

Since the sixth commandment positively requires preserving life, failing to defend oneself or others is a violation of the commandment.

Weaver argues: 'If we do not defend ourselves, we're guilty of self-murder. If we don't defend our families, we're guilty of self-murder.'

Using means and trusting God are not contradictory

Biblical figures like David and his mighty men used weapons while trusting God for victory; means are tools, not objects of trust.

Weaver states: 'I am not trusting in a weapon just because I have a weapon. I'm trusting in the Lord.'

Exodus 22:2-3 permits killing a nighttime intruder

God's law allows killing a thief breaking in at night because the homeowner cannot know the intruder's intent, but forbids it in daylight when identification is possible.

Weaver explains: 'If a thief breaks in your home during the night... God says in verse two, If you kill him... there shall be no bloodshed for you.'

The duty to preserve life extends to enemies

Exodus 23 commands helping an enemy's animal, arguing from lesser to greater that we have an even greater duty to preserve human life.

Weaver says: 'If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's animals, how much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life?'

Scripture References

Exodus 20:13: The sixth commandment, 'Thou shalt not kill,' is the foundational text for the doctrine of self-defense.
Exodus 21:15: Listed as a capital offense: striking or cursing a parent.
Leviticus 20:9: Capital offense for cursing a parent.
Exodus 21:16: Capital offense for kidnapping.
Leviticus 20:10: Capital offense for adultery.
Leviticus 20:11: Capital offense for incest.
Exodus 22:19: Capital offense for bestiality.
Leviticus 20:13: Capital offense for sodomy/homosexuality.
Deuteronomy 22:20-21: Capital offense for unchastity.
Deuteronomy 22:25-27: Capital offense for rape of a betrothed virgin; also used to show duty to defend.
Exodus 22:18: Capital offense for witchcraft.
Leviticus 20:2: Capital offense for offering human sacrifice.
Deuteronomy 21:18-21: Capital offense for incorrigible delinquency.
Leviticus 24:16: Capital offense for blasphemy.
Exodus 35:2: Capital offense for Sabbath desecration.
Deuteronomy 13:5: Capital offense for propagating false doctrine.
Exodus 22:20: Capital offense for sacrificing to false gods.
Deuteronomy 17:8-13: Capital offense for refusing to abide by a biblical court's decision.
Exodus 22:2-3: Law concerning killing a thief breaking in at night versus daytime; supports self-defense.
Deuteronomy 22:23-27: Law of the betrothed damsel, illustrating the duty to defend those crying out for help.

Historical References

Colonial American laws requiring arms at church (Massachusetts 1640, Connecticut 1643, Virginia 1619, Plymouth 1627): Weaver cites these laws to show that armed church attendance was mandated and considered a biblical practice.
Alice Morse Earle, 'The Sabbath in Puritan New England': Weaver recommends this book for understanding why Puritans carried weapons to church.
Trumbull's 'McFingal' poem: A satirical poem about Sunday arm-bearing, quoted to illustrate the custom.
George H. Boughton's 1867 painting 'Pilgrims Going to Church': Mentioned as capturing the reality of armed pilgrims marching to worship.
St. James Church massacre, Cape Town, South Africa, July 25, 1993: An attack by ANC terrorists where an armed missionary, Charles Van Wyk, saved lives by returning fire.
Church shootings in the United States (2005-2011): Weaver lists multiple church attacks to emphasize the modern need for self-defense.
Kitty Genovese murder, 1964: Used as an example of the failure to preserve life; 38 witnesses did nothing to help.

Important Quotes

Thou shalt not kill literally means Thou shalt not murder. Or it means Thou shalt not take life unjustly. Or to say this another way, Thou shalt not take life except it is on God's terms.

Defines the sixth commandment as a prohibition of murder, not all killing, establishing the foundation for lawful self-defense.

So when God says in the sixth commandment, Thou shalt not kill, that's the negative. The positive is Thou shalt preserve life.

Introduces the positive duty of the commandment, making self-defense obligatory.

If we do not defend ourselves, we're guilty of self-murder. If we don't defend our families, we're guilty of self-murder.

Argues that failure to defend life is a violation of the sixth commandment.

If a thief be found breaking up and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.

Quotes Exodus 22:2 to show biblical permission for killing a nighttime intruder.

Anyone who hears her cries has the duty and the responsibility and the obligation to save her.

Derives the duty to defend others from the law of the crying damsel in Deuteronomy 22.

If I have a duty and responsibility to preserve my enemy's animals, how much more do I have a duty and responsibility to help preserve his life?

Uses the lesser-to-greater argument from Exodus 23 to establish the duty to preserve human life.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

How does understanding the sixth commandment as 'Thou shalt not murder' rather than an absolute prohibition on killing change your view of self-defense?

[Context]

Weaver explains the Hebrew and Greek meaning of the commandment.

[Question]

In what ways does the positive command to preserve life challenge a passive response to threats?

[Context]

Weaver argues that failing to defend oneself or others is self-murder.

[Question]

How do the colonial American laws requiring arms at church inform our understanding of the relationship between faith and preparedness?

[Context]

Weaver details historical mandates for armed church attendance.

[Question]

What does the example of David and his mighty men teach us about using human means while trusting in God's sovereignty?

[Context]

Weaver discusses 2 Samuel 23 and Psalm 144:1.

[Question]

How should Exodus 22:2-3 guide a Christian's response to a home invasion today?

[Context]

Weaver explains the distinction between nighttime and daytime intruders.

[Question]

What responsibilities do we have to intervene when we hear someone crying for help, based on Deuteronomy 22?

[Context]

Weaver applies the law of the betrothed damsel to the duty to defend others.

[Question]

How does the command to help an enemy's animal (Exodus 23) expand our understanding of loving our neighbor?

[Context]

Weaver argues from lesser to greater regarding the duty to preserve life.

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T16:47:11Z