You see, it’s not the Jews who were ordering it, it wasn’t (or today, isn’t) the Christians who were ordering it — it was *God Himself* who was ordering it.
So, as I understand your position, the critical point is that God is ordering the stoning, and so that is what makes it a righteous and just act. When man decides to do it on his own, it is evil. Therefore, logically, if God were to tell us tomorrow that he is ordering that 1 million unborn children be aborted towards some grand plan of his, that would make abortion for that particular reason acceptable, correct? Or, how about the public beheading of 1 million 5-year olds? Basically, there is no act so evil that would not become righteous if you believed God wanted you to do it, would you agree?
Following God's word is not evil first off.. Second Paul tells us exactly who is do the killing... for us as individuals are to "give place to wrath"... and that place is government authorities...
God through Paul specifically commands earthly governments to execute criminals with the sword:
* For [the governing authority] is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Rom. 13:4
You said — “Being a former Christian, I’m long familiar with most of the scriptural/theological analysis you presented, but I ultimately turned away from a similar position when I realized that it was, in actuality, an incredibly tortured and twisted rationalization of an obvious truth — that the Bible is a product of ancient man, in all his backwardsness and barbarism, not of any God. You’ve come to the opposite conclusion, and I respect that. Now, back to the original point.”
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Well, that’s very interesting, describing yourself as a former Christian. I can’t help but wonder why, but I suppose that’s not the big question here on this thread.
But before I move on, to what you’ve said next, I will say that people should believe God and what He says — based upon — whether He “is” (i.e., He exists), that He is the Creator God (you know, the one spoken about in the Declaration of Independence), and that He has spoken to us — through the Word of God (as given to us by Him guiding those who wrote it) and through the living word, Jesus Christ.
And one should not take it to be “I’ll believe it, so that makes it true for me!” That’s definitely no way to go. It’s either true in an outside and objective sense, apart from anything anyone says or believes — or it simply is not true.
And with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that we are told about in the Bible and testified to us by Jesus Christ — He is true in that objective sense. That’s the only reason and basis we have for believing it (not just because of some wishful thinking on our part).
So, that’s where my answers are “coming from.”
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And then you say — “So, as I understand your position, the critical point is that God is ordering the stoning, and so that is what makes it a righteous and just act. When man decides to do it on his own, it is evil. Therefore, logically, if God were to tell us tomorrow that he is ordering that 1 million unborn children be aborted towards some grand plan of his, that would make abortion for that particular reason acceptable, correct? Or, how about the public beheading of 1 million 5-year olds? Basically, there is no act so evil that would not become righteous if you believed God wanted you to do it, would you agree?”
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Well, let’s look at that question carefully and see what you’re saying.
Today when I talk to you and you tell me (for sake of discussion, you’re a guy...) that you would never have sex with a 10 year old, either a boy or a girl, and that it’s simply abhorrent and a terrible idea.
And I ask you, “But why? Do you mean that you’re accepting other people’s opinions about it, or you just realize that it’s illegal and you won’t do it because you’ll get in trouble, or you, perhaps just can’t stand the thought of it, or what?”
You might tell me that, *you* personally think it’s abhorrent and that *you* personally think that anyone who does that should be put away for life.
Then I say, “Okay, I see that this is definitely your strongly held and personal belief and that’s *who you are*. You are such a person that this is what you think.
Okay, I now understand who you are and what type of person you are. BUT — let me ask something. What if you “change your mind” later on and you start to think that it’s okay to do that. What would you do then? I mean, you think this way now — but later, you just might think, “Well, it’s not really a bad idea after all and I think I just might do it.”
I might stand back out of the way, before I asked the questioned, because you might get so mad at me, and say, “I would never change my mind about that!!” But, then again, I might ask you once more — “BUT, what if you did? Would you do it then, if you changed your mind?”
You see, you would be trying to tell me that it’s *not in your character* to be that way and you would never change your mind and that it’s abhorrent. But, I might be saying, “However, *theoretically* it’s possible you could change your mind and thus, if I ask the question, would you do it then, if you thought differently?”
You would simply *reject that question* out of hand, as *not realistic* and *not representing your character* — and thus is a ridiculous question.
AND LIKEWISE, to ask the “What if God were to do something unrighteous, would that make it righteous?” — is like asking if God would change His character and change His righeousness to something unrighteous.
But, you could say, “Well, if God says this is righteous now, He could change His mind and say it’s not later.” But, once again, it comes down to the basic character (either of the person or of God). In God’s case, He actually says that He’s “not like a man” in that He *will not* change His mind or His character. He is perfectly righteous in ways (He explains to us...) that are *beyond* even our comprehension. That’s what He says, about Himself.
So, to have a question posed — “What if God says to do this unrighteous thing — would you do it and would that make it righteous?” — that is asking a question that would never be and would never happen, because God doesn’t change His mind (like mankind does) and God’s righteousness is the same from the beginning to the present and through to the infinity of the future.
The *real understanding* of this is that there is no unrighteous act or command that God would give, because all that He does is full of righteousness.
Therefore, to ask, “What if He did this unrighteous thing?” is not understanding who God is. He wouldn’t, because He doesn’t violate His character and who He is and He never changes in who He is.