So one wonders about worshipers and children in church shaking tambourines and singing "Joshua 'Fit the Battle of Jericho!" It is hard to imagine those singing so joyously the words "and the wall(s) come a' tumblen' down," know what happened after the wall was down (shudder), as described in chapter six of the Book of Joshua 6:20-21
" ... and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city,
every man straight before him, and they took the city.
6:21 And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword."
The Book of Joshua continues with:
"11:11. They struck every person who was in it with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them; there was no one left who breathed... 12 Joshua captured all the cities of these kings, and all their kings, and he struck them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed them; just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded. 14 ... They left no one who breathed. 15 Just as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did;" [from the New Standard American Bible]
Whew! but wait, this is only one of many quotes from the Old Testament or Jewish Bible that call for the slaying of 'everything that breathes.' The First Book of Samuel reads:
"Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys." 3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass."
As to scripture concerning human behaviour during a century B.C., barbarous behaviour and the terrorist execution of whole populations as a military tactic was common to that age. What is striking is that such inhumanity be worshipped as having been ordered and justly ordained by God.
Excepting the one above cited biblical contradiction, whether one works it out politically, religiously or anthropologically, ethically, it comes out the same. Children are most precious and belong to all of us.
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