"Happy those who seize your children and smash them against a rock." Psalms 137:9 NAB
Here's another:
"The people of Samaria must bear the consequences of their guilt because they rebelled against their God. They will be killed by an invading army, their little ones dashed to death against the ground, their pregnant women ripped open by swords." (Hosea 13:16 NLT)
2006-11-06 14:01:54 · 16 answers · asked by TinyPuppyWuppy 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The Bible is indeed the bloodiest tome ever written,in fact it should be printed in blood on human skin in my opinion,that's the only way of printing it that does justice to the horrors advocated within.
2006-11-06 14:05:47 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 4⤋
I'm no Biblical philosopher by any means, and I'll admit, it took me a little bit to understand. I thought you had something there.
Psalms 137:8-9 (NIV)
O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction, happy is he who repays you for what you have done to us-he who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks.
From verse 4, we see they are in a foreign land.
From my (rather little) understanding, Babylon was a place of sin. The daughter can't be much better? I'm guessing they are speaking of others, not themselves, who are killing these children, or even metaphorically killing these children. So it isn't necessarily advocating it, just speaking of it.
Hosea:
This is one of my problems with, I guess, God. He was/is very violent. And this appears to be one of these examples. Think about Sodom and Gomohrra (sp?). Violence. Punishment.
I still don't think this is necessarily advocating, either. I mean, God is definitely the parent that is considered "Do as I say, not as I do." But.. He's god. I figure he has an excuse.
You brought up some great points. Remember to ALWAYS check the context!
2006-11-06 22:17:38 · answer #2 · answered by Kate 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
The bible is not saying go out and do these things. In example one. It is not speaking of actual children who would die but it is figuratively saying that babylon was evil and to be happy to stop promoters of Babylon.
In the second, this is a prophecy of what was going to happen to the people of Samaria, Most likely by the Jews who did not like them for decretions in worship, not going out and doing these terrible things.
Always read a few scriptures above and below to get the full meaning and not just one verse. Often to fully understand it, you must have the contextual meaning (also knowing the period of time and the people's attitude during this time).
Have a blessed day!
2006-11-06 22:45:49 · answer #3 · answered by nehemiah3131 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The verse was not saying that God was pleased about this. The verse was describing what will happen to the people of Israel when invading armies from the north attack.
Armies from Assyria and Babylon both, attacked and led the people into captivity.
2006-11-06 22:34:04 · answer #4 · answered by paulsamuel33 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Cute puppy. I agree....please read the whole chapter to understand the context better. The Bible is full of love. God is love. God does not kill babies born or unborn. Unbelievers do.
Please pull your Bible out again and read the book of John~a great place to start reading if you are not familiar with Gods word.
Also read Matthew 22:37 =)
2006-11-06 22:21:37 · answer #5 · answered by nutcracker 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
To begin with, these are both warnings. When you take Bible verses out of context, you can make it say anything you want it to say.
The first is talking about someone else coming and killing the children and they will be happy about doing it. If you read on, you will see that the parents of these children will be saddened and angered by this.
The second is a warning to the people of Samaria. They will be punished by an army coming in and killing them all because they rebelled against their God.
Do a little more research and read the ENTIRE CHAPTER before you start criticizing one of the oldest texts in existence.
2006-11-06 22:07:26 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 4⤋
To show you the tender mercy of a jealous, genocidal, and all-forgiving god.
How about the children who were massacred during the births of Jesus and Moses?
Or the first born sons of the Pharoah's people when Moses came back to get his homies?
2006-11-06 22:41:48 · answer #7 · answered by sparvus_krebbs 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Just because the Bible recorded what invading armies would do to babies mean that the Bible advocate killing babies? It shows how bad your critical thinking skills are!
2006-11-06 22:12:23 · answer #8 · answered by Seraph 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
The bible does not advocate killing babies. The 10 commendents tale us that killing is wrong. That verse refers to someone else being happy and killing babies and children. You have to remember that the Psalms were written by many. They were songs.
2006-11-06 22:08:27 · answer #9 · answered by sassylyn 2 · 3⤊ 4⤋
Why must people debate God's Word? Also you are taking it out of context - the Old Testament is history - this is referring to Babylon talking about the experience of captivity. You are being misled by the devil himself. Concentrate on the Lord Jesus Christ - He is the New Covenant - the Living Way. Do not pick out things from the Old Testament - Jesus Christ came that we may have life and have it abundantly. He loves children and he loves us. Open your eyes and see the Truth - Jesus Christ is the Truth. I pray you find Him and get over this hogwash.
God's Word is "God breathed" - inspiration of God but penned by men.
2006-11-06 22:07:16 · answer #10 · answered by jworks79604 5 · 2⤊ 4⤋