Short answer
The Law of Moses sets death for many acts that are not crimes at all today. Whoever touched Mount Sinai was to die. So was an outsider who came near the priests' work. So was anyone who struck or cursed a father or mother. A son who kept defying his parents, and whom they called a glutton and a drunkard, was to be stoned by the men of his town. So was anyone who would not obey the priest or the judge. A town that turned to other gods was to be put to the sword with its cattle, then burnt. A priest's daughter who became a prostitute was to be burnt with fire. Jesus quoted the law on cursing parents as God's (﷾) command. The Qur'an allows a life to be taken only by justice and law. It sets no worldly penalty for a son's disobedience. The Prophet (ﷺ) withdrew an order to burn two men, saying that only Allah (﷾) punishes with fire.
Full explanation
Death for coming too near
At Sinai, the people were told that whoever touched the mountain, or even its edge, would be put to death. In Numbers, God (﷾) appoints Aaron and his sons as priests. He adds that "the stranger", meaning anyone outside the priestly family, who comes near their work is to be put to death.
“And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death:”
“And thou shalt appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall wait on their priest’s office: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.”
Death for a son
The Law sets death for anyone who hits his father or mother, and for anyone who curses them. A son who is stubborn and rebellious, who will not obey his parents, and who eats and drinks too much, is to be brought to the elders. Then all the men of his city are to stone him.
“And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death.”
“And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.”
“If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.”
Death for disobeying the priest or the judge
Deuteronomy says that the man who acts presumptuously and will not listen to the priest or the judge "shall die". The setting is a case sent up to the priests and the judge at the sanctuary. Whoever defies their ruling is put to death.
“And the man that will do presumptuously, and will not hearken unto the priest that standeth to minister there before the Lord thy God, or unto the judge, even that man shall die: and thou shalt put away the evil from Israel.”
Death for the owner of an ox
If an ox kills someone, the ox is stoned. If the ox was known to gore, and its owner had been warned but did not keep it shut in, the owner is to be put to death too. The next verse lets him pay a ransom for his life instead, if one is set.
“If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit. But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death. If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.”
A spear instead of a trial
Israel was being punished with a plague for joining in the worship of Baal-peor. Meanwhile, an Israelite brought a Midianite woman to his family, in front of Moses. Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron the priest, took a spear. He followed them into the tent and drove it through both of them. There was no trial and no hearing for either of them. God (﷾) praised him for his zeal, and gave him and his descendants a priesthood for ever.
“And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel.”
“Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous for my sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in my jealousy. Wherefore say, Behold, I give unto him my covenant of peace: And he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and made an atonement for the children of Israel.”
A whole town put to the sword
If men lead a town to serve other gods, and inquiry finds it true, Deuteronomy orders the whole town destroyed. Its people and its cattle are put to the sword. Its goods are gathered in the street and burnt with the town, and it is never to be rebuilt. The command makes no exception for children.
“Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword. And thou shalt gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the street thereof, and shalt burn with fire the city, and all the spoil thereof every whit, for the Lord thy God: and it shall be an heap for ever; it shall not be built again.”
The girl who did not cry out
If a betrothed girl lies with a man in a town, both are to be stoned. The girl dies "because she cried not, being in the city". The Law takes her silence as proof of consent. Deuteronomy's treatment of women is set out more fully on the page on how the Bible treats women.
“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 neighbour’s wife: so thou shalt put away evil from among you.”
Burnt with fire
Two laws of Leviticus punish by burning. A priest's daughter who becomes a prostitute is to be burnt with fire. So is a man who marries a woman and her mother, together with both women.
“And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.”
“And if a man take a wife and her mother, it is wickedness: they shall be burnt with fire, both he and they; that there be no wickedness among you.”
How Christians read these laws
Christians hold that these punishments belonged to God's (﷾) covenant with ancient Israel. Paul tells believers that they are not under the law but under grace. Many point to the story of the woman caught in adultery. In it, Jesus tells her accusers that whoever is without sin should throw the first stone.
“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
“So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.”
Jesus and the law of death
In Matthew, Jesus quotes the death penalty for cursing a parent, and calls it what "God commanded". He says that not the smallest letter or mark will pass from the law until all is fulfilled. Christians believe Jesus is God the Son, and "the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever". So on their view, he is the God (﷾) who gave these laws. And the one story in which Jesus sets aside a stoning is missing from the earliest copies of John.
“For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.”
“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”
“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.”
On the story of the woman taken in adultery (John 7:53-8:11), reports that it is absent from the early papyri (P66 and P75), from Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus and other early witnesses, and that the manuscripts which do carry it place it in different spots: after John 7:52, after John 7:36, at the end of John, or after Luke 21:38. Concludes that it was no part of the original Gospel of John.
A life is taken only by justice and law
The Qur'an forbids taking a life that Allah (﷾) has made sacred, except by justice and law. It says that killing one person unjustly is like killing all mankind. It punishes killing on purpose. Islamic law keeps the death penalty for a few serious crimes, such as murder. But only a court may pass it, and only on strict proof. And the family of a murdered person may forgive, and take compensation instead. For a death caused by mistake, it sets compensation, not death. The Prophet (ﷺ) said that no blood-money is owed for a person killed by an animal. Where an owner was at fault, the jurists make him pay compensation. A death he did not intend is never punished with his own death.
“Say: "Come, I will rehearse what Allah hath (really) prohibited you from": Join not anything as equal with Him; be good to your parents; kill not your children on a plea of want;- We provide sustenance for you and for them;- come not nigh to shameful deeds. Whether open or secret; take not life, which Allah hath made sacred, except by way of justice and law: thus doth He command you, that ye may learn wisdom.”
“Nor take life - which Allah has made sacred - except for just cause. And if anyone is slain wrongfully, we have given his heir authority (to demand qisas or to forgive): but let him not exceed bounds in the matter of taking life; for he is helped (by the Law).”
“On that account: We ordained for the Children of Israel that if any one slew a person - unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew the whole people: and if any one saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people. Then although there came to them Our messengers with clear signs, yet, even after that, many of them continued to commit excesses in the land.”
“O ye who believe! the law of equality is prescribed to you in cases of murder: the free for the free, the slave for the slave, the woman for the woman. But if any remission is made by the brother of the slain, then grant any reasonable demand, and compensate him with handsome gratitude, this is a concession and a Mercy from your Lord. After this whoever exceeds the limits shall be in grave penalty.”
“Never should a believer kill a believer; but (If it so happens) by mistake, (Compensation is due): If one (so) kills a believer, it is ordained that he should free a believing slave, and pay compensation to the deceased's family, unless they remit it freely. If the deceased belonged to a people at war with you, and he was a believer, the freeing of a believing slave (Is enough). If he belonged to a people with whom ye have treaty of Mutual alliance, compensation should be paid to his family, and a believing slave be freed. For those who find this beyond their means, (is prescribed) a fast for two months running: by way of repentance to Allah: for Allah hath all knowledge and all wisdom.”
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said no blood-money is due for a person killed by an animal, or for one who dies by falling into a well or in a mine.
Parents honoured, with no death penalty
The Qur'an ranks kindness to parents next to the worship of Allah (﷾). It forbids even a word of contempt to them, and tells the child to pray for them. Yet it sets no worldly penalty for a son's disobedience, still less death.
“Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honour. And, out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say: "My Lord! bestow on them thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood."”
No killing without proof, even by a husband
A Companion of the Prophet (ﷺ) asked: if he found a man with his wife, must he leave him alone until he brought four witnesses? The Prophet (ﷺ) said yes. He must not touch him until he brings four witnesses. When another husband asked whether he could kill such a man, the Prophet (ﷺ) sent him to the Qur'an's procedure of sworn oaths before a court, called li'an, not to the sword. The Qur'an punishes anyone who accuses a chaste woman without four witnesses. The Prophet (ﷺ) gave no husband the right to do what Phinehas did. And Islam puts no one to death for staying silent.
Abu Hurayra reports that Sa'd ibn Ubada asked the Prophet (ﷺ) whether, if he found a man with his wife, he must leave him untouched until he had brought four witnesses. The Prophet said yes.
Sahl ibn Sa'd reports that Uwaimir al-Ajlani asked the Prophet (ﷺ) whether a man who finds another man with his wife should kill him, and then be killed for it himself, or what he should do. The Prophet said Allah had revealed a ruling about him and his wife, and told him to bring her. The couple then carried out the li'an, the sworn oaths of Qur'an 24:6-9, before the Prophet.
“And those who launch a charge against chaste women, and produce not four witnesses (to support their allegations),- flog them with eighty stripes; and reject their evidence ever after: for such men are wicked transgressors;-”
“And for those who launch a charge against their spouses, and have (in support) no evidence but their own,- their solitary evidence (can be received) if they bear witness four times (with an oath) by Allah that they are solemnly telling the truth;”
“But it would avert the punishment from the wife, if she bears witness four times (with an oath) By Allah, that (her husband) is telling a lie;”
Obedience only in what is good
Once a commander sent by the Prophet (ﷺ) ordered his men to walk into a fire. The Prophet (ﷺ) said there is no obedience in doing wrong, only in what is good. Obedience to any man, whether priest or commander, has that limit.
Ali reports that a commander appointed by the Prophet (ﷺ) lit a fire and ordered his men to enter it. When the Prophet heard, he said that had they entered it they would have stayed in it until the Day of Resurrection, and that there is no obedience in wrongdoing: obedience is only in what is good. Sahih Muslim 1840 has the same report.
No one bears another's burden
The Qur'an says that no one carries another's burden. So no child can be punished for what the adults of a town believe. The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade killing women and children, even in war. Islamic law has its own rule on leaving the faith. Only a court may apply it, after a trial, and never to a person's family or town. It is set out on the page on whether the Bible commands death for apostates.
“Say: "Shall I seek for (my) Cherisher other than Allah, when He is the Cherisher of all things (that exist)? Every soul draws the meed of its acts on none but itself: no bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another. Your goal in the end is towards Allah: He will tell you the truth of the things wherein ye disputed."”
Ibn Umar reports that a woman was found killed during one of the Prophet's (ﷺ) campaigns, and the Prophet forbade the killing of women and children.
Heavy burdens lifted
The Qur'an describes the Prophet (ﷺ) as the one foretold in the Law and the Injil (the Gospel Jesus preached). He commands what is right, and frees people from the heavy burdens and the yokes that were on them.
“"Those who follow the messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures),- in the law and the Gospel;- for he commands them what is just and forbids them what is evil; he allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them from what is bad (and impure); He releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them. So it is those who believe in him, honour him, help him, and follow the light which is sent down with him,- it is they who will prosper."”
Only Allah (﷾) punishes with fire
The Prophet (ﷺ) once ordered a raiding party to burn two men. Before they left, he took the order back. Only Allah (﷾) punishes with fire, he said, so if they caught the men they were to kill them, not burn them. Leviticus gives burning to men. Islam leaves it to Allah (﷾) alone.
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) told a raiding party to burn two named men, then took the order back before they left: only Allah punishes with fire, so if they found them they were to kill them, not burn them.
| Act | The Law of Moses | Islam |
|---|---|---|
| Cursing a father or mother | Death (Exodus 21:17) | Even a word of contempt is forbidden, but no death penalty |
| A stubborn, rebellious son | Stoned by the men of his town (Deuteronomy 21:18-21) | No worldly penalty |
| Defying the priest or the judge | Death (Deuteronomy 17:12) | No obedience to anyone in wrongdoing, only in what is good |
| A town that turns to other gods | People and cattle put to the sword, no exception for children (Deuteronomy 13:15-16) | No one bears another's burden; women and children are never to be killed |
| A priest's daughter who becomes a prostitute | Death by fire (Leviticus 21:9) | Only Allah (﷾) punishes with fire |
Verse by verse
Romans 6:14 — Epistle to the Romans, chapter 6, verse 14
“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
Cited for
Christians are not under the Law of Moses but under grace. Its death penalties were for Israel's ancient state and do not bind the church.
The response
The question is not whether Christians enforce these laws today, but whether God (﷾) gave them. The Bible says He did. Jesus quoted the death penalty for cursing a parent as what "God commanded", and said that not one jot or tittle would pass from the law till all be fulfilled. Christians read "fulfilled" as ending these penalties, but that does not change who first commanded them. On the Christian view he is the same God, yesterday, today and for ever. So the Christian must hold that his Lord once commanded that a rebellious son, a glutton and a drunkard, be stoned by the men of his town.
Where it lands — Setting the laws aside today does not answer who gave them. On the Christian view, Jesus did.
John 8:7 — Gospel of John, chapter 8, verse 7
“So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.”
Cited for
When a woman taken in adultery was brought to him, Jesus said the one without sin should cast the first stone, and she was spared. Mercy replaces the death penalty.
The response
The story is missing from the earliest manuscripts of John, including the oldest papyri and the fourth-century codices. Textual scholars conclude it was not part of John's original Gospel. The verses that certainly belong to the Gospels have Jesus uphold the law, including death for cursing a parent.
Where it lands — The one passage in which Jesus sets aside a stoning was added to John's Gospel later.
Perspectives
Mainstream Christian
The death penalties of the Law of Moses were given to ancient Israel under the old covenant. Christians are under grace, not under that law, and Jesus showed mercy to sinners.
Paul teaches that believers are not under the law but under grace.
In John's story of the woman taken in adultery, Jesus turns her accusers away.
The Islamic perspective
The Bible sets death for touching a mountain, for a rebellious son, for disobeying a priest, and for a whole town's worship. And it burns people with fire. Muslims hold that people changed the text of the Bible. The Qur'an says the Prophet (ﷺ) came to lift the heavy burdens and yokes laid on earlier peoples. His law takes life only through justice and proof. It never punishes one person for another, and it leaves fire to Allah (﷾).
The Law of Moses sets death for touching Mount Sinai and for an outsider coming near the priests' office.
The Law sets death for striking or cursing a parent, and stoning for a stubborn and rebellious son.
The Law sets death for disobeying the priest or the judge.
An ox may be known to gore. If it kills someone, its owner is to be put to death, unless a ransom is set.
Phinehas killed a man and a Midianite woman without trial, and God (﷾) rewarded him with an everlasting priesthood.
Deuteronomy orders a town that turns to other gods to be destroyed with its people and cattle, and burnt.
A betrothed girl is stoned because she did not cry out in the town.
Leviticus orders burning for a priest's daughter who becomes a prostitute. It orders the same for a man who marries a woman and her mother.
Jesus calls the death penalty for cursing a parent God's (﷾) command. He says not the smallest letter or mark will pass from the law until all is fulfilled.
The Qur'an allows a life to be taken only by justice and law. For killing by mistake, it sets compensation, not death.
The Prophet (ﷺ) told a husband not to touch a man found with his wife until he brought four witnesses.
The Prophet (ﷺ) taught that obedience is due only in what is good.
The Qur'an teaches that the Prophet (ﷺ) was sent to lift the heavy burdens and yokes laid on earlier peoples.
The Prophet (ﷺ) withdrew an order to burn two men, saying that only Allah (﷾) punishes with fire.