50 Deuteronomy 25:2a,3 'Worthless'

JMD Devotional 50 Deuteronomy 25:2a,3 'Worthless?'

Vs 2 Then if the guilty man deserves to be beaten (as determined in a civil court)...
Vs 3 Forty stripes may be given him but not more, lest, if he should be beaten with many stripes, your brother should [be treated like a beast and] seem low and worthless to you.

When confronted with the guilty we fail on at least two counts. We don't provide a consistent, swift and severe deterrent to crime in the form of genuine punishment. And we regard the offender as an animal, and put him in a pen. In our collective hearts the offender is less than human, hated, below worthless. But the Judge of All the Earth sees us all as law-breakers and still as bearers of His image, souls He longs to redeem at an outrageous cost to Himself.

Dear God,
Forgive me for despising the criminals who get caught, 'America's Most Wanted.' Help me to have compassion, and to see offenders as human beings without minimizing their guilt. May no person be regarded as 'worthless' by your people.
Amen

All (but*) quotes are from The Amplified Bible, published by
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*New International Version (NIV)
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**Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. (Eugene Peterson's easy-to-read, contemporary Scripture translation)

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