"How should nonbelievers be treated?" (Alleged Contradiction #E8062)
If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: but thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.
Deuteronomy 13:6-10
Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
II Corinthians 6:14
But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you …
Matthew 5:44
See also: Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 7:12; 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 6:27, 31; 10:27; Romans 13:9-10; Galatians 5:14; and James 2:8.
Response
The law in Deuteronomy was a civil law for Israel at that time and was sanctioned by God and the government; however, since we do not have such a government today, this law does not apply to us individually. II Corinthians does not say we should hate nonbelievers, just that we should not be unequally yoked together with them; in marriage, for example. Thus, we can still love nonbelievers while not being “yoked” to them.
Site Under Construction
This site is still under construction. It needs more references, citations, and debate arguments. If you would like to help, please view the community page.