Jesus as God Commanded the Sword — Old Testament Killings, Genocide, and the Christian Claim of Divine Peace
14 min read 2964 words
How to Navigate This Note The Central Question — the logical trap at the heart of the “Jesus is peaceful” argument One — Jesus Commands His Prophets to Kill Slaughter and Burn — Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Samuel, Kings Two — Jesus Commands Genocide — total annihilation of cities and populations across Joshua and Judges Three — Jesus Commands the Killing of Infants and Children — Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel Four — Jesus Commands the Ripping Open of Pregnant Women — Hosea 13:16 Five — Jesus Commands the Killing of Cattle and Animals — Joshua and Esther Six — Jesus Commands the Testing of Female Captives for Virginity — Numbers 31 and Judges 21 Responding to the Common Christian Defenses — three standard objections and their refutation The Comparison with the Prophet Muhammad — patience, duration of harm endured, and what the Quran does and does not command
Christians accuse Islam of terrorism and its Prophet of being a murderer — yet if Jesus is God, as Christians claim, then Jesus is the one who commanded the sword campaigns of Moses, Joshua, David, Elijah, and Jehu; the annihilation of entire cities down to their livestock; the killing of infants and children; the ripping open of pregnant women; and the testing of female captives by their virginity — all documented across dozens of passages in the books Christians call the Word of God. The accusation of the sword returns, with full documentation, to its source.
The Central Question
Christians often accuse Islam of terrorism and accuse the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, of being a murderer. They repeat these accusations in their forums and books tirelessly. When confronted with Moses, Joshua bin Nun, and David — who fought and killed thousands — they respond: “We are talking about Christ and the Age of Grace. We have nothing to do with the Old Testament. Jesus is the God of peace because he did not kill anyone and did not order fighting.”
The central question that settles this debate is: Do you believe in the divinity of Jesus? Do you believe that he is God — that he is the one who sent Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Isaiah, David, and Solomon?
If the Christian answers yes — then he has acknowledged that Jesus, the alleged God of peace, is the one who issued every command to kill, slaughter, burn, and rip open that appears in the Old Testament. For a God who is one and eternal cannot distance himself from the commands issued in his name to his prophets across the entirety of scripture.
One — Jesus Commands His Prophets to Kill, Slaughter, and Burn
Leviticus 26:7-8 And you will chase your enemies, and they will fall before you by the sword. Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall before you by the sword.
Deuteronomy 20:13 And when the Lord your God delivers it into your hand, you shall strike all its males with the edge of the sword.
Joshua 10:35 And they took it that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls in it that day, according to all that he had done to Lachish.
Joshua 10:37 And they took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and its king, and all its cities, and every soul that was in it. He left no survivor, according to all that he had done to Eglon, so he utterly destroyed it and every soul that was in it.
Joshua 10:39 And he took it with its king and all its cities, and they put it to the sword and utterly destroyed all the souls that were in it. He left no survivors. As he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir and its king, and as he had done to Libnah and its king.
Joshua 11:10-12 Then Joshua returned at that time and took Hazor and struck its king with the sword, for Hazor was formerly the head of all those kingdoms. And they struck every soul therein with the edge of the sword. They utterly destroyed them, and there remained not a soul. And he burned Hazor with fire. So Joshua took all the cities of those kings, and all their kings, and struck them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed them, as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded.
Joshua 11:14 And all the spoil of those cities and the livestock the children of Israel took for themselves. But as for the men, they struck them all with the edge of the sword until they destroyed them. They left not one who breathed.
2 Samuel 11:25 Then David said to the messenger, “Thus you shall say to Joab, ‘Do not let this thing displease you, because the sword will devour both one and the other. Fight hard against the city and destroy it. Strengthen it.’”
2 Samuel 23:10 But he stood up and struck down the Philistines until his hand was weak, and his hand clung to the sword. And the Lord wrought a great deliverance that day, and the people returned after him only to plunder.
1 Kings 19:1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.
2 Kings 10:25 And when they had made an end of offering the burnt offering, Jehu said to the guard and the guards, “Go in and smite them; let no one go out.” And they slew them with the edge of the sword, and the guard and the guards threw them down. And they went to the city of Beth-Baal.
Two — Jesus Commands Genocide
These are not isolated battlefield incidents but systematic commands to annihilate entire populations — men, women, children, and livestock — across city after city.
Joshua 8:24 And it came to pass, when Israel had made an end of killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the field in the wilderness, where they pursued them, and they all fell by the edge of the sword until they were consumed, that all Israel returned to Ai and smote it with the edge of the sword.
Joshua 10:11 And while they were fleeing from before Israel, and were going down to Beth-horon, the LORD cast down great stones from heaven upon them as far as Azekah, and they died. And those who died by the hailstones were more than those whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.
Joshua 10:28 And Joshua took Makkedah that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed the king thereof, he and all the souls that were in it; he left none remaining. And he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.
Joshua 10:30 And the LORD delivered it also, and its king, into the hand of Israel, who smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were in it; he left none remaining in it; and he did to its king as he had done to the king of Jericho.
Joshua 10:32 So the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, who took it on the second day and struck it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were in it, according to all that he had done to Libnah.
Joshua 13:22 And Balaam the son of Beor, the soothsayer, the children of Israel killed with the sword with their slain.
Joshua 19:47 And the border of the children of Dan went out from them, and the children of Dan went up, and fought against Leshem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and possessed it, and dwelt therein, and they called Leshem Dan, after the name of Dan their father.
Judges 1:8 And the children of Judah fought against Jerusalem and took it and struck it with the edge of the sword and set the city on fire.
Judges 18:27 And they took what Micah had made, and the priest who was his, and came to Laish, to a people at ease and at peace, and struck them with the edge of the sword, and burned the city with fire.
Judges 20:25 And Benjamin came out to meet them from Gibeah on the second day, and destroyed also of the children of Israel eighteen thousand men to the ground, all these men who drew the sword.
Judges 20:35 And the LORD smote Benjamin before Israel, and the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty-five thousand and a hundred men, all these men who drew the sword.
Judges 20:37 Then the ambush quickly rushed and stormed Gibeah, and the ambush advanced and struck the whole city with the edge of the sword.
Judges 20:46 And all the Benjaminites that fell that day were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword; all these were valiant men.
Judges 20:48 And the men of the children of Israel returned to the children of Benjamin, and smote them with the edge of the sword, all the city, even the cattle, and all that was found. And all the cities that were found they burned with fire.
1 Samuel 15:8 And he took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.
2 Kings 11:20 And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was at rest. And they killed Athaliah with the sword in front of the king’s house.
2 Chronicles 23:21 Then all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was at rest. And they killed Athaliah with the sword.
Judith 2:16 And he took all the children of Midian captive, and took all their wealth as booty, and put to death all who resisted him with the edge of the sword.
Three — Jesus Commands the Killing of Infants and Children
Deuteronomy 32:25 From outside the sword brings grief, and from within the chambers comes terror. The young man with the young woman, and the infant with the gray-haired.
Joshua 6:21 They forbade everyone in the city, men and women, children and old people, even cows, sheep and donkeys, by the sword.
Judges 21:10 Then the congregation sent twelve thousand valiant men there, and gave them this command: “Go and put to the sword the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead, including the women and children.”
1 Samuel 15:3 Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have. Do not spare them, but put to death man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.
1 Samuel 22:19 And he smote Nob, the city of the priests, with the edge of the sword: men, women, children, infants, oxen, donkeys, and sheep, with the edge of the sword.
Four — Jesus Commands the Ripping Open of Pregnant Women
Hosea 13:16 Samaria shall be punished, because she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword: their little ones shall be dashed to pieces, and their pregnant women shall be ripped open.
Five — Jesus Commands the Killing of Cattle and Animals
Joshua 6:21 They forbade everyone in the city, men and women, children and old people, even cows, sheep and donkeys, by the sword.
Esther 7:24 And every region or city that refuses to participate in this feast shall be destroyed by the sword and fire, not only men but also animals, so that it may be an example forever of contempt and disobedience.
Six — Jesus Commands the Testing of Female Captives for Virginity
Numbers 31:17 Now kill every male among the little ones, and every woman who has known a man by lying with him, kill her.
Judges 21:11 And this is what you do: you forbid every male and every woman who has known a male to lie with her.
Responding to the Common Christian Defenses
Defense One — Jesus Did Not Kill Anyone Himself
“Jesus did not kill anyone himself, and therefore he does not bear the guilt.”
This means that Hitler is not guilty for the tens of millions of people killed because of him in the Second World War, because he certainly did not kill anyone with his own hand. A commander who issues the order bears the responsibility for the order. If Jesus is God and God issued the command, then the responsibility is his.
Defense Two — These Were Just Punishments for Pagan Nations
“This was a just judgment for pagan nations who deserved punishment.”
If you acknowledge that pagan nations deserve punishment — even complete annihilation — then why do you blame the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, for his wars against the polytheists of Quraysh and the Arabs? They were nothing but pagans too — and no more pagan than the Canaanites and the Perizzites and all the pagan nations that the children of Israel exterminated by the command of Jesus, the God of love and peace. The standard you apply to the Old Testament you refuse to apply to the Prophet of Islam. This is a double standard.
The Banu Qurayzah Incident Explained: Was It a Massacre or Wartime Treason?
Defense Three — Jesus Harmed No One During His Time on Earth
“Jesus spent his period of service on earth without harming a single creature.”
Of course Jesus did not harm a single creature during his period of service on earth — for the simple reason that his period of service on earth did not exceed three to five years at most. His honorable prophets had already attended to the killing, the slaughtering, the burning, the ripping open of pregnant women, and the tearing apart of infants across centuries of commands issued in his name as God. The work had been done before he arrived. And even the animals and livestock were not spared from the love of Jesus, the God of Peace.
The Comparison with the Prophet Muhammad
How long did the prophethood of Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, last? Twenty-three years — the well-known answer. How much harm and torture did he endure from the polytheists before any response? Thirteen years or more. For thirteen years, the Prophet and his companions were persecuted, tortured, killed, and expelled from their homes without taking up arms in response.
Which of the two men endured more? Which of the two had more patience with harm and torture?
When the enemies of God persisted in their transgression and planned to eliminate him and his call, the Prophet did what was right upon him: he fought them and defended himself, his companions, and the call of Islam. He did not initiate violence after three years of divine commission while his people’s blood had already been shed by the thousands through centuries of divine command. He endured thirteen years of persecution before a single sword was drawn in defense.
At least the Quran does not command the killing of women and infants, nor the slitting of pregnant women’s bellies, nor the extermination of animals for failing to participate in a feast. So who of the two groups is more guided? Who is more deserving of the title of killer — Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, who endured what no human being can endure and was patient for over a decade before defending himself? Or the God of the Bible who spent centuries slaughtering and killing and mutilating and throwing people into fire and slitting open the bellies of pregnant women and killing infants — then came down to earth in human form claiming gentleness and false innocence, as if all his commands were erased?
Conclusion — The Accusation Returns to Its Source The Christian accusation that Islam is a religion of the sword collapses the moment the Christian affirms the divinity of Jesus — because an eternal God who is one cannot distance himself from the commands issued throughout the entirety of his scripture. The sword passages of Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Hosea, Numbers, Judith, and Esther are not the commands of a separate God of the Old Testament safely walled off from the God of peace in the New. They are, on the Christian doctrine of the Trinity and divine unity, the commands of Jesus himself. The Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, endured thirteen years of persecution before he raised a sword in defense. The God of the Bible commanded the ripping open of pregnant women and the killing of nursing infants before he came to earth claiming not to have harmed a single creature. We hope that those who call themselves Christians will respond with answers that are logical and far from the verbal and dialectical fallacies they always resort to in order to justify the unjustifiable aspects of their beliefs and books.