Release of the Lockerbie Bomber

The release of the convicted Lockerbie bomber, Megrahi, brings the British judicial system into further disrepute. If Megrahi is guilty of the murders he should have been put to death, not released: "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made He man" (Gen 9:6).

But is Megrahi guilty of the murders? It is a feature of our judicial system at present that high profile murder cases all too often lead to unsatisfactory convictions, which are then appealed, or debated, for years to come. Often the discussion centres, not on whether the person concerned is guilty, but on whether the correct procedures were followed – as if justice were some vast and expensive game, the rules of which were more important than the crime itself. With God's blessing, one would expect simple, clear-cut convictions in cases leading to the death penalty, as with Achan (Jos 7). But our rulers, by abolishing the death penalty, have implicated themselves in the blood of those who are murdered, and now God is entangling them in their errors and making them a laughingstock to other nations. "Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed . . . therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries" (Ezek 22:4).

DWBS