Genesis 9:6
6 "Whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man.
An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. A life for a life. Sounds fair enough. I understand. But why did God say that the reason for this is that we are made in His image?
You see, God's nature or "image" is such that when there is sin, when there is a transgression of His moral laws, the transgressor must pay or be punished.
Since man is made in His image, the same standards of God's justice are expected of man. In other words, if a man kills another man, he must pay for his sin with his own life -- a life for a life. This is God's justice.
The truth is that according to Jesus, we have all committed murder, because we have all hated or cursed our fellowmen at one time or another. (Matthew 5:21-22) And God's justice demands that we, who are made in His image, be punished with death -- a life for a life.
But God is also love. While His justice demands that we die, His love willingly provided a legal substitute -- His only Son. Jesus satisfied God's justice when He took our place at the cross of Calvary. We shed our fellowman's blood, but instead of our blood being shed as payment, Jesus shed His blood for us and died our death.
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