We ought to feel compassion for those who must face the wrath of the properly constituted government by being incarcerated or even put to death. Only the most hard-hearted ruffian would not feel a twinge of agony for the criminal who is to be hurled into eternity by lethal injection. However, that sense of compassion must never bind the hands of those who serve in government. It is not President Obama's right or privilege to suspend rightly passed laws, no matter what he thinks about them. The law's penalties must be carried out, despite our own personal compassion for the criminal. The judge must never let his personal passion for compassion keep him from fulfilling his duty. Even while carrying out his duty, the judge and jailer still remain concerned about the criminal. Yet justice must be done. Parents certainly feel this way when they bring discipline into their child's life. We feel for a child who blubbers after being rebuked. But in the world the child must learn to bear the consequences of his own acts.

Generally, compassion is not the business of government. Compassion is the business of God, His church, and His people whom He commands to forgive sins and share His mercy with the world. When government begins doling out mercy, it is no longer bearing the sword that God has conveyed into the hands of government (Rm 13:1). In fact, when government gets into the business of mercy it begins to usurp the place of God in the world, all the while neglecting its divinely instituted function of restraining and punishing evil doers. It would be like an auto mechanic trying his hand at repairing a nuclear submarine. He could make an explosive mistake. He needs to stick to cars. Government must be narrowly about the law's business. Leave mercy to God.

The judge who declines to punish properly a thief is treating my property as though it were his own. He is giving the thief a free pass, while I must pay the price. This is cheap compassion indeed, when it is paid with the coin from someone else's purse. Beside this, the divine commands are at stake. These are God's, not ours. We may not ignore their prohibitions, nor their temporal penalties. For to do so plays fast and loose with God's honor and authority. If He would have compassion, He can certainly take care of it. He sends the government equipped with the sword to avenge Him.