The death penalty is dying a slow death. Last month, Nebraska became the 19th state in the country to end the practice of capital punishment. The legislature voted to abolish the death penalty and was able to override the veto of the governor.

Columnist George Will reminds us, “Nebraska is not a nest of liberals.” When a conservative state like Nebraska abolishes the death penalty we should take note.

For many years, liberals and progressives have opposed the death penalty because they believe the state should not have the power to execute people and also rightly point to the number of mistakes that have been made by the courts. Conservatives also point to those mistakes. They argue that governments are fallible, and the death penalty is a government program.

The theological basis for capital punishment can be found in the Bible. Genesis 9:6 makes a case by explaining that “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.” Justice and moral proportionality are the principles behind the concept of Lex Talionis  (a life for a life). And though we are no longer under the legal code in the Old Testament theocracy, we can see many crimes listed in the Old Testament that demanded the death penalty.

In the New Testament we see the principle of capital punishment being reinforced by Romans 13:1-7. God ordains government, and the civil magistrate is a minister of God. Paul used the image of the sword, which also supports the idea of capital punishment.

There have been mistakes in the way capital punishment has been administered. But that is not an argument against the death penalty as much as it is an indictment of our criminal justice system. It is also an argument for the careful implementation of the death penalty. When we have clear evidence of a premeditated murder (think of the actions of the Boston Marathon terrorist), then government should be free to move ahead.

However, more and more liberals and conservatives have decided to abolish the death penalty in their state. We will probably see fewer and fewer executions in the future.