Answering the Critics: An analysis of Proverbs 24:17-18 in the light of the death of Osama bin Laden<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
Dr. Randy White
www.wordfortheworld.tv
Since writing an article earlier this week on the Christian response to the death of Osama bin Laden, I have received several e-mails asking about Proverbs 24:17-18, "Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; Or the Lord will see it and be displeased, And turn His anger away from him. " (Proverbs 24:17–18, NASB95)
Some of these e-mails have come from inquiring minds who have an honest desire to understand what Scripture is saying, and others from those who feel very strongly that rejoicing over the death of OBL has no place within Christianity .  A few of the responses were clearly more politically than spiritually motivated, and one was an utterly appalling comment from a White-supremacist, anti-Semitic loon. 
Is there compatibility between my previous article and Proverbs 24:17-18?  I clearly said that a Christian can rejoice over the death of bin Laden.  Proverbs 24:17, on the other hand, clearly states that we should not rejoice when our enemy falls.  So, do I need to retract?
No! 
This is a great example of proof texting; the practice of taking a single or select group of Scripture(s) and using them as proof of your argument, without consideration of context.   Proverbs 24:17-18 does teach that there is a time when it would be inappropriate to rejoice when an enemy falls, but it does not teach this as a universal principle.
To begin, the Proverb states that you, as an individual, should not rejoice "when your enemy falls."  The personal pronoun is dominant in the verse.  The verse does not say "when an enemy falls."  If it did, it would make me consider a retraction.  Before you accuse me of linguistic gymnastics for defending my own work, let me prove the point.
There are clearly instances in which God's people rejoiced over the fall of an enemy.  When David killed Goliath, he cut off the giant's head and paraded through the streets of Jerusalem, with the women singing, "Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten-thousands" (1 Samuel 18:7).  Moses and the Israelites sang a song when Pharaoh's army was drowned in the Red Sea.  Deborah wrote a song celebrating the death of Sisera, specifically praising Jael, who "smashed his head; and she shattered and pierced his temple" (Judges 5:25).  These and other passages show that there is a time of rejoicing when an enemy falls.
But with Proverbs 24:17-18 we must conclude that there is a time when it is not appropriate to rejoice over a fallen enemy.  I believe the line of demarcation lies in the authority of the one bringing down the enemy, and the connection of the enemy to that authority.
Here is the principle to remember:  When the enemy is an enemy of the state, rejoice in his fall; when the enemy is a personal enemy, "do not let your heart be glad."
You will find this principle proven many times over in the Bible.   We should pray for our personal enemies, seek reconciliation, and even bless them.  National enemies, however, are to be brought to justice, even when that justice means death.  Test this principle in your own study of Scripture.
There is a reason for this truth that is a fundamentally necessary aspect of a Biblical worldview.  God has ordained government as the instrument of justice in our world.  An enemy of the state is an enemy of the God-ordained order.  (An argument of righteous civil disobedience is non-sequiter  to this principle, and only highlights the truth of God-ordained government).  Since the days of Noah, the state has held the scepter.  When the state carries out its God-ordained duty, the citizens of the state should rejoice.
An intriguing example comes with the death King David's son, Absalom.  The King was clearly and understandably grieved at the death of his son.  In fact, he was almost grieved beyond the ability to function.  Joab, the leader of the army, boldly chastised the King for "loving those who hate you and hating those who love you" (2 Samuel 19:6).  The King's actions were causing quarreling among the tribes of Israel because they were not receiving a clear message.  One message presented Absalom as an enemy of the State, seeking to overthrow the government.  The other message portrayed Absalom as the King's dear son, tragically killed at the sword.    I believe that Joab's chastisement reminded David that the nation needed to rejoice in the loss of the enemy of the State, and that the government had fulfilled its God-given duty of justice.    This story reminds us to grieve over the loss of personal enemies, and rejoice over the fall of national enemies.
Another example of proof-texting in the OBL death case is Ezekiel 18:23, where God says, "'Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked,' declares the Lord God, 'rather than that he should turn from his ways and live? '"  When the principle of "national enemy" and "personal enemy" is applied once again, this passage clearly speaks to personal enemies, and Proverbs 24:17 is parallel. 
I received an email from one woman who mourned the fact that she had been chastised by so many Christians for being glad that Osama bin Laden was dead.  Perhaps the chastisement should be upon those who fail to carefully apply Biblical truth?  That truth:  rejoice in the destruction of a national enemy, grieve over the loss of a soul, and apply Biblical truth in context rather than proof texting personal claims.