Topical Bible: Prisons: Keepers of Put to Death If Prisoners Escaped

◄ Prisons: Keepers of Put to Death If Prisoners Escaped ►

Jump to: Torrey's • Library • Subtopics • Terms

Topical Encyclopedia

In biblical times, the role of a prison keeper was fraught with significant responsibility and peril. The ancient world, as depicted in the Scriptures, often held prison keepers accountable to the extent that their own lives were at stake should a prisoner escape. This severe consequence underscores the gravity with which the custodial duty was regarded.

One of the most illustrative examples of this principle is found in the account of the Philippian jailer in the New Testament. In Acts 16:27-28 , we read: "When the jailer woke and saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, thinking the prisoners had escaped. But Paul called out in a loud voice, 'Do not harm yourself! We are all here!'" This passage highlights the immediate fear of the jailer, who assumed that the escape of his prisoners would result in his own execution. The intervention of Paul, ensuring that no prisoners had fled, ultimately spared the jailer's life.

The Old Testament also provides insight into the severe consequences faced by those responsible for prisoners. In 1 Kings 20:39-42, a prophet, disguised as a soldier, tells King Ahab a parable about a man who was tasked with guarding a prisoner. The man explains that while he was busy, the prisoner escaped, and as a result, his life was required in place of the escaped prisoner. This narrative serves as a metaphor for Ahab's own failure to execute God's judgment on Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, but it also reflects the real-life expectation that a keeper's life was forfeit if a prisoner escaped.

The principle of life-for-life in the context of prison keeping is further exemplified in the account of the Roman soldiers who guarded Jesus' tomb. In Matthew 28:11-15, the guards reported the resurrection to the chief priests, who then bribed them to say that Jesus' disciples had stolen His body while they slept. The soldiers accepted the bribe, and the chief priests assured them that they would be protected from the governor's wrath, indicating the serious consequences they would have faced for failing in their duty.

These biblical accounts reflect a broader cultural and legal context in which the responsibility of a prison keeper was not only a matter of duty but also of life and death. The expectation that a keeper would pay with his life for the escape of a prisoner underscores the high stakes involved in maintaining order and justice in ancient societies. This principle served as a deterrent against negligence and emphasized the importance of vigilance and accountability in the administration of justice.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Acts 12:19
And when Herod had sought for him, and found him not, he examined the keepers, and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judaea to Caesarea, and there stayed.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Ephesians iv. 1, 2
... it that they not only did not put the keepers to death ... And let no one wonder that
I have put the king ... Thanks to Paul's chain; how many prisons has it opened to ...
/.../homily viii ephesians iv 1.htm

Memoir of John Bunyan
... mace and town seals were carried off as plunder; and, if the account ... was abused as
a barbarian and a murderer, for having put numbers to death in cold ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/memoir of john bunyan.htm