I knew someone would come up with that thin excuse for excruciating "punishment." Whomever wrote Romans 12:19 said it that's who. Rage and anger, while understandable, has no place in society's duty to excise its cancers.
It's the kind of mentality which causes a "person" to beat a puppy unmercifully for pooping on the carpet when a nose-rubbing in it and a loud "No, no" is appropriate. May I emphasize "the kind of mentality?"
Or, e.g., shaking a baby to death in a furious rage.
Vengeful torture as punishment does not help the victim and I would not guess that it would effectively discourage similar offenses by others in the long term except perhaps by the Darwinian gradual effect of removal of like "genes" from the "gene pool." A tranquilizer, a massive shot of KCl, an EEG with no signals, turn the corpse over to the relatives... that should suffice.
That's where I stand on wood chipper (and the like) "justice."
"Instrument of G-d's justice" Indeed. What a paltry excuse for sadism.
Removal from society is the goal, not satisfying one's sadistic urges.
Go burn a puppy at the stake. No kidding.
Terry, 230RN