One of the central teachings of Torah is that all human beings are made in the Image of God. That teaching and what flows from it are at the heart of Jewish prohibitions on the use of torture.
Indeed, the Rabbis –-- living under the Roman Empire –-- enrich that teaching as a direct challenge to the power of Rome, the Imperial fount of torture. One of them asks, “What does this mean, 'In God’s image?'” And another answers, “When Caesar puts his image on a coin, all the coins come out identical. When that One who is beyond all rulers puts the divine image on a 'coin,' all the coins come out unique.”
Torture tries to destroy the Image of God and replace it with Caesar's image on the human soul and body. In the experience of the Rabbis, it was Imperial Rome that used torture.
