Cheif:
Proverbs 13:4 He who withholds his rod hates his son. But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.
I love the Bible also. There are many ways to look at that verse that don't involve physical violence.
I see 'the rod' as a metaphor for discipline.
I have taught for 20 years. Kids respect me. I run a very tight ship. They get consequences (sometimes positive/sometimes negative). I have never had to hit one of them to get them to do what I want/need them to do. The same applies to my own kids (beit, I have only been a parent for 6 years now).
On the Sermon on the Mount - does Jesus really want us to pluck our eye out if it causes us to sin? I doubt it. Otherwise, the world would be full of nothing but one-eyed men.
As I am sure you know, not everything in the Bible is to be read literally. This applies to any great work of literature.
