Moses had just given the Ten Words (Exodus 20) to God’s people. After that, he started giving God’s laws (mishpatim, not “words”), civil statutes, on how their society was to function. Today, we continue looking into these civil ordinances.
Fighting and Assault
Read Exodus 21:18-19
– How does this ordinance deal with fights (where no one dies)?
Read Exodus 21:20-21; 26-27
– Discuss: Put these passages together to understand the “rights” that even slaves have.
Read Exodus 21:22-24
– What especially does this ordinance protect?
– In this context, what does “an eye for an eye” ensure before the law?
– What does it prevent from happening when vengeance or retribution is being demanded?
Injuries Relating to Animals
Read Exodus 21:28-32
– How is the owner of an ox treated differently if his ox had gored others in the past and the owner is negligent?
– What would we today call the “ransom” that may be mandated for the owner of the ox for the person who was killed?
– What is required if an ox kills a slave? Discuss.
Read Exodus 21:33-36
– In these ordinances, a person is held accountable for what?
Protecting Property
Read Exodus 22:1-6
– What are the rules for restitution for an animal? Why was this important?
– A person would even be sold into slavery (indentured servitude) for stealing an animal. How does this affirm the role of servitude in Hebrew society?
– Why would the sun have anything to do with bloodguilt?
– What is God protecting in vs. 5-6?
Read Exodus 22:7-9
– If your neighbor no longer has what he agreed to safeguard for you, what is set up to deal with your neighbor possibly talking what is yours but then claiming a thief stole it?
Read Exodus 22:10-13
– That an oath is sworn to God for a lost animal without any witnesses testifies to what?
– Yet, in verse 12, the neighbor is still accountable if he was what?
– What might we call the situation in verse 13?
Protecting Marriage through Social Laws
Read Exodus 22:16-17
– Discuss why a woman not being betrothed needs more protection than a woman who is bethrothed. What does this say about bethrothal?
– What is to keep the woman from having to marry the man if he is a scoundrel?
Social and Religious Mishpatim (Exodus 22:18-23:9)
At first look, this section may not seem that much different from the earlier civil rules that preceded it. However, the way the rules in Exodus 22:18-23:9 are given to the people differ in format. Earlier, the mishpatim were in the case-law style (casuistic), which mentioned a conditional statement and a type of punishment to be given out in various cases. In this section, these mishpatim are given out as “do” or “do not” civil ordinances (called “apodictic” law).
Because of the different format, we know this begins a new section of mishpatim.
Read Exodus 22:18-20
– These infractions have a death penalty attached to them. What does this say is at the root of these infractions, even if it is not obviously so?
Read Exodus 22:21-27
– How was their Egypt experience to shape the Israelites in a positive way?
– What special protections do the widow or father child receive? Why?
– These mishpatim do not forbid lending money with interest. But what special treatment did the poor receive?
– What is God recognizing that takes place in this fallen world?
– God goes out of His way to make sure that people do not unduly take advantage of the disadvantaged. What does this say about eternity with Him when our fallenness and fallen ways will be no more?
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