This chapter has a continuation of laws that began in ch21. These laws fall under the categories of restitution (repaying something that is lost/stolen/broken) and social justice.
“If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. If a thief is found breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. If the stolen beast is found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double. If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him. If ever you take your neighbor’s cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he cries to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate. You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.” (v1-4,25-28)
I won’t go into much detail commenting on the restitution laws, for they are quite straight-forward and deal with repayment of property that was lost, stolen, borrowed, broken, or basically cannot/will not be returned. Several scenarios are covered, most in great detail, and they read a little like a high school law textbook (I have so many disappointing memories of that class… I would rather have read the biblical laws).
The social justice laws are far more interesting and intricate, seeing how we’re dealing more with qualitative behavioral interactions, instead of quantitative property exchanges. They sound a lot like the last 6 of the 10 Commandments (the “love your neighbor” ones) and basically elaborate on those commandments.
There are still some straight-forward ones such as “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him.” (v25), though there are far stricter penalties for most of the crimes, such as “You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.” (v22-24) It would seem that the more emotionally devastating the crime is, the harsher the punishment. Abuse (for example) causes longer-lasting, greater emotional harm than failing to return a borrowed ox, so the consequences are much greater.
The one law in this chapter that probably needs the most explaining is “You shall not delay to offer from the fullness of your harvest and from the outflow of your presses. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me. You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: seven days it shall be with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me.” (v29-30) What is this talking about? Giving grain, wine, children and livestock to God? I think this one requires more context.
This law is actually about a combination of tithing, and dedication/consecration. First, the easy part – tithing. There are several places in the Bible that speak of tithing (this being one of them) so let’s add a little more context: “As soon as the order went out, the Israelites generously gave the firstfruits of their grain, new wine, olive oil and honey and all that the fields produced. They brought a great amount, a tithe of everything.” (2 Chr 31:5) “there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, what you have vowed to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks.” (Deu 12:6) So, bringing firstfruits of the field/vine, as well as firstborn of cattle to God is a form of tithing, that makes sense and explains part of this law.
What about this part: “The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me… seven days it shall be with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me”? Well, here’s some more context: “And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him.” (Gen 21:4, see also Gen 17:10-14) I think this portion of the law is about child dedication – by circumcising the child on the eighth day, it is symbolic of giving the child to God, setting them apart to be raised for His service and glory – this is similar to child dedications we do today, where we commit to raising children to be Christ followers. We typically no longer do the physical circumcision part of this ceremony, because through Jesus that part is no longer necessary (“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.” [Gal 5:6])
This law about tithing/dedication is closely followed by the next law: “You shall be consecrated to me. Therefore you shall not eat any flesh that is torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.” (v31) God wants His people to be consecrated (be set apart as sacred) to Him – tithing, child dedications, remaining physically and ceremonially clean, and keeping all of these other laws are just some of the ways God wants His people to look and behave differently from the rest of the world. We know that historically God’s people have looked a lot like the rest of the world (for example 10/12 sons of Jacob/Israel were pretty worldly until God humbled them through Joseph) so God is trying to really set them apart now. By following God’s laws/commandments, the Hebrews would be completely consecrated as God’s chosen people.
The same distinction is a goal for us today – to become Christlike in our words, thoughts and actions, being set apart from the world for the work of the Kingdom of God: “For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers” (1 Ths 1:4-7) We are to imitate Christ (and other Christians as they imitate Christ) in order that we become distinct from the world and consecrated for God’s purposes – “But know that the LORD has set apart the godly man for Himself” (Psa 4:3a)
Father God, thank you for putting Your guidelines and examples into place, that we may have a structure to follow. This structure enables and frees us to follow You, relieving any anxiety and worry as to whether or not our words and actions are pleasing to You, our Father. You have given each of us an inward desire to crave the Fruit of the Spirit – that fruit grows when we grow in relationship with You – we grow in relationship with You as we obey Your leading in our lives – part of obeying Your leading is keeping the guidelines You provided. Thank you Father for not leaving us on our own to figure out what You want from us, and thank you for the clear example of Christ that we can follow. May Your Spirit continue to teach us Your ways, and help us down the straight and narrow path of obedience that leads to eternal life, and a fulfilling relationship with You.
~ Conqueror in Training