Exodus 21: 22-36: “If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go free for his eye’s sake. And if he smite out his manservant’s tooth, or his maidservant’s tooth; he shall let him go free for his tooth’s sake. If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit. But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death. If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him. Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him. If the ox shall push a manservant or a maidservant; he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit, and not cover it, and an ox or an ass fall therein; The owner of the pit shall make it good, and give money unto the owner of them; and the dead beast shall be his. And if one man’s ox hurt another’s, that he die; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of it; and the dead ox also they shall divide. Or if it be known that the ox hath used to push in time past, and his owner hath not kept him in; he shall surely pay ox for ox; and the dead shall be his own.”
Sometimes when men fight together their wives, or partners, become involved as well. This is more likely in a village or small town situation where all the families know each other and feuds can simmer between families or clans. If a pregnant woman was hurt in that situation and she lost her child then the man responsible was to be punished. This is interesting these days when there is argument about the beginning of life and what punishment a person should face if they cause a woman to miscarry. This regulation is even more telling when we are told that if the woman is hurt then the offender was to face the full force of the Law. The old rules of “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” were quite acceptable in those days but they show the importance of thinking before you act. These regulations also consider the sanctity of the life given by the Lord. If a person damages a life that the Lord has given to another person the offender must pay a penalty. This is more about responsibility than about human rights. We do well to consider our responsibility to other people than to seek to defend our own rights or ambitions. These regulations also apply to servants indicating that a servant was still considered to be a person and not just a chattel. People were also responsible for the behaviour of their animals. This section also contains an interesting precedent that was important many years later during the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. We learn that the price of dead servant was thirty shekels of silver. This is the most insulting some of money to a devout Jew. The Lord Jesus Christ was sold for the price of a dead servant so that we, who are servants of sin, could have everlasting life. What a wonderful Saviour He is!
(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)
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