“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you. You shall not murder." (Exodus 20:12-13)
In the previous lessons, we've been studying that the Lord God commanded the children of Israel through Moses, "... if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” (Exodus 19:5-6) He did not choose them because they were better than any other nation of people, but because He had promised their forefathers - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
In the previous lessons, we've been studying that the Lord God commanded the children of Israel through Moses, "... if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” (Exodus 19:5-6) He did not choose them because they were better than any other nation of people, but because He had promised their forefathers - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
So now they are a nation on the move, from Egypt towards the promised land; and, He is establishing this laws and commandments for them, because they were going to represent Him before the world. Just as He said to Moses before they left Egypt, "“I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name Lord [JEHOVAH] I was not known to them. I have also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, in which they were strangers." (Exodus 6:2-4)
First, He gave them the ten commandments. (Exodus 20:1-17) The first four commandments deal with how we are to treat God. The remaining six deal with how we are to treat each other. The laws in this study go into more detail of the last six commandments. The commandments tell us what we should and or should not do. The laws explain the punishment to be administered if we break the commandments.
“He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death. However, if he did not lie in wait, but God delivered him into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee. But if a man acts with premeditation against his neighbor, to kill him by treachery, you shall take him from My altar, that he may die. (Exodus 21:12-14)
“And he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. (Exodus 21:15) “And he who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. (Exodus 21:17)
“He who kidnaps a man and sells him, or if he is found in his hand, shall surely be put to death. (Exodus 21:16) “If men contend with each other, and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but is confined to his bed, if he rises again and walks about outside with his staff, then he who struck him shall be acquitted. He shall only pay for the loss of his time, and shall provide for him to be thoroughly healed. (Exodus 21:18-19)
“And if a man beats his male or female servant with a rod, so that he dies under his hand, he shall surely be punished. Notwithstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property. (Exodus 21:20-21)
“If men fight, and hurt a woman with child, so that she gives birth prematurely, yet no harm follows, he shall surely be punished accordingly as the woman’s husband imposes on him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. (Exodus 21:22-25)
“If a man strikes the eye of his male or female servant, and destroys it, he shall let him go free for the sake of his eye. And if he knocks out the tooth of his male or female servant, he shall let him go free for the sake of his tooth. (Exodus 21:26-27)
The moral is we are not to commit murder, the premeditated killing of another human being. We should not kill either, the unpremeditated taking of another person's life. However, if either of these crimes are committed, the just punishment is death of the person who committed the crime, except for the certain exceptions specified. We should thank God even more for the mercy shown to us through our faith in Christ Jesus, because under such strict requirements, all of us would justly be put to death, even if we did no more than curses our father or our mother.
Christ Jesus taught, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also." (Matthew 5:38-39) What Jesus was saying was don't fight back, don't seek revenge. Just let the smaller issues go. Instead of having a whole bunch of people walking around without eyes, teeth, hands or feet, covered in burns, wounds and stripes, just let him go free. Remember, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. (Romans 12:19; Hebrews 10:30)
“If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, then the ox shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be acquitted. But if the ox tended to thrust with its horn in times past, and it has been made known to his owner, and he has not kept it confined, so that it has killed a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death. If there is imposed on him a sum of money, then he shall pay to redeem his life, whatever is imposed on him. Whether it has gored a son or gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him. If the ox gores a male or female servant, he shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. (Exodus 21:28-32)
“And if a man opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls in it, the owner of the pit shall make it good; he shall give money to their owner, but the dead animal shall be his. (Exodus 21:33-34)
“If one man’s ox hurts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide the money from it; and the dead ox they shall also divide. Or if it was known that the ox tended to thrust in time past, and its owner has not kept it confined, he shall surely pay ox for ox, and the dead animal shall be his own. (Exodus 21:35-36)
The punishment for violence towards animals is different than the punishment of violence towards another human being. Remember, when God created mankind, male and female, He said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26) Animals are never to be considered as equal to man. We have dominion over them, and they were created for us, not us for them.
We should take care of the animals, but if an animal harms a human being, they are to be killed. If the owner of the animal knew that the animal had violent tendencies towards humans but didn't do anything to contain the animal, then the Lord God would command that the animal be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death. Because of the sacrifice of Christ Jesus for our sins, the owner doesn't have to be killed, but he should suffer the consequences, whether If there is imposed on him a sum of money, then he shall pay to redeem his life, whatever is imposed on him; according to this judgment it shall be done to him.
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