September 22, 2010 – Exodus 22

No deep thoughts, just a couple of things I found interesting. 

v. 2 – A thief that could not pay back his restitution was sold to pay it.  Sounds like he became a slave.  This sounds very similar to the idea in Seinfeld when Jerry and George were coming up with ideas for their pilot show.  Although this was done, if you remember from the last chapter, it is not permanent.  It is for 6 years and on the 7^th they are released.  Also, the idea of breaking into someone’s home at night is not foreign to us, me especially being the victim of burglaries twice, but we must remember where they were.  They were on the move in the desert.  I would imagine they are living in tents if anything.  I just can’t see a burglar getting into a tent.

v. 7 – If a thief is not caught, the owner has to swear that he has not taken the item from someone.  I had to read this a couple of times to make sure I was reading it right.  So, the owner must show that the item he says was taken was actually his and that he did not get it wrongly. 

v.12 – If the animal you steal is attacked by a beast, you must bring the carcass to the judge to prove it.  Not only does this seem like an embarrassment to the criminal that gets caught, but I believe contact with a dead animal was something that made a person unclean, so this has a double punishment in it. 

v. 15 – Wouldn’t this law stop a lot of the pre-marital sex that occurs in the culture today.  If you take a females virginity, you must marry her.  I am all for bringing this one back.  Sex has become so common place in our world that it isn’t seen as something that is important or that has repercussions, let alone the fact that it is one of the most sacred things a couple can share.  This would definitely bring the back with the vengeance.

v. 18 – We think that the perverse things people do these days are new or getting worse.  But this would not be a rule if people were not doing it.  Not only do the motivations for sin not really change over the years but the actions that they promulgate don’t really change either.

v.28 – This order is something that will come back into play.  When Israel fails God, He changes this first born to just the clans of the Levites.  They become set apart as servants of God, servants of the priest.  But in the beginning it was suppose to be the first born of all the tribes in recognition of God taking the first born of all the Egyptians.