Bible Summary:

God gives Moses and the Israelites laws about treating slaves, handling violent acts, and responsibility for their animals.

Male slaves are to be freed after six years and can take their pre-slavery wives, but no others. Or, they can choose to stay with their family as slaves for life. A daughter sold as wife must be returned if the buyer does not like her. If a man takes a second wife, the first is to be treated fairly or set free.

These violent acts are punishable by death: deliberately killing another man, hitting or cursing parents, or kidnapping someone for sale or to keep as a slave.

These violent acts have lesser punishments: injuring another – pay for lost time and care until well; killing a fetus – pay what the woman’s husband demands, subject to a judge’s approval; harming a pregnant woman – punished with life for life, eye for eye, or wound for wound.

Owners are responsible for the actions of their animals and must pay restitution if an animal harms someone or another animal. Owners can be put to death if they had been previously warned and an animal kills someone.

My Thoughts:

First Laws: Once Moses assigned judges, he needed laws for everyone to follow and consequences if they did not. The first laws were for common disputes of the era over slaves, violent acts, and animals. No traffic laws just yet.

Social Norms: It is hard to believe the Israelites, just set free from Egyptian slavery, continued to keep their own slaves.  But, it was the social norm of the time. The patriarch owned the entire family and could sell them as he saw fit. All daughters were sold to husbands.

It makes you wonder what social norms we have that seem strange to others, like shaking hands, leaving a tip for a waiter, driving on the right, wearing ties to work, and of course silly ones like burping and passing gas.