A few comments from chapter 35:
Never have the
stakes for playing hide and go seek been so high, or the rules so complicated.
If you accidentally
kill someone, there are six cities you can run to where you will be "home
free" and you can get a trial. If the victim's family finds you before you get to the safe city, they can kill you.
For the trial, if
you are found innocent, you can't go home but get to live in the city of refuge until the death
of the high priest. If you leave the city, you are fair game. If you are found
guilty, they deliver you to the victim's family and they kill you.
This applies to Jews and strangers so be sure you are aware of the laws in a foreign land before visiting.
On to chapter 36:
With International
Women's Day being only two days removed, I found chapter 36 to be interesting.
The daughters Zelophehad were granted the inheritance promised to their father,
but would only retain it if they married someone from within their tribe.
Some laws were given
because of the historical context. Should we limit the right of women because
of Old Testament precedence? I should think not. Should we allow for revenge
killings because of the Old Testament precedence? Again, no. These commands were
given to a bronze age nation.
In Matthew 19, Jesus
makes this clear when he says:
8 Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you
to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way
from the beginning. 9 I tell you
that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries
another woman commits adultery.”
This statement goes
beyond just divorce as the Pharisees are again questioning Jesus about the law
and its intentions. And again Jesus responds with a depth of understanding that can only be found in the One who designed everything at the beginning. At its base, the law is not the Covenant we expect. That was made with Abraham back in Genesis. The law was a framework to keep a society at a specific point in history from tearing itself apart.
2 comments:
"If anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death on the evidence of witnesses. But no person shall be put to death on the testimony of one witness. - Numbers 35:30
This verse is dealing with murder, however, the same idea can be applied to other situations. Many times we hear something from someone and take it as the truth. In this verse, God is saying that having more than one witness is required for murder, but maybe we should ask for more "witnesses" to confirm the truth of what others are saying too.
Ha - high stakes game of hide and seek indeed! :)
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