Old Testament Elaborations on the Sixth Commandment
July 14, 2010
Here is a selection of verses in the Old Testament that elaborate on Exodus 20:13, “Do not murder.” I summarized these verses in Sunday’s sermon.
Manslaughter falls under this commandment, but leads to a different penalty: Exodus 21:12-14, Numbers 35:10-15. Numbers 35:22-25. Deuteronomy 19:4-6. The perpetrator must flee to and remain in a “city of refuge” and remain their until the death of the High Priest (Numbers 35:33-34). This serves as a picture of the need for atoning blood, even in the case of manslaughter.
The proper penalty corresponds to the harm done: Leviticus 24:19-20; see Exodus 21:18-19 and Exodus 21:26-27 for examples.
When a person kills a thief who has broken into his house at night, the killer is innocent. If this happens during the day, his is guilty (Exodus 22:2-3).
Kidnapping is treated similarly to murder (Exodus 21:16, Deuteronomy 24:7).
Negligence that leads to the harming or death of another leads to guilt and the need for compensation: An ox goring (Exodus 21:28-32), someone falling off an insecure roof (Deuteronomy 22:8), an animal being injured by an unsafe hole (Exodus 21:33-34), an animal grazing in another’s field (Exodus 22:5), a fire that spreads to another’s field (Exodus 22:6).
Concern for others extends particularly to those who are weak and defenseless, and thus easily oppressed: the sojourner, the widow, the fatherless child (Exodus 22:21-23, Exodus 23:9), aliens (Leviticus 19:33-34 which include “love [the alien] as yourself”), the deaf and the blind (Leviticus 19:11). In the Exodus passage, with no person to protect them, God promises to be their protector: “I will kill [the oppressor] with the sword.”
Many cases refer specifically to the poor:
Do not lend at interest or hold on to their cloak overnight: Exodus 22:25-27, Leviticus 25:35-38
Pay their wages promptly; don’t delay just because you can get away with it: Deuteronomy 24:14-15
Lend to the needy poor, and cancel their debts at the end of seven years, Deuteronomy 15:1-11.
Leave part of harvest in fields for the poor to gather: Leviticus 19:9-10, Deuteronomy 24:19-22
Jesus’ later commandment to love your enemies is hinted at in cases referring to your enemy’s animal straying or collapsing under a heavy load. You are to help in both cases: Exodus 23:4-5, Deuteronomy 22:1-4.
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2 Responses to “Old Testament Elaborations on the Sixth Commandment”
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So what’s the point? Do you suppose there are similarities between the Koran, the Upanishads, the Rigveda, the Noble Eightfold Path and the Ten Commandments? Just curious. Wouldn’t it be interesting to trace the similarities?
Sure, comparing those ancient texts is interesting, and many have done so. But the point of the sermon is not to figure out what ancient civilizations thought about killing, but this: If the Bible is God’s revelation to mankind, what does it mean by “You shall not murder”?