Exodus 20-22 | unityinchrist.com

Exodus 20:18-26

“And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. 19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. 20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. 21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. 22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. 23 Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold. 24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. 25 And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it. 26 Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.”

Introduction

[Audio version: https://resources.ccphilly.org/detail.asp?TopicID=&Teaching=WED557]

“Exodus chapter 20, did anybody read ahead? Two, three, four, five, that’s not bad. We really have come as far as verse 18 of chapter 20, so we’ll read through the end of the chapter, the Ten Commandments have been given, God’s speaking audibly from Sinai to two and a half million people, all the people saw the thunderings, the lightnings, the noise of the trumpet, the mountain smoking, “and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.” (verses 18b-19) “And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you,” to put on display what’s in your hearts, “and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.” Wow, “Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.” (verses 20-23) You shall not make with me, one of the first things we’re going to see is they make the golden calf, is, it isn’t just an idol, it is a false representation of Jehovah, ‘These be thy gods O Israel,’ they wanted something visual, they wanted some similitude, they wanted a god they could look at and bow down in front of. Of course, that would happen several thousand years later, ‘when the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.’ ‘No man hath at any time seen God,’ John says, ‘but the only begotten Son hath displayed him.’ “Ye shall not make with me” he says “gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.” (verse 23) “An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it. Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.” (verses 24-26) Now God says something very specific, and this will become plainer as he reveals himself to them. And that is this, if you’re going to make an altar and you’re gonna sacrifice, you make it of earth or you make it of stone, not hewn stone, don’t lift up a tool, don’t lift up a chisel. You can take a pile of rocks from the field and stack them up, but there’ll be no human effort involved in this. Remember Abraham when he took Isaac to offer him, as they left the servants behind and they two went alone. Because what happened on Golgotha happened between the Father and Son, he [Abraham] made no contribution to it. We added nothing to it, when the Son was finished his work he said ‘Tutelisti, paid in full, it is finished.’ And no human tool, no human energy, no human instrument had anything to do with it. The payment for our sin, our redemption, was provided at Heaven’s cost, no human sweat, no human effort, no bit of the Law, no bit of legalism, no bit of religion in any form could add thereto. There were personalities involved that are unimaginable to us, the Father, the perfect Father, the Father that every other father is simply a pattern of, this Father, and a Son, unlike any other son that has ever been, and a love between a Father and Son, unlike any love that has ever been between an earthly father and a son. All of those, simply shadows of the cost, unimaginable, for the ultimate caring, loving, powerful Father who could have stopped the process, giving up his Son, who went willingly, the perfect Son, without sin, without any reason but besides our sin, to go there, and to die in our place. So this place of the shedding of blood, this place of sacrifice was, has to have no human energy attached to it, no chisel, no hammer, no human steps. And how we like to have steps don’t we? And some of us are on step 5, some of us are on step 1. You know, we’re all part of a 1 step program, we were going to hell, we got saved, now we’re going to heaven, that’s one step, we’re saved by grace, we’re not saved by anything that we can add to it. No steps, no human effort, no thing that anybody can do.

Exodus 21:1-36

“Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them. 2 If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing. 3 If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him. 4 If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out by himself. 5 And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free: then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever. 7 And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do. 8 If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her. 9 And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters. 10 If he take him another wife: her food, her raiment, and her duty of marriage, shall he not diminish. 11 And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money. 12 He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death. 13 And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into his hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee. 14 But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die. 15 And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death. 16 And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death. 17 And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death. 18 And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed: 19 if he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed. 20 And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall surely be punished. 21 Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money. 22 If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. 23 And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burning for burning, wound for wound, and stripe for stripe. 26 And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go free for his eye’s sake. 27 And if he smite out his manservant’s tooth, or his maidservant’s tooth; he shall let him go free for his tooth’s sake. 28 If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit. 29 But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death. 30 If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him. 31 Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him. 32 If the ox shall push a manservant or a maidservant; he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. 33 And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit, and not cover it, and an ox or an ass fall therein; 34 the owner of the pit shall make it good, and give money unto the owner of them; and the dead beast shall be his. 35 And if one man’s ox hurt another’s, that he die; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of it; and the dead ox also they shall divide. 36 Or if it be known that the ox hath used to push in time past, and his owner hath not kept him in, he shall surely pay ox for ox; and the dead shall be his own.”

Introduction

“Now we begin to head into the Law of Moses [no, it’s the Law of God, given to Moses]. Please take note, the Law is given [the Ten Commandments], now the Law will be elaborated on. Then as we move on, the sacrificial systems will be given [in the Book of Leviticus]. If man could keep the Law there wouldn’t be a sacrificial system. Those who kept the Law would go to Paradise or Heaven, those who didn’t keep the Law would go to hell. The interesting thing is, the Ten Commandments are given, they’re now elaborated on from every angle, because God knows every human being would look for loop-holes, and God wants to make everything clear. And then [in Leviticus] the sacrificial system will be given, so that as these laws are broken, when they are not kept, because of our infirmity and sinful nature, then the blood of the lamb or the blood of an innocent substitute will constantly be placed before the people, making them realize that subsitutionary atonement is God’s true method of worship and drawing near. And again, every time that process takes place, it will never be the worshipper that’s examined, it will always be the sacrifice. The worshipper is there with the sacrifice, because the worshipper has spot and blemish, the worshipper isn’t pure, the worshipper is sinful. What will be examined is the sacrifice, not the worshipper. Because the sacrifice will always reflect Jesus Christ. So, we head now into an elaboration of the Law. It’s interesting as we come to chapter 21, God begins with the lowest member of their social strata, which would be the servant or the slave, and God’s concern there first, not starting with the priest or the wealthy.

Laws On Bondservitude

It says “Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them.” (verse 1) and the judges in Israel, remember Moses and his father-in-law, there are those that will be helping. “If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing.” (verse 2) Now, the problem was, if there was debt, you couldn’t file chapter 11 then, if there was poverty, if there was bankruptcy, if you were in financial debt to your Israelite neighbour, what you could do is give yourself over as a servant or a slave, or your son or your daughter. But they were only allowed to serve for six years, and the seventh year they were to go free, and the debt was to be paid [canceled], and quite often those who were poor, those who ended up in debt, their land was not to be handed over for more than six years, because the land belonged to God, and it was given to the family by [inheritance], genealogy, it did not belong to the debtor or to the debt collector, or you would give yourself into subjection as a slave, as a servant, for six years. In the 7^th year you would go out free for nothing. Look in verse 3, “If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out by himself.” (verses 3-4) after the six years. “And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free: then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.” (verses 5-6) Now there were no Malls to go to, and freeze your earlobe, you know, you get a pierced earring today, and to me that’s really about the only thing safe to be pierced, you should forget about your tongues, your noses, your eyebrows, your bellybuttons. You know, you get a pierced ear. I read an article a little while ago about this kid who got the post in the tongue, and had developed all kinds illness, brain problems, the kid finally ended up at Yale and they cut the kid’s head open and cultured the bacteria, and it was a bacteria that was only found in the mouth, and because of the post in the tongue it had got in the bloodstream and settled in the brain. So all of you with posts, just wanted to mention it [laughter], warning. It was in the paper, I didn’t make it up. Just fun to hand out with somebody that talks a little funny because they got that thing stuck in the middle of their tongue [laughter]. But in this day, you went to the master’s house and he took an aul and bored your ear through, on the door, and they would put a gold earring in, “and he shall serve him for ever.” Now, it’s a picture here, of course. You end up in your master’s house, the pursuit of life is to find the right Master. The purpose of life is not freedom, because there is no freedom until we find the right Master. Money is a great servant, it’s a cruel master. And there are Christians, we all know people, and the truth is, that’s what they serve. Drugs, alcohol [the abuse of alcohol], pornography, cruel masters, cruel masters. But there is a Master, and to come into his House, to serve there, to be cognizant of what he adds to your life while you’re there, to come to the point and say ‘I don’t want to go out free anymore. I’ve gained so much here, this is the freedom I was always looking for, to serve here.’ It tells us this, in Psalm 40, you don’t have to turn, the LORD speaking, ‘Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire, mine ears hast thou opened,’ literally is ‘my ears thou hast digged,’ ‘burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.’ all in the past tense, now in the future ‘Then said I, Lo, I come, in the volume of the Book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God,’ and Jesus of course applies this to himself in Hebrews, ‘Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he says ‘Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not, but a body thou hast prepared for me, and burnt offerings and sacrifice and sin offerings thou hast no pleasure in, I said, ‘Lo, in the volume of the Book,’ that Jesus is the ultimate expression of this One who comes to serve in that fashion. Um, ‘A day in your courts is better than a thousand, I’d rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.’ A servant, Isaiah will say where the LORD is speaking, ‘The LORD God hath opened mine ear,’ Isaiah chapter 50, verse 5, ‘and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back, I gave my back to the smiters and my cheeks to those who pluck off the hair, I hid not my face from the shame of their spitting.’ He says, the LORD hath opened, digged my ear. Jesus Christ of course is the ultimate picture of the One whose come as the servant Jehovah, to serve in his house. And there, in giving his life, he found a wife, the Church, children. And he said ‘Father, I haven’t desired to do anything, my meat is to do thy will, to serve.’ And for you and I, again, I can’t imagine any other thing. I served where I shouldn’t have served. I served myself, drugs, my own self-interests, my own lusts, empty, broken down, it went nowhere. And in that condition, he received me. He let me come to be a servant in his house. And I’d have never been worth anything anywhere else. And he gave me a wife. And if he hadn’t let me come to his house my marriage would never have lasted, I’m way too selfish. He’s given me children who are walking with the Lord, and serving the Lord. And I knew nothing about being a husband or a father, and he’s graciously accepted what I was able to give him, imperfect as it was, of myself, and has allowed me to serve. And I look around at what he’s given me, and I said ‘Master, I have no desire to go anywhere else, take me to the door of your house, make me your bondslave, that I might serve you forever.’ What a picture, what a place to serve, what a Master, what a Master. Unlike the things that master people in this world, how empty, how futile. Isn’t it interesting, that’s what he starts with under the Law. The highest picture is not that of the king or the priest, the highest picture is the one that is the one that his Son took to himself. In Philippians chapter 2 again, Paul said ‘Let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but took upon himself the form of a servant,’ you read through Philippians 2, and you see how yielded, what was accomplished.

Laws On Marriage Betrothal

Now gals you’ve come a long way, anyways we’re going to move on here, there’s some interesting things. “And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do.” (verse 7) the idea is, in the 7^th year, she’s not set free, there’s conditions. “If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.” (verse 8) If the master takes her to be the wife [his wife, this is talking about marriage, not bond servitude], she can be bought back by the dad. If he buys the daughter, you’re in debt, and some guy says ‘Alright, look, I’ll cancel your debt if you sell me your daughter to be my wife.’ And then if he buys your daughter and decides he doesn’t want your daughter after he buys her to be his wife, he’s not allowed to sell her to a foreign nation, she has to remain among the people of Israel, “And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.” (verse 9) Then the man who bought her has to treat her as his own daughter. “If he take him another wife: her food, her raiment, and her duty of marriage, shall he not diminish. And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money.” (verses 10-11) So if he buys a girl, marries a girl, decides he doesn’t like the girl, decides he’s going to buy another wife, he’s not allowed to remove from her the things that should be provided, food, clothing, the duty of marriage, he shall not diminish. “And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money.” (verse 11) If he doesn’t take care of her, she’s free, all debts are forgiven. And what a terrible thing to put your daughter through. [The laws of other lands concerning women allowed them to be treated like chattel, a mere possession of the men. God through his laws, is placing protections for the women, essentially raising their status in society. The Law of God given in Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy was the basic Constitution for the nation of Israel, and will yet be the future Constitution for all the nations of the world during the Millennial Kingdom of God on earth. So pay attention folks, because that Kingdom is coming to a planet you live on real soon. Notice, as we go through these laws, it made it totally unnecessary to create a prison system. Thieves paid for what they stole, 5 oxen for an ox, 4 sheep for a sheep, and if you couldn’t pay the debt incurred for your thievery, you were sold to the person you stole from as a bondservant, to serve no more than six years. If you killed someone, premeditated murder, the death penalty took care of you, still no prison systems needed. As we’ll see, manslaughter was handled in such a way that still no prison system was needed. Bondservants yielded great wealth as free labour to those who owned them for that six years. Society prospered as a whole under this system, as we’ll see. Also this word “sell” is referring to the dowry price for a bride. The bride kept this dowry price paid for her as a kind of Life Insurance if the husband died or divorced her, dumped her.]

Laws For Murder & Manslaughter

“He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death.” (verse 12) This is premeditated manslaughter [murder]. If someone smites another man (or woman), the reason being, so that he dies, trying to kill him on purpose, he shall surely be put to death. Putting value on life, he had given a commandment “Thou shalt do no murder,” and now he’s qualifying exactly what these things mean. Look, verse 13, “And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into his hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee.” So this is involuntary manslaughter. If something happens, you get into a fistfight, get into a tussle with somebody, he get’s knocked down, hits his head on the curb, something goes wrong, it wasn’t premeditated, you hadn’t started out that way, it takes place. We’re going to read that there were Cities of Refuge that God would set up, and if you killed someone, if it was involuntary manslaughter, it says if you’re swinging your ax, the ax head flies off and kills somebody, it happens by accident, it’s not done intentionally, there were no police then, there was no FBI, the family had a member, the oldest male who would be considered the avenger of blood. And he would go after that person to avenge the death of the family member. But God says there’s a city for him to flee to. They all have interesting names, by the way, they have to do with God’s peace and God’s care. When he would come to the city, and the situation was examined, if it was premediated manslaughter, he was put out and was put to death. If he comes to the city and says ‘I was chopping wood, the ax head flew off and it killed this guy, I hadn’t intended, it was a friend of mine, I didn’t do it on purpose.’ Then he was put into the city of refuge, the avenger of blood could not touch him. And very interestingly is says that he had to stay within those gates and he was protected, until the high priest died. Whatever year it was when the high priest died, then he was to go out free. And what a picture of course that is of our High Priest dying for us, and our sins being forgiven, and we’re allowed to go out free (see https://unityinchrist.com/hebrews/Hebrews5-1-14.htm where Paul describes Jesus, Yeshua as being our High Priest). So we’re going to hear more about the place wither he shall flee later as we continue to move through the Law. On the other hand, “But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die.” (verse 14) So if he deliberately kills the person, presumptuously, and then he flees to the altar for sanctuary, God says here, you take him from my altar, there’s no refuge, that he may die. Now of course, the greatest king that the nation would see, David. Very interesting, because three generations before that, Ruth, his great, great grandmother was a Moabite, the Law said no Moabite shall be allowed to worship among the people, considered part of the stock of Israel until the 10^th generation [but Boaz married her, so you know in the US how an American citizen can marry a foreigner, and that foreigner then has almost immediate access to becoming a citizen. That’s what happened with Ruth, I suspect, in an unofficial kind of way.] Three generations from Ruth, Jesse’s son David becomes king. He will commit murder and adultery, both of them a capital crime. And he will say ‘Sacrifice and offering thou hast not desired, or I would have offered it,’ there was no offering, sin offering, for murder or for adultery. But he said ‘A broken and a contrite spirit are the acceptable sacrifices of the LORD,’ very interesting. We’ll be there in about five years, so just stick with us as we journey through the Old Testament.

More Safeguards Placed Around Family, And Powerful Laws Against Kidnapping

Verse 15 says “And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death.” That would thin out our ranks a little, wouldn’t it. The Law said to honour your mother and father, that there was a promise, that it might go well with you, that you might live long upon the land. Well he starts to give them some details, if you hit them, if you smite your father or mother, you’ll surely be put to death. “And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.” (verse 16) Kidnapping was a capital crime. I got nothing against that. I got kids, I got grandkids, anybody tries to steal them, I got enough Rambo in me to hunt them down, you know. Kidnapping was a capital offense, and should be. Just interesting to hear what God says, the value he puts on life. [If you want to see just how bad it’s gotten with human trafficking of children as sex slaves around the world, see The Fight Against Worldwide Child Slavery & the Sex Trade | Jim Caviezel and Tim Ballard | EP 372 (1.5 hour interview) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTBGNEliczc O.U.R. https://ourrescue.org/ Sound of Freedom: New Film Exposes the Dark Truths of Human Trafficking (Tony Robins) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_KrodgVkfs Robbins helped raise money for Operation Underground Railroad, a nonprofit organization that works with governments to fight against child trafficking and slavery with the assistance of former CIA, Navy SEALs, and Special operations operatives.^[24]^[Wikipedia] ] Look at verse 17, “And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.” We just trimmed down a bit more there, didn’t we. My poor parents, I think of some of the things I put them through, I’m so thankful that they got saved, and my dad’s in glory, my mom’s here every Sunday, and God sure can fix some things. Can’t he? He’s a reconciler, a redeemer, a restorer, he specializes in all of those things.

Personal Injury

Verse 18 says “And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed:” he’s laid up, he’s convalescing, “if he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.” (verses 18-19) So there was no workman’s comp, you were workman’s comp. So, if you were fighting, you got in a fight, you hit somebody with a rock, with your fist, and he’s laid up for the next three months and he can’t work, you pay the workman’s comp. It doesn’t say the whole tribes of Israel had to pay, it doesn’t say the guy’s whole family has to pay, the guilty pays. I’ve heard people twist this and use it to say the church pays, and foolishly handle God’s Word. It says the ‘individual who did the guilty thing would be responsible to pay until the person was really healed and back on his feet.’ “And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall surely be punished. Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.” (verses 20-21) At this point the punishment is not specific [I think the rabbis said it was also the death penalty]. Under Roman law if you were a Roman citizen and there were 60,000,000 slaves in Rome, you owned them, and if your slave burnt the gravy you could take him in the backyard, kill him and bury him in the yard. But this is the nation of Israel, “if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand;” that kind of cruelty, there will be punishment for it. And when we move a little further on we’re going to hear about an eye for an eye,’ it says literally here, ‘He shall be avenged,’ it seems it’s talking about the death penalty. “Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.” the servant that’s been beaten. It’s his possession, and if somebody beat their servant and he lived for a couple days and died, the person’s not punished, because obviously he didn’t intend to kill him. Tough issues. Isn’t it a shame that God would have to stoop down to someone, in a culture, where the first thing he says ‘If a servant comes in, he serves you, if he flourishes there, you can take him to the door of your house,’ that God knows there will be cruel masters, if you have somebody in your employment, they’re there to pay off the debt, you beat them for some reason, and you killed them, you’re gonna be killed, you’re going to be punished. If you beat them and they live for awhile and then die, and it’s apparent that you didn’t intend to injure them to that degree, then there’s some clemency.

Protection For The Unborn Child

“If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.” (verse 22) you got two men fist-fighting over whatever, men tend to do those things. And they hurt a women with child, as they’re wrestling, finally they bang into a pregnant woman, “so that her fruit depart from her,” she has a premature birth, “and yet no mischief follow” the child lives, “he shall be surely punished according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.” So, you’re fighting, you bang into a women whose pregnant, she goes into premature labour, the baby’s born, the baby’s ok, still the husband can say ‘This is the recompense I want, you did this, you have to pay this.’ And the judges, very interesting, look, as we go through here and we hear “the judges,” the Hebrew word is actually “elohim,” the gods, plural. They’re only called that because they are stewards over the Word of God, standing in the place of God, fulfilling the Word of God. And in that sense they are called “judges” or “elohim,” not deity obviously, but men who have responsibility to see that God’s Word is executed. But notice this, verse 23, “And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, and stripe for stripe.” (verse 23-25) God says if the premature birth, if the unborn child comes forward and dies, then the person who caused the death of the child, you trade life for life. God considers an unborn child a human life, and it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. God is God, he’s not up for election, he’s not going to be replaced. We enjoy the fact that God does not change in regards to the promises that he makes to us, the forgiveness he offers, the fact that he’s immutable, we appreciate that. Well God is the one who brought forth life, he’s he one who has a right to put a value on it. He says if the child dies, then you give life for life. Now we live in a very confused culture. You know, if you hit someone in a car, your car, if you hit a pregnant woman and the child dies, it’s considered vehicular manslaughter. You know, the government’s trying to decide whether partial-birth abortion is right, and for a while they were taking the lives of full-term children, but a child much younger than that that’s killed by a drunk driver, another driver, that driver is charged with vehicular manslaughter. So how is it that the unborn child, maybe only six months in the womb, killed in an accident is considered a human being, but when they bring him to the full-term and do the partial birth abortion it’s not considered murder. We live in a very, very confused culture, I’m glad we have a Rule Book that never changes, I’m glad we have a Rule Book that never changes. Verse 24 says “eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,” ah, this is talking about justice and not vengeance, ok. Somebody’s thinking ‘Oh boy,’ no, it’s saying there’s justice. They interpreted this as something that had to be fulfilled, it was mandated. Jesus didn’t teach it that way, he taught that we can forgive, we can turn the other cheek, that we can exercise grace. But the point is, there is to be justice. And Lady Justice is not to be blindfolded so she doesn’t know what in the world is going on, she’s supposed to be blindfolded so she’s impartial, and that’s what he’s talking about here. “life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, and stripe for stripe.” (verses 24-25)

Personal Injury Of A Slave, Bondservant

“And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go free for his eye’s sake. And if he smite out his manservant’s tooth, or his maidservant’s tooth; he shall let him go free for his tooth’s sake.” (verses 26-27) So if you have a servant, you get mad at him, you take a swing at him, you hit him with something, you knock his eye out or you knock her eye out, then it says you have to let that servant go free for the sake of their eye. “he shall let me go for his tooth’s sake,” now that seems a great way to get free to me, knock it out with a rock, have it in there, get your master mad, when he slaps you, spit your tooth out, much more willing to do that than my eyeball. [The Law of God here is providing protection for bondservants.] Isn’t it a shame that God has to stoop all the way down to us, he uses law, he reveals himself in glory as majestic and powerful and beautiful, and then he’s got to step down to take care of eyeballs and our teeth because of how mean we’ll be to each other if he doesn’t?

Laws On Death By Ox-Goring

Look, “If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit.” (verse 28) he’ll be acquitted, there’s no charge against the owner, he wasn’t responsible for the fact his ox was in a bad mood one day and gored somebody and killed them, so you put the ox to death. And you gotta love King James, “But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death.” (verse 29) “were wont to push” that means if he’s known to have a bad attitude in the past, this ox, if he had a reputation for pushing with his horns in time past, and it had been testified to his owners, his owner’s been warned, and he hasn’t kept him locked up, “but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death.” You and your ox are such good buddies, both of you go. So if you have an ox, it’s a mean ox, the ox has gored somebody else in the past, you’ve been warned and you don’t keep your ox locked up and the ox kills somebody else, then you and the ox get stone. Isn’t it a shame God has to stoop all the way down to make sure we get this straight? “If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.” (verse 30) So if the other family says ‘OK look, instead of killing the guy, we’d rather have $50,000 or $100,000 for the wife to be supported,’ that they can ask for a certain amount of money instead, and that could be offered. “Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him. If the ox shall push a manservant or a maidservant; he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.” (verses 31-32) Isn’t it interesting, the price of a gored slave, 30 shekels of silver, what Judas betrayed Jesus for, who was the ultimate gored slave, 30 shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. “And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit, and not cover it, and an ox or an ass fall therein; the owner of the pit shall make it good, and give money unto the owner of them; and the dead beast shall be his.” (verses 33-34) you’re digging a cistern, a place to store water, a deep hole. So you dig a big hole, you’re making a cistern, you don’t bother to cover it up, your neighbour’s ox falls into it, then you have to pay your neighbour the value of the ox, but you get to keep the dead ox, you have steak anyway. “And if one man’s ox hurt another’s, that he die; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of it; and the dead ox also they shall divide.” (verses 35) So if your ox and the neighbour’s ox get into a fight, your ox wins, kills your neighbour’s ox, then you don’t have to pay, look, you divide the money for the live ox, between the two of you, and then you cut the dead ox in half while it’s still fresh and everybody eats steak. “Or if it be known that the ox hath used to push in time past, and his owner hath not kept him in, he shall surely pay ox for ox; and the dead shall be his own.” (verse 36) Now this is another ox with a bad attitude. So if you have an ox, and your neighbour’s got a big bad ox and he’s got a bad attitude and he kills your ox, then your neighbour has to pay you for the ox, and then he gets to keep the dead ox. So then you get a brand new ox, and the other guy gets a lot of steak. God has to keep us honest, even with our oxen, it just blows my mind.”

Exodus 22:1-31

“If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. 2 If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him. 3 If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 4 If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall restore double. 5 If a man shall cause a field or a vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man’s field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution. 6 If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution. 7 If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, let him pay double. 8 If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour’s goods. 9 For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour. 10 If a man deliver unto his neighbour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it: 11 then shall an oath of the LORD be between them both, that he hath not put his hand unto his neighbour’s goods; and the owner of it shall accept thereof, and he shall not make it good. 12 And if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof. 13 If it be torn in pieces, then let him bring it for witness, and he shall not make good that which was torn. 14 And if a man borrow ought of his neighbour, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof being not with it, he shall surely make it good. 15 But if the owner thereof be with it, he shall not make it good: if it be an hired thing, it came for his hire. 16 And if a man entice a maid that is not betrothed, and lie with her, he shall surely endow her to be his wife. 17 If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins. 18 Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live [treason against the government of God]. 19 Whosoever lieth with a beast shall surely be put to death. 20 He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed [treason again]. 21 Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. 22 Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. 23 If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; 24 and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless. 25 If thou lend money to any of my people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury. 26 If thou at all take thy neighbour’s raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it unto him by that the sun goeth down: 27 for that is his raiment for his skin: wherein shall he sleep? and it shall come to pass, when he crieth unto me, that I will hear; for I am gracious. 28 Thou shalt not revile the gods [judges], nor curse the ruler of thy people. 29 Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me. 30 Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me. 31 And ye shall be holy men unto me: neither shall ye eat any flesh that torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs.”

Laws About Theft & Thieves

“If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.” (verse 1) [Notice this about these Laws of God we’re looking at: the greater the value of the theft, the higher price the thief had to pay. Successful thieves paid way more in restoration penalties than dumb thieves, notice that. Also there were no jails or prisons for thieves, costing society. They restored five oxen for one stolen ox, and four sheep for one stolen sheep, the owner who was stolen from made out from getting robbed, and society didn’t have to pay for a costly jail or prison system. Of course, if the thief couldn’t pay off his debt, he was sold to the person he stole from as a bondservant, slave, and served for six years before being set free, again, no prison, no jail. Also the owner made out quite well, having free labour of a bondservant, slave for six years. No lost productivity there. If someone murdered someone else, that person was stoned to death, again, no prisons, society doesn’t pay for crime, the criminals do, according to the Laws of God.] “If a man shall steal an ox,” he gives the Ten Commandments, and then he says ‘I better elaborate on this, because, you know.’ “If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.” (verse 1) Now you’re going to think twice about stealing an ox, most people could only afford to have one ox, it was like having a tractor. If you knew, ‘Hey, I steal this guy’s ox and get caught, I got to supply five oxen back to him,’ you’re really going think twice about that. “If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.” (verse 2) he’s breaking in. Now verse 2 is going to be, the idea is, at night, you can’t see. “If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.” that’s justifiable homicide, you’re in your barn at night, you’re outside, all this is going on, you get into a confrontation with somebody [on your own property, of course] there at night in the dark, trying to steal and you hit him, and that person dies, it says that the person that is being robbed is not to be held responsible for his blood. But verse 3 says “If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.” So it says if somebody’s stealing your ox or your sheep during the daytime, you shouldn’t go out and kill him, because he’s going to have to give you five oxen for the one ox or four sheep for the one sheep, so there’s no excuse to kill him during the day, because you’re going to come out ahead, that’s what God’s Law says. “If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall restore double.” (verse 4) So if you get your ox back or your sheep back, you get the one you had and another two [i.e. dumb thief pays less restitution]. If you don’t get it back then you get five or you get four for the one that was taken. Keep this straight, because somebody here in church, I don’t want to have to get involved if they steal your ox or your sheep, we’ve been through this, you settle this yourselves. [He’s joking, of course.]

Property Damage

“If a man shall cause a field or a vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man’s field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution.” (verse 5) So God says, why does God have to tell us this? Your neighbour goes on vacation to Florida, he’s golfing for a week. So you take your ox or your sheep and you let them graze in your neighbour’s vineyard or your neighbour’s field, your neighbour comes home, everything is chewed up, then you have to restore with the best of your own stuff to give back to make payment to your neighbour. Doesn’t God know what we’re like? Isn’t it something? “If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.” (verse 6) And they would burn the fields sometimes in those days, kill off the weeds, it would improve the soil, it would get rid of rodents and so forth. “If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.” (verse 6) so if you’re burning something and it burns your neighbour’s field down, you have to make good. “If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, let him pay double.” (verse 7) “or stuff,” that takes everything else in. Isn’t it interesting, they had stuff then, we have stuff now, they had stuff then too. [The King James 1611 Middle English word “stuff” comes from the German and Old English word “stoff,” which is still currently “stoff” in German now.] If you deliver to your neighbour money or stuff to keep, now you’re going somewhere, you give your neighbour a certain amount of money [now this is before banks] or a certain amount of stuff, your antiques, something, ‘Watch this for me,’ while you’re gone, “and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, let him pay double.” (verse 7b) So you give something to your neighbour to watch for you, you go on vacation, when you come back you find out it got stolen, but they catch the thief, then the thief has to repay you double. “If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour’s goods.” (verse 8) So if you let your neighbour hold money or watch some of your possessions, and you come home and your neighbour says ‘You know I really feel bad, while you were gone somebody broke in, and they didn’t take any of my stuff, they stole all your stuff for some reason.’ Then it says the man has to be brought to the judges, the judges hear the case and decide whether this guy just ripped you off, whether he had his friends steal it, not that any human would ever do such a thing, but God is making sure here. “For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour. If a man deliver unto his neighbour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it:” the animal disappears or it gets killed by a lion, “then shall an oath of the LORD be between them both, that he hath not put his hand unto his neighbour’s goods; and the owner of it shall accept thereof, and he shall not make it good.” (verses 9-11) What is says is, if you go away and you leave your ox or your sheep with your neighbour to watch, and I’m assuming you know your neighbour well enough, you do that, there’s a level of trust. And while you’re gone the ox runs off or a lion kills it or something, and you come back, and the neighbour says ‘I feel terrible, the animal disappeared or a lion killed it,’ then you have to be willing to go and make an oath of the LORD. And that oath was basically ‘I had nothing to do with this, or let me be anathema, let me be judged of God.’ And it says if your neighbour’s willing to do that, you take that as his word, he’s not accountable, it wasn’t his fault, a lion drove off the animal or the animal took off or something, had a mind of its own. “And if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof.” (verse 12) If he was irresponsible, supposed to be watching your animal and it got stolen and it’s his fault, then there is a repayment. “If it be torn in pieces, then let him bring it for witness, and he shall not make good that which was torn.” (verse 13) So if he says ‘I went out in the morning, it was all ripped apart by a lion,’ the guy says ‘Well let me see it,’ so they drag the ox in all mangled up, and the judges say ‘Ya, ok, we get the point here.’ “And if a man borrow ought of his neighbour, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof being not with it, he shall surely make it good.” (verse 14) If he borrows something, if you borrow, people have borrowed books from me, and the way they come back sometimes, looks like they went all the way back to Whitfield to visit him before they came back to me again or something. You know the way some people, they borrow once, and that’s the end of their borrowing career with you. “And if a man borrow ought of his neighbour, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof being not with it, he shall surely make it good.” you know, you borrow something and you bring it back in pieces, you make good. “But if the owner thereof be with it, he shall not make it good: if it be an hired thing, it came for his hire.” (verse 15) If your neighbour says ‘Hey, how about if I rent your tractor for a week,’ and you’re there with it and something happens, then your neighbour that was using it doesn’t have to make good, because it was for hire.

Having Sex With An Unmarried Woman Who Is A Virgin

“And if a man entice a maid that is not betrothed, and lie with her, he shall surely endow her to be his wife.” (verse 16) Now this is a virgin. We come against crimes against humanity, more pointed. And he lies with her, he has sex with her, “he shall surely endow her to be his wife.” So this is where the shotgun wedding came from, right here. If a man entices a young girl, who is a virgin, and there’s sexual intimacy, he shall surely endow her to be his wife, he pays the father of the girl the price of an endowment, which is kind of alimony in advance or something. “If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins.” (verse 17) if the father says ‘No way, you’re a creep, you took my daughter, I should strangle you, I should get my old ox with a bad reputation and let him loose on you,’ or something. “If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins.” Because certainly it would be more difficult for her to get married at any point in the future, because she was not a virgin on her wedding day.

Idolatry, Witchcraft Is Treason Against God’s Government

“Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.” (verse 18) [Witchcraft and idolatry is treason against God’s government. In days of old when knights were bold, in Merry Olde England, treason against the king brought an automatic death sentence. Same goes for treason against God’s government.] That’s just short and sweet, not a lot of, white witch, black witch, doesn’t matter, ‘Oh, I’m a white witch,’ not back then, you’re a dead witch, white witch, black witch, sandwitch, whatever you were, you’re gone then. Just thou shalt not suffer a witch to live, short and sweet. “Whosoever lieth with a beast shall surely be put to death.” (verse 19) Bestiality, shall surely be put to death. It was common in Egypt, among the Canaanites. “He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed [treason again].” (verse 20) Idolatry was a capital offense, worshipping a false god.

You Are Not To Vex Foreigners In The Land, Fatherless or Widows

“Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.” (verse 21) God says remember, if there’s a foreigner among you, you treat him fairly, don’t vex him, don’t oppress him, you remember what the taskmaster’s whip did to you in the brick kilns in Egypt, you’re not going to be like the Egyptians. [It’s actually prophecied in one or two of the Old Testament Books of the Prophets that Israel will actually have open borders, and any foreigner, stranger, who desires to become a citizen of Israel is to be granted instant citizenship, and he or she is free to settle in whichever tribe of Israel they desire to settle in, and receive an inheritance in the land. It’s really quite damning that the U.S. for nigh on 45 to 50 years destabilized and brought militaristic right-wing governments which were favourable to American Big Business into all the Latin America nations, and now because of that there’s a huge number of the poverty-stricken refugees amassing at the U.S. borders, seeking refuge, and we’re trying to turn them back, after messing them over so badly (see https://unityinchrist.com/topical%20studies/America-ModernRomans4.htm.) God’s government will allow no such thing to occur.] “Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.” (verses 22-24) ‘He will keel you man,’ you know, look, this to me, to take advantage of a widow or an orphan, I can’t imagine anything more despicable. And it’s so wonderful to hear the LORD stoop down to this kind of human suffering, and say ‘Nobody is going to take advantage, afflict a widow or a fatherless child.’ “If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.” Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, smiting for smiting, there will be justice from my end, God says. (We’ll get to the end of chapter 22.) “If thou lend money to any of my people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury.” (verse 25) God’s saying ‘I don’t want you to collect interest.’ [Comment: Some commentators say, there go the banks for a good long while, as most of Israel was poor, and when the Millennial Kingdom of God gets started, most the world will be in poverty coming out of World War III, so there go the banks. God’s government, and it’s laws are laws that promote cooperation, mercy and judgment, promoting those qualities, instead of Satan’s way of get, competition.] If it is on your heart, and you lend money to one of your brethren that is down and out, God’s saying ‘I don’t want you to be like the money-lenders, like a banker, I don’t want you to charge them interest.’ “If thou at all take thy neighbour’s raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it unto him by that the sun goeth down: for that is his raiment for his skin: wherein shall he sleep? and it shall come to pass, when he crieth unto me, that I will hear; for I am gracious.” (verses 26-27) Ah, the poor, sometimes with no money, with nothing else but the clothing on their back, would give that as a pledge, would say to somebody ‘Look, I’ll give you this, this is all I have, my garment, you take this for a loan, by the end of the day I’ll repay you, I need this loan,’ or whatever it might be. It says “If thou at all take thy neighbour’s raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it unto him by that the sun goeth down: for that is his raiment for his skin: wherein shall he sleep? and it shall come to pass, when he crieth unto me, that I will hear; for I am gracious.” (verses 26-27) If a man is so poor that all he’s got to give is the clothes on his back, and he says ‘Just hold these, lend me this money, let me take care of this, I’ll work, I’ll pay this back,’ it said when the end of the day came and it got dark and it started to get cool, God says ‘You make sure and get him, whatever the circumstances are, the impoverished, you get him his clothes back by the end of the day, because that’s all he has to cover his skin.’ it’s his house, it’s his clothing, his blanket, his sleeping bag, it’s everything, ‘because if he cries unto me, God says, I’m going to hear him, for I am gracious.’

Law Of The Firstfruits

“Thou shalt not revile the gods [judges], nor curse the ruler of thy people.” (verse 28) King James “gods,” the “judges,” it’s the word that’s been used throughout, no contempt of court. There was to be order. So he says to the people of Israel, who will be dealing with the judges, who will be meting out God’s justice according to God’s Word. “Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me. Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me.” (verses 29-30) God wants our best he says, when it comes to offering, your firstfruits, when the blessing comes in the field, the first things I want offered to me [by offering it to God, they would be offering it or paying it to the Levitical priesthood for their welfare. This law of the firstfruits goes hand in hand with the tithe-offerings, a whole system, that was set up for the support of the Levitical priesthood and the Tabernacle. This system is explained at: https://www.unityinchrist.com/gifts4.htm]. The firstborn son of course was redeemed, five shekels was the redemption price throughout their history, the firstborn son was not to be obviously sacrificed, but he was to be offered to the LORD, and then the price of redemption was to be paid. [Comment: the Prophet Samuel, the firstborn son of Hannah, was actually given to the LORD, to be a Nazarite, to be in the service of the LORD in his Tabernacle for the entirety of his life. That’s an example of a firstborn son actually being given to the LORD, without a redemption price being paid for him, one of a very few individuals where this was done, maybe Samson was one, a Nazarite from birth, and maybe also John the Baptist was one.] Ah, the firstborn lamb, the firstborn ox was to be sacrificed, and there was still a stipulation where they could be bought back with redemption money. But he says your firstfruits, the best, he says you’re going to give to me, “Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me.” (verse 30) it’ll be with the mother nursing.

What Is Holiness?

“And ye shall be holy men unto me: neither shall ye eat any flesh that torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs.” (verse 31) You are to be holy unto me, God says, I don’t want you eating roadkill. Why does he have to tell us that? [Ever see that bucket on the back of the station wagon of the Beverly Hillbillies, it was a roadkill bucket 😊] You don’t have to tell me that. Of course I’ve been with people, they’ll see a dead dear on the side of the road, they say ‘Pull over, see if it’s still warm.’ What, you’ve never had that experience? Never heard anybody say that? Slab of Lab, just the things on the side of the road. You shall be holy unto me, the LORD says, for I am holy. Look, holiness. And we’re going to talk about it as we go through. Holiness is simply this, God’s separate from anything else. There is the Creator and there is the creation, there’s nothing else, those are the only two things that exist [and in the spirit realm, angels are also created beings, spirit beings directly created by God before the material universe was created]. There is that which is God, and there is that which is not God. He is God, you are not. Neither am I. We are that which is not God. That makes him separate or holy. There is Creator, there is creation, there is God, there is that which is not God. That makes him holy. His love is a holy love, his grace is a holy grace, his forgiveness is a holy forgiveness, his Law is a holy Law. And he calls you and I to be holy, to be separate from this world, to be separate from a creation that’s out of order, that’s out of kilter, that is not submitted to him, that is not yielding to him. But he’s giving all of these rules and regulations [judgments and statutes] to the people, about their ox, about their sheep, about fist fighting, about the way they treat their parents, about the way they treat their servants, about the way they take somebody’s garment, how they treat a widow, what you do with a witch. And by the way, that was not just a mean woman, that was somebody who was a sorceress, it’s specifically talking about that. And he gives all of these directions because he wants us to be separate from the world. It’s upheld in the New Testament, it isn’t simply an Old Testament injunction, in 2^nd Corinthians, he says “Wherefore, come out from among them and be ye separate, sayeth the Lord, touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you. I will be a father unto you, you shall be my sons and daughters, sayeth the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” Same calling in the New Testament, that we would be different, that our standards would be different, our behaviour would be different, our attitudes would be different, the way we do things would be different. And by the way, you guys have done by and large a stellar job at that. We have, I think of someone driving past the church a few years ago on a Sunday morning, and sideswiped some cars, and was drunk, and some of you went out, it was your cars that were sideswiped, everyone was so gracious to him and so kind to him, even being drunk he recognized it. Of course the rest of us didn’t go out there. But the right ones were out there that day. He said he had never met people like that before, came back the next week, gave his life to Christ, he was an enforcer, a leg-breaker, his kids hated him, his grandchildren hated him, never saw him. He was a bad person, he came back the next week, gave his life to Christ, apologized to his sons, his daughters, his grandchildren, made up, and two weeks later dropped dead of a massive cardiac. And it was because somebody here was holy, somebody here acted different than the way people in the world act when an accident happens. And we’ve seen it over and over, sometimes you guys have just been spectacular. I’ve watched some difficult circumstances around here, and watched the church being the church and just stood around with tears in my eyes, ‘the church is spectacular, spectacular, what a beautiful Bride Jesus has.’ He says ‘be holy, I want you to be holy, I want you to be separate from all of this.’ ‘That’s why I instruct you all the way down to your kitchen, all the way down to your ox, all the way down to your sheep,’ that’s where people live, you know he’s going to say in another place, this is funny as you go on, he says ‘Look, if you come into your kitchen in the morning, and there’s a mouse, dead, in your pot where you store your grain, I want you to break the pot, I don’t want you to give the pot as a gift to someone else.’ [loud laughter], does he know us or not? He says ‘I don’t want you to put that in the dishwasher and then give it away for Christmas. If you find a dead mouse in there, please break it.’ I mean, isn’t it amazing that he has to stoop all the way down to us and say ‘Look, the mouse in the pot thing, I know someone’s going to come up, please.’ It’s amazing as we go along, the care, the concern that he has for us. But it’s a little bit embarrassing how he really knows us, as we look at some of these things. So I encourage you, read on into chapter 23, 24, as we’re moving to the priesthood, we’re moving to the description of the Tabernacle, which will be fascinating as we get there, the pictures of Christ that are there. And of course chapter 32, 34, where Moses comes up onto the mountain with Joshua, and the children of Israel worshipping the golden calf down in the valley, then God passing before the eyes of Moses, and Moses seeing the hinder part of God going by, all of his goodness, some of the most spectacular, spectacular scenes in the Old Testament. Read ahead, there’s some very remarkable things here. It’s not just ox and sheep and killing witches, you’re really going to like some of this. So read through as we go on. Let’s stand, let’s pray, we have an ending? We do, I want you guys to come up and end this thing [musicians]. And look, if you stole somebody’s sheep this week and you need to come up and pray afterwards, ah, you know, we don’t have oxen now, we have tractors, we have cars. We had, I don’t know if I should even tell this story. Should I tell this story? One of our folks not long ago ran into a place and left their car running outside, and the car drove away while they were in the store, with the purse, so we got and we called the cellphone that was left in there, and the person that took it answered, and we said ‘Look, what are you doing?’ and he said ‘I know, I really feel bad, I don’t want to get caught,’ so we made arrangements to meet them somewhere, and then went there to meet them, and they weren’t there. Jeff went, and came back, and then tried to call again, and actually broke into a call where he was fighting with someone he was engaged to, saying that he stole the car for her, and she was cursing him saying ‘Are you outa your mind!?’ so then they finally got him on the phone again, and he said ‘I saw the police cars there and I didn’t want get locked up, and I really feel bad,’ and Jeff said ‘Look, if you need money, if you need food or something, come, we’re a church, we have a pantry, we can give you, we’ll take care of you…(tape ends, sorry folks) [transcript of a connective expository sermon on Exodus 20:18-26, Exodus 21:1-36 and Exodus 22:1-31, given by Pastor Joe Focht, Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia, 13500 Philmont Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19116]