Exodus 21 -- The Laws

Exodus 21:1 “These are the laws you are to set before them:
2 “If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free, without paying anything. 3 If he comes alone, he is to go free alone; but if he has a wife when he comes, she is to go with him. 4 If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the woman and her children shall belong to her master, and only the man shall go free.
5 “But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children and do not want to go free,’ 6 then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life.
7 “If a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as male servants do. 8 If she does not please the master who has selected her for himself, he must let her be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, because he has broken faith with her. 9 If he selects her for his son, he must grant her the rights of a daughter. 10 If he marries another woman, he must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights. 11 If he does not provide her with these three things, she is to go free, without any payment of money.
12 “Anyone who strikes a person with a fatal blow is to be put to death. 13 However, if it is not done intentionally, but God lets it happen, they are to flee to a place I will designate. 14 But if anyone schemes and kills someone deliberately, that person is to be taken from my altar and put to death.
15 “Anyone who attacks their father or mother is to be put to death.
16 “Anyone who kidnaps someone is to be put to death, whether the victim has been sold or is still in the kidnapper’s possession.
17 “Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.
18 “If people quarrel and one person hits another with a stone or with their fist and the victim does not die but is confined to bed, 19 the one who struck the blow will not be held liable if the other can get up and walk around outside with a staff; however, the guilty party must pay the injured person for any loss of time and see that the victim is completely healed.
20 “Anyone who beats their male or female slave with a rod must be punished if the slave dies as a direct result, 21 but they are not to be punished if the slave recovers after a day or two, since the slave is their property.
22 “If people are fighting and hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman’s husband demands and the court allows. 23 But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.
26 “An owner who hits a male or female slave in the eye and destroys it must let the slave go free to compensate for the eye.27 And an owner who knocks out the tooth of a male or female slave must let the slave go free to compensate for the tooth.
28 “If a bull gores a man or woman to death, the bull is to be stoned to death, and its meat must not be eaten. But the owner of the bull will not be held responsible. 29 If, however, the bull has had the habit of goring and the owner has been warned but has not kept it penned up and it kills a man or woman, the bull is to be stoned and its owner also is to be put to death.30 However, if payment is demanded, the owner may redeem his life by the payment of whatever is demanded. 31 This law also applies if the bull gores a son or daughter. 32 If the bull gores a male or female slave, the owner must pay thirty shekels of silver to the master of the slave, and the bull is to be stoned to death.
33 “If anyone uncovers a pit or digs one and fails to cover it and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34 the one who opened the pit must pay the owner for the loss and take the dead animal in exchange.
35 “If anyone’s bull injures someone else’s bull and it dies, the two parties are to sell the live one and divide both the money and the dead animal equally. 36 However, if it was known that the bull had the habit of goring, yet the owner did not keep it penned up, the owner must pay, animal for animal, and take the dead animal in exchange.

I am not sure what to do with the law passages.  It is they way the Israelites were supposed to live their lives. They were to obey all of the laws set forth by God, with no exception.  Breaking these laws meant disobeying God.  We, today, do not live under these laws.  We have Christ, the fulfillment of the law.  As Christ said, we are to:

Matthew 22:37“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

All of the laws will be obeyed if we truly love God and our fellow man the way we should.

Exodus 20:22-26 -- Untitled

Exodus 20:22 Then the Lord told Moses, “This is what you are to say to the Israelites: You have seen that I have spoken to you from heaven. 23 You must not make gods of silver to rival Me; you must not make gods of gold for yourselves.

These verses seem to echo the first two commandments, to not have any other gods or to make idols to those other gods.  This chapter both begins and ends with this, so we ourselves must know it is important.  In Hebrew, important ideas are repeated though out the text to signify their importants.

Exodus 20:24 “You must make an earthen altar for Me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, your sheep and goats, as well as your cattle. I will come to you and bless you in every place where I cause My name to be remembered. 

These verses are instructing the Israelites to sacrifice and make alters to the Lord.  We know that sacrifice has been instituted since the beginning, starting after the first sin in the garden.  The Lord killed an animal to cloth Adam and Eve with.  The animal was a sacrifice for their sin in the garden.  They would continue to sacrifice and build alters, so this command should not be new to the Israelites.  Just look through Genesis to see that the forefathers did these things regularly.

Exodus 20:25 If you make a stone altar for Me, you must not build it out of cut stones. If you use your chisel on it, you will defile it.

Why this command?  Well God formed the stones.  He does not want them altered by sinful hands but placed in on the alter how He formed them.

Exodus 20: 26 You must not go up to My altar on steps, so that your nakedness is not exposed on it.

After reading this you may think about how God initially created humans naked, and wonder why He would not want their nakedness to show on his alter from beneath their garments.  Go back to Genesis, when the first sin occurred:

Genesis 3:6 Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.

The first thing that Adam and Eve realized when they ate the fruit was that they were naked.  They sensed it was wrong and shameful to be so and they created cloths for themselves.  Our nakedness is the revelation of our sin.  He does not want our exposed sins to defile his alter, like they defiled his garden.  Before sin, Adam and Eve did not need anything to hid behind.  They did not need clothing to cover themselves with because they were sinless.

Exodus 20:18-21 -- Scared People

Exodus 20:18 All the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain surrounded by smoke. When the people saw it they trembled and stood at a distance.19 “You speak to us, and we will listen,” they said to Moses, “but don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.”

The people of Israel were afraid of approaching their God.  It is understandable.  What if they sinned in his presence?  What if they were not respectful enough?  I can see why they would be scared to go near their Lord.  They knew that death would await anyone who disobeyed what God had said.  The loud noises also scared them.  They could hear God speaking.  Just think about when people see angels in scripture.  They must be told, "Do not be afraid."  Think of how much more frightful God is when he is so much higher than angels.

Exodus 20:20 Moses responded to the people, “Don’t be afraid, for God has come to test you, so that you will fear Him and will not sin.” 21 And the people remained standing at a distance as Moses approached the thick darkness where God was.

Here Moses does tell the people to not be afraid of God in this moment.  He has not come to pass judgement but to give them the law by which to live.  The people understood at that time that they could not approach God on their own and needed someone to speak for them.  This is why the Israelites needed priest, and we have Christ today.

1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God
and one mediator between God and humanity,
Christ Jesus, Himself human,
6 who gave Himself—a ransom for all,
a testimony at the proper time.

Christ is the mediator between God and the church.  Just look at the prayers we normally pray?  We always begin with "Dear God" or some other form of greeting, but always directed to God the Father.  Our prayers usually end with "In Christ's name, Amen." We pray to the God the Father through His son, Christ.