The Strange Passage of Grace.

We all have that moment when we try to read the Bible cover to cover. We come to the strange passages of Exodus 21 and following. These laws seems so out of touch, so unlike the God we know throughout the rest of scripture. Many people lose their confidence in the scriptures when they read these passages. Many use them to deny the Bible completely. But there's something we can learn about God from even the challenging passages that don't seem to represent Him in the same manner that other passages do.

Exodus 21:20–27 (ESV) “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. 21 But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money. 22 “When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. 23 But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. 26 “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. 27 If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.

Here's what we know: The laws God lays down for slavery, murder and vengeance are all far better than any ancient code of morality we can find.

Here's what we must remember: These laws applied to the ancient covenant people of God for their beginnings.

Here's the point of all of it: God is very concerned about how we treat each other. The key verse is familiar to us. Exodus 21:24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth.

Jesus will use this very passage in the sermon on the mount to expound upon the true intention of the law. He says in Matthew 5:38–39 (ESV) “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Now if the commands of Exodus make us uneasy when we consider how far we have come as a civilized world, the explanation in the sermon on the mount makes us equally uneasy with a sense of injustice on our part. Are we called to be pushovers? 

We can't have it both ways. We can't decry the laws of the Old Testament on one side and then ignore Jesus' interpretation in the New Testament as being over the top leniency on the other side. 

So how is the scripture speaking to us? It is telling us that God's ways are far more grace-filled than any culture has ever accepted. We in this age consider Jesus' words to be far above what we are able to accomplish in our own senses of right and wrong. We are very much in favor of the punishment fitting the crime. So we are challenged to go to a higher level of grace toward one another in the New Testament words of Jesus just as Israel was challenged to adopt a much more gracious attitude through these (now archaic) laws of the Old Testament! 

Exodus 21 does matter to us! It reminds us that God is concerned that we represent His nature and character toward one another. Because "lex talionis" (eye for an eye) is fulfilled in Christ. He bears the full cost of our sins against God. He then turns his check toward us so that we do not feel the full punishment of our sins. We learn God's grace is greater than we realized. We bow in thankfulness. We worship Him for His goodness.

And hopefully, we live likewise to those who may hurt us. 

Because the world needs far less human conflict.