(Deuteronomy 21:15 - 21:21)
“Take this case: A man has two wives. He loves one wife, but not the other. He has sons by both wives, the elder son by the unloved wife. When the time comes for him to distribute his inheritance, he may not give the younger son, the son of the wife he loves, more than the son of the unloved wife, who is the elder. He must recognize the son of the unloved wife as his first born and give to him as his inheritance a double share of his possessions, for that son is first fruit of his father’s virility and the rights of the firstborn belong to him.
“A man has a headstrong and rebellious son who will not obey his parents even though they discipline him. In such a case, the father and mother should then take hold of the son and bring him to see the elders at the town gate. They will say to them, ‘Our son is headstrong and rebellious. He will not obey us. He is a glutton and a drunkard.” Then all the men of the town should stone the son to death. In this way they will purge such evil from the community. All Israel will hear of it and be fearful.”
Notes
1. The Jehovan laws for inheritance cannot be altered to conform to a man’s preference for one wife over another. The eldest son receives a double portion of his father’s possessions and property regardless of the father’s feelings toward the eldest son’s mother. Although this may be a serious abrogation of paternal power, there is a certain fairness here: the eldest son cannot be disinherited simply because his mother has a falling out with his father or the father becomes attached to some younger wife who has given him a son. This system engenders less familial conflict and is probably better for the stability of society. However, this is an interesting pronouncement considering the fact that Jehovah’s most devoted follower, Jacob (Israel), more or less disinherited his eldest son, favoring his younger children. (Joseph’s descendants ended up with the greatest legacy.) The eldest son of Abraham, Ishmael, was disinherited in favor of Isaac, because Abraham preferred his mother Sarah to Ishmael’s mother Hagar. And Isaac was tricked into giving the blessing of the firstborn to Jacob, instead of to his eldest son Esau. Moses’ eldest son Gershom had his place taken as his father’s inheritor by Joshua. This passage clearly illustrates the common disconnect between the laws that Jehovah sets down for his people and the actions of the leaders of his Chosen People.
2. Rebellious sons pay a high price in Israelite society, the death penalty. The most serious transgression, that is, those mentioned, are gluttony and drunkenness; for these faults a son may be executed. There is no mention of a son who is a liar, a thief, a wastrel, or of being lazy and good for nothing, but one could presume that if the parents got fed up with him they could take him to see the town elders and persuade them to have the menfolk of the town stone the son to death -- a facile solution to problems of parenting. No word yet on the fate of rebellious daughters.
Friday, April 22, 2016
Marriage to a Female Captive
(Deuteronomy 21:10 - 21:14)
In the event that you go to war and Jehovah your god delivers your enemies into your hands and you take some of them as captives, you may find among them a beautiful woman that you are attracted to and wish to marry. In such a case, you may take her to your home, shave her head and pare her nails and have her change out of the clothes she was wearing when she was taken captive. She can remain in your home for a full month mourning her father and mother. After that time, you may marry her; you will be her husband and she will be your wife. However, if she does not satisfy you, you may release her and she may go where she wishes. You must not sell her nor must you treat her as a slave, even though you have forced her to become your wife.
Notes
1. It seems almost out of character for Jehovah to sanction marriage between an Israelite man and a foreign woman captured in war, considering his extreme xenophobia and his expressed priority of keeping his Chosen People away from exotic influences. It seems a contradiction to earlier pronouncements.
2. The question is unanswered whether a marriage to a foreign captive of war has the same standing as a marriage to a fellow Israelite. Divorce in the former case seems to be without restrictions or ceremony.
3. While the former captive is more or less impressed into marriage (there is no consideration as to whether the woman wishes the marriage or not), she does achieve through the marriage with an Israelite a status higher than that a slave who is bought and sold. But after she has been divorced and can go her own way, what is her destiny, what opportunities are open for her -- employment, another marriage? How would Israelite society regard somewhat of her background?
In the event that you go to war and Jehovah your god delivers your enemies into your hands and you take some of them as captives, you may find among them a beautiful woman that you are attracted to and wish to marry. In such a case, you may take her to your home, shave her head and pare her nails and have her change out of the clothes she was wearing when she was taken captive. She can remain in your home for a full month mourning her father and mother. After that time, you may marry her; you will be her husband and she will be your wife. However, if she does not satisfy you, you may release her and she may go where she wishes. You must not sell her nor must you treat her as a slave, even though you have forced her to become your wife.
Notes
1. It seems almost out of character for Jehovah to sanction marriage between an Israelite man and a foreign woman captured in war, considering his extreme xenophobia and his expressed priority of keeping his Chosen People away from exotic influences. It seems a contradiction to earlier pronouncements.
2. The question is unanswered whether a marriage to a foreign captive of war has the same standing as a marriage to a fellow Israelite. Divorce in the former case seems to be without restrictions or ceremony.
3. While the former captive is more or less impressed into marriage (there is no consideration as to whether the woman wishes the marriage or not), she does achieve through the marriage with an Israelite a status higher than that a slave who is bought and sold. But after she has been divorced and can go her own way, what is her destiny, what opportunities are open for her -- employment, another marriage? How would Israelite society regard somewhat of her background?
Communal Atonement for an Unsolved Murder
(Deuteronomy 21:1 - 21:9)
“If, when you have settled in the land Jehovah your god is giving you, you find someone dead in the fields and it is not known who may have killed him, your elders and judges should come out into the field and measure the distance from it to nearby towns. The elders of the town nearest to where the man was slain should take a heifer, one that has never been worked or worn a yoke, and lead it into a valley that has never been plowed or planted and where there is a flowing stream. There, in the valley, they should break its neck. The Levite priests should should be present, for Jehovah your god has charged them to minister to him and to make blessings in his name, as well as to settle with their pronouncements all disputes and all matters involving assaults. All the elders of the town nearest to where the man was slain should wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley, and they should proclaim, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes witness its shedding. Accept, O Jehovah, this atonement for your people, Israel, whom you, Jehovah, have redeemed, and do not hold your people guilty of shedding the blood of an innocent person.’ The murder will then be atoned for and you will have purged yourself from the guilt of shedding innocent blood, since you will have done what is right in the eyes of Jehovah.”
Notes
1. An apparently murdered corpse is found in a field. No one knows how he came to be killed. This is what should then transpire. But it seems the instructions here foster some jumping to conclusions. What if it is unclear whether the dead man was murdered or died as a result of an accident? How can those examining the body know whether the man was murdered, or was killed in an honest fight or by someone acting in self-defense?
2. This section illustrates the concept of collective, communal guilt. Modern thinking would place the blame on the murderer alone and not on a community that was totally ignorant of the crime, even to the extent of not knowing whether the murderer was even a member of the community. The sacrifice of the heifer seems strictly primitive, witch-doctor stuff conforming to the dictate that blood must be atoned by blood, that a murder must be atoned by another murder (even if it be that of an animal), and that guilt must be washed away with blood. (Indeed, there seems to be no offense of Jehovan law that cannot be put right be killing some poor animal.)
3. No provision seems to be made for Israelites living in areas where there would no valley with a stream running through an untilled field. They would not be able to properly perform the atonement ceremony and apparently would be forever guilty of a crime they did not commit and had no knowledge of.
“If, when you have settled in the land Jehovah your god is giving you, you find someone dead in the fields and it is not known who may have killed him, your elders and judges should come out into the field and measure the distance from it to nearby towns. The elders of the town nearest to where the man was slain should take a heifer, one that has never been worked or worn a yoke, and lead it into a valley that has never been plowed or planted and where there is a flowing stream. There, in the valley, they should break its neck. The Levite priests should should be present, for Jehovah your god has charged them to minister to him and to make blessings in his name, as well as to settle with their pronouncements all disputes and all matters involving assaults. All the elders of the town nearest to where the man was slain should wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley, and they should proclaim, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes witness its shedding. Accept, O Jehovah, this atonement for your people, Israel, whom you, Jehovah, have redeemed, and do not hold your people guilty of shedding the blood of an innocent person.’ The murder will then be atoned for and you will have purged yourself from the guilt of shedding innocent blood, since you will have done what is right in the eyes of Jehovah.”
Notes
1. An apparently murdered corpse is found in a field. No one knows how he came to be killed. This is what should then transpire. But it seems the instructions here foster some jumping to conclusions. What if it is unclear whether the dead man was murdered or died as a result of an accident? How can those examining the body know whether the man was murdered, or was killed in an honest fight or by someone acting in self-defense?
2. This section illustrates the concept of collective, communal guilt. Modern thinking would place the blame on the murderer alone and not on a community that was totally ignorant of the crime, even to the extent of not knowing whether the murderer was even a member of the community. The sacrifice of the heifer seems strictly primitive, witch-doctor stuff conforming to the dictate that blood must be atoned by blood, that a murder must be atoned by another murder (even if it be that of an animal), and that guilt must be washed away with blood. (Indeed, there seems to be no offense of Jehovan law that cannot be put right be killing some poor animal.)
3. No provision seems to be made for Israelites living in areas where there would no valley with a stream running through an untilled field. They would not be able to properly perform the atonement ceremony and apparently would be forever guilty of a crime they did not commit and had no knowledge of.
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
Rules of Warfare
(Deuteronomy 20:1 - 20:20)
"When you go out to do battle with your enemies and face superior numbers of horses and chariots and an army larger than yours, have no fear, for Jehovah your god, who brought you out of Egypt, is on your side.
"When you prepare for battle, the priest should come forward and address the troops, saying to them, 'Hear me, O men of Israel! Today you are going out to do battle with the enemy. Fear not. Be not faint of heart. Do not panic or tremble before them, for Jehovah your god will be the one who will be fighting for you and he will bring you victory over your enemy.'
"The the officers of the army should address the troops and say, 'Has anyone here built a new house, but has not yet dedicated it? If so, you may go home, or else you may be killed in battle and someone else will live in it. Has anyone here just planted a vineyard and not eaten its fruit? If so, you may go home, or else you may be killed in battle and someone else will eat its fruit. Has anyone here just become betrothed to a woman, but has not yet married her? If so, you may go home, or else you may be killed in battle and someone else will marry her.' And they should also say, 'Is anyone here frightened or worried? If so, you should go home lest you put fear into the hearts of your fellow soldiers.' After the officers have finished addressing their troops, they should appoint unit commanders.
"When you advance to attack a town, you must first make the inhabitants an offer of peace. If they accept it and open the gates of the town to you, then the inhabitants will be subject to forced labor and serve you as slaves. But if they refuse the peace offer and are determined to resist, then you will besiege the town. When Jehovah your god has delivered the town into your hands, you will put every male inhabitant to the sword. The women and children, the livestock and all property within the town you will take as plunder. Enjoy the spoils of war Jehovah your god gives to you!
"This is how you will treat distant towns, not those of the country you are now entering. In the towns that are a part of your inheritance, you must exterminate every living thing. You must completely destroy them as a divine sacrifice -- the Hethites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, the Jebusites -- as Jehovah your god has commanded you to do. For if you do not, they will teach you to follow their despicable customs of worshiping other gods and cause you to sin grievously against Jehovah your god.
"When you are attacking a town and the siege to take it becomes protracted, do not destroy its trees by felling them with axes. You may partake of their fruit, but do not cut them down for your own use during the siege, for fruit trees are for the benefit of all. (Trees that you know are not fruit bearing may, however, be cut down and their wood employed in constructing siege works until the town with which you are at war falls.)"
Notes
1. In his obsession to micromanage every aspect of Israelite society, Jehovah must tell the priests and army commanders exactly what they must tell their soldiers as they go into battle. The priest must assure them that Jehovah will be fighting on their side and, therefore, victory is a forgone conclusion. But if Jehovah, a god who can perform any sort of miracle, is on their side, why do they need to fight at all and suffer unnecessary casualties? Can't Jehovah just destroy the Israelites' enemies as he (or someone else claiming the name Jehovah) destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah? Or is this too easy and Jehovah wants to make his people earn their victories?
2. The exhortation to battle to be delivered by the military commanders is hardly that which Shakespeare put in the mouth of Henry V or the speech delivered by Patton in the film of the same title. It is extraordinary that a commander, instead of stressing the importance and nobility of the fighting and encouraging his men to fight hard and be brave, would merely search for justifications to send his fighting men home. "Oh, you just got engaged, you're waiting for your vineyard to bear fruit, you bought a new house, or you have a nervous disposition, entertain some misgivings about fighting, or are simply an unmanly coward? That's perfectly all right. You can go home and leave the fighting to others." What an inspiring message! It is impossible to imagine any competent general or even an incompetent general from any country in any period of history uttering such a wimpy speech. And it is interesting that Jehovah does not inspire his people to courage and deeds of valor, but rather to plunder and pillage, to rape and enslave.
3. It is no surprise that the tolerance Jehovah exhibits towards the Israelite soldiers is not extended to the enemy. Those that surrender are made slaves, those that don't are made slaves as well, save that all the men, prisoners of war included, are slaughtered. But this applies only to peoples who live outside of the Promised Land. For the peoples living within the Promised Land Jehovah proffers no quarter whatsoever, for them genocidal extermination seems to be the order of the day. No respect for any Geneva Convention type protocols. It is remarkable then that all the peoples Moses mentions (Hethites, Canaanites, etc.) were not totally wiped out at an early date. Such was not the case, for biblical sources continue to mention them centuries later.
4. The annihilation of people already residing in the Promised Land seems to be justified as a preventive measure to ensure that the Israelites do not worship their gods. Jehovah’s primary interest always seems to be the preservation of his status as the sole Israelite god. No length is too great, nothing too extreme, too heinous that serves that end.
5. Jehovah at least passes muster as an environmentalist in forbidding the Israelites to cut down fruit trees. In the region, cutting down a fruit tree was almost as bad as poisoning a well. It simply wasn’t done, old chap! This is an interesting and rare occasion in which the immediate interests of the Israelites are subordinated by Jehovah to the interests of mankind in general.
"When you go out to do battle with your enemies and face superior numbers of horses and chariots and an army larger than yours, have no fear, for Jehovah your god, who brought you out of Egypt, is on your side.
"When you prepare for battle, the priest should come forward and address the troops, saying to them, 'Hear me, O men of Israel! Today you are going out to do battle with the enemy. Fear not. Be not faint of heart. Do not panic or tremble before them, for Jehovah your god will be the one who will be fighting for you and he will bring you victory over your enemy.'
"The the officers of the army should address the troops and say, 'Has anyone here built a new house, but has not yet dedicated it? If so, you may go home, or else you may be killed in battle and someone else will live in it. Has anyone here just planted a vineyard and not eaten its fruit? If so, you may go home, or else you may be killed in battle and someone else will eat its fruit. Has anyone here just become betrothed to a woman, but has not yet married her? If so, you may go home, or else you may be killed in battle and someone else will marry her.' And they should also say, 'Is anyone here frightened or worried? If so, you should go home lest you put fear into the hearts of your fellow soldiers.' After the officers have finished addressing their troops, they should appoint unit commanders.
"When you advance to attack a town, you must first make the inhabitants an offer of peace. If they accept it and open the gates of the town to you, then the inhabitants will be subject to forced labor and serve you as slaves. But if they refuse the peace offer and are determined to resist, then you will besiege the town. When Jehovah your god has delivered the town into your hands, you will put every male inhabitant to the sword. The women and children, the livestock and all property within the town you will take as plunder. Enjoy the spoils of war Jehovah your god gives to you!
"This is how you will treat distant towns, not those of the country you are now entering. In the towns that are a part of your inheritance, you must exterminate every living thing. You must completely destroy them as a divine sacrifice -- the Hethites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, the Jebusites -- as Jehovah your god has commanded you to do. For if you do not, they will teach you to follow their despicable customs of worshiping other gods and cause you to sin grievously against Jehovah your god.
"When you are attacking a town and the siege to take it becomes protracted, do not destroy its trees by felling them with axes. You may partake of their fruit, but do not cut them down for your own use during the siege, for fruit trees are for the benefit of all. (Trees that you know are not fruit bearing may, however, be cut down and their wood employed in constructing siege works until the town with which you are at war falls.)"
Notes
1. In his obsession to micromanage every aspect of Israelite society, Jehovah must tell the priests and army commanders exactly what they must tell their soldiers as they go into battle. The priest must assure them that Jehovah will be fighting on their side and, therefore, victory is a forgone conclusion. But if Jehovah, a god who can perform any sort of miracle, is on their side, why do they need to fight at all and suffer unnecessary casualties? Can't Jehovah just destroy the Israelites' enemies as he (or someone else claiming the name Jehovah) destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah? Or is this too easy and Jehovah wants to make his people earn their victories?
2. The exhortation to battle to be delivered by the military commanders is hardly that which Shakespeare put in the mouth of Henry V or the speech delivered by Patton in the film of the same title. It is extraordinary that a commander, instead of stressing the importance and nobility of the fighting and encouraging his men to fight hard and be brave, would merely search for justifications to send his fighting men home. "Oh, you just got engaged, you're waiting for your vineyard to bear fruit, you bought a new house, or you have a nervous disposition, entertain some misgivings about fighting, or are simply an unmanly coward? That's perfectly all right. You can go home and leave the fighting to others." What an inspiring message! It is impossible to imagine any competent general or even an incompetent general from any country in any period of history uttering such a wimpy speech. And it is interesting that Jehovah does not inspire his people to courage and deeds of valor, but rather to plunder and pillage, to rape and enslave.
3. It is no surprise that the tolerance Jehovah exhibits towards the Israelite soldiers is not extended to the enemy. Those that surrender are made slaves, those that don't are made slaves as well, save that all the men, prisoners of war included, are slaughtered. But this applies only to peoples who live outside of the Promised Land. For the peoples living within the Promised Land Jehovah proffers no quarter whatsoever, for them genocidal extermination seems to be the order of the day. No respect for any Geneva Convention type protocols. It is remarkable then that all the peoples Moses mentions (Hethites, Canaanites, etc.) were not totally wiped out at an early date. Such was not the case, for biblical sources continue to mention them centuries later.
4. The annihilation of people already residing in the Promised Land seems to be justified as a preventive measure to ensure that the Israelites do not worship their gods. Jehovah’s primary interest always seems to be the preservation of his status as the sole Israelite god. No length is too great, nothing too extreme, too heinous that serves that end.
5. Jehovah at least passes muster as an environmentalist in forbidding the Israelites to cut down fruit trees. In the region, cutting down a fruit tree was almost as bad as poisoning a well. It simply wasn’t done, old chap! This is an interesting and rare occasion in which the immediate interests of the Israelites are subordinated by Jehovah to the interests of mankind in general.
Some Elements of Justice
(Deuteronomy 19:14 - 19:21)
"When settled in the land Jehovah your god has given to you as your inheritance do not move your neighbors’ boundary markers set up by your ancestors.
"One witness is insufficient to establish the guilt of a person accused of committing any crime or offense. Two or more witnesses are required to prove a case.
"If a malicious witness comes forward to accuse someone of a crime, then he, the accuser, and the accused must appear before the altar of Jehovah and present the case to the priests and judges serving in office at that time. The judges must conduct a thorough investigation, and if they find that the witness has accused his fellow Israelite falsely, then they must impose upon the false accuser the very sentence he sought for the man he accused. In this way you will purge such evil from your midst. The rest of the people will come to know of it and thus be so afraid that such an evil thing will never be done among you again. Show no pity: a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot."
Notes
1. The prohibition against the moving and manipulation of boundary markers addresses what would probably be an important area of contention among the Israelites, land claims. For the first few centuries of American history, the colonization of early New England, the settlement of the frontier, the conquest of the Old West, property disputes were always a major point of conflict. Surveying the land and setting up boundary markers and fences established claims to personal property. Apparently the Israelites, even if they held some property communally, knew the concept of personal property, if not individual, at least family ownership of land. (More primitive societies often do not understand such a concept. Native Americans, for instance, did not hold the same ideas about property that Europeans did. Land ownership did not really exist; the claim to land use was permitted only to the tribe, not the individual) It is unlikely, though, that the early settlers of the Promised Land, the descendants of Egyptian slaves, who had been a part of a nomadic society, would have shifted so quickly into the mindset of the agricultural society with fixed abodes and boundary markers, cities and towns, and settled land already divided among the tribes and clans and families. But it cannot be lost upon the reader that what is presented in the Books of Moses, the customs and traditions, laws and statutes, are unlikely to be relevant to a people just emerging from a nomadic existence.
2. Emphasized again are two concepts that are cornerstones of Jehovan justice. One is draconian punishments that make examples of wrongdoers in order to discourage and deter further wrong doing. Complimentary to this, although, one who think, often at odds with it, is the "eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth" guideline that allows for no clemency, no forgiveness, little consideration of extenuating circumstances, and no Christian mercy.
"When settled in the land Jehovah your god has given to you as your inheritance do not move your neighbors’ boundary markers set up by your ancestors.
"One witness is insufficient to establish the guilt of a person accused of committing any crime or offense. Two or more witnesses are required to prove a case.
"If a malicious witness comes forward to accuse someone of a crime, then he, the accuser, and the accused must appear before the altar of Jehovah and present the case to the priests and judges serving in office at that time. The judges must conduct a thorough investigation, and if they find that the witness has accused his fellow Israelite falsely, then they must impose upon the false accuser the very sentence he sought for the man he accused. In this way you will purge such evil from your midst. The rest of the people will come to know of it and thus be so afraid that such an evil thing will never be done among you again. Show no pity: a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot."
Notes
1. The prohibition against the moving and manipulation of boundary markers addresses what would probably be an important area of contention among the Israelites, land claims. For the first few centuries of American history, the colonization of early New England, the settlement of the frontier, the conquest of the Old West, property disputes were always a major point of conflict. Surveying the land and setting up boundary markers and fences established claims to personal property. Apparently the Israelites, even if they held some property communally, knew the concept of personal property, if not individual, at least family ownership of land. (More primitive societies often do not understand such a concept. Native Americans, for instance, did not hold the same ideas about property that Europeans did. Land ownership did not really exist; the claim to land use was permitted only to the tribe, not the individual) It is unlikely, though, that the early settlers of the Promised Land, the descendants of Egyptian slaves, who had been a part of a nomadic society, would have shifted so quickly into the mindset of the agricultural society with fixed abodes and boundary markers, cities and towns, and settled land already divided among the tribes and clans and families. But it cannot be lost upon the reader that what is presented in the Books of Moses, the customs and traditions, laws and statutes, are unlikely to be relevant to a people just emerging from a nomadic existence.
2. Emphasized again are two concepts that are cornerstones of Jehovan justice. One is draconian punishments that make examples of wrongdoers in order to discourage and deter further wrong doing. Complimentary to this, although, one who think, often at odds with it, is the "eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth" guideline that allows for no clemency, no forgiveness, little consideration of extenuating circumstances, and no Christian mercy.
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