FEBRUARY 28

 

III. Laws of Special Crimes H

 

Crimes are normally defined as offenses against society (in contrast to civil wrongs, which affect only individuals). Crimes are typically punished by fines, imprisonment, and even death, whereas civil wrongs are remedied by various forms of restitution—usually monetary. In the theocracy of Israel, there are many offenses punishable by death which do not fall within traditional crime categories, and offenses which fall within traditional crime categories which are not punishable by death. There is no punishment by imprisonment at all. Theft, for example, is punished by a form of fine and restitution. (Therefore the special crimes category set forth below is arbitrarily based upon more tradi­tional classifications of offenses.)

To insure respect for human life, the most basic moral principle of life is given.

 

MURDER PROHIBITED Deut. 5:17     .    "You shall not murder.

 

A. Crimes Against the Person

 

  1. Homicide

 

PREMEDITATED MURDER. Ex.21:13-14  [Lev. 24:17, 24:21b]

"Anyone who strikes a man and kills him shall surely be put to death. However, if he does not do it intentionally, but God lets it happen, he is to flee to a place I will designate. But if a man schemes and kills another man deliberately, take him away from my altar and put him to death.

 

INTENTIONAL MURDER. Num. 35:20,21

If anyone with malice aforethought shoves another or throws something at him intentionally so that he dies or if in hostility he hits him with his fist so that he dies, that person shall be put to death; he is a murderer. The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death when he meets him.

 

MURDER BY INSTRUMENT. Num. 35:16-19

" 'If a man strikes someone with an iron object so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall be put to death. Or if anyone has a stone in his hand that could kill, and he strikes someone so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall be put to death. Or if anyone has a wooden object in his hand that could kill, and he hits some­one so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall be put to death.

 

ONE WITNESS INSUFFICIENT. Num.35:29,30

" 'These are to be legal requirements for you throughout the generations to come, wherever you live.

" 'Anyone who kills a person is to be put to death as a murderer only on the testimony of witnesses. But no one is to be put to death on the testi­mony of only one witness.

 

NO RANSOM FOR MURDERER. Num. 35:31

" 'Do not accept a ransom for the life of a murderer, who deserves to die. He must surely be put to death.

 

REASON FOR DEATH PENALTY. Num. 35:33,34

" 'Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land, and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell, for I, the lokd, dwell among the Israelites.'"

 

CRIME PREVENTION DEFENSE. Ex. 22:13a

 "If a thief is caught breaking in and is struck so that he dies, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it hap­pens/after sunrise, he is guilty of bloodshed.

 

MANSLAUGHTER. Num.35:22-25

" 'But if without hostility someone suddenly shoves another or throws something at him unintentionally or, without seeing him, drops a stone on him that could kill him, and he dies, then since he was not his enemy and he did not intend to harm him, the assembly must judge between him and the avenger of blood according to these regula­tions. The assembly must protect the one accused of murder from the avenger of blood and send him back to the city of refuge to which he fled. He must stay there until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil.

 

INNOCENT HOMICIDE. Deut. 19:4-6

This is the rule concerning the man who kills another and flees there to save his life—one who kills his neighbor unin­tentionally, without malice aforethought. For instance, a man may go into the forest with his neighbor to cut wood, and as he swings his ax to fell a tree, the head may fly off and hit his neighbor and kill him. That man may flee to one of these cities and save his life. Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue him in a rage, overtake him if the distance is too great, and kill him even though he is not deserving of death, since he did it to his neighbor without malice aforethought.

 

CITIES OF REFUGE. Num.35:9-15

Then the lord said to Moses: "Speak to the Israel­ites and say to them: 'When you cross the Jordan into Canaan, select some towns to be your cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed some­one accidentally may flee. They will be places of refuge from the avenger, so that a person accused of murder may not die before he stands trial before the assembly. These six towns you give will be your cities of refuge. Give three on this side of the Jordan and three in Canaan as cities of refuge. These six towns will be a place of refuge for Israelites, aliens and any other people living among them, so that anyone who has killed another acci­dentally can flee there.

 

THREE CITIES IN CANAAN. Deut. 19:1-3

When the lord your God has destroyed the nations whose land he is giving you, and when you have driven them out and settled in their towns and houses, then set aside for yourselves three cities centrally located in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess. Build roads to them and divide into three parts the land the lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that anyone who kills a man may flee there.

 

PROVISION FOR MORE CITIES. Deut. 19:7-10

This is why I command you to set aside for yourselves three cities.

If the lord your God enlarges your territory, as he promised on oath to your forefathers, and gives you the whole land he promised them, because you carefully follow all these laws I command you today—to love the lord your God and to walk always in his ways—then you are to set aside three more cities. Do this so that innocent blood will not be shed in your land, which the lord your God is giving you as your inheritance, and so that you will not be guilty of bloodshed.

 

RISK OUTSIDE CITIES. Num. 35:26-28

" 'But if the accused ever goes outside the lim­its of the city of refuge to which he has fled and the avenger of blood finds him outside the city, the avenger of blood may kill the accused without being guilty of murder. The accused must stay in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest; only after the death of the high priest may he return to his own property.

 

CITIES NOT FOR MURDERERS. Deut.19:11-13

But if a man hates his neighbor and lies in wait for him, assaults and kills him, and then flees to one of these cities, the elders of his town shall send for him, bring him back from the city, and hand him over to the avenger of blood to die. Show him no pity. You must purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, so that it may go well with you.

 

NO RANSOM FOR MANSLAYER. Num.35:32

 " 'Do not accept a ransom for anyone who has fled to a city of refuge and so allow him to go back and live on his own land before the death of the high priest.

 

2. Feticide

 

MISCARRIAGE ITSELF. Ex. 21:22

"If men who are fighting 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.

 

HARM TO MOTHER. Ex.21:23-25

 But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.

 

3. Kidnapping

 

KIDNAPPING PROHIBITED. ex. 21:16

"Anyone who kidnaps another and either sells him or still has him when he is caught must be put to death.

 

SPECIAL REGULATION. Deut. 24:7

If a man is caught kidnapping one of his broth­er Israelites and treats him as a slave or sells him, the kidnapper must die. You must purge the evil from among you.

 

4. Mayhem

 

DISFIGUREMENT. Lev.24:19,20

If anyone injures his neighbor, whatever he has done must be done to him: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. As he has injured the other, so he is to be injured.

 

MAIMING OF SLAVE. Ex.21:26,27

If a man hits a manservant or maidservant in the eye and destroys it, he must let the servant go free to compensate for the eye. And if he knocks out the tooth of a manservant or maidservant, he must let the servant go free to compensate for the tooth.

 

5. Rape

 

RAPE OF BETROTHED. Deut.22:25-27

But if out in the country a man happens to meet a girl pledged to be married and rapes her, only the man who has done this shall die. Do nothing to the girl; she has committed no sin deserving death. This case is like that of someone who attacks and murders his neighbor, for the man found the girl out in the country, and though the betrothed girl screamed, there was no one to rescue her.

 

WHEN NOT BETROTHED. Deut. 22:28,29

If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered, he shall pay the girl's father fifty shekels of silver. He must marry the girl, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.

 

6. Assault

 

STRIKING PARENTS.   Ex..21:15

   "Anyone who attacks' his father or his mother  is must be put to death.

 

PERMANENT INJURY. Ex.11:18,19

"If men quarrel and one hits the other with a stone or with his fist' and he does not die but is confined to bed, the one who struck the blow will not be held responsible if the other gets up and walks around outside with his staff; however, he must pay the injured man for the loss of his time and see that he is completely healed.

 

SURVIVING SLAVE. Ex.21:20,21

"If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property.

INTERFERENCE BY WOMAN. Deut.15:11,12

 If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.

 

B. Crimes Against Property

A person's property is also to be respected.,

 

 STEALING PROHIBITED.  Deut. 5:19

  "You shall not steal.

 

  1. Theft of Personal Property

 

PENALTY. Ex. 22:3b

"A thief must certainly make restitution, but if he has noth­ing, he must be sold to pay for his theft.

 

THEFT OF ANIMALS. Ex. 22:1,4

"If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he must pay back five head of cattle for the ox and four sheep for the sheep.

"If the stolen animal is found alive in his possession—whether ox or donkey or sheep—he must pay back double.

 

  1. Theft of Real Property

 

REMOVING LANDMARKS. Deut. 19:14

Do not move your neighbor's boundary stone set up by your predecessors in the inheritance you receive in the land the lord your God is giving you to possess.