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The Torah portion מִּשְׁפָּטִים Mishpatim (Exodus 21–24) contains the “Book of the Covenant” (Ex. 24:7), which runs from Exodus 21–23. God’s directions are often referred to as מִצְוֹתָיו וּמִשְׁפָּטָיו וְחֻקֹּתָיו mitsvateiv umishpateiv v’khuqoteiv (Deut. 8:11, “His commands, His statutes and His ordinances”).
The word משפט mishpat can be understood to mean judgment, decision or case. Here are key examples the Bible of mishpat:
- Moshe (Moses) settled the משפט mishpat — case — on Zelophehad’s daughters’ inheritance (Num. 27:5).
- Yehoshua (Joshua) took over משפט before Eleazar the priest and Urim from Moshe (Num 27:21).
- Shlomo (Solomon) builds a אוּלָם הַמִּשְׁפָּט ulam ha-mishpat (hall of justice), i.e., a courthouse. We have also halls of justice in our country, which are set up to communicate fairness, continuity, impartiality and wisdom.
- Psalm 119 uses משפט in 22 places together with תורה torah. This could point to decisions that come from God also being as weighty and instructive as His commands and instructions.
Situational ethics only work when the founding principles are sound
Just as it was then, it is true today that it requires wisdom to put the Torah and the mishpat into practice in our daily lives.
The mishpatim (משפטים) are first situational, but principles underlie them. So, we must be careful in the Torah to determine what is for a given situation or for all situations.
Even today, it’s important to figure out whether a higher court’s ruling is “narrow,” only for a given case or specific situations, or “broad,” creating precedent for application of legal principle to other cases.
We see this with the writings of the apostle Paul as well. There are issues that he addresses that apply on a very narrow basis, but other issues he address that establish a precedent that should be followed by all communities that acknowledge Yeshua as Messiah.
Case law is wise situational application of principles: “If [insert bad situation], then do this.” That’s different from, “I want you to [insert bad situation].”
But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully, realizing the fact that law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching.
1Timothy 1:8-10 NASB
There are some in the body of Messiah who say that all of the Torah has been thrown out and are totally irrelevant to believers in Messiah. But fortunately, there are also many believers who understand that without the Torah, the New Testament has no foundation or relevance, either. Here’s an example of the latter:
A culture is always better served by following God’s examples of restitution, accountability, and restoration as a means of keeping the peace, as opposed to subjecting itself to vengeance, relativism, and leniency. The rights of victims come first, and they must be made whole and restored before restoration is granted to the perpetrator. And some crimes can be so heinous that restoration in this life just isn’t possible.
Steve Deace, Do What You Believe: Or You Won’t Be Free to Believe It Much Longer, Post Hill Press, 2021.
A thorny Bible issue: Slavery
The Sages determined that the “law of the Jewish slave” applied only in the Land of Israel and only within and active יוֹבֵל Yobel (Jubilee) system for release of debts and servitude, based on Lev. 25:39–46; Deut. 15:12–18. The point of the Yobel is a reminded that the “slaveowner” is not the real owner of his slaves, because they were commanded to be set free. It was a reminder that God is the owner of all.
Slavery has not gone away. Even though it’s no longer legal in the Americas or Europe, countries such as China, actively engage in slavery, interment camps, etc.
If you don’t own slaves, that the laws regarding slaves don’t apply to you. If you don’t have more than one wife, then the laws of polygamy don’t apply to you. Even though these laws may be irrelevant in the USA, they aren’t irrelevant elsewhere.
Because Heaven gave us the Torah and treats it seriously, we should do so as well.
The Shmitah (Sabbatical year) and the Yobel are “poison pills” to the institution of slavery, because the laws make owning slaves such a high burden that most people won’t want to engage in slavery.
The financial system of ancient times did not have a concept of credit as we have. In ancient times, the only source of credit was yourself and your children.
Heart of the matter on servitude
Remember when the Lord’s Prayer which says, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” or when Yeshua said that if we don’t forgive the debts owed to us, that God will not forgive our debts to Him?
When we read about why a father would sell his daughter to a wealthy family. Is he getting rid of an inconvenience or is he hoping for her to have a better, more comfortable life?
And when we look at the wealthy landowner, would be buy a poor girl because he wanted a slave to abuse and discard or does he want a daughter?
The Torah recognizes that poverty exists and these rules were probably set up as an alternative to families selling their daughters into prostitution.
Torah’s poison pill for slavery reaps its due of wicked hearts (Jeremiah 34:8-22)
The legal structures that were set up to help the poor, the widow and the orphan were being used to oppress and subjugate people.
Since they disregarded the shmitta and the yobel, God warns that they will send them to the subjugated to Babylon.
The lesson of this passage is that we are to have as much mercy on those needing mercy as God had on Yisrael in Mitsraim, as the people cried out to the LORD for mercy from that bondage.
Philemon: Prime cuts of Torah
The small but powerful New Testament letter called Philemon sheds some light on how employers are to deal with their employees.
Onesimus’ name means useful (Thayer), or handy (Jewish Annotated New Testament). According to the Archaeological Study Bible, Onesimus was a common name for slaves at the time.
Philemon 11 has a Greek pun (Expositor’s Bible Commentary):
- Useless (ἄχρηστος achrēstos, G890) vs. useful (εὔχρηστος euchrēstos G2173)
- The Septuagint (LXX) translates χρηστός chrēstos (G5543) as טוב tov.
- Linguists see a pun with the identically spelled Χριστός Christos (G5547, anointed), or Christ/Mashiakh.
So, Mashiakh turns one from being useless to Heaven into useful to Heaven.
The Master came as the LORD’s Servant
And the Mashiakh “did not come to be served, but to serve” (Matt. 20:20–28). In other words, Yeshua came to be a servant, not a master.
“whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”” (Matthew 20:27–28 NASB)
In the history of God’s people, we recall Abraham, who was a great chieftain, yet he lived as a servant to others. He willingly went to war and saved the kidnapped people of Sodom from slavery.
Later, God told Abraham, in a prophesy that his descendants would become slaves in Egypt but after they left Egypt, they would return to Canaan as masters of the land.
However, the Torah is explicit that the children of Israel were to remember their time as slaves in Egypt and that although they were given their freedom in Canaan, they were not to abuse their power over others. God warns the Children of Israel that if they abused the Torah to use it as a way to oppress people, that He would punish them by sending them to a foreign land as slaves themselves.
Paul instructs the slave Onesiumus to return to his master, regardless of the reason that caused him to run away. This was a hard instruction.
Both Philemon and Onesiumus became new men when they encountered the Messiah Yeshua. Now, the ball is in Philemon’s court as to whether he is going to treat Onesimus as a run away slave or as an equal, a brother in Messiah.
Paul, in his understated way, encourages both men to reconcile. He is nudging master and servant back together, desiring for them to consider one another as brothers.
Summary: Tammy