One of the more well-known tenets of the Jewish Law was & still remains that all male children must be circumcised (see Genesis 17:9-12 & Leviticus 12:3). True to form, Jesus boldly commented on this regulation as well (though admittedly more subtly than usual – and even though Jesus himself was indeed circumcised in accordance […]
Providing another subtle-yet-potent point of contrast, where the Law demanded that every Jew in good standing hang a Mezuzah containing the Law’s primary commandments on his or her door (see Deuteronomy 6:9), Jesus made it clear that the true Child of God is essentially homeless (or residence-free; serving wherever there is a need & residing […]
Seeing as how one of the primary purposes underlying any legal codex is the preservation of the health of its citizenry – and seeing as how one of the primary additional purposes of the Jewish Law was the preservation of the spiritual purity of the same, it can come as little surprise that a significant […]
Though the Law proscribed a number of regulations pertaining to the sowing & reaping of crops (see Leviticus 19:19-24 & Deuteronomy 22:9-10 et al), Jesus rarely referenced the same – and then ever indirectly (see Matthew 8:37‘s “the harvest is plentiful, yet the laborers are few”, Luke 10:2‘s “ask the Lord to send out laborers […]
While the Law professed many regulations designed to ensure fair trade practices amongst all Jews – and thereby give all Israelites equal opportunities to accumulate monetary wealth, Jesus saw things in the economic realm quite differently. Consider … *Whereas the Law demanded that business be conducted fairly and that no one be defrauded when buying […]
The ancient Law of the Israelites, as might well be expected, was also in part designed to establish a system of justice that governed the prosecution of all suspected civil & criminal infractions. It mandated the appointment of judges in every Israelite community (see Deuteronomy 16:18), it required that all those accused of any legal […]
Though the Law did in significant part delineate the property rights of its Jewish citizenry (see Exodus 22:1-9, Leviticus 25:23-27, Leviticus 25:34, Numbers 27:8-11, Deuteronomy 19:14, Deuteronomy 22:1-3, & Deuteronomy 23:26 et al), Jesus – who more often than not spoke to those who were deprived, destitute, &/or disenfranchised; those for whom such concerns of […]
One of the primary purposes of any legal system is the setting forth of regulations designed to make a harmed party whole again (making reparations for damage done &/or paying retribution for losses caused), and such was the case for the Law of ancient Israel as well (see Exodus 21:18-35, Exodus 22:1-14, Leviticus 24:21, & […]
Penultimately, the ancient Law was also concerned with maintaining its own semblance of justice – by strictly proscribing a collection of “appropriate punishments” for various criminal infractions; essentially doing so under the primitive but then-still-moral rubric of “an eye for an eye.” (see Exodus 21:23-25, Leviticus 24:19-20, & Deuteronomy 19:21) And while the representatives of […]
Finally, the law of ancient Israel made it clear that false prophesy was not to be uttered and that false prophets were not to be followed (indeed, that they were to be executed – see Deuteronomy 18:20). That having been said, Jesus seemed to openly flaunt this edict – not only proclaiming himself to be […]
It is well worth remembering that Matthew 5:17 has Jesus clearly stating: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the prophets, for I have come not to abolish but to fulfill them.” As such, no examination of Jesus’ radical reform of the former (“the Law” – the 613 regulatory Mitzvot […]
;
