Scripture Daily

Context No. 152 of 4322 · Exodus

Context · Reflection

Exodus 22:14-18: in context

14“If a man borrows anything of his neighbor’s, and it is injured, or dies, its owner not being with it, he shall surely make restitution. 15If its owner is with it, he shall not make it good. If it is a leased thing, it came for its lease. 16“If a man entices a virgin who isn’t pledged to be married, and lies with her, he shall surely pay a dowry for her to be his wife. 17If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins. 18“You shall not allow a sorceress to live.

This passage is a short run from the case law of Exodus, and its subjects sit oddly next to each other: borrowed animals, seduction, and sorcery. Ancient law codes group by situation rather than by theme, and the join is instructive.

The first rule is about borrowing. If you borrow your neighbor's animal and it is injured or dies while the owner is not present, you make full restitution. If the owner was with it, you do not, because he was there and could see the conditions. If it was hired, the hire covers it. The distinction is about who was in a position to watch and to consent.

Then the seduction law, and the same logic runs through it. A man who seduces an unbetrothed girl must pay the bride price and marry her, and if her father refuses to give her, he pays the money anyway. In a world where her marriage prospects and therefore her security were destroyed, the law makes the man carry the cost he created, and gives the father a veto over the marriage. It is not a modern remedy. It is an ancient one that refuses to let the man walk away unencumbered. What have I taken the use of and returned in worse condition, counting on the fact that no one was watching?

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