Exodus 27:1-21 - The Shadow Temple Design

Exodus 27:1-21 

The Altar of Burnt Offering (Exodus 38:1–7)

1 “You shall make an altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide—the altar shall be square—and its height shall be three cubits. 2 You shall make its horns on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it. And you shall overlay it with bronze. 3 Also you shall make its pans to receive its ashes, and its shovels and its basins and its forks and its firepans; you shall make all its utensils of bronze. 4 You shall make a grate for it, a network of bronze; and on the network you shall make four bronze rings at its four corners. 5 You shall put it under the rim of the altar beneath, that the network may be midway up the altar. 6 And you shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze. 7 The poles shall be put in the rings, and the poles shall be on the two sides of the altar to bear it. 8 You shall make it hollow with boards; as it was shown you on the mountain, so shall they make it.

The Court of the Tabernacle (Exodus 38:9–20)

9 “You shall also make the court of the tabernacle. For the south side there shall be hangings for the court made of fine woven linen, one hundred cubits long for one side. 10 And its twenty pillars and their twenty sockets shall be bronze. The hooks of the pillars and their bands shall be silver. 11 Likewise along the length of the north side there shall be hangings one hundred cubits long, with its twenty pillars and their twenty sockets of bronze, and the hooks of the pillars and their bands of silver.

12 “And along the width of the court on the west side shall be hangings of fifty cubits, with their ten pillars and their ten sockets. 13 The width of the court on the east side shall be fifty cubits. 14 The hangings on one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets. 15 And on the other side shall be hangings of fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets.

16 “For the gate of the court there shall be a screen twenty cubits long, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver. It shall have four pillars and four sockets. 17 All the pillars around the court shall have bands of silver; their hooks shall be of silver and their sockets of bronze. 18 The length of the court shall be one hundred cubits, the width fifty throughout, and the height five cubits, made of fine woven linen, and its sockets of bronze. 19 All the utensils of the tabernacle for all its service, all its pegs, and all the pegs of the court, shall be of bronze.

The Care of the Lampstand (Leviticus 24:1–4)

20 “And you shall command the children of Israel that they bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause the lamp to burn continually. 21 In the tabernacle of meeting, outside the veil which is before the Testimony, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening until morning before the LORD. It shall be a statute forever to their generations on behalf of the children of Israel.

According to the heavenly pattern and forever al long as worship is done outside the veil, these shadows of the place of worship on earth as it is in heaven would remain and be maintained.  Now that the High Priest, the eternal Son of God greater than Melchizedek, has made the sacrifice not on Eve a year but once and for all, now these representations are no longer needed and indeed were removed when the Romans sacked Jerusalem in 70 AD.  The intricate design and meticulous use of the altar for daily and yearly sacrifices, the court of the temple of meeting with God by the mortal high priests, and the lampstand which was kept burning also outside the veil not yet torn (Hebrews 9:2-3, 10:19-20) to allow access to the Lord by all His children, all these were designed to demonstrate a awe of God and hint at the true representation of each in Christ Himself as our access to the Father (John 10:9, Romans 5:2, Ephesians 2:18, 3:9, 11-12) now.  These things therefore paved the way for the heavenly tabernacle where God does dwell, unlike the earthly shadow temple whose design we see executed here by human hands where He does not dwell (Acts 7:48, 17:24), to be moved to individual believers in whom the Spirit of God and Christ now lives and from where we worship Him in us as living sacrifices (Hebrews 12:1, 1 Peter 2:5) as the work of His hands and true place of worship together in His Son.  This temple then was a prelude to the true heavenly temple to be created in us in Christ.  Praise the Lord for the hidden mystery of the ages revealed (Colossians 1:27) in us in Christ as our hope of glory!  

Exodus 26:1-37 - Temple Tent Made with Hands

Exodus 26:1-37

The Tabernacle (Exodus 36:8–38)

1 “Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine woven linen and blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim you shall weave them. 2 The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits. And every one of the curtains shall have the same measurements. 3 Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. 4 And you shall make loops of blue yarn on the edge of the curtain on the selvedge of one set, and likewise you shall do on the outer edge of the other curtain of the second set. 5 Fifty loops you shall make in the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is on the end of the second set, that the loops may be clasped to one another. 6 And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains together with the clasps, so that it may be one tabernacle.

7 “You shall also make curtains of goats’ hair, to be a tent over the tabernacle. You shall make eleven curtains. 8 The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; and the eleven curtains shall all have the same measurements. 9 And you shall couple five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves, and you shall double over the sixth curtain at the forefront of the tent. 10 You shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain of the second set. 11 And you shall make fifty bronze clasps, put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together, that it may be one. 12 The remnant that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. 13 And a cubit on one side and a cubit on the other side, of what remains of the length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle, on this side and on that side, to cover it.

14 “You shall also make a covering of ram skins dyed red for the tent, and a covering of badger skins above that.

15 “And for the tabernacle you shall make the boards of acacia wood, standing upright. 16 Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half shall be the width of each board. 17 Two tenons shall be in each board for binding one to another. Thus you shall make for all the boards of the tabernacle. 18 And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side. 19 You shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards: two sockets under each of the boards for its two tenons. 20 And for the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, there shall be twenty boards 21 and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under each of the boards. 22 For the far side of the tabernacle, westward, you shall make six boards. 23 And you shall also make two boards for the two back corners of the tabernacle. 24 They shall be coupled together at the bottom and they shall be coupled together at the top by one ring. Thus it shall be for both of them. They shall be for the two corners. 25 So there shall be eight boards with their sockets of silver—sixteen sockets—two sockets under each of the boards.

26 “And you shall make bars of acacia wood: five for the boards on one side of the tabernacle, 27 five bars for the boards on the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the far side westward. 28 The middle bar shall pass through the midst of the boards from end to end. 29 You shall overlay the boards with gold, make their rings of gold as holders for the bars, and overlay the bars with gold. 30 And you shall raise up the tabernacle according to its pattern which you were shown on the mountain.

31 “You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim. 32 You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver. 33 And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy. 34 You shall put the mercy seat upon the ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy. 35 You shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand across from the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south; and you shall put the table on the north side.

36 “You shall make a screen for the door of the tabernacle, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver. 37 And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold; their hooks shall be gold, and you shall cast five sockets of bronze for them.

The tabernacle was God’s traveling temple tent made by human hands at God’s design and direction as a shadow representation of the true place of worship and sacrifice in heaven where the LORD lives.  It was necessary to have this traveling worship center for atoning sacrifices by mortal high priests until His Son came as the eternal High Priest to offer the everlasting sacrifice of Himself by Himself to atone for our sins forever from the seat of authority in heaven.  The minutiae of detail spelled out explicitly here in the shadow copy reflects the extreme detail of God’s eternal plan for our deliverance from the bondage of sin from the beginning (Genesis 3:15) just after we rebelled into sin and the judgment of death we all earned (Romans 3:20, 23, 6:23) as descendants of Adam and Eve.  His predetermined plan was to save us so we could offer proper worship and He could provide covering for our sins forever that lasted more than a yearly shedding of animals’ lifeblood in exchange for the shedding of our own blood that was required as our lives by shedding His Son’s lifeblood of eternal ability to cover our sins forever and gain us entrance back into His presence where these bodies have become the temples as part of the house of God to worship in spirit and truth!  All these details of the shadow tabernacle on earth here then are not to be taken in awe to memorize and understand for what they appear, but what they shadow in the heavens in the place of worship for His sacrifice and ministry as our eternal High Priest (Hebrews 4:14-15) and who knows our need for ministering grace and forgiveness to.  That is the true Testimony of the LORD Most Holy in His Son, Jesus Christ who made the way through the veil (Hebrews 10:19-20) separating us from the Most Holy that we may be saved to the uttermost (Hebrews 7:25, 26-27)! 

Exodus 25:23-40 - Shadow Copies of the Heavenly Temple

Exodus 25:23-40

The Table for the Showbread (Exodus 37:10–16)

23 “You shall also make a table of acacia wood; two cubits shall be its length, a cubit its width, and a cubit and a half its height. 24 And you shall overlay it with pure gold, and make a molding of gold all around. 25 You shall make for it a frame of a handbreadth all around, and you shall make a gold molding for the frame all around. 26 And you shall make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings on the four corners that are at its four legs. 27 The rings shall be close to the frame, as holders for the poles to bear the table. 28 And you shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold, that the table may be carried with them. 29 You shall make its dishes, its pans, its pitchers, and its bowls for pouring. You shall make them of pure gold. 30 And you shall set the showbread on the table before Me always.

The Gold Lampstand (Exodus 37:17–24)

31 “You shall also make a lampstand of pure gold; the lampstand shall be of hammered work. Its shaft, its branches, its bowls, its ornamental knobs, and flowers shall be of one piece. 32 And six branches shall come out of its sides: three branches of the lampstand out of one side, and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side. 33 Three bowls shall be made like almond blossoms on one branch, with an ornamental knob and a flower, and three bowls made like almond blossoms on the other branch, with an ornamental knob and a flower—and so for the six branches that come out of the lampstand. 34 On the lampstand itself four bowls shall be made like almond blossoms, each with its ornamental knob and flower. 35 And there shall be a knob under the first two branches of the same, a knob under the second two branches of the same, and a knob under the third two branches of the same, according to the six branches that extend from the lampstand. 36 Their knobs and their branches shall be of one piece; all of it shall be one hammered piece of pure gold. 37 You shall make seven lamps for it, and they shall arrange its lamps so that they give light in front of it. 38 And its wick-trimmers and their trays shall be of pure gold. 39 It shall be made of a talent of pure gold, with all these utensils. 40 And see to it that you make them according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.

The show read and golden lampstand were designed by God and their construction and placement were also spell our specifically to Moses according to the pattern from Heaven given to him when he met the LORD on the mountain (Acts 7:44) and received His word.  We read in Hebrews 8:3-4 how the high priest work was also insufficient and that Jesus as the eternal High Priest was alone able to offer the perfect and lasting sacrifice and ministry.  In Hebrews 8:1-2 we see that He is the “Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man.”  He rules and ministers from heaven itself and built the true tabernacle just as these bodies of the saints are being built up together into the temple (1 Corinthians 3:16, Ephesians 2:21-22, 1 Peter 2:4-5) of true worship according to the heavenly plan of eternal salvation and worship.  We see the symbolic foreshadowing of the heavenly showbread and lampstand in Hebrews 9:1-2 preparing the way for the final and complete atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ as our High Priest in Hebrews 9:11-12 as in the perfect temple not of this creation but of the hand of God in heaven above.  In Hebrews 9:23-24 we see further that the true unseen temple has the sacrifice which the copy here described cannot fulfill all God’s promises and plan unless it is done in the true temple where God lives.  Therefore, “(Hebrews 9:26-28) once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.” and, “as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.”  That is the true ministry in the heavens for our sacrifice once and for all for our sin which the shadow temple copy here described could never do, yet was made at God’s instruction to point us to the necessary work of Christ for us to anticipate.  These then are shadow copies of the heavenly, for the showbread and lampstand are but Shadow Copies in the earthly shadowland of the Heavenly Temple we see Christ ministering to us from in heaven.  Jesus has come and fulfilled (Ga latians 4:4-5) all things.  It is finished (John 19:28, 30)! 

Exodus 25:1-22 - Acceptable Offering in Mercy

Exodus 25:1-22

Offerings for the Sanctuary (Exodus 35:4–9)

1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering. 3 And this is the offering which you shall take from them: gold, silver, and bronze; 4 blue, purple, and scarlet thread, fine linen, and goats’ hair; 5 ram skins dyed red, badger skins, and acacia wood; 6 oil for the light, and spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense; 7 onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate. 8 And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. 9 According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.

The Ark of the Testimony (Exodus 37:1–9)

10 “And they shall make an ark of acacia wood; two and a half cubits shall be its length, a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height. 11 And you shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out you shall overlay it, and shall make on it a molding of gold all around. 12 You shall cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in its four corners; two rings shall be on one side, and two rings on the other side. 13 And you shall make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. 14 You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, that the ark may be carried by them. 15 The poles shall be in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. 16 And you shall put into the ark the Testimony which I will give you.

17 “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold; two and a half cubits shall be its length and a cubit and a half its width. 18 And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work you shall make them at the two ends of the mercy seat. 19 Make one cherub at one end, and the other cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim at the two ends of it of one piece with the mercy seat. 20 And the cherubim shall stretch out their wings above, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and they shall face one another; the faces of the cherubim shall be toward the mercy seat. 21 You shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the Testimony that I will give you. 22 And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.

The acceptable offerings of God’s people were given a visible reminder that they were based on mercy and grace as demonstrated in the presence of the Ark of the Testimony, the witness of God’s goodness to them.  We who are in Christ can view the cross and emptied tomb as a type of Ark of the Testimony of Jesus Christ whose mercy seat we can approach (Hebrews 4:16) now in worship.  He sits in the heavenly temple (Hebrews 9:11, 14-15) from which the earthly one was patterned after (Hebrews 8:5) and where the testimony of the New Covenant in His lifeblood is sealed forever by His work to make us worthy to worship acceptable offerings of our very lives as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1) in response to His Name and our salvation.  He no longer dwells temporarily in a temple of stones on the mountain, but He lives in these temples of our bodies (1 Corinthians 6:19) from which we offer daily sacrifices of dying to self that we may live to honor and serve our Lord as we take up our cross and follow Him.  The Ark of the Testimony, the Covenant of old, is patterned after the true in heaven before His throne of grace and is where the mercy seat is forever covering our sin to atone for us before Him who sits on the throne, high and lifted up.  There He meets with us in the spirit and opens our understanding to His word and will as we submit in willing obedience to follow in worship of Him who sits upon the throne!  Our offerings of our lives are the thankful response to this great mercy of grace in which we stand. 

Exodus 24:1-18 - They Saw God and He Gave His Word

Exodus 24:1-18

Israel Affirms the Covenant

1 Now He said to Moses, “Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship from afar. 2 And Moses alone shall come near the LORD, but they shall not come near; nor shall the people go up with him.”

3 So Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the LORD has said we will do.” 4 And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 Then he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD. 6 And Moses took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. 7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the LORD has said we will do, and be obedient.” 8 And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you according to all these words.”

On the Mountain with God

9 Then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very heavens in its clarity. 11 But on the nobles of the children of Israel He did not lay His hand. So they saw God, and they ate and drank.

12 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of stone, and the law and commandments which I have written, that you may teach them.”

13 So Moses arose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up to the mountain of God. 14 And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we come back to you. Indeed, Aaron and Hur are with you. If any man has a difficulty, let him go to them.” 15 Then Moses went up into the mountain, and a cloud covered the mountain.

16 Now the glory of the LORD rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 The sight of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. 18 So Moses went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

God called Moses, the priests, and elders to worship but only allowed Moses to draw near to see His face.  Before he went, Moses had told and then written the word of the LORD to the people and intended to teach them more after he met with God and received the word written by Him on stone for them as an eternal remembrance and source of truth to guide their lives.  They then sacrificed in worship to the LORD and the people committed themselves to adhere to the written words of God in obedience according to the covenant in the blood of the sacrifices.  We also in Christ commit to following Him and His word as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1, 1 Peter 2:5) covered in His lifeblood that is the one and only sacrifice we need to forever cover all our sin.  Moses and the leaders then saw God from a distance on a pavement looking like sapphire stone under His feet, as clear as heaven to them.  Moses was then called up to meet Him face to face on the tempestuous mountain to receive the words of the LORD written by His finger on stone tablets which we call the Ten Commandments the words of command to His people.  God’s glory of unapproachable light (1 Timothy 6:16) like a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24, Hebrews 12:28-29) rested on the mountain and kept everyone but Moses at bay.   He stayed there forty days communing with the LORD and receiving His word.  Do we spend time with Him every day to hear His word and speak with Him as Moses gave us the example while serving Him?  We have seen God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6) who gave us His word in print but also written on our hearts (2 Corinthians 3:3) by His regenerating Spirit that we might serve Him in spirit and in truth in the unbreakable covenant (Hebrews 12:24, 13:20-21) in His blood that makes us complete and completely able to do His will as pleasing children.  This kingdom cannot be shaken (Hebrews 12:28) to make us fear losing ground in our salvation because this covenant is our absolutely certain hope in the word and work of Christ.  We have seen God and He has given us His word.

Exodus 23:20-33 - God’s Name in His Messenger

Exodus 23:20-33

The Angel and the Promises

20 “Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. 21 Beware of Him and obey His voice; do not provoke Him, for He will not pardon your transgressions; for My name is in Him. 22 But if you indeed obey His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. 23 For My Angel will go before you and bring you in to the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites and the Hivites and the Jebusites; and I will cut them off. 24 You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars.

25 “So you shall serve the LORD your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you. 26 No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.

27 “I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. 28 And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before you. 29 I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the field become too numerous for you. 30 Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land. 31 And I will set your bounds from the Red Sea to the sea, Philistia, and from the desert to the River. For I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you. 32 You shall make no covenant with them, nor with their gods. 33 They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me. For if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”

The promises of willing obedience were delivered by the Messenger Angel who held the name of God in Him.  This Messenger kept the people in the way they should walk to bring them to their destination kingdom on earth and was to be feared and followed in the name of the LORD, just as we are now led by the Spirit of the Lord who also holds His name because He is one of the persons of the of triune God who leads us (Isaiah 30:21, Romans 8:14, Galatians 5:16-17, 18) through our sojourning here to our heavenly country (Hebrews 11:16) as our ultimate destination.  Do we have a reverence of godly fear (not to the eternal punishment of judgment, 1 John 4:18) but to willingly obey His leading?  He protected the people of God on their journey to the earthly promised land pardoned their sins as He does ours still.  We follow their example in so far as their obedience stayed the course to avoid other gods and not provoke Him with such immorality and idolatry tempting them along their journey as in our sanctification.  The promise remains to serve the LORD our God to experience His blessings and live full lives.  He sent fear before Israel on their way to their adversaries to ensure their success in defeating them to reach and inhabit the promised land.  Little by little God drove them out to make room for their destiny, just as the gospel gradually overcomes the darkness and opposition of our Adversary and adversaries on our way to our Celestial City of God to come.  This certainly does not mean that the world will get better until Jesus Christ returns for us to usher us into His kingdom to come, for it is quite clear from His word that we will have increasing tribulation until judgment falls forever on His and our enemies in this life.  The truth of His leading and triumph (Romans 8:37-39, 1 Corinthians 15:57, 2 Corinthians 2:14, 1 John 5:4-5) in Christ holds true forever, however.  We are similarly to beware the thorns (Luke 8:14) of worldliness that snare us as for them with other pursuits and objects of worship found along their journey way of the journey in the world that cause us to sin against Him.  God’s name is in His Messenger, the Holy Spirit, who leads us and guides us through this journey to the promised heavenly land to come to a new earth under the new heavens.  May we therefore follow diligently with willing obedience in thankful devotion to Him and His leading, for God’s name is in Him. 

Exodus 23:1-19 - Justice, Rest, and Celebration

Exodus 23:1-19

Justice for All

1 “You shall not circulate a false report. Do not put your hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness. 2 You shall not follow a crowd to do evil; nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after many to pervert justice. 3 You shall not show partiality to a poor man in his dispute.

4 “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall surely bring it back to him again. 5 If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden, and you would refrain from helping it, you shall surely help him with it.

6 “You shall not pervert the judgment of your poor in his dispute. 7 Keep yourself far from a false matter; do not kill the innocent and righteous. For I will not justify the wicked. 8 And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the discerning and perverts the words of the righteous.

9 “Also you shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the heart of a stranger, because you were strangers in the land of Egypt.

The Law of Sabbaths

10 “Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave, the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove. 12 Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be refreshed.

13 “And in all that I have said to you, be circumspect and make no mention of the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth.

Three Annual Feasts (Exodus 34:18–26; Deuteronomy 16:1–17)

14 “Three times you shall keep a feast to Me in the year: 15 You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread (you shall eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt; none shall appear before Me empty); 16 and the Feast of Harvest, the firstfruits of your labors which you have sown in the field; and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you have gathered in the fruit of your labors from the field.

17 “Three times in the year all your males shall appear before the Lord GOD.

18 “You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread; nor shall the fat of My sacrifice remain until morning. 19 The first of the firstfruits of your land you shall bring into the house of the LORD your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

God instructed His people to live justly, to rest in Him and His work for them, and to celebrate His goodness and grace to them together.   As to justice, they were commanded to tell the truth and not go along with or involve themselves in the lies and actions of the mob.  They should be honest and support truth and righteousness instead of gossiping or using misinformation to pervert justice or show prejudicial treatment to the less fortunate of society.  This is the way of the fallen world and should not be imitated by those of the kingdom of God then or now.  Living this way also means we should be helping those in need as the example here of finding lost property and making the effort to return it to the rightful owner, even if that owner is someone who dislikes you very much.  Help is not earned for it is an exp of grace; do we suppose that we have to earn the grace shown us by God in Christ?  Does he only help those who live perfectly before Him, or does He show mercy enough to die for us (Romans 5:8, 10) even when we were His enemies?  We then are also to follow the intent of these old commandments to not pervert judgment for the poor nor involve ourselves to aid those who harm those who are innocent just because others do so.  Taking bribes or kickbacks to gain worldly gain only leads to perverting the truth and character of others and justifies the evil person, something the LORD would never do.  If we are truly His, we will not do so either.  This means just because someone is a foreigner we should never oppress them, knowing we, like Israel, are also strangers and exiles in this world of woe and need mercy with compassion for them.  This means we do not pervert the justice of the laws of the land to require lawful immigration and citizenship of the foreigners among us by shielding them from the law, bit that we show them compassion and understanding in dealing with them.  Similar to justice, we build our relationship with God by resting in His work (Hebrews 4:9-10) and not attempting to earn grace in doing good as is our duty (Luke 17:10) as citizens of the kingdom of God in Christ and put nothing in place of worship to Him alone.  This means we do not worship and serve man over God, whether in politics, activism, or any other religion or philosophical practice that contradicts the word and will of God.  Finally, we are to see the example here to celebrate with God’s people.  We have different feasts to keep now, but the focus on them all is fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ together as the family of God and are to remember His redemptive work in us as we participate in the Lord’s Supper and baptism of fellow believers that unity in Christ Jesus and sharing in His body and lifeblood sacrificed for us all who are under this great High Priest (Hebrews 4:14) who ministers grace to us all.  We remember Micah 6:8 that tells us, “He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?” 

Exodus 22:16-31 - Moral and Ceremonial Laws

Exodus 22:16-31

16 “If a man entices a virgin who is not betrothed, and lies with her, he shall surely pay the bride-price for her to be his wife. 17 If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money according to the bride-price of virgins.

18 “You shall not permit a sorceress to live.

19 “Whoever lies with an animal shall surely be put to death.

20 “He who sacrifices to any god, except to the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed.

21 “You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.

22 “You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child. 23 If you afflict them in any way, and they cry at all to Me, I will surely hear their cry; 24 and My wrath will become hot, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

25 “If you lend money to any of My people who are poor among you, you shall not be like a moneylender to him; you shall not charge him interest. 26 If you ever take your neighbor’s garment as a pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down. 27 For that is his only covering, it is his garment for his skin. What will he sleep in? And it will be that when he cries to Me, I will hear, for I am gracious.

28 “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

29 “You shall not delay to offer the first of your ripe produce and your juices. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me. 30 Likewise you shall do with your oxen and your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.

31 “And you shall be holy men to Me: you shall not eat meat torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.

Here is a collection of various moral laws on how to live holy lives set apart to honor God, as well as some ceremonial laws on how to worship Him.  The ceremonial have principles behind them which do not command us by the letter, while the moral laws are given to be followed by the heart and mind, not just by the letter alone.  The first deals with responsibility for the one who sleeps with an unmarried woman and is responsible to marry her as it used to be expected in modern times but has since been abandoned as a principle for most.  We certainly do not put sorcerers to death anymore nor those practicing bestiality, nor do we have laws to destroy those who worship idols and false gods of the nations such as Allah or the thousands of those lifeless idols worshipped in India, Africa, or the far east.  The principles for God’s people to speak out against these false gods with love and a desire for men and women to be set free to worship the Lord of of all drives us who are God’s people to not even bow in consideration to false and dead idols of worship but worship Him alone in truth with a desire that all may abandon lifeless and hopeless pursuits that only add to God’s wrath on our sin.  The principle of not mistreating others who are not of our own land or who are mislead into such false religions holds still.  We should show compassion and care for the needy who come among us through legal means just as those wanting to join Israel of old had to convert to be full citizens because that nation was the only true theocracy ever, while the principle for citizenship through other laws is a rough equivalent in the western world today.  Just as Israel was to remember their exile as strangers in Egypt, we who are in Christ in the world now as God’s people are strangers and aliens (1 Peter 1:1, 2:10-11) among the ungodly and should understand the alienation of those legal immigrants better than others.  Treating widows and orphans well is not a law but a spiritual responsibility for us today as is the principle of fair dealings with others to not unfairly charge exorbitant fees for our personal gain at their expense, making it a moral unwritten law to us.  This means helping and not extorting the poor among us.  We are also still to not rail against God nor curse our rulers whom God has placed over us (Romans 13:1-2, 5-6), but we are to go even further and pray for them instead (1 Timothy 2:1-2).  We are therefore to remember Romans 12:2 and be conformed to Christ and not the world in dealing with others according to the moral law He has written in our hearts and minds (Jeremiah 31:33, 2 Corinthians 3:3) to follow now.  Though we have no ceremonial laws to offer the first fruits of our food to the Lord, the principle to give Him our best as His people holds true still, along with holy living with discernment to do what is right and honorable to His name which we carry.  The moral and ceremonial laws of old have bearing on us now, yet we have been freed from enslavement to them, now willing adhering to the principles and command that honor our Lord. 

Exodus 22:1-15 - Accountability Laws

Exodus 22:1-15

Responsibility for Property

1 “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep. 2 If the thief is found breaking in, and he is struck so that he dies, there shall be no guilt for his bloodshed. 3 If the sun has risen on him, there shall be guilt for his bloodshed. He should make full restitution; if he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 4 If the theft is certainly found alive in his hand, whether it is an ox or donkey or sheep, he shall restore double.

5 “If a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed, and lets loose his animal, and it feeds in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best of his own field and the best of his own vineyard.

6 “If fire breaks out and catches in thorns, so that stacked grain, standing grain, or the field is consumed, he who kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.

7 “If a man delivers to his neighbor money or articles to keep, and it is stolen out of the man’s house, if the thief is found, he shall pay double. 8 If the thief is not found, then the master of the house shall be brought to the judges to see whether he has put his hand into his neighbor’s goods.

9 “For any kind of trespass, whether it concerns an ox, a donkey, a sheep, or clothing, or for any kind of lost thing which another claims to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whomever the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor. 10 If a man delivers to his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to keep, and it dies, is hurt, or driven away, no one seeing it, 11 then an oath of the LORD shall be between them both, that he has not put his hand into his neighbor’s goods; and the owner of it shall accept that, and he shall not make it good. 12 But if, in fact, it is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to the owner of it. 13 If it is torn to pieces by a beast, then he shall bring it as evidence, and he shall not make good what was torn.

14 “And if a man borrows anything from his neighbor, and it becomes injured or dies, the owner of it not being with it, he shall surely make it good. 15 If its owner was with it, he shall not make it good; if it was hired, it came for its hire.

God gave even more laws to His people through Moses as these dealing with accountability for property stolen, lost, or damaged.  Restitution was the goal for the loss of the victim in one way or another.  For defending one’s property, if the thief is caught and killed it brings no punishment on the guiltless victim, but if the victim waits to report the killing until the next day instead of straight away, it is as murder with the associated guilt.  This law is seen in some states and other countries even today because of the wisdom of God who created it.  Restitution needs to be made for stolen property as well, especially when it is one’s livelihood as with the animals mentioned here.  Restitution must be made for carelessness leading to property loss as well through misuse or negligence leading to destruction as in the examples of a grazing animal or careless fire affecting a neighboring field.  Even borrowed goods that are stolen hold the borrower potentially accountable to the owner he was lent them from if the thief is not found to find out if he was the thief.  Justice was not to be assumed, but investigated as we know in due process now.  Judges decide who is responsible and oaths are taken in the process with restitution made as the guilty part is uncovered.  This includes the responsibility of a borrower to safeguard the property of the one he borrows from if he was not watching it at the time.  All these laws were meant to protect the people and their property with the goal of justice and fairness and restitution or conviction for crimes against one another.  This is the basis of law and order today with courts, judges, investigators, and accountability for restitution to keep civility and order in society and not allow such actions as Cain murdering his brother Abel or other lawlessness that first prevailed until the flood and was repeated afterwards when such laws had to be written down like this.  God in His wisdom provides us with order and accountability just as between us all and Himself.  The merciful part is His grace to reprieve our death sentence on sin by the price paid by his Son on the cross taken and displayed before the heavenly Judge for our sentence’s commuting forevermore.  May we show such mercy and grace to one another and not deep and the last ounce of retribution in turn as the law of the land handles the rest. 

Exodus 21:12-36 - The Basis of Legal Recourse

Exodus 21:12-36

The Law Concerning Violence

12 “He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death. 13 However, if he did not lie in wait, but God delivered him into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.

14 “But if a man acts with premeditation against his neighbor, to kill him by treachery, you shall take him from My altar, that he may die.

15 “And he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

16 “He who kidnaps a man and sells him, or if he is found in his hand, shall surely be put to death.

17 “And he who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

18 “If men contend with each other, and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but is confined to his bed, 19 if he rises again and walks about outside with his staff, then he who struck him shall be acquitted. He shall only pay for the loss of his time, and shall provide for him to be thoroughly healed.

20 “And if a man beats his male or female servant with a rod, so that he dies under his hand, he shall surely be punished. 21 Notwithstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property.

22 “If men fight, and hurt a woman with child, so that she gives birth prematurely, yet no harm follows, he shall surely be punished accordingly as the woman’s husband imposes on him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. 23 But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

26 “If a man strikes the eye of his male or female servant, and destroys it, he shall let him go free for the sake of his eye. 27 And if he knocks out the tooth of his male or female servant, he shall let him go free for the sake of his tooth.

Animal Control Laws

28 “If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, then the ox shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be acquitted. 29 But if the ox tended to thrust with its horn in times past, and it has been made known to his owner, and he has not kept it confined, so that it has killed a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death. 30 If there is imposed on him a sum of money, then he shall pay to redeem his life, whatever is imposed on him. 31 Whether it has gored a son or gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him. 32 If the ox gores a male or female servant, he shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

33 “And if a man opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls in it, 34 the owner of the pit shall make it good; he shall give money to their owner, but the dead animal shall be his.

35 “If one man’s ox hurts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide the money from it; and the dead ox they shall also divide. 36 Or if it was known that the ox tended to thrust in time past, and its owner has not kept it confined, he shall surely pay ox for ox, and the dead animal shall be his own.

These laws formed the basis of the legal recourses and punishments for various crimes against people and their property.  Many of these laws are still found in our legal systems today around the world to varying degrees.  Murder was to be punished by the authorities, not individuals, by the equivalent retribution of being put to death, unlike Cain (Genesis 4:6, 8) who was allowed to live as a marked man (Genesis 4:11, 14) for his premeditated murder of his righteous brother Abel.  If, however, the man did not plan the killing, he was to be put in a place of refuge from those seeking vengeance until the matter was resolved by a judicial ruling.  This is the basis of manslaughter laws.  Planned murder was to be answered with the death penalty without fail according to this system of law given by the hand of Moses at God’s words of instruction to His people.  It was not a legal system invented by man.  It went further than we now see in that just hitting your parents could earn the death penalty as well.  For violent responses of attempted manslaughter such as hitting a with a rock or punching with a fist in a heated argument, the perpetrator was to pay restitution if the victim was wounded and unable to work for a while, but was to be acquitted and let go free if the victim was able to get back up after the altercation.  This is similar to our laws today with minor variations as well.  One difference is that indentured servants were treated more like property and did not earn the death penalty, only punishment, just as if a man injures a pregnant woman and even give birth prematurely but the child lives.  If the child died or the woman suffered permanent injuries, then the appropriate and equivalent punishment of death would be imposed.  This is the law’s enforcement of an eye for an eye saying we sometimes attempt to use to justify our individual revenge that was not meant here.  Similarly, the laws for those who kill the animals of others, their livelihood and wealth, were to be appropriately punished with restitution for bodily harm or loss of an animal by destruction of the offending animal or monetary compensation.  Accountability was at the core of these laws for both man and beast as the basis of all legal recourse for restitution and to put fear of the death penalty as the most extreme punishment or at least monetary loss to compensate when that was not required.