Shabbat Table Talk

Parashat Mishpatim
Erev Shabbat, 01 February 2008
Week of 27 January to 02 February 2008
Torah portion: Ex. 21:1-24:18
Haftarah: Jer. 34:8-22; 33:25-26
Sunday Readings for 03 February: Zep. 2:3, 3:12-13; Psa. 146:6-10; I Cor. 1:26-31; Mt. 5:1-12a

A bad news-good news parashah: A woman in my neighborhood had a dispute with her neighbors over a fence between their properties. A year and a half later they are still not talking to each other. Lacking a process for resolving the issue, and the courage to take the first step, they remain estranged from each other, their sense of community broken...

Following on the heels of the Ten Words (Ten Commandments), Parashat Mishpatim spells out more concretely how the Israelites are to live in community and before their God. The specific cases in this passage were obviously common problems that caused disputes—they highlight issues of justice and fairness that brought discord among the people. And although the specifics of goring oxen and the rights of slaves are unfamiliar to us today, our courts and insurance companies are well acquainted with compensation for bodily injury, the rights of a woman who is rejected by her male provider, and the punishment for murder.

One way of reading this text is to try to see through it the eyes of the ‘ancients.’ We might ask three key questions: (1) Is there good news in this text? (2) For whom is this text good news? (3) What is the good news?

With our sensibilities of the 21st century, we can easily find the “bad news” of these passages: a father sells his daughter as slave (Ex. 21:7); a man who seduces a virgin is instructed to pay a bride price for her and make her his wife (22:15-16); the treatment prescribed for a witch is death (22:17); God promises that the original inhabitants of the Promised Land will all be sent away so newcomers can take over (23:20-33). And while we want children to respect their parents, we cannot condone death for insolent children (21:17)! It troubles us—people who believe in democracy and self determination—that children, women, and slaves—male and female—are acted upon rather than being “masters” of their own destiny.

The community: Upon further reflection, we can see that many of the rules in this parashah are about keeping order in the society; God’s commands help people to get along together and to build a community. In fact, a great part of today’s Scripture portion deals with the good of the community.

Ellen Frankel wryly titles this parashah, “Community Control,” but other commentators see the rules here in a more positive light. As Plaut points out, the ordinances in this section were put in place to mitigate natural human tendencies for revenge (p. 571). He explains that, although the laws of Israel paralleled laws of other ancient Near Eastern societies, there was an important difference. While other societies condoned a strict tit-for-tat retribution, Israel was instructed to practice a fairness that preserved life and respected all people in all stations of life. “In this section it is especially clear that the Torah aimed primarily at a humanization of existing practices” (p. 564). Under God’s system, people were not put to death because of offenses against property, and slaves had the opportunity for freedom after seven years of service. God’s desire was for retribution and reparation to be monetary and not literally the mutilation principal of “an eye for an eye” (p. 572).

It becomes evident that widows and orphans hold a special place in God’s heart, and therefore they should matter to the community too. With passion and a touch of irony, Yah exhorts them,

Any widow or orphan you are not to afflict.
Oh, if you afflict them, afflict them . . . !
For (then) they will cry, cry out to me,
And I will hearken, hearken to their cry,
My anger will flare up
And I will kill you with the sword,
So that your wives become widows, and your children, orphans!
—Ex. 22:21-23, Fox translation

According to Fox, “No passage in these chapters, and indeed throughout the whole Torah, can easily surpass vv. 21-23... with their appeal to language and emotions alike.” He concludes, “So at the core of the legal concerns here is the protection of the powerless” (p. 378).

Particularly striking in this parashah is God’s insistence on treating the stranger fairly. The reason given is a historical one: “You shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the feelings of the stranger, having yourselves been strangers in the land of Egypt” (Ex. 23:9). While widows and orphans were given special consideration in other Near Eastern texts, “what was new, and unique to the Torah, was the addition of the stranger to the list of the protected. All Israel had suffered the fate of strangers in Egypt, and thereafter ‘stranger, widow and orphan’ together became the touchstone of biblical justice” (Plaut, p. 582).

The teachings in this parashah urge the people of Israel to operate out of an economy of mercy, implying that the community is only as strong as its weakest members. Justice for the vulnerable ones helps build a strong community. Those with power and wealth are called to responsibility, and all members—rich and poor—are reminded that they are valued. All are called to practice a godly compassion.

Justice tempered with mercy is possible because of God’s prior covenant with God’s people. Fritz reflects, “Because the covenant is a covenant of love between God and the people, all the deeds of the agreement are related to love and justice” (p. 121). In an economy of mercy, everything is connected, all human affairs reflect the attitude of the Divine. As the Chumash reminds us, “The Torah embraces all areas of life and holiness is indivisible” (p. 416).

Haftarah: Reminding the people that God had brought them out of the “house of slavery” in Egypt, Jeremiah reiterates God’s desire that they not hold each other as slaves.

Gospel: In the Beatitudes, Jesus highlights the blessings promised to those who, by the world’s standards, are the unfortunate ones. Like the widow, orphan and stranger, they too find a special place in God’s heart.

For Reflection and Discussion: [1] What in this text is good news for you? [2] How do you see the character of the Compassionate One expressed in your own daily surroundings? [3] Look at the “stranger” passages in this parashah, and then consider how this respect for the ‘other’ might translate itself into your life today.

Bibliography: The Chumash (ArtScroll, Mesorah 2000); Fox, The Five Books of Moses (New York, 1983); Frankel, The Five Books of Miriam (New York, 1996); Fritz, The Exodus Experience (Minnesota, 1989); Plaut, The Torah: A Modern Commentary (New York, 1981).

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This week’s teaching commentary was prepared by
Virginia A. Hostetler, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada