The Eighth Commandment

Deuteronomy 20:10-18

“‘When you draw near to a city to fight against it, offer terms of peace to it. And if it responds to you peaceably and it opens to you, then all the people who are found in it shall do forced labor for you and shall serve you. But if it makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it. And when the LORD your God gives it into your hand, you shall put all its males to the sword, but the women and the little ones, the livestock, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as plunder for yourselves. And you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the LORD your God has given you. Thus you shall do to all the cities that are very far from you, which are not cities of the nations here. But in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes, but you shall devote them to complete destruction, the Hittites and the Amorites, the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, as the LORD your God has commanded, that they may not teach you to do according to all their abominable practices that they have done for their gods, and so you sin against the LORD your God.’”

If possible, diplomacy should go ahead of war, to avoid conflict with neighboring peoples. If peace can be achieved without strife, then those who would otherwise have been the objects of hostilities were to be reduced to slavery. As we have seen, in Israel under the Law of God, slavery was much to be preferred to death.

It’s again difficult for us to understand how the Law of God, given to promote love of neighbors, can sanction such violence as we read about in this statute. But this is a function of our historical perspective. The peoples against which Israel entered into warfare were not forgiving toward those they vanquished (cf. Deut. 2:12, 20-23). Those whom they defeated, they utterly destroyed. Any nation that would not submit to Israel and become slaves would certainly rise again, at some point, to wreak havoc against the people of God. This was to be avoided as much as possible by putting all vanquished males to the sword. All their goods could be plundered, but none must be left alive to corrupt or destroy the people of Israel.

In our day the Spirit of God is able to change the hearts of people, and we wait on Him, as we turn the other cheek to our enemies, in the hope that we might make of our enemies—and His—friends and brothers, just as He has done with us. One application of this statute to our day would seem to be that the Church should spare no expense in order to proclaim the Gospel to the lost and to plead with and bear with them so that they might be saved.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Deuteronomy 20:1-9

“‘When you go out to war against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and an army larger than your own, you shall not be afraid of them, for the LORD your God is with you, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. And when you draw near to the battle, the priest shall come forward and speak to the people and shall say to them, “Hear, O Israel, today you are drawing near for battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint. Do not fear or panic or be in dread of them, for the LORD your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.” Then the officers shall speak to the people, saying, “Is there any man who has built a new house and has not dedicated it? Let him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man dedicate it. And is there any man who has planted a vineyard and has not enjoyed its fruit? Let him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man enjoy its fruit. And is there any man who has betrothed a wife and has not taken her? Let him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man take her.” And the officers shall speak further to the people, and say, “Is there any man who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go back to his house, lest he make the heart of his fellows melt like his own.” And when the officers have finished speaking to the people, then commanders shall be appointed at the head of the people.’”

Here again a situation involving war is in view, and criteria are advanced for the preservation of the people and the nation. If this was a just war, one entered into for the sake of protecting and preserving the divine economy, the people should not fear, but should trust in the Lord to give them the victory. Even military activity in ancient Israel was subject to divine scrutiny and the terms of neighbor-love outlined in the Law of God.

Conditions for exemption from military service are explained, and again we see the Law’s intent of preserving families, property, and communities. Moreover, those who were fearful should also be excused from combat, since they might cause others to stumble. Certainly a measure of shame and stigma would be attached to this, since it would be evidence of a heart that did not trust in God.

Armies are to be like tightly organized, efficient communities, with proper leaders and protocols to maintain justice and order throughout the ranks (cf. Exod. 18).

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Deuteronomy 24:5

“‘When a man is newly married, he shall not go out with the army or be liable for any other public duty. He shall be free at home one year to be happy with his wife whom he has taken.’”

We note here, first of all, that there were situations in which war was necessary and legitimate in ancient Israel. This is not the place to outline the criteria for a just war, but merely to acknowledge that such was understood to be a lawful part of life in Israel.

What we note here, primarily, is the priority of family over state. A newly married man must be allowed the opportunity of being with his wife and, presumably, beginning a family, before he could be asked or required to risk his life in war against an enemy.

In Israel, under the Law of God, the people and their communities did not exist for the sake of the State. Rather, the State was instituted to protect families and communities so that the people could increase and multiply and thus fulfill their God-given mandate. What the State could require of the people—either in terms of money or service—was strictly regulated.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Deuteronomy 23:15-16

“‘You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you. He shall dwell with you, in your midst, in the place that he shall choose within one of your towns, wherever it suits him. You shall not wrong him.’”

Philemon 8-16

Remember that slaves could marry and have a family. They could accumulate property and wealth. They could even redeem themselves out of slavery, or be redeemed by a member of their family. They were protected from physical violence and, in general, allowed to know a normal human life and to contribute to the overall well-being of the community.

That being so, why would anyone flee his master? Obviously, only if that master were abusive and was able to conceal his abusive practices from local authorities. Runaway slaves were not to be returned to their masters. If they managed to reach safety in a new community, they were to be allowed to put down roots and begin to flourish there.

So why did Paul send Onesimus back to Philemon? Because, as he said, he was not sending back a slave, but a “brother” in the Lord. He wanted to give Philemon the privilege of receiving Onesimus as such, which, we assume, he did.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Leviticus 25:47-55

“If a stranger or sojourner with you becomes rich, and your brother beside him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner with you or to a member of the stranger’s clan, then after he is sold he may be redeemed. One of his brothers may redeem him, or his uncle or his cousin may redeem him, or a close relative from his clan may redeem him. Or if he grows rich he may redeem himself. He shall calculate with his buyer from the year when he sold himself to him until the year of jubilee, and the price of his sale shall vary with the number of years. The time he was with his owner shall be rated as the time of a hired servant. If there are still many years left, he shall pay proportionately for his redemption some of his sale price. If there remain but a few years until the year of jubilee, he shall calculate and pay for his redemption in proportion to his years of service. He shall treat him as a servant hired year by year. He shall not rule ruthlessly over him in your sight. And if he is not redeemed by these means, then he and his children with him shall be released in the year of jubilee. For it is to me that the people of Israel are servants. They are my servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.”

Slavery—here, probably something like indentured servitude—was an option for the poor. They could “sell” themselves, even to someone sojourning in Israel from another country, and thus escape destitution. In such a situation they could also be redeemed, or they could redeem themselves (again, note that slaves could accumulate property and even wealth). The redemption price was to be calculated according to the number of years remaining before the Jubilee and would be adjusted up or down accordingly.

Again we note that masters could not rule ruthlessly over their slaves, and slaves were allowed to marry and have children, who remained their own. All slave owners were to remember that, ultimately, all the people of Israel were God’s servants, entrusted to human owners for a season, and thus were to be treated with the love that God showed His people when He redeemed them from Egypt.

It’s difficult for us, from the perspective of our own American experience, to understand the institution of slavery as it was practiced in ancient Israel. Our idea of the word, “slavery,” is tainted by what we know to have been the practice here. But to see slavery in Israel as another way of escaping poverty, preserving human dignity, contributing to the well-being of the community, and beginning a marriage and family and the accumulation of property within a protected environment—well, that’s just rather difficult for us to envision.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Exodus 21:26, 27

“When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.”

Here is another evidence of the fact that slavery in ancient Israel was not at all like the chattel slavery practiced in early America and elsewhere. Slaves were regarded as human beings with rights and protections under the Law of God. A slave’s greatest treasure was the right to be free, whether by purchasing himself out of slavery or, even, running away, if conditions warranted. Slaves who were physically mistreated by their masters were also freed, as this statute makes plain.

It was in the interest of slave and owner alike that slaves should be treated with decency and respect, as the fifth commandment requires of all men. They may have been slaves, but they were human beings, and neighbors, and, thus, deserving of the love of God as communicated through His Law.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Exodus 21:7-11

“When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. If she does not please her master, who has designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has broken faith with her. If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter. If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or her marital rights. And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.”

This is difficult to understand. Apparently a man could “sell” his daughter as a “slave” if it seemed she was intended to marry the man who bought her. If this is what’s in view, then the “selling” looks more like a kind of marriage price for, perhaps, an underage woman who would serve her intended until she was able to marry him.

If the marriage did not work out—if the man was not “pleased” with her—she could be redeemed, but only within the community of faith. Alternately—and this is what makes me think the woman was yet a young girl—he might designate her for his son, in which case she ceased to be a slave and became a daughter to him.

He might even take another wife along with her, but he must continue all the privileges and duties of a husband to her as his wife.

This is not easy to understand, as I say. It helps to remember that the Law was given because of the hardness of human hearts, in order to restrain sin and to maintain justice in a society composed of sinful people. It’s easy, looking back from our vantage point, to scoff at the practice outlined here. However, from the perspective of ancient Israel, this statute must have seemed as much an expression of neighbor-love as any other of the commandments of God.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Exodus 21:2-6

“When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing. If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out alone. But if the slave plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,’ then his master shall bring him to God, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever.”

Deuteronomy 15:12-18

“‘If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. As the LORD your God has blessed you, you shall give to him. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. But if he says to you, “I will not go out from you,” because he loves you and your household, since he is well-off with you, then you shall take an awl, and put it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your slave forever. And to your female slave you shall do the same. It shall not seem hard to you when you let him go free from you, for at half the cost of a hired servant he has served you six years. So the LORD your God will bless you in all that you do.’”

Let’s notice a few things about slavery in ancient Israel which are hinted at in this text. First, one could sell himself into slavery, if he were a member of the nation of Israel and had fallen on hard times. But that term of slavery was limited, much like the institution of indentured servitude by which many people made their way to the New World during the colonial period of American history.

Second, conditions in such an arrangement could be so favorable that a man might choose to remain in this condition once his term was up. He could marry and have a family. He could accumulate property. He might even grow to love his master. If he wished to remain, and his master allowed him to do so, he was given a mark to indicate to all concerned that his situation had changed and that he willingly was continuing in servitude to his master.

If he did choose to go out as a free man after the six years of service, however, he was to be furnished amply by his master, so that he could make a good start in life.

Again, the motivation for this institution of mutual service and love was the memory of what it was like to be a slave in Egypt. Israelites must not foist such conditions upon one another, or anyone else.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Leviticus 25:44-46

“As for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you. You may also buy from among the strangers who sojourn with you and their clans that are with you, who have been born in your land, and they may be your property. You may bequeath them to your sons after you to inherit as a possession forever. You may make slaves of them, but over your brothers the people of Israel you shall not rule, one over another ruthlessly.”

From our perspective of post-abolition and civil rights, it is difficult to understand the teaching of God’s Law about slavery. The people of Israel were allowed to own slaves, and they could purchase them from other nations or even from the foreigners who sojourned in their midst. These slaves became their property and could be bequeathed to children upon the owner’s decease.

Slavery in Israel, however, was not like slavery in the surrounding nations; nor was it like the chattel slavery that characterized the early years of the American experience. Slaves were protected by the Law of God, which recognized them as human beings and deserving of love from their masters. Yes, they were slaves, and their freedoms were thus limited. But, as we shall see, slavery was neither a condition of oppression nor of finality in ancient Israel.

And, as Paul’s treatment of Onesimus indicates, it was not an institution Christians should continue in the age of the Spirit and the Gospel.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Eighth Commandment

Exodus 23:10, 11

“For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, 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. You shall do likewise with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard.”

During the seventh year people were not to work the land. It was to be allowed to rest and to produce naturally whatever God was pleased to draw forth from it. The poor, as well as the wild beasts (note the conservationist thrust of this) were allowed to wander the fields for a year of “gleaning” in order to meet their needs, whereas landowners were expected to store up food from the sixth year to last all the way to the eighth. God promised that He would allow their harvests to be ample for this institution, but the people had to be faithful and obey.

Modern farmers understand the wisdom, for their fields’ sake, of allowing a section to lie fallow for a season. These are often sown with clover and other plants that re-enrich the soil for subsequent years’ fruitful sowing. Even the earth needs a rest in this time of sin, as it groans and travails under the demands of men and other creatures that it faithfully and fruitfully supply their needs.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.