Exodus 22:16-23:9

When a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be married, and lies with her, he shall give the bride-price for her and make her his wife. But if her father refuses to give her to him, he shall pay an amount equal to the bride-price for virgins.¹

You shall not permit a female² sorcerer to live.³

Whoever lies with an animal shall be put to death.⁴

Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the Lord alone, shall be devoted to destruction.⁵

You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien,⁶ for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.⁷ You shall not abuse any widow or orphan.⁸ If you do abuse them, when they cry out to me, I will surely heed their cry; my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword,⁹ and your wives shall become widows and your children orphans.¹⁰

If you lend money to my people, to the poor among you, you shall not deal with them as a creditor; you shall not exact interest from them.¹¹ If you take your neighbour’s cloak in pawn, you shall restore it before the sun goes down; for it may be your neighbour’s only clothing to use as cover; in what else shall that person sleep?¹² And if your neighbour cries out to me, I will listen, for I am compassionate.¹³

You shall not revile God, or curse a leader of your people.¹⁴

You shall not delay to make offerings from the fullness of your harvest and from the outflow of your presses.¹⁵ The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me.¹⁶ You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: for seven days it shall remain with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me.

You shall be people consecrated to me; therefore you shall not eat any meat that is mangled by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.¹⁷

You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with the wicked to act as a malicious witness. You shall not follow a majority in wrongdoing; when you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall not side with the majority so as to pervert justice;¹⁸ nor shall you be partial to the poor in a lawsuit.¹⁹

When you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back.²⁰

When you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would hold back from setting it free, you must help to set it free.²¹

You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits.²² Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent or those in the right, for I will not acquit the guilty.²³ You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the officials, and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.²⁴

You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.²⁵

1 This is quite just in several ways. It keeps a woman from being abandoned and unmarriable. However, once again the power to make the decision is not in the woman's hands, but in the father's.

2 Why is only the female mentioned?

3 The death penalty seems quite harsh here.

4 Another very harsh institution of the death penalty. There are several reasons to be against bestiality, so it would be interesting to know what the driving force for the prohibition is here.

5 Is this the death penalty again?

6 The narrative suddenly shifts to social justice, surprisingly in favor of aliens.

7 Empathy is called for, since the Israelites had been ostracized in the same way.

8 Protection is asked for the most vulnerable members of society. God is a special advocate of the weak.

9 In this case, the punishment for disobedience is dealt not by man but by God.

10 A second indirect call for empathy.

11 A striking statement of justice for the poor. Unfortunately, few follow through today.

12 Once again, God not only commands compassion for the poor, but details the reason for that compassion. Empathy is called for yet again.

13 God declares his own compassion, and his attention to the voice of the poor.

14A sudden shift in emphasis. Like the previous passages, however, no specific judgment is proscribed.

15 The offerings to be given to God are made explicit.

16 It almost sounds like human sacrifice, but that is clearly stated to be odious to the Israelites elsewhere. Then is it dedication to serve in the temple?

17 I am not certain what the connection is. Making food laws generally sets a people apart and highlights their distinctiveness, but I don't know how obvious the situation would appear to others. Perhaps it is part of the general obligation to cleanliness.

18 This series of commands preserves justice in the legal setting.

19 One of only two or three warnings in the Bible to avoid favoritism towards the poor. While favoritism towards the rich was clearly more of a concern, it is still made clear that unjust favoritism in either direction perverts justice.

20 Helping others is codified into law.

21 Helping even those whom you hate is proscribed!

22 The calls for justice in court and justice for the poor are combined.

23 God declares that he will bring justice even when man fails.

24 Yet more commands attempting to cement justice in legal proceedings.

25 Justice for aliens is again proscribed, and once again with empathy called for from the Israelites.

Take-home: God shows tremendous concern for justice in his laws. He especially shows concern for the vulnerable, specifically naming immigrants, the poor, widows, and orphans. The need to truth, justice, and lack of bribery in legal proceedings is also emphasized. The need to worship God alone is interspersed, showing how non-separable “physical” and spiritual matters were to the Hebrews. With all else that is mentioned, the calls for death for female sorcerers and bestiality feel out of place.