Parshat Mishpatim

Slavery and the Law

In last week's parsha God gave the Ten Commandments to the Jewish people. This week's parsha then lists a more detailed description of God's law. It begins with:

"If you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall work [for] six years, and in the seventh [year], he shall go out to freedom without charge " (Shemot 21:2).

This is incredible. The very first law is about slavery. However, if we look carefully, it's not about actually the laws of slavery, but about freeing slaves. In fact, ver little is stated about the actual treatment and buying and selling of slaves. The very first law is about freeing slaves. It then goes on: "But if the slave says, "I love my master, my wife, and my children. I will not go free" (ibid 5) – the slave does not want to go free!!

The next law is about the female slave: "If a man sells his daughter as a maidservant, she shall not go free as the slaves go free" (ibid 7). The female slave does not go free. Why? The master or his son must marry her and provide her with "sustenance, her clothing, and her marital relations" (ibid 10). If he refuses to provide her this, then: she shall go free" (ibid 11).

The next law then talks about murder.

So as we can see, the Torah is not really talking to us about the laws of slavery. In fact, it is not really talking to us about laws at all. It is talking to us about a principle. People should not be enslaved, they should be free. The natural state of a person is to be free and not beholden to others.

Interestingly, this exactly how the Ten Commandments begin: "I am the Lord, your God, Who took you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery" (ibid 20:2). God's first act for Israel was to free them from slavery. Their first act, therefore, should be to free slaves.

The Torah, therefore, while permitting slavery, clearly wants it abolished, for the sanctity of humanity is primary to all laws, as is implied by the fact that the serious punishment for murder and manslaughter immediately follow.

Last year's Sedra Short on Parshat Mishptim, entitled: "The Kid and the Mother's Milk" appears at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2008/01/parshat-mishpatim-kid-and-mothers-milk.html.

Another Sedra Short on Parshat Mishptim, entitled: "The New Covenant" appears at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2007/02/parshat-mishpatim-new-covenant-i-have.html.

A further Sedra Short on Parshat Mishpatim, entitled: "The Law" appears at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2006/02/parshat-mishpatim-law-god-gave-israel.html.

Parshat Ki Tavo

The Return to Egypt

As well as the covenant at Sinai, this week's parsha sees Moshe make a covenant with Israel at the Plains of Moav.

It contains a long and mostly tortuous description of what Israel would suffer should it break this covenant. It ends on an ironic note: "The Lord will bring you back to Egypt in ships, through the way about which I had said to you, You will never see it again. There, you will seek to be sold to your enemies for slaves and handmaids, but there will be no buyer" (Devarim 28:68).

The people who began its history with freedom from slavery from Egypt, with the Egyptians doing their utmost to maintain their hold over them, will find themselves returning to Egypt in an attempt to sell themselves as slaves, but will find the Egyptians uninterested in buying them.

However, there is even more bitter irony here. Yaakov originally went down to Egypt to escape famine. In this instance we see that God "will bring back upon you all the diseases of Egypt which you dreaded" (ibid 60). The previous passuk described them as plagues that would bring sickness.

These conditions would entail famine and would explain why the people would be so impoverished that would feel the need to sell themselves as slaves.

This covenant, also called the Tochecha, sees an undoing of history. All the good that Israel had achieved would be undone and the people would revert to their original state.

In relation to all the horrors threatened in this chapter, seeing one's own history and achievements folding up and reverting to state as if they never actually existed, must be the bitterest pill for Israel to swallow. No wonder some commentaries understand the word "be'oniyot" – "in ships" to be "be'aniyut" – "in mourning".

Last year's Sedra Short on Parshat Ki Tavo entiled: "The Tochecha" appears at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2006_09_01_archive.html