Eye for and Eye – Tooth for a Tooth —

After God had dramatically rescued Israel out of 400 years of slavery in Egypt, He called Moses up the mountain of Sinai to give him new laws and legislation for the nation. Among these is what Bible scholars like to refer to as the lex talionis, a Latin phrase meaning “law of the tooth.” This law is first given in Exodus 21:23-25 but is also preserved in a shortened form in Leviticus 24:19-20 and Deuteronomy 19:21. According to this law, if you cause injury to someone then you are required to repay him accordingly: “life for life,  eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,  burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.” (Ex 21:23-25 NKJV) Many find this passage difficult because it seems that God is encouraging and even justifying violence and personal revenge. However, upon a closer study, this is not at all the case. And to show you what I mean here are some points for us to consider.

1. This law put limits on punishment.

This law was a major step forward from the surrounding cultures of the time which often inflicted punishments that were far beyond the crime. As F.F. Bruce wrote, God’s law “replaced an earlier system of justice according to which if a member of tribe X injured a member of tribe Y, tribe Y was under an obligation to take vengeance on tribe X. This quickly led to a blood feud between the two tribes and resulted in suffering which far exceeded the original injury.”[1]  Thus, in a world that “called for a life for an eye and a head for a tooth”[2] this law limited the punishment to fit the crime: “one eye, and no more, for an eye; one life, and no more, for a life.”[3]

2. This law was given as a guide for governments not for personal vendettas.

As Bible scholar Walter Kaiser points out, “This legislation was never intended to allow individuals to avenge their own injuries. It is included in the section of Exodus addressed to the judges”[4] after all (Ex. 21:22) and is therefore meant as a guide for courts to judge cases fairly.