Kara's History Term Paper

Kara finished her History term on Exodus.  Here is her term paper, aka her final exam.  Next we do the last term of the year - Numbers and Leviticus.

God, long ago, created many laws, all of which are fair and for the good of His people. There are three that I noticed that are fair to both God and man and make sense.

Exodus 21:33-34 says, “When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, the owner of the pit shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner and the dead beast shall be his.” This is fair to the man who dug a pit and to the man who owns the beast; it will be as if the owner simply sold it, and the man still has a punishment for his crimes—not too harsh, but not too weak. God’s wonderful Creation must not be abused or mistreated.

Exodus 22:1-4 boldly states, “If a man steals an ox or sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. If a thief is found breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. If the stolen beast is found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double.” Theft requires a harsher punishment than a careless accident—one is intentional, one is not. God created animals as a source of food and sometimes companionship, not as a breeding ground for sin and thievery.

“Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the Lord alone, shall be devoted to destruction.” Exodus 22:20 reminds us all that there is only one God and that He is the only One to be worshipped and He is the only One whose Creation is to be sacrificed. How would you feel if people you loved stabbed you in the back?

The most important thing to remember with these laws are that God loves us, and He wants what’s best for us, but we make mistakes—we defy His Name and mistreat His Creation. Laws are necessary, but we can’t let our anger from being punished when we do something wrong cloud our sight and convince us that He doesn’t love us. We must remember—we’re the ones who wrong God, not the other way around.