#40 Code of Hammurabi and Exodus 20-21
Code of Hammurabi (CH) and Exodus 20-21 has many similarities. Exodus 21:18-19 is similar to CH 206, and Exodus 21:20-21 is similar to CH 208. Both sections discuss the punishments to be distributed for personal injury. CH 206 talks about what happens if a fight happens and a person is injured unintentionally as well as who pays for the injury. While Exodus 21:18-19 discusses what happens if a person gets hurt during a quarrel. CH 208 expands on CH 206 by saying what happens to a commoner compared to a member of the upper class. Exodus 21:20-21 tells the punishment for beating a slave. Where the two documents differ is the issue of intentionality. CH has 207 between 206 and 208. CH 207 says that if someone is hit during an argument then he must swear that he did not intend to commit harm. Exodus 21 does not discuss intentionally. This is an important distinction and it may speak to the mindset of the different peoples. For the Babylonians people may have been less accountable for mistakes. While someone was punished for accidentally harming another person the degree of the punishment was determined by whether or not it was an accident. In Exodus instead of intentionality mattering what is important is the result. If you hit someone and they recover your punishment is less than if they die.
As mentioned before a big difference between the two texts is the presence and absence of intentionality and results and their effect on the punishment. A big difference between the texts is their motivation. Exodus seems to be focused on justice for the injured party. For example, Exodus 21:18 discusses justice for the victim. Whereas CH 206 is focused on the assaulter and what he must do to be in the clear which is to pay the doctor.
Both law codes have many similarities. Such as what they speak about, and their order. Furthermore, they both discuss laws in similar ways with similar punishments. The similarities suggest a common origin of somewhat. We know that both codes are from the ancient near east. This suggests that the Israelites may have had access to the code of Hammurabi and may have used it as a reference to write their own laws. The authority of either law code is set by its establishment. For CH its authority is derived from Hammurabi who had control over Babylon. Whereas the authority of Exodus was given by the rulers of the Israelites. Today these laws are not given authority by any group although they are a part of the foundation of our legal system in America. Thus, neither really has any authority today but may provide a way to understand our actions. The similarities of the codes increase their authority as it shows how they work practically for different people groups in different times and places even with different customs.
If you understand Exodus to be written or at least inspired by Moses then we may infer that Moses with his royal Egyptian education encountered the code of Hammurabi and thus spoke on behalf of God to the people using CH as a reference and a guide. It is also possible that the Israelites understood CH as it influenced the Egyptian legal system. Thus making it a common ground among the people to act as one when it comes to justice. Whereas if it was not Moses who wrote Exodus the same ideas apply. The law code’s similarity to CH speaks to the authority of the ideas expressed. Perhaps even God inspired the authorship of CH. It is possible to infer by the similarities between CH and Exodus that it less important to God for us to be in the right in his own eyes but rather for us to have a clean conscious and to get along with others. If this is the case it could lead to different methods of understanding the Laws of God in the Bible.
