Given the wickedness of modern culture, I am not too thrilled to read of the communal responsibility for crime. If our political leaders understood their own culpability in God's eyes, perhaps our world would be different. Nevertheless, scripture clearly reveals communal responsibility for lost lives. We are our brother's keeper and around each of us spiritual lives are at risk continually.
The other laws spoke to me of both individual preferences and respect for others. That is a concept that is so difficult to manage, yet God balances both perfectly--even in less than ideal situations. People are never treated as 'just property' in scripture. While slavery is dealt with as a reality, there is no tacit approval implied. It was simply a cultural reality that still required the remembrance that individuals are special to God. The law regarding stubborn and rebellious children also speaks of communal responsibility. A few years ago, Hillary Clinton popularized the phrase, 'it takes a village to raise a child.' While I believe modern culture leans toward the dangerous idea of replacing the family with the village, there is a clear need for families to be connected with a God-centered community that reinforces a biblical worldview.
Personal preferences never trump God's commands. Rebellion clearly is a contaminating disease that must be quelled immediately. Each section of this chapter guides in the balancing of preferences and protection of life while keeping God above all!
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