God's Laws: When people injure each other

Exodus Chapter 21

18 And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed:
19 If he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.
20 And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely punished.
21 Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.

God doesn't like it when His people fight one another, and it doesn't matter who was right or wrong, there are consequences!

If two men are fighting, and one beats the other one so bad that he has to be hospitalized, and if the man who is hospitalized doesn't die, the man who beat him has to pay the hospital bills and for his loss of wages that he incurred during the time it took for him to heal.

Obviously, servants are treated differently. One can assume it is because the servant is in debt to the master already. If a servant is killed at the master's hand, then the master should be punished. But, if the servant doesn't die instantly, but remains alive a couple of days, then the master is spending money caring for the servant that he injured. Since the servant "is his money", then the master is freed from punishment at this point, because he has paid the servant back for injuring him, and now the servant can never work off his debt to the master.

God's Law's: Don't curse your parents

Exodus 21:17
“And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.”

Exodus 20:12 tells us that we are to honor our father and mother. This verse tells us what will happen if we don't.

Many of us did not grow up with good parents who had great values and really cared about their children's future. Some were children of drug addicts and prostitutes. Some were born to mothers who were too young and deadbeat dads. Some parents abused their children in horrific ways. None of this is an excuse to curse your parents.

Matthew 5:44 teaches us, from the words of Jesus, "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;"

It is a good thing that God sent His son to die on the cross for our sins. Many of us have shaken our fists at our parents and screamed at them that we wished they would die. The rebellious teenage years leave many of us wanting in our godly attitudes.

It also makes us wonder what life must have been like back in the days God gave this commandment. How did parents make their children behave back then? Shouldn't we be following THEIR example?

This is worthy of discussion.