The OT legal code, which scholars have dubbed the “Covenant Code” (or “Book of the Covenant”; Exodus 21-23), the “Holiness Code” (Lev. 17-27), and the “Deuteronomic Code” (Deut. 12-26), provide examples of principles and ways in which they can be applied without attempting to cover comprehensively every kind of case that would need to be considered by the ancient Israelite legal system.
Many of the OT laws articulate principles, cases, and penalties for violation that could be administered by human beings, as in modern legislation. However, a significant number of the OT laws do not specify penalties, or God administers the penalties that they mandate. Sometimes, laws cannot be enforced by humans (like the “You shall not covet” commandment in Exodus 20:17). [1]
The Israelites did not consider themselves bound to make all of their judicial decisions in accordance with the OT law collections.[2] The OT law establishes obligatory norms with penalties for violations to be carried out by the human community under theocracy and/or by YHWH himself. Unlike modern legislation, many laws in the Old Testament contain motivational elements intended to persuade hearers/readers to comply.
Where individual laws do not specify punishments, repeated transgressions still result in divinely administered curses for breaking the covenant (esp. Lev. 26; Deut. 28). Such divine punishments should not be taken lightly, especially in light of biblical narratives that record the fulfillment of these curses. [3]
In contrast, the Old Testament Law as a book, is an essential part of the story that explains Israel’s covenant with God at Sinai. The collections of laws described God’s specific requirement relative to Israel’s nature of worship and fellowship with God. The sacrifices illustrate how sin separates people from God and what must be done to repair that rift. Thus, the idea of sacrifice and the related problem of sin is of central importance to the various collections of laws. The detailed regulations for the tabernacle’s construction and upkeep demonstrate that a real, tangible relationship with God was possible.
Although God is not a physical being, the tabernacle was God’s dwelling place, and Israel could visit Him in a specific location and at a predetermined moment. God’s presence in the tabernacle manifested through various rituals and sacred furnishings. Israel was to treat the tabernacle as a holy place because God would be there. Only those who had made the appropriate spiritual preparations were allowed to enter God’s presence. The tabernacle wasn’t built to isolate Israel from God but to create a sacred space where the Almighty could dwell among His people.[4]
The function of the book of the Law as canonical revelation is it primarily instills the value of living by faith. Thus, the Pentateuch and the New Testament, and especially the writings of the apostle Paul, share a great deal of theological common ground. Both emphasize the ineffectiveness of the Mosaic law and God’s gracious offer of salvation to those who put their trust in Him.[5]
The prophetic hope of a new covenant is more central to the canonical message of the Pentateuch than the Mosaic law and Sinai covenant. This hope rests mainly on the coming of the king from the house of Judah, who will rule over Israel and the nations. This prophecy is central to the Pentateuch and the entire canon of Scripture.[6]
[1] Roy E. Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians: Original Context and Enduring Application (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic: A division of Baker Publishing Group, 2017), 29–30.
[2] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, 32.
[3] Roy E. Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians: Original Context and Enduring Application (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic: A division of Baker Publishing Group, 2017), 33.
[4] John H. Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition, and Interpretation (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2009), 538–9.
[5] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 539.
[6] John H. Sailhamer, “The Messiah and the Hebrew Bible,” JETS 44, 2001.