Don't Mind Your Own Business

Deuteronomy 22

God’s laws began with ten broad commands (Ten Commandments) of how the people were to relate to God and each other, but they didn’t end there. After that, God gave detailed and specific instructions on how to carry out these commands. He took specific instances and showed the people what loving their neighbor would look like in that instance. This was for their individual benefit and for society as a whole. Because each individual person was also part of the larger community, they were not only responsible for themselves, but also for others. These guidelines can also help us see how to best interact with others in our society today. (I will summarize all the study passages if you don’t want to read them all, but the links are there if you do.)

Care for Others - Deuteronomy 22:1-4

So, God commanded the people to pay attention to other people’s needs and help them out. If a man saw his neighbor’s animal wandering away or found something that belonged to someone else, they had to return it to its owner. If he didn’t know who the animal or thing belonged to, then he had to take care of it until they found the owner and could return it to him. Once he was aware of something that had been lost by another, he could not ignore it. Also, if they saw a man whose animal was hurt or trapped, even if that man was their enemy, they had an obligation to help.

There was no such thing as minding their own business or saying it wasn’t their problem. If another person needed help, God commanded that they help them. It’s as simple as that.

Minding our own business is important if we are causing harm to someone. But, if minding our own business is what causes them harm, then it is wrong. Loving your neighbor means helping them when they need it, no matter what your relationship is to that person. Everyone is our neighbor. Proverbs 11:12-13, 1 Timothy 5:13, Luke 6:31, 10:30-37; Phil. 2:1-4

Can you think of any instances when you were too busy, or it just wasn’t convenient, and you did not help someone like you should have? Does there happen to be a need in your community that you could meet, either with time or money, that maybe you previously have been unwilling to spend? Do you have a tendency towards either minding your own business at the detriment of others or being a busybody who maybe pretends to be in the business of others because you want to help them, but you actually just want to know? We need to guard ourselves against both instances.

All God’s Creation - Deuteronomy 22:6-7

Not only does God command that we care for other people, but we are also commanded to care about the animals. Here, the Lord offers one very particular instruction about birds, and it is somewhat unclear exactly why. He says the people can eat the bird’s eggs if they find them, but they could not also take and eat their mother. Because this command and the command to honor our own fathers and mothers are both followed by the phrase ‘that it may go well with you and you may live long,’ it seems that to take both the mother and her young would not honor or respect her in some way.

Because all mothers have the ability to give life, presumably by keeping her alive, she could still have more babies, but that is also the reason that all moms deserve our honor.

This just shows us how valuable all of God’s creatures are to Him. We’re His greatest creation because we are made in His image, but because of that, we are to honor all that He created, just as He does. He has given us dominion over the animals, but with that comes responsibility. If even the mother bird and her babies are valuable to God, then they also deserve our care and consideration. Genesis 1:26; Luke 12:24-28

Incidental Liability – Deuteronomy 22:8; Exodus 21:33-34; 22:6

Even when building their own house or on their own property, a man had to think of others. Their homes had to be safe for anyone who might come by. That’s why God commanded them to build a railing around their flat roof so that no one could fall off and hurt themselves. Also, if they dug a hole and forgot to cover it up, and another man’s animal fell in it and died, then the property owner had to pay the owner of the animal for his loss. His negligence resulted in the death of an animal that didn’t belong to him, so he had to make it right. Also, if someone started a fire on their own property and it got out of hand and burned someone else’s land, then the man that started the fire had to repay the other in full for all that was lost.

We cannot even mind our own business on our own property, can we?

Involving Your Animals - Exodus 21:28-32, 35-36, 22:5

Because animals have no moral culpability, their owners were responsible for them. So, if a man’s animal hurt and killed someone, its owner was commanded to kill it. He had to make sure that it could never harm anyone ever again. Even after the animal was killed, it couldn’t be eaten. It died for its crime and not for food. The owner could in no way profit from someone else’s death. If the person that was killed happened to be another man’s slave, (more on slavery later) then the owner also had to pay the man 30 shekels of silver for his loss.

Now if the owner knew the animal was dangerous because it had a history of causing harm to others, and he just had not taken the necessary precautions to keep it away from others, then the owner was just as guilty as the animal, and he also was put to death. If the owner knew the animal could possibly kill someone someday, then he had seemingly prioritized the life of his animal over the life of a person, which made him liable.

It also could be possible that the man was just careless and did not take the threat of his animal seriously. But still, because of his negligence, someone died. God is basically laying out the guidelines for involuntary manslaughter here, which is something that our American law recognizes today. Negligence of one man that causes the death of another, is manslaughter. At least in this instance, God said that made the owner just as liable as the animal, so they would both suffer the same fate. But, God did place a provision of mercy within this law that said if the wronged party chose to allow the man to pay a ransom for his life, then he was allowed to do so. This reveals both God’s justice and mercy towards us.

Also, in keeping with the same law, if a man’s animal killed an animal that belonged to someone else, then the live animal was sold, and the two men would split its price. This was fair for both parties because no one suffered total loss or gain. But, again, if the owner was aware that his animal often engaged in harmful behavior towards other animals, then he knew their was a risk that his animal would one day kill another and he hadn’t taken the necessary precautions to keep him away from other animals. That means he was willing to risk the life of another person’s animal, but not his own. In that instance, the owner of the animal that killed the other, should be the one that suffered the loss, so he was commanded to trade his live animal for the other man’s dead one.

Owners were also responsible if they didn’t keep track of their animal and it wandered onto another man’s land and ate its produce. If that happened, the owner of that animal had to allow the other man’s animal to graze on the best part of his field in return.

Each person was responsible for absorbing the consequences of their own risks or carelessness. No one else should pay for our mistakes, especially with their lives. By setting it up this way, God was both establishing justice and making everyone think about how they would feel if the shoe was on the other foot when making decisions and going about their daily lives.

Lost or Stolen - Exodus 22:7-15

If someone entrusted another person with one of his possessions or if someone borrowed or rented something that belonged to another, that person was responsible for its safekeeping. If it was stolen, then the thief was liable. But if no one knew who the thief was, then the one to whom it was entrusted had to swear before God that he had not secretly take possession of the other man’s property. Because the oath was made before God, the owner of the property had to accept his claim, assuming that the man would not also lie before the Lord. Although if he was found to be a liar, He would have to pay the property owner back double.

Even if the man did not steal it himself, if the thief could not be found, because the owner had entrusted the man with his possession, and it was lost on his watch, he was required to repay the owner. He had evaded the additional fees tied to liability, but he still had to make it right.

Now, if the entrusted possession was an animal and it happened to get injured, or it died or ran away, then the man to whom it was entrusted had to swear before God that he wasn’t directly responsible, and the owner, again, had to accept his claim. Also, if the animal was killed by a wild animal, he would provide evidence to that claim and he would not be liable.

Restitution - Leviticus 6:1-7

Now, if a man did swear before God that He did not take something that wasn’t his and he was found to be lying, then not only had he wronged the man, but he also had sinned against God by using His name to lie. In that case, the thief and liar had to make restitution to both the man from which he stole and to God to whom He lied.

First, God commanded that he repay the man in full and add 20% in penalty fees. This restored the man’s loss while also repaying him for the time and worry that he suffered. After he made it right with that man, he had to also make it right with God. So, he would sacrifice a ram as a guilt offering, to make atonement for (cover) his sin, so that he could be forgiven by God.

(The rest of the lesson behind the paywall in this particular study is written in the “Stop Feeling Guilty: Jesus Died to Set You Free” blog post at LivethruJesus.com)