Exodus 21:18–19 and the Origins of the Casuistic Form

Abstract

I first met Ze'ev Falk early in 1967, when I spent two months in Jerusalem in the course of my doctoral studies (with David Daube, in Oxford). His friendship and generosity to me during that period remain strong in my memory. Not only did 10 Harav Berlin become a home from home; from there he assisted me to meet others (not least, Nahum Rakover) who also became, in the years that followed, close colleagues and associates. His studies in Biblical legal terminology proved of great assistance to me, and hisHebrew Law in Biblical Timesremains a useful starting point for the study of biblical legal institutions. In many respects, his early concentration on biblical law provided the foundations for his later thinking, for which he was perhaps better known in Israel, on the values of Jewish law and the problems presented by Jewish family law in modern times. I offer my tribute in the form of a study of Exodus 21:18–19, a text which, apart from its particular problems and interest, has proved a focus for debate upon the general character of early biblical law, and in particular the casuistic provisions of the Mishpatim.

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