Abstract
This article offers two novel explanations for the staggered expression of the formula of retaliation (‘X for X’) in Lev. 24.15-22. First, ‘life for life’ in Lev. 24.18, in standing apart from other members of the formula in Lev. 24.20, points to Exod. 21.33–36 with reference to the conception of restitution as a bilateral exchange. This feature of Lev. 24.18 joins others in Lev. 24.15-22 in alluding to the laws of Exodus 21. Secondly, the removal of ‘life for life’ from the rest of the formula creates an aesthetic quality in the passage that promotes the perception of the principle of equitable restitution as foundational to the laws of Lev. 24.15-22. In a word, the design of the passage sustains connections within Lev. 24.15-22 and beyond to Exodus 21. Judicial equity emerges as the common ethos.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.