“When men strive together, and hurt a woman with child, so that there is a miscarriage, and yet no harm follows, the one who hurt her shall be fined, according as the woman’s husband shall lay upon; and he shall pay as the judges determine. If any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth...“--Exodus 21:22-24
2006-09-09 03:12:20 · 16 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
While abortion and a forced miscarriage aren't precisely the same thing, the verse clearly shows how ancient Jews viewed the value of the baby vs. the value of the mother. Both were property of the male. Clearly the life of an unborn child was less valued than a prized wife. So, yes, this is directly telling on the issue of abortion. Most Christians either don't know of the verse or choose to ignore it.
2006-09-09 03:23:55 · answer #1 · answered by Brendan G 4 · 0⤊ 3⤋
That verse writes life for life. That isn't a misdemeanor. That is found to be murder. Miscarriage actually means a premature birth according to my translation. Premature birth when baby dies is harm. Premature birth when baby survives is no harm.
King James writes: If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life...
I believe the man hit the woman in the belly to hurt the other guys wife & child. Also, the verse writes woman with child meaning that it is a child in her.
2006-09-09 03:25:59 · answer #2 · answered by t a m i l 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It doesn't, it's saying if a pregnant woman gets hurt "so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow" meaning if she gives birth to her child and the baby is with out harm then the man who struck her would have fines layed upon him by the husband. But if "any harm follows" if the baby dies or has any infirmities then "life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth". Hope that was helpful.
2006-09-09 03:24:52 · answer #3 · answered by deepbluesinger 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
There is no passage in the Bible that definitively comments on "abortion". The passage you have quoted is discussing miscarriage due to physical harm and not to a woman's right to choose. Because of the ambiguity of this verse, it is often cited by both pro-life and pro-choice advocats. Jeremiah 1:5 and Psalm 139:13-16 both refer to the planning of a life before it is in the womb which creates the belief that life begins at conception. Therefore, the sixth commandment comes into play.
2006-09-09 03:21:44 · answer #4 · answered by TJMiler 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Where do you get from this that it is a misdemeanor to have an abortion? It is murder plain and simple. You can hurt a child in the womb and not kill it and it does not say that the husband here cannot call for death of the individual that hurt the baby and caused the abortion. In fact, if you read other parts of the bible you will find that death was the normal result of harming an unborn child. So abortion a misdemeanor? Not in my bible it isn't. It is out and out murder.
2006-09-09 03:17:27 · answer #5 · answered by ramall1to 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
It is all interpretation. The first time I read that verse I didn't think it had anything to do with abortion. Now, I see your point.
You need to keep in mind that there are many different translations of the Bible. The Greek-to-English translation alone lost a lot of ideas and words that were in the original text. So many things in Greek are more complex than the English language. Thus, the Bible was "simplified" as it was written into English.
2006-09-09 03:20:33 · answer #6 · answered by findandyoushallseek 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
My bible states that if her fruit depart from her, yet no mischief (death of the fruit) follow. However, if mischief follow (death of the fruit), life for life.
So , if a woman is attacked and her child is born early as a result, it it dies, the attackers must die. If the child lives, they pay a monetary price to the husband.
If the woman dies, they pay life for life, lives, a monetary punishment paid to the husband.
Fruit depart from her is simply premature labor and birth. The punishments are meted out as to if the mother and child live or die.
2006-09-09 03:21:17 · answer #7 · answered by cindy 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
a miscarriage is not an abortion,a miscarriage is when the woman looses the baby due to natural causes,or an accident.And an abortion is intentionally done to kill the fetus inside the womb.It is definately a murder!
2006-09-09 03:18:15 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Because they don't think it's that big a deal, like most rational people. As usual thought the Christofascists only interpret the bible to fit thier own dark designs.
2006-09-09 03:18:05 · answer #9 · answered by apostate03 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
This passage refers to an accident.Though it is easily misconstrued as abortion.
As you should know a miscarriage is not an abortion.
2006-09-09 03:20:40 · answer #10 · answered by ? 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋