Compare And Contrast Hammurabi And Hebrew Laws

Laws are always the core of a society and they often indicate a variety of lifestyle decisions made by those people. Hammurabi’s famous set of laws and Moses’ laws could be viewed as two completely distinct documents, yet both set of laws aide historians in revealing insight to the Hebrew and Mesopotamian people. In both societies, enforcing strict consequences that are equivalent to the crime is common. Hammurabi’s well known law states that, “if a man has put out an eye of a free man, they shall put out his eye.” Whereas, in the Hebrew laws, it states, “...if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye...” From this, historians can observe a recurrence of the law of retaliation; a major belief in both societies. Furthermore,

Hammurabi’s code revolves around maintaining the order in society and establishing political power while the Hebrew law outlines behavioral guidelines. In Exodus, the text reads, “...not to be partial to the poor or deaf or defer to the great.” This line demonstrates a caring concern for others and the obligation to assist the poor, the disabled, and the weak. As compared to Hammurabi’s code, the Hebrew laws displayed a hint of mercy as well as love and a desire for justice. To the Hebrews, these laws proved that Yahweh, their god, cared and loved them, whereas, Hammurabi 's code was primarily a document that fixed his order and power. The Torah’s moral responsibility is reflected in today’s world. In our modern American society, the same inferences that historians deduced can be determined with documents such as the U.S Constitution. For example the Bill of Rights, displays a drastically improved tolerance for people of diverse ethnicities, genders, religions, etc. This assists in explaining how our community is much more in accordance to morals as well as considering of the well-being of every citizen. In closing, laws are an important key to recognizing a society’s ways as displayed with Hammurabi’s code and the Hebrew