8 If the thief is not found, the owner of the house shall come near to God to show whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property.
9 For every breach of trust, whether it is for an ox, for a donkey, for a sheep, for a cloak, or for any kind of lost thing, of which one says, ‘This is it,’ the case of both parties shall come before God. The one whom God condemns shall pay double to his neighbor.
28 “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.
Interpretation 1: The Hebrew word “elohim” means judges.
Arguments in favour of this view:
1. This interpretation goes back to ancient Aramaic, Syriac, and Greek (the Septuagint) translations of the Old Testament. It is also followed by John Calvin among others and is supported in the annotations in the Dort Bible translation of 1619.
2. The context in Exodus 21:1 – 22:31 concerns situations where the functioning of judges is desired—yes, even required: in matters of, for example, a slave who could have been set free but chooses voluntarily to continue his employment; potential practices of embezzlement; and the subjection to all kinds of laws that applied to everyday life.
3. This interpretation is supported by Psalm 58:1–2 where the addressed elohim clearly appear to be judges, considering the rest of this psalm.
4. In Psalm 82:1 the LORD addresses the judges as elohim. These elohim cannot be gods. After all, there is only one God, who himself mocks the dead idols of the heathen nations (see Isaiah 44:6–20, Isaiah 46:5–7; Isaiah 46:5–7).
Arguments against this view:
1. The primary and most common meaning of elohim in the Old Testament, even though it is plural, is God. This indicates that this meaning should always be tested first.
2. In Exodus 21:6 there is no compelling reason to give “elohim” a different meaning. A slave who could become a free person yet chose to remain in the service of his master was to be taken to elohim, to God, that is, to the sanctuary, there to declare once again, coram Deo, that he was indeed intent on staying with his master. According to Deuteronomy 15:12-18, the next act—the temporary fixing of the slave’s ear to the door or door post—did not take place at the sanctuary as well, but at the house of the slave’s master. The slave is not bound to the sanctuary, but to his master’s house. The repetition of the verb to bring
indicates that it refers to two distinct actions.
3. In Exodus 22:8 and Exodus 22:9, “elohim” can also very well be translated as God.
Someone suspected of embezzlement could exonerate himself by taking an oath of purity. Should he swear falsely, he would be cursed (cf. 1 Kings 8:31–32). To swear such an oath, he had to approach elohim. This may very well mean approaching God
at the sanctuary. In Exodus 22:8, the Samaritan Pentateuch (the edition of the five books of Moses) therefore reads “Yahweh” instead of “elohim.”
4. In Exodus 22:28, “judges” seems to be the best translation as a parallelism with rulers
in the same verse. But the translation your God
can just as well be defended: all the laws and regulations that Moses presents here to the people were not devised by their judges, but they come from God. One might sigh under it and curse God. And therefore, there are also the leaders who monitor compliance with these provisions. Therefore, the warning is: Do not do that!
5. In Psalm 58:2 the Hebrew language does not use “elohim” but “elim.” This could be a misspelling of “elohim.” However, there is no need to assume that because “elim,” literally translated, means rams (in a flock), and is used more than once in the Old Testament in a metaphorical sense for chiefs, officials (see Exodus 15:15; 2 Kings 24:15; Ezekiel 32:21).
6. In Psalm 82:1 it is more reasonable to translate “elohim” not with judges
but with gods
—this time in the plural. Psalm 82:2–4 seems to indicate that earthly authorities, especially Israelite judges, are addressed. But that explanation fails at Psalm 82:6, where “elohim” parallels sons of the Most High
and where it is said of them: like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.
It is difficult to conclude from this anything other than that the “elohim” themselves are not terrestrial beings. Psalm 82:1–8 deals with the contrast between gods (who are believed to be immortal) and humans (who are known to be mortal).
In Psalm 82:1–8 the idols of the Gentiles are addressed—yes, they are denounced by the God of Israel. They are told their doom. The poet makes use of the idea among the heathen peoples that their gods are regularly gathered in a meeting of the gods.
Such a divine council is a well-known religious motif in ancient Near Eastern literature.
The name for the LORD in Psalm 82:1–8 as the Most High
also fits very well over against those so-called gods
in Psalm 82:1–8. Several times in the Old Testament the LORD is typified as “the God of gods” (see e.g., Joshua 22:22, 1 Chronicles 16:25, 2 Chronicles 2:5, Psalm 50:1–23, Psalm 96:4, Psalm 135:5, Psalm 136:2, Daniel 11:36) where we should not think of judges or rulers. In the Old Testament the Lord himself also addresses the gods and idols of the heathen peoples as if they were living competitors (see, e.g., Jeremiah 46:25, Jeremiah 50:2).
Interpretation 2: In these texts the Hebrew word “elohim” means God.
Arguments in favour of this view:
See the arguments against the first interpretation.
The most plausible interpretation:
Interpretation 2. This interpretation has consequences for the interpretation of Psalm 82:1 and John 10:34.
6 then his master shall bring him to God, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever.