Jordan suggests in a massive essay that the death penalty for Sabbath breaking was not for all work done on the Sabbath. Instead, it was for kindling your own fire in opposition to Gods fire. On the Sabbath, God would burn His Glory-Fire twice as brightly, so that Israels fires were symbolically lit by God. God is the source of all life, and Israel must weekly confess and acknowledge that. To set up your own fire on the Sabbath is to do what Adam did. In going to the tree of kingship before the tree of life, Adam claimed that he had life in himself. That he could set himself up as a self-sustaining king. Adams punishment was the death penalty. Looking at things in this light provides a new gloss on the incident where the Israelite gathered sticks on the Sabbath. God had already given the death penalty for Sabbath breaking, so why did Moses have to consult the Lord? Jordan argues that it is because the man hadnt technically broken the law yet. He was only preparing to kindle his fire against God, but hadnt done it yet. The question, then, is whether the death penalty could be applied in the case of intent, before the fire had actually been kindled.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 19:32:36 +0000
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