“Property is theft.” That’s what Marxists have been saying for well over 150 years, arguing that anyone who becomes wealthy only does so by exploiting the labor of poor people. As a result, some legislators have reduced the penalties for theft – but in doing so, crime rates in many cities have skyrocketed, especially in our poorest neighborhoods.

But the right of people to private property is enshrined in the Scriptures – after all, “Thou shalt not steal” is the eighth of the Ten Commandments. And while the Law of Moses does not prescribe incarceration for theft, it does require every thief to make restitution.

Now, in the days of Moses, livestock were the principal form of wealth. So if the same animal that was stolen could be returned, the thief only had to pay back twice the amount he stole (v. 4). But if, for example, he slaughtered or sold a particular animal, he had to pay back more than that – four sheep for every sheep, but five oxen for every ox (v. 1). Notice that the amount of restitution goes up with the severity of the crime.

Notice also that the thief’s poverty is not considered to be an excuse for his crime. Verse 3 says that if he is too poor to pay the appropriate fine, he was to be sold as a slave – and given the restrictions on slavery we saw in 21:2, that meant a six-year term of unpaid service.

And the Law of Moses even allowed people to defend their homes from thieves. But at the same time, it upheld the fact that any human life, even the life of a thief, is worth more than anyone’s possessions. For if a homeowner killed a thief during a night-time fight, he would not be considered guilty of murder because there was no way he could see what he was doing. But if the same thing happened during the day, the homeowner would be guilty – he had the responsibility to exercise restraint but apparently chose not to do so.

So, how does this passage tell us to love one another? Of course we shouldn’t consider our things to be more important than the lives of even the most hardened criminals. But if Moses said that the loss of even one sheep required restitution, that means everyone, no matter how poor, has a right to his property. So maybe we Americans should take another look at how we can make all of our neighborhoods safer from crime – using not only the ballot box but the jury box and the witness stand. For isn’t public safety the most basic form of social justice?

Exodus 22:1-4 (NASB)

“If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five oxen for the ox and four sheep for the sheep.
2 “If the thief is caught while breaking in, and is struck so that he dies, there will be no bloodguiltiness on his account.
3 “But if the sun has risen on him, there will be bloodguiltiness on his account. He shall surely make restitution; if he owns nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.
4 “If what he stole is actually found alive in his possession, whether an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double.