Blood Feud
Asks whether the ancient practice of avenging a slain kinsman can be squared with the Sixth Commandment's ban on murder, noting that Scripture already permits killing in war, in self-defense, and by judicial sentence, and arguing that the Torah both acknowledges the blood redeemer and constrains him through cities of refuge and mandatory trial.
Sachs begins from the plain force of lo tirzach and then catalogues the killings Scripture nonetheless sanctions - commanded warfare, the execution of apostates after the Golden Calf, self-defense, and court-ordered capital punishment - before isolating the goel ha-dam as the awkward case that fits none of them. Reading Numbers 35, he finds the Torah pulled two ways: it keeps the avenger’s traditional title and role, yet hedges him with cities of refuge, a required verdict, and a time limit tied to the High Priest’s life, subordinating private vengeance to judicial authority.
Gerardo G. Sachs is a retired educator living in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Cite this article
Gerardo G. Sachs. "Blood Feud." Jewish Bible Quarterly 36, no. 4 (October – December 2008): 261–262.
Gerardo G. Sachs. "Blood Feud." Jewish Bible Quarterly, vol. 36, no. 4, 2008, pp. 261–262.