Exodus 23: Finders Returners

YINR 929: Tanach Yomi · Dec 9, 2025 · 3m

“When you encounter your enemy’s ox or ass wandering, you must take it back. (כִּי תִפְגַּע שׁוֹר אֹיְבְךָ אוֹ חֲמֹרוֹ תֹּעֶה הָשֵׁב תְּשִׁיבֶנּוּ לוֹ) (Verse 4). The Koren Tanach of the Land of Israel notes that the laws of returning lost animals appear in various other cultures in the ancient Near East. The laws of Eshnunna from the northern Mesopotamia region state that an official that seized a stray animal was required to return the animal or it was considered theft. In Hittite laws, a stray domestic animal must be returned as well. The unique part of the law in the Torah is that it…