Compare And Contrast The Hammurabi Code And The Ten Commandments

The Code of Hammurabi from the ancient Babylonian civilization, and the Twelve Tables from Ancient Rome society were both sets of laws from by which their societies had to abide. The Ancient Babylonian society abided by the Code of Hammurabi while the Ancient Romans abided by The Twelve Tables. Although they both served as promising laws to live by, they also served as tools that defined and distinguished each citizen’s position in the social order. Depending on where they stood in the social order, any criminal punishment would be tailored to that specific class. In Mesopotamian history, the most consummate code of law was the Code of Hammurabi, engendered by the King Hammurabi. The Twelve Tables was created by the Roman elites in order to create justice and fairness between the plebian and patricians. Both these sets of laws, although belonging to different societies, sought to create the illusion of fairness and equality outwardly towards the people, and inwardly, reward the rich and elite of their respective social class with power. Although these sets of laws belonged to different societies, they both casted an illusion of fairness and equality. However, in actuality these regulations only benefited the rich and elite.

The law codes of the United States are based on the Ten Commandments and various standards that humanity has conceived throughout history. However, before Moses climbed Mount Sinai and “the Lord descended upon it with fire”, the First Babylonian Empire in ancient Mesopotamia was ruled by Hammurabi, who developed the earliest known law code in world history (Exodus 19:2-25; class discussion, 08/29/17). Hammurabi’s Law Code, as it is known today, could be thought of as an early interpretation of morality. Despite the good moral intentions of the law code, these laws are strict, cruel, and, in some cases, unusual. With over two hundred laws, divine right, the act of revenge, and inequality of punishment between classes took up a large amount of this ancient Babylonian law code.

Spare the Rod and spoil the child. This means if you don't punish your children for their wrongdoings then you will not like you children and they might continue you to do wrong. Was that what Hammurabi was thinking when he assembled his code of laws? Hammurabi was a ruler in ancient Mesopotamia. He became ruler of Babylon in 1792 BCE. It was an unsafe time and Hammurabi conquered many nearby city-states so no one would conquer Babylon instead. When he did this, he assembled a code of 282 laws. The laws were carved on giant stones called steles. The question is, were these laws just? This means were the laws far to the accused, the victim, and society. If you look at the three categories of --- family, property, and personal injury -- it is clear that Hammurabi's code was just.

The secular laws of Babylon were laid down by Hammurabi in “The Code of Hammurabi”, and in the book of Exodus. These laws provided stability and order in those respective societies. As society depended upon them, it is natural to assume that the laws relied upon society as well and reflect the values held by each society, not only in the laws themselves, but also in how they are written, whom they pertain to and how they are executed. While at first glance the law codes appear similar, there are a number of differences that provide key insight to what was held dear in each society. How do differences in these two law codes attest to differences in the two societies which pronounced them, and likewise, what can be learned from their

Around 4,000 years ago Hammurabi’s code was created by Hammurabi the king of Babylonia with the goal of bringing justice to his kingdom. He even claimed that Shamash the god of justice commanded him to make these laws. Then his laws were carved into large stone’s called steles, written in the ancient cuneiform written, and then put up throughout all major communities of Babylonia. However, these ancient laws were not fair for everyone in his kingdom. Hammurabi’s Code was unjust because the laws pertaining to family life, property law, and personal injury were unfair.

How would people feel if they had to follow the laws of Hammurabi’s code? Hammurabi was the king of Babylonia. Hammurabi started being king around 3500 BCE, and Hammurabi made 282 laws. Hammurabi’s Code was unjust based on the evidence from the codes Personal law, Property law, and Family law. Was Hammurabi’s code just?

The Code of Hammurabi was a strict, harsh, and unequal way of punishment that focused on current attainable penalties for Mesopotamian society. The society wasn’t religious, they did not have any affiliations with spiritual beings, which is why punishments were needed for the specific moment

The Code of Hammurabi is one of history’s oldest and best – preserved written law which appeared in Mesopotamia around 1760 BCE. “It consists of customary norms that were collected toward the end of his reign and inscribed on a diorite stela set up in Babylon's temple of Marduk, the god of Babylonia. The 282 chapters include economic provisions (prices, tariffs, trade, and commerce), family law (marriage and divorce), as well as criminal law (assault, theft) and civil law (slavery, debt). Penalties varied according to the status of the offenders and the circumstances of the offenses. ” These laws considered words which sent by the Sun god Shamash to Hammurabi. Therefore, people believed that as long as they obey the laws, then they obey the god’s words.

Picture a king so ahead of his time and so powerful that he was aware of the importance and sense of urgency behind establishing laws to ensure the growth of civilization and humanity. His name was Hammurabi and he was the king of Babylon. He reigned from 1792 B.C. all the way to 1750 B.C. As an innovative and feared king he created 282 laws for everyone to follow, as gruesome as "an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth" and as political as ranking people from nobles to slaves and everything in between, he started a new era for Central Mesopotamia then, and all of humanity now. (Edgar et al) As unimaginable as it sounds for someone to come up with a simple 282 laws for a just way of living; at a later time in Egypt there was someone else coming up with a more spiritual way of life. The Ten Commandments, although history says that Moses discovered the stone some time in 1400 B.C., 300 years after, it has been said that these commandments were known about since the beginning of time from a Higher Power. Moses was a former Egyptian prince and later became a Prophet. The bible quotes Moses as one of the greatest Prophets of history. Facing Pharaoh Ramses and freeing the Jews from slavery, he was one of the most important religious leaders of all time. These commandments explain a better

The code of Hammurabi is the most remarkable and complete code of ancient law that we have. The code can be found on a stele, a stone slab usually to commemorate military victories in the ancient world. His code, a collection of 282 laws and standards, stipulated rules for commercial interactions and set fines and punishments to meet the requirements of justice. Most punishments resulting of death or loss of limb if a law was broken. The edicts ranged from family law to professional contracts and administrative law, often outlining different standards of justice for the three classes of Babylonian society. The Hammurabi Code was issued on the three classes of Babylonian Society, property owners, freemen and slaves. It was important as it organized the most civilized empire at that times , and Hammurabi made many copies of it and distributed them in the most important cities of the empire , so it represented a great progress to the human

In regards to the Hammurabi Code of Law, Hammurabi claimed that the gods had picked him to “promote the welfare of the people …to cause justice to prevail in the land, to destroy the wicked and evil, so that the strong might not oppress the weak…” His intention was to hold those under his rule accountable for their actions and inspire “appropriate behaviors”. In fact, according to literature, the code functioned on the principle of “lex talionis” which basically translates as the “law of retaliation”. The idea was that the punishment would fit the crime, at least in theory. Similar to today’s laws, individual judges were allowed discretion and did not always follow the code specifically. Never the less, the code was always utilized as a reference for solution. (Bentley and Zeigler, p. 30)

In reading this article, I found to believe that Hammurabi produced these codes so that people can become righteous and he can teach them the right way of living in the world/society. He is the protective King, and was trusted by many of the great gods to protect the land, city, and their homes. I believe codes were put in place so that the society which they live in would be a better and safer place to reside. Hammurabi wants his legacy be remembered as the king who cared for the people and his words to reflect what he was as a person. This code of law is being mandated and the people will know to abide by these rules and regulations.

Hammurabi’s code is believed to be the first form of written law. It consists of a set of 282 laws written by Hammurabi, the king of Babylon circa 1792 BCE, that established a written social contract amongst the people of Babylonia. It was written on a stone stele that stands more than eight feet tall and weighs over 4 tons (doc A). According to the stele, Hammurabi was instructed to create the code by Shamash, the god of justice (doc B). However, it introduces conflicting ideas about justice that are arguable to this day. Were his rules unethical or his punishments too severe? Hammurabi’s code may be seen as unfair by today’s standards, but in solving matters that involve family, property, and health issues of his time, Hammurabi’s code was just because it utilizes negative reinforcement to implement positive results in society.

Hammurabi’s code included some gruesome punishments, some that might be believed as unruly, but is still just. Hammurabi’s code was just in many ways pertaining to their time. These laws are not the oldest set, but they were possibly the most strict from the ancient world. The punishments for breaking some laws are different for the multiple classes on the social structure and genders. Also, during his time, Hammurabi was known more as a builder and conqueror than a law-giver. All in all, the laws abiding in Hammurabi’s code are just because of its personal injury and family laws.

The Hammurabi Code of Laws is a set of rules enacted by the Babylonian King whose name was Hammurabi. The Babylonian King created a total of two-hundred eighty-two punishments that the citizens will receive if they do not abide by the laws that were given to them. The king ruled from 1792 BC to 1750 BC. The Hammurabi Code of Laws is very violent in terms of punishments. For example, one of the laws are “If anyone breaks into a house to steal, he will be put to death before that point of entry and be buried there (walled into the house)”. This is a clear example of how violent and inhumane the punishments of the Babylonians were, to us at least. This essay will be explaining a set of laws from the Hammurabi’s Code of Laws.