RESTITUTION
WHY IS RESTITUTION NECESSARY?
RESTITUTION IS ESSENTIAL TO . . .
Exodus 22:9 . . . Suppose there is a dispute between two people as to who owns a particular ox, donkey, sheep, article of clothing, or anything else. Both parties must come before God for a decision, and the person whom God declares guilty must pay double to the other.
. . . justice.
Leviticus 6:2-5 . . . Suppose some of the people sin against the Lord by falsely telling their neighbor that an item entrusted to their safekeeping has been lost or stolen. Or suppose they have been dishonest with regard to a security deposit, or they have taken something by theft or extortion. Or suppose they find a lost item and lie about it, or they deny something while under oath, or they commit any other similar sin. If they have sinned in any of these ways and are guilty, they must give back whatever they have taken by theft or extortion, whether a security deposit, or property entrusted to them, or a lost object that they claimed as their own, or anything gained by swearing falsely. When they realize their guilt, they must restore the principal amount plus a penalty of 20 percent to the person they have harmed.
. . . righteousness.
Numbers 5:5-7 . . . Then the Lord said to Moses, “Give these instructions to the people of Israel: If any of the people-men or women-betray the Lord by doing wrong to another person, they are guilty. They must confess their sin and make full restitution for what they have done, adding a penalty of 20 percent and returning it to the person who was wronged.”
. . . forgiveness.
WHY IS RESTITUTION IMPORTANT IN RELATIONSHIPS?
Romans 13:8-10 . . . Pay all your debts, except the debt of love for others. You can never finish paying that! If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill all the requirements of God’s law. For the commandments against adultery and murder and stealing and coveting-and any other commandment-are all summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to anyone, so love satisfies all of God’s requirements.
Matthew 5:23-24, 44 . . . If you are standing before the altar in the Temple, offering a sacrifice to God, and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there beside the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God . . . I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!
Colossians 3:13-14 . . . You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony.
Restitution is motivated by love.
Numbers 5:7 . . . They must confess their sin and make full restitution for what they have done, adding a penalty of 20 percent and returning it to the person who was wronged.
1 Samuel 12:3 . . . “Now tell me as I stand before the Lord and before his anointed one-whose ox or donkey have I stolen? Have I ever cheated any of you? Have I ever oppressed you? Have I ever taken a bribe? Tell me and I will make right whatever I have done wrong.”
1 Samuel 25:24-28 . . . She fell at his feet and said, “I accept all blame in this matter, my lord. Please listen to what I have to say. I know Nabal is a wicked and ill-tempered man; please don’t pay any attention to him. He is a fool, just as his name suggests. But I never even saw the messengers you sent. Now, my lord, as surely as the Lord lives and you yourself live, since the Lord has kept you from murdering and taking vengeance into your own hands, let all your enemies be as cursed as Nabal is. And here is a present I have brought to you and your young men. Please forgive me if I have offended in any way. The Lord will surely reward you with a lasting dynasty, for you are fighting the Lord’s battles. And you have not done wrong throughout your entire life.”
2 Kings 18:14 . . . King Hezekiah sent this message to the king of Assyria at Lachish: “I have done wrong. I will pay whatever tribute money you demand if you will only go away.” The king of Assyria then demanded a settlement of more than eleven tons of silver and about one ton of gold.
Restitution acknowledges that a wrong has been committed, shows concern for the one wronged, and demonstrates a sincere desire to take responsibility for one’s actions.
Proverbs 18:19 . . . It’s harder to make amends with an offended friend than to capture a fortified city. Arguments separate friends like a gate locked with iron bars.
Genesis 32:13-15 . . . Jacob stayed where he was for the night and prepared a present for Esau: two hundred female goats, twenty male goats, two hundred ewes, twenty rams, thirty female camels with their young, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys, and ten male donkeys.
Restitution gives hope for a damaged relationship.
WHEN IS RESTITUTION NECESSARY?
Exodus 22:2-3 . . . If a thief is caught in the act of breaking into a house and is killed in the process, the person who killed the thief is not guilty. But if it happens in daylight, the one who killed the thief is guilty of murder. A thief who is caught must pay in full for everything that was stolen. If payment is not made, the thief must be sold as a slave to pay the debt.
Exodus 22:7, 16-17 . . . Suppose someone entrusts money or goods to a neighbor, and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house. If the thief is found, the fine is double the value of what was stolen . . . If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to anyone and sleeps with her, he must pay the customary dowry and accept her as his wife. But if her father refuses to let her marry him, the man must still pay the money for her dowry.
Leviticus 24:17-21 . . . Anyone who takes another person’s life must be put to death.
Anyone who kills another person’s animal must pay it back in full-a live animal for the animal that was killed. Anyone who injures another person must be dealt with according to the injury inflicted-fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. Whatever anyone does to hurt another person must be paid back in kind. Whoever kills an animal must make full restitution, but whoever kills another person must be put to death.
Numbers 5:6-7 . . . Give these instructions to the people of Israel: If any of the people-men or women-betray the Lord by doing wrong to another person, they are guilty. They must confess their sin and make full restitution for what they have done, adding a penalty of 20 percent and returning it to the person who was wronged.
Proverbs 6:30-31 . . . Excuses might be found for a thief who steals because he is starving. But if he is caught, he will be fined seven times as much as he stole, even if it means selling everything in his house to pay it back.
Restitution is necessary for crimes committed.
Exodus 22:5-6 . . . If an animal is grazing in a field or vineyard and the owner lets it stray into someone else’s field to graze, then the animal’s owner must pay damages in the form of high-quality grain or grapes. If a fire gets out of control and goes into another person’s field, destroying the sheaves or the standing grain, then the one who started the fire must pay for the lost crops.
Exodus 21:33-34 . . . Suppose someone digs or uncovers a well and fails to cover it, and then an ox or a donkey falls into it. The owner of the well must pay in full for the dead animal but then gets to keep it.
Exodus 22:10-15 . . . Now suppose someone asks a neighbor to care for a donkey, ox, sheep, or any other animal, but it dies or is injured or gets away, and there is no eyewitness to report just what happened. The neighbor must then take an oath of innocence in the presence of the Lord. The owner must accept the neighbor’s word, and no payment will be required. But if the animal or property was stolen, payment must be made to the owner. If it was attacked by a wild animal, the carcass must be shown as evidence, and no payment will be required. If someone borrows an animal from a neighbor and it is injured or killed, and if the owner was not there at the time, the person who borrowed it must pay for it. But if the owner is there, no payment is required. And no payment is required if the animal was rented because this loss was covered by the rental fee.
Restitution is necessary for accidental losses incurred.
Leviticus 5:14-16 . . . Then the Lord said to Moses, “If any of the people sin by unintentionally defiling the Lord’s sacred property, they must bring to the Lord a ram from the flock as their guilt offering. The animal must have no physical defects, and it must be of the proper value in silver as measured by the standard sanctuary shekel. They must then make restitution for whatever holy things they have defiled by paying for the loss, plus an added penalty of 20 percent. When they give their payments to the priest, he will make atonement for them with the ram sacrificed as a guilt offering, and they will be forgiven.”
Restitution is necessary for unintentional sins committed.
Numbers 5:5-7 . . . Then the Lord said to Moses, “Give these instructions to the people of Israel: If any of the people-men or women-betray the Lord by doing wrong to another person, they are guilty. They must confess their sin and make full restitution for what they have done, adding a penalty of 20 percent and returning it to the person who was wronged.”
Restitution is necessary as part of confession.
Leviticus 6:2-6 . . . Suppose some of the people sin against the Lord by falsely telling their neighbor that an item entrusted to their safekeeping has been lost or stolen. Or suppose they have been dishonest with regard to a security deposit, or they have taken something by theft or extortion. Or suppose they find a lost item and lie about it, or they deny something while under oath, or they commit any other similar sin. If they have sinned in any of these ways and are guilty, they must give back whatever they have taken by theft or extortion, whether a security deposit, or property entrusted to them, or a lost object that they claimed as their own, or anything gained by swearing falsely. When they realize their guilt, they must restore the principal amount plus a penalty of 20 percent to the person they have harmed. They must then bring a guilt offering to the priest, who will present it before the Lord. This offering must be a ram with no physical defects or the animal’s equivalent value in silver.
Luke 19:8 . . . Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have overcharged people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
Restitution is necessary for dishonesty.
HOW DO WE KNOW WHEN THE PROPER AMOUNT OF RESTITUTION HAS BEEN MADE?
Exodus 22:1, 4, 9 . . . A fine must be paid by anyone who steals an ox or sheep and then kills or sells it. For oxen the fine is five oxen for each one stolen. For sheep the fine is four sheep for each one stolen . . . If someone steals an ox or a donkey or a sheep and it is recovered alive, then the thief must pay double the value . . . Suppose there is a dispute between two people as to who owns a particular ox, donkey, sheep, article of clothing, or anything else. Both parties must come before God for a decision, and the person whom God declares guilty must pay double to the other.
Leviticus 6:5 . . . or anything gained by swearing falsely. When they realize their guilt, they must restore the principal amount plus a penalty of 20 percent to the person they have harmed.
2 Samuel 12:5-6 . . . David was furious. “As surely as the Lord lives,” he vowed, “any man who would do such a thing deserves to die! He must repay four lambs to the poor man for the one he stole and for having no pity.”
Proverbs 6:31 . . . If he is caught, he will be fined seven times as much as he stole, even if it means selling everything in his house to pay it back.
Luke 19:8-9 . . . Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have overcharged people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!” Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a son of Abraham.”
The amount of restitution is to exceed the original amount in question.
Leviticus 24:20 . . . Fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. Whatever anyone does to hurt another person must be paid back in kind.
Matthew 5:38-3 ,43-48 . . . “You have heard that the law of Moses says, ‘If an eye is injured, injure the eye of the person who did it. If a tooth gets knocked out, knock out the tooth of the person who did it.’ But I say, don’t resist an evil person! If you are slapped on the right cheek, turn the other, too . . . You have heard that the law of Moses says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and on the unjust, too. If you love only those who love you, what good is that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
Jesus’ teaching went beyond the idea of payment in kind. The offended party should forgive and genuinely love the offender, regardless of the amount, or even absence of, restitution.
WHAT ARE THE RESULTS OF JESUS’ RESTITUTION FOR SIN?
Romans 5:10 . . . Since we were restored to friendship with God by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be delivered from eternal punishment by his life.
Romans 5:19 . . . Because one person disobeyed God, many people became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many people will be made right in God’s sight.
2 Corinthians 5:21 . . . God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
Hebrews 9:28 . . . Christ died only once as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again but not to deal with our sins again. This time he will bring salvation to all those who are eagerly waiting for him.
Jesus Christ restored our fellowship with God.
1 Corinthians 15:21-22 . . . Just as death came into the world through a man, Adam, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man, Christ.
Everyone dies because all of us are related to Adam, the first man. But all who are related to Christ, the other man, will be given new life.
1 Corinthians 15:45-49 . . . The Scriptures tell us, “The first man, Adam, became a living person.” But the last Adam-that is, Christ-is a life-giving Spirit. What came first was the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later. Adam, the first man, was made from the dust of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven. Every human being has an earthly body just like Adam’s, but our heavenly bodies will be just like Christ’s. Just as we are now like Adam, the man of the earth, so we will someday be like Christ, the man from heaven.
Jesus Christ restored our hope of eternal life.
PROMISE FROM GOD:
Romans 5:10 . . . Since we were restored to friendship with God by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be delivered from eternal punishment by his life.