Casuistic Laws

Casuistically formulated laws imagine a general situation, introduced by the word “whenever” (Hebrew: ki). Various specific cases are ranked under this, with the help of the word “if” (Hebrew: im), followed by the judgement or sentence. For example, the book of Leviticus begins in this way. In Leviticus 1:2 we read,

“When anyone offers an animal sacrifice, it may be one of his cattle or one of his sheep or goats.”

This is followed by the special cases:

This specifically casuistic phraseology is not always clear in translations.