Contemplative Bible Reading

Exodus 30:11, 12, 14 (New Living Translation)

11 Then the Lord said to Moses, 12 “Whenever you take a census of the people of Israel, each man who is counted must pay a ransom for himself to the Lord….14 All who have reached their twentieth birthday must give this sacred offering to the Lord.

In my lifetime, I have seen the age of manhood bounce about a bit. Voting age was 21, then it was 18. Drinking age was 21, then 18, then 21 again. Military service has tended to stay at 18.

The age of accountability knowing right from wrong? Your guess is as good as mine.

Given above is the Old Testament age when a male was counted as a man: 20.

Somehow we have lost that magic number. I don’t know the history of 18 and 21, but I guess they somehow connect to the Old Testament as much of Western culture does.