Source of Law in the Biblical 325 development of the same “theologizing process” of existing customs and laws (3), as well as the transformation from secular to sacral law. My assumption, in other words, is that biblical law should not be studied diachronically, but as a “comprehensive system of thought” and as “a coherent conceptual system” (4). From this point of view, the biblical laws should be perceived as complementary. For instance, the rules equalizing the sanctions for killing a son or daughter to that of their father reflect a shared theological foundation, whether they are found in the Book of the Covenant or in Leviticus and Numbers, and they share a common distinction from the other Near Eastern law collections. It is also irrelevant whether, as debated by scholars, biblical laws had an effect on social norms, whether they were a law code or a collection of judgments, or whether some or all the rules of the Covenant Code were influenced by or even reproduced from the Mesopotamian collections. The main point is that they were appropriately adjusted to be compatible with Israelite theology, in the same manner that certain Genesis narratives, though similar to Mesopotamian mythology, have radical differences that support the particular Israelite theology. 2. Source of law in the Bible and in other Near Eastern law collections As a wealth of scholarly material attests, there are many similar- ities between biblical and cuneiform law, in content, in concept (5) and even at a philological level (6). Nonetheless, the distinct sources of the law are evident in each case. —————— ness Code”, Studies in the Book of Exodus. Redaction-Reception-Interpretation (ed. M. VERVENNE) (Leuven 1996) 337-340; and C.M. CARMICHAEL, The Origins of Biblical Law. The Decalogues and the Book of the Covenant (Ithaca 1992) 2-15. (3) See, e.g. R. ALBERTZ, “Die Theologisierung des Rechts im Alten Israel”, Religion und Gesellschaft. Studien zu ihrer Wechselbeziehung in den Kulturen des Antiken Vorderen Orients (ed. R. ALBERTZ – S. OTTO) (Münster 1997) 115- 132; and O. ECKART, Wandel der Rechtsbegründungen in der Gesellschafts- geschichte des Antiken Israel. Eine Rechtsgeschichte des “Bundesbuches” Ex XX 22 – XXIII 13 (Leiden 1988) 69-73. (4) D. PATRICK, “Studying Biblical Law as a Humanities”, Semeia 45 (1989) 27-28. (5) Akkadian phrases such as dînât meshârim “rightful justice” and dîn kitti “true judgment” have their poetic parallels in Ps 119,137 and in Zech 7,9. (6) The Hebrew root ˆwd in its various ramifications relating to judging is cognate with the Akkadian terms: dînum “judgement” dayyânum “judge”, etc.