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8.8 Witchcraft
NBL 7 is the lone record on this issue and its meaning is obscure
at points. It seems to contain three basic stipulations concerning a
woman who casts or attempts to cast a spell. First, if she casts the
spell on a field, she must pay the owner of the field three times the
value of its yield. Second, if she casts a spell on an item other than
a house, she must pay three times the amount of any damage caused.
Third, if the woman is caught casting the spell on a person’s house,
she must receive the death penalty.8.9 Offenses Related to Runaway Slaves
Those who harbored, exploited, or simply did not return runaway
slaves could be put on trial (Dar. 53; Nbn. 679; YOS 7 146; YOS
7 152). There is no indication, however, what punishment was imposed
for these acts.8.10 Punishment
8.10.1 Corporal Punishment
Apart from references to the death penalty for adultery (see 8.3
above) and for treason (see 8.7 above), there is little mention of cor-
poral punishment. One text mentions flogging and the pulling out
of men’s beards and hair.^237 The offense in this case—the failure to
complete the plowing of a field by a certain day—may be, however,
more civil than criminal. Another text refers to the cutting offof a
man’s hand (ZA3 224 [no. 2]). It states that a payment of silver
(140 shekels) was made in lieu of the physical punishment, but it
does not state what the offense was.8.10.2 Payments
Fines and payments in varying multiples of the amount at issue have
already been described above. They include multiples of thirty for
theft of temple property (8.4.1.1), one and two for theft of private
property (8.4.1.2), one for damage to property (8.5), and three for
certain acts of witchcraft (8.8). One text mentions payments that
were made as substitutes for the cutting offof a man’s hand and
for the imprisonment of another (ZA3 224 [no. 2]), but the text
does not disclose the offenses involved.(^237) Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empire.. ., no. 91.
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