Hey /his/, In ancient Israel, who enforced the Mosaic laws prior

>>2822760
The High Priest, I believe.

>>2822760
The Mosaic law as we know it likely didn't exist before the monarchy

Ultimately Judges, I'd guess. Probably the local priest did at a smaller level.

That's assuming the Israelites were monotheistic before the Kings

>>2822760
We don't have any real historic evidence. If we go by the Bible, which is iffy but really the only thing it has to go on, we don't get much in the way of structural government, and an often repeated refrain of Judges is how "every man did what was best in his own eyes".

Enforcement of the laws, and other social organization seemed to be done by ad-hoc people of influence and respect who attained and kept their position based on personal reputation, which promptly fell apart when they died (or became discredited) and people would flock to the next influential leader.

>>2822842
Judges is probably a pretty accurate representation of how Israelite society went from tribal to state. The specifics of the stories might be subject, but the transition from tribal confederacies to Kingdoms is pretty much what you'd expect in an evolving civilization.

>>2822760
>who enforced the Mosaic laws prior to the monarchy?
There was no state so the people enforced the law by themselves

>>2822861
>>2822842

Did the priests not have any authority? Afterall, Eli was judged for letting his sons do as they pleased.

>>2823114
They had religious authority, but I think the enforcement of their laws worked more on a system of societal expectations and shame. Any minor infraction would probably be punished within the society. Like if you touched blood and refused to wash, you'd probably get shunned, instead of the priest coming to tell you to stop.

The Laws that pertain to sacrifice and rites and all that would be handled by the Priests.

Anything involving murder or civil dispute would probably be the Civil Authority's duty, likely a Clan Leader, Chief, or Judge.

The story of Solomon and the two mothers shows that the Kings likely presided over some civil disputes.

>>2823114
If you fast-forward into the Second Temple Era, the High Priest had authority (very far-reaching authority) on the Temple Grounds themselves, but not a whole lot "officially" off of it. However, the High Priest was usually in charge of the Sadducee sect, and they had considerable influence within the Sanhedrin, a kind of supreme court, and occasionally the High Priest would also be the head of the Sanhedrin, but the offices remained separate.

But going that far back? Again, there's no real evidence either way unless you consider the Bible, and that doesn't portray the priests as having much authority. Remember too, that in Judaism, a priest isn't analogous to a Christian one, they're a hereditary caste of temple (or in that period Mishkan) caretakers. You're a priest by virtue of your father being a priest, and there are no other requirements for the job. They don't even necessarily KNOW all the inns and outs of the Mosiatic Law, although I'm sure there were Priests who were well educated; on the other hand, you get questions in the Mishkan as to what to do if the High Priest is "I can count to potato" level of retarded.

At a guess, they probably had about as much influence as anyone else with similar levels of wealth, knowledge, and prestige. I.E. not a lot institutionally, but if you have a capable and clever priest running around, he probably had people listening to him. Lastly, remember that there's a difference between a father's supposed influence over his children and that extending to the wider people of Israel, you've got a pretty patriarchal culture here we're talking about, with the father as the more or less absolute head of the household.

>>2823136
>>2823136

>you get questions in the Mishna* as to what to do if the High Priest is "I can count to potato" level of retarded.
Fixed typographical error. The Mishna is a codification of certain parts of oral teachings of the Hebrews around 170ish AD. The Mishkan was a tent that housed most of the relics that would later be important in the Temple.