But Mesopotamian legal techniques were not so easily eliminated. They had already served as models for the Israelite priests, who made laws with firmly religious purposes, working out the rules that God had given his chosen people. Adapting the Mesopotamian forms to realize a religious vision for their societies, the priests crafted rules for prayer, ritual observance, and cleanliness alongside social rules designed to ensure everyday justice. These were developed over the centuries into the great works of Jewish law.
