With regard to a society where murderers can evade punishment through bribery, the Torah admonishes
"Do not defile the land in which you live and in which I live." (Num. 35:34)
In what way does allowing murderers go unpunished 'defile the land'? And why does the Torah emphasize that this is the land where both you and God dwell?
The Sages taught in Shabbat 33a:
"For the crime of bloodshed, the Temple is destroyed and the Shechinah [God's Presence] departs from Israel. As it says, "Do not defile the land in which you live and in which I live." If you do defile it, you will not dwell in it, nor will I dwell in it."
Why is the appropriate punishment for such corruption the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash, the loss of the Shechinah, and exile?
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