Exodus 21

1 "Now these are the ordinances which you shall set before them.

“Now these are the decrees that you must set before them:

2 "If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years and in the seventh he shall go out free without paying anything.

'If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve for six years, and in the seventh year he will go free without paying anything.

3 If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself. If he is married, then his wife shall go out with him.

If he came by himself, he must go free by himself; if he is married, then his wife must go free with him.

4 If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself.

If his master gave him a wife and she bore him sons or daughters, the wife and her children will belong to her master, and he must go free by himself.

5 But if the servant shall plainly say, 'I love my master, my wife, and my children. I will not go out free;'

But if the servant plainly says, “I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,”

6 then his master shall bring him to God, and shall bring him to the door or to the doorpost, and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall serve him for ever.

then his master must bring him to God. The master must bring him to a door or doorpost, and his master must bore his ear through with an awl. Then the servant will serve him for life.

7 "If a man sells his daughter to be a female servant, she shall not go out as the male servants do.

If a man sells his daughter as a female servant, she must not go free as the male servants do.

8 If she doesn't please her master, who has married her to himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, seeing he has dealt deceitfully with her.

If she does not please her master, who has designated her for himself, then he must let her be bought back. He has no right to sell her to a foreign people. He has no such right, since he has treated her deceitfully.

9 If he marries her to his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.

If her master designates her as a wife for his son, he must treat her the same as if she were his daughter.

10 If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, and her marital rights.

If he takes another wife for himself, he must not diminish her food, clothing, or her marital rights.

11 If he doesn't do these three things for her, she may go free without paying any money.

But if he does not provide these three things for her, then she can go free without paying any money.

12 "One who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death,

Whoever strikes a man so that he dies, that person must surely be put to death.

13 but not if it is unintentional, but God allows it to happen: then I will appoint you a place where he shall flee.

If the man did not do it with premeditation, but instead by accident, then I will fix a place to where he can flee.

14 If a man schemes and comes presumptuously on his neighbor to kill him, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.

If a man willfully attacks his neighbor and kills him according to a cunning plan, then you must take him, even if he is at God's altar, so that he may die.

15 "Anyone who attacks his father or his mother shall be surely put to death.

Whoever hits his father or mother must surely be put to death.

16 "Anyone who kidnaps someone and sells him, or if he is found in his possession, he shall surely be put to death.

Whoever kidnaps a person—whether the kidnapper sells him, or that person is found in his hand—that kidnapper must be put to death.

17 "Anyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

Whoever curses his father or his mother must surely be put to death.

18 "If men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone, or with his fist, and he doesn't die, but is confined to bed;

If men fight and one hits the other with a stone or with his fist, and that person does not die, but is confined to his bed;

19 if he rises again and walks around with his staff, then he who struck him shall be cleared: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall provide for his healing until he is thoroughly healed.

then if he recovers and is able to walk about using his staff, the man who struck him must pay for the loss of his time; he must also pay for his complete recovery. But that man is not guilty of murder.

20 "If a man strikes his servant or his maid with a staff, and he dies under his hand, he shall surely be punished.

If a man hits his male servant or his female servant with a staff, and if the servant dies as a result of the blow, then that man must surely be punished.

21 Notwithstanding, if he gets up after a day or two, he shall not be punished, for he is his property.

However, if the servant lives for a day or two, the master must not be punished, for he will have suffered the loss of the servant.

22 "If men fight and strike a pregnant woman so that her child is born prematurely, but there is no injury, he shall be surely fined as much as the woman's husband demands and the judges allow.

If men fight together and hurt a pregnant woman so that she miscarries, but there is no other injury to her, then the guilty man must surely be fined as the woman's husband demands it from him, and he must pay as the judges determine.

23 But if there is injury, then you must take life for life,

But if there is serious injury, then you must give a life for a life,

24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,

an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot,

25 burning for burning, wound for wound, and bruise for bruise.

a burn for a burn, a wound for a wound, or a bruise for a bruise.

26 "If a man strikes his servant's eye, or his maid's eye, and destroys it, he shall let him go free for his eye's sake.

If a man hits the eye of his male servant or of his female servant and destroys it, then he must let the servant go free in compensation for his eye.

27 If he strikes out his male servant's tooth, or his female servant's tooth, he shall let him go free for his tooth's sake.

If he knocks out a tooth of his male servant or female servant, he must let the servant go free as compensation for the tooth.

28 "If a bull gores a man or a woman to death, the bull shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the bull shall not be held responsible.

If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox must surely be stoned, and its flesh must not be eaten; but the ox's owner must be acquitted of guilt.

29 But if the bull had a habit of goring in the past, and it has been testified to its owner, and he has not kept it in, but it has killed a man or a woman, the bull shall be stoned, and its owner shall also be put to death.

But if the ox had a habit of goring in the past, and its owner was warned but did not keep it in, and the ox has killed a man or a woman, that ox must be stoned, and its owner also must be put to death.

30 If a ransom is laid on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is laid on him.

If a payment is required for his life, he must pay whatever he is required to pay.

31 Whether it has gored a son or has gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.

If the ox has gored a man's son or daughter, the ox's owner must do what this decree requires him to do.

32 If the bull gores a male servant or a female servant, thirty shekels of silver shall be given to their master, and the ox shall be stoned.

If the ox gores a male servant or a female servant, the ox's owner must pay thirty shekels of silver, and the ox must be stoned.

33 "If a man opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and doesn't cover it, and a bull or a donkey falls into it,

If a man opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,

34 the owner of the pit shall make it good. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead animal shall be his.

the owner of the pit must repay the loss. He must give money to the dead animal's owner, and the dead animal will become his.

35 "If one man's bull injures another's, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live bull, and divide its price; and they shall also divide the dead animal.

If one man's ox hurts another man's ox so that it dies, then they must sell the live ox and divide its price, and they must also divide the dead ox.

36 Or if it is known that the bull was in the habit of goring in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall surely pay bull for bull, and the dead animal shall be his own.

But if it was known that the ox had a habit of goring in time past, and its owner has not kept it in, he must surely pay ox for ox, and the dead animal will become his own.