< Exodus 21 >
1 “Now these are the decrees that you must set before them:
Now, these are the regulations which thou shalt put before them.
2 '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.
When thou shalt acquire a servant who is a Hebrew, six years, shall he serve, —but in the seventh shall he go out freely—for nought.
3 If he came by himself, he must go free by himself; if he is married, then his wife must go free with him.
If, by himself, he came in, by himself, shall he go out, —if he was married, then shall his wife go out with him.
4 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.
If his lord gave him a wife, and she have borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her lords, and, he shall go out by himself.
5 But if the servant plainly says, “I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,”
But, if the servant shall plainly say, I love my lord, and my wife and my sons, —I will not go out free,
6 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.
then shall his lord bring him near unto God, and shall bring him near unto the door, or unto the door-post, —and his lord shall pierce his ear with an awl, so shall he serve him all his life.
7 If a man sells his daughter as a female servant, she must not go free as the male servants do.
And when a man shall sell his daughter to be a handmaid, she shall not go out according to the out-going of the men-servants,
8 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.
If she is uncomely in the eyes of her lord, who hath not assigned her in marriage, then shall he suffer her to be redeemed: to a strange people, shall he not have power to sell her in that he hath dealt treacherously with her.
9 If her master designates her as a wife for his son, he must treat her the same as if she were his daughter.
And if, to his son, he assign her, according to the custom for daughters, shall he do for her.
10 If he takes another wife for himself, he must not diminish her food, clothing, or her marital rights.
If he take to himself another, her food her clothing, and her marriage-right, shall he not withdraw.
11 But if he does not provide these three things for her, then she can go free without paying any money.
But if these three, he will not do for her, then shall she go out for nought, without silver.
12 Whoever strikes a man so that he dies, that person must surely be put to death.
He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall surely be put to death.
13 If the man did not do it with premeditation, but instead by accident, then I will fix a place to where he can flee.
But he who hath not lain in wait, but, God, hath occasioned him to come to his hand, then will I appoint for thee a place, whither he may flee.
14 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.
But, when a man shall act presumptuously against his neighbour to slay him with guile, from mine altar, shalt thou take him to die.
15 Whoever hits his father or mother must surely be put to death.
And, he that smiteth his father or his mother, shall, surely be put to death.
16 Whoever kidnaps a person—whether the kidnapper sells him, or that person is found in his hand—that kidnapper must be put to death.
And, he that stealeth a man of the sons of Israel, and selleth him, or he be found in his hand, shall, surely be put to death.
17 Whoever curses his father or his mother must surely be put to death.
And he who revileth his father or his mother, shall, surely be put to death.
18 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;
And when men strive together, and one shall smite the other, with a stone or with his fist, —and he die not, but shall fall to his bed; —
19 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.
if he rise and shall walk abroad on his staff, then shall he that smote him be acquitted, —only, for his loss of time, he shall pay, and, shall surely heal, him.
20 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.
And when a man shall smite his servant or his handmaid with a rod, and he die under his hand, he shall, surely be avenged;
21 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.
nevertheless if, for a day or for two days, he continue, he shall not be avenged, for, his silver, he is.
22 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.
And when men strive together and push against a woman with child, and she miscarry, but there is no other mischief, he shall, surely be fined, according as the woman’s husband shall lay upon him, but he shall give it through judges.
23 But if there is serious injury, then you must give a life for a life,
But, if mischief follow, then shalt thou give life for life;
24 an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot,
eye for eye, tooth for tooth, —hand for hand, foot for foot,
25 a burn for a burn, a wound for a wound, or a bruise for a bruise.
brand for brand, wound for wound, —stripe for stripe.
26 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.
And, when a man smiteth the eye of his servant, or the eye of his handmaid, and destroyeth it, he shall send him forth, free, for his eye;
27 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.
or, if, the tooth of his servant or the tooth of his handmaid, he knock out, he shall send him forth, free, for his tooth.
28 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.
And when an ox goreth a man or a woman, and death ensueth, the ox shall, surely be stoned and his flesh shall not be eaten, and the owner of the ox, shall be quit.
29 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.
But, if, the ox, was wont to gore before that time and it hath been attested to his owner, and he hath not proceeded to put him under guard, and he causeth the death of man or woman, the ox, shall be stoned, and, his owner also, shall be put to death.
30 If a payment is required for his life, he must pay whatever he is required to pay.
If, a sin-covering, be laid on him, then shall he give a ransom for his life, according to whatsoever may be laid on him:
31 If the ox has gored a man's son or daughter, the ox's owner must do what this decree requires him to do.
if, a son, he gore or, a daughter, he gore, according to this regulation, shall it be done to him;
32 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.
if, a servant the ox gore, or a handmaid, thirty shekels of silver, shall he give to his lord, and, the ox, shall be stoned.
33 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,
And when a man openeth a pit, or when a man diggeth a pit, and doth not cover it, —and there falleth thereinto an ox or an ass,
34 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.
the owner of the pit, shall make it good, silver, shall he pay back to the owner thereof, —and the dead beast, shall be his.
35 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.
And when the ox of one man thrusteth the ox of his neighbour so that it dieth, then shall they sell the live ox and divide the silver thereof, and the dead ox also, shall they divide,
36 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.
Or if it was known that, an ox, was, wont to gore, before that time, and his owner proceeded not to put him under guard, he shall surely make good, —an ox for the ox, and, the dead one, shall be his.