Exodus 21–22

21“These are the ordinances that you must set before them:

Laws about Slaves

²“When you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve for six years; then in the seventh he is to leave as a free man ^ywithout paying anything. ^z3If he arrives alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrives with ^aa wife, his wife is to leave with him. ⁴If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children belong to her master, and the man must leave alone.

⁵“But if the slave declares: ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I do not want to leave as a free man,’ ^b6his master is to bring him to the judges ^cand then bring him to the door or doorpost. His master must pierce his ear with an awl, and he will serve his master for life.

⁷“When a man sells his daughter as a slave, ^dshe is not to leave as the male slaves do. ^e8If she is displeasing to her master, who chose her for himself, then he must let her be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners because he has acted treacherously toward her. ⁹Or if he chooses her for his son, he must deal with her according to the customary treatment of daughters. ¹⁰If he takes an additional wife, he must not reduce the food, clothing, or marital rights of the first wife. ^f11And if he does not do these three things for her, she may leave free of charge, without any exchange of money. ^g

Laws about Personal Injury

¹²“Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death. ^h13But if he didn’t intend any harm, ⁱand yet God caused it to happen by his hand, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee. ^j14If a person schemes and willfully ^kacts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from My altar to be put to death. ^l

¹⁵“Whoever strikes his father or his mother must be put to death.

¹⁶“Whoever kidnaps a person must be put to death, whether he sells him or the person is found in his possession. ^m

¹⁷“Whoever curses his father or his mother must be put to death. ⁿ

¹⁸“When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or his fist, and the injured man does not die but is confined to bed, ¹⁹if he can later get up and walk around outside leaning on his staff, then the one who struck him will be exempt from punishment. Nevertheless, he must pay for his lost work time ^oand provide for his complete recovery.

²⁰“When a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod, and the slave dies under his abuse, ^pthe owner must be punished. ^q21However, if the slave can stand up after a day or two, the owner should not be punished ^rbecause he is his owner’s property. ^st

²²“When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely ^ubut there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands ^vfrom him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. ²³If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, ²⁴eye for eye, tooth for tooth, ^whand for hand, foot for foot, ²⁵burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

²⁶“When a man strikes the eye of his male or female slave and destroys it, he must let the slave go free in compensation for his eye. ²⁷If he knocks out the tooth of his male or female slave, he must let the slave go free in compensation for his tooth.

²⁸“When an ox ^xgores a man or a woman to death, the ox must be stoned, ^yand its meat may not be eaten, but the ox’s owner is innocent. ²⁹However, if the ox was in the habit of goring, and its owner has been warned yet does not restrain it, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox must be stoned, and its owner must also be put to death. ³⁰If instead a ransom ^zis demanded of him, he can pay a redemption price for his life in the full amount demanded from him. ³¹If it gores a son or a daughter, he is to be dealt with according to this same law. ³²If the ox gores a male or female slave, he must give 30 shekels ^aof silver ^bto the slave’s master, and the ox must be stoned.

³³“When a man uncovers a pit or digs a pit, and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, ³⁴the owner of the pit must give compensation; he must pay money to its owner, but the dead animal will become his.

³⁵“When a man’s ox injures his neighbor’s ox and it dies, they must sell the live ox and divide its proceeds; they must also divide the dead animal. ³⁶If, however, it is known that the ox was in the habit of goring, yet its owner has not restrained it, he must compensate fully, ox for ox; the dead animal will become his.

Laws about Theft

22^c“When a man steals an ox or a sheep and butchers it or sells it, he must repay ^dfive cattle for the ox or four sheep for the sheep. ^2eIf a thief is caught in the act of breaking in, and he is beaten to death, no one is guilty of bloodshed. ^f3But if this happens after sunrise, ^gthere is guilt of bloodshed. A thief must make full restitution. If he is unable, he is to be sold because of his theft. ^h4If what was stolen—whether ox, donkey, or sheep—is actually found alive in his possession, he must repay double.

Laws about Crop Protection

⁵“When a man lets a field or vineyard be grazed in, and then allows his animals to go and graze in someone else’s field, he must repay ⁱwith the best of his own field or vineyard.

⁶“When a fire gets out of control, spreads to thornbushes, and consumes stacks of cut grain, standing grain, or a field, the one who started the fire must make full restitution for what was burned.

Laws about Personal Property

⁷“When a man gives his neighbor money or goods to keep, but they are stolen from that person’s house, the thief, if caught, must repay double. ⁸If the thief is not caught, the owner of the house must present himself to the judges ^jto determine ^kwhether or not he has taken his neighbor’s property. ^l9In any case of wrongdoing involving an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or anything else lost, and someone claims, ‘That’s mine,’ ^mthe case between the two parties is to come before the judges. ⁿThe one the judges condemn ^omust repay double to his neighbor.

¹⁰“When a man gives his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any other animal to care for, but it dies, is injured, or is stolen, while no one is watching, ¹¹there must be an oath before the Lord between the two of them to determine whether or not he has taken his neighbor’s property. Its owner must accept the oath, and the other man does not have to make restitution. ¹²But if, in fact, the animal was stolen from his custody, he must make restitution to its owner. ^p13If it was actually torn apart by a wild animal, he is to bring it as evidence; he does not have to make restitution for the torn carcass.

¹⁴“When a man borrows an animal from his neighbor, and it is injured or dies while its owner is not there with it, the man must make full restitution. ¹⁵If its owner is there with it, the man does not have to make restitution. If it was rented, the loss is covered by ^qits rental price.

Laws about Seduction

¹⁶“If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged, and he has sexual relations with her, he must certainly pay the bridal price for her to be his wife. ¹⁷If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must pay an amount in silver equal to the bridal price for virgins. ^r

Capital Offenses

¹⁸“You must not allow a sorceress ^sto live.

¹⁹“Whoever has sexual intercourse with an animal ^tmust be put to death.

²⁰“Whoever sacrifices to any gods, except the Lord alone, is to be set apart for destruction. ^u

Laws Protecting the Vulnerable

²¹“You must not exploit a foreign resident ^vor oppress him, since you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

²²“You must not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. ^w23If you do mistreat them, they will no doubt cry to Me, and I will certainly hear their cry. ^x24My anger will burn, and I will kill you with the sword; then your wives will be widows and your children fatherless. ^y

²⁵“If you lend money to My people, to the poor person among you, you must not be like a moneylender to him; you must not charge him interest. ^z

²⁶“If you ever take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him before sunset. ²⁷For it is his only covering; it is the clothing for his body. ^aWhat will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will listen because I am compassionate. ^b

Respect for God

²⁸“You must not blaspheme God ^cor curse a leader among your people. ^d

²⁹“You must not hold back offerings ^efrom your harvest or your vats. Give Me the firstborn of your sons. ³⁰Do the same with your cattle and your flock. Let them stay with their mothers for seven days, but on the eighth day you are to give them to Me. ^f

³¹“Be My holy people. You must not eat the meat of a mauled animal ^gfound in the field; throw it to the dogs.