To sum up, I have examined the various stipulations contained in the manumission law in Deut. 15:12–18 in an attempt to clarify the meaning of this law, especially in the light of the older manumission laws in Exod. 21:2–6, 7–11. As the above examination has shown, the biblical manumission law in Deut. 15:12–18, like the law in Exod. 21:2–6, stipulates the periodic release of debt-slaves who were the dependents of a defaulting debtor after six years service in the house of