Exodus 21

The Decisions

1 s “These are the decisions that you will set before them:

Hebrew Servants

2 s “If you buyt a Hebrew servant,s he is to serve you for six years, but in the seventh year he will go out frees without paying anything.t3 If he camet in by himselft he will go out by himself; if he hadt a wife when he came in, then his wife will go out with him.4 If his master gaves him a wife, and she bore sons or daughters, the wife and the children will belong to her master, and he will go out by himself.5 But if the servant should declare,t ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go outt free,’

6 then his master must bring him to the judges,t and he will bring him to the door or the doorposts, and his master will pierce his ear with an awl, and he shall serve him forever.t
7 “If a man sells his daughters as a female servant,t she will not go out as the male servants do.8 If she does not pleaset her master, who has designated hert for himself, then he must let her be redeemed.t He has no rightt to sell her to a foreign nation, because he has dealt deceitfullys with her.9 If he designated her for his son, then he will deal with her according to the customary rightst of daughters.10 If he takes another wife,t he must not diminish the first one’s food,t her clothing, or her marital rights.s

11 If he does not provide her with these three things, then she will go out free, without paying money.s

Personal Injuries

12 s “Whoever strikes someonet so that he diest must surely be put to death.s13 But if he does not do it with premeditation,t but it happens by accident,t then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.

14 But if a man willfully attacks his neighbor to kill him cunningly,t you will take him even from my altar that he may die.

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

16 “Whoever kidnaps someonet and sells him,s or is caught still holding him,t must surely be put to death.

17 “Whoever treats his father or his mother disgracefullyt must surely be put to death.
18 “If men fight, and one strikes his neighbor with a stone or with his fist and he does not die, but must remain in bed,t

19 and thent if he gets up and walks aboutt outside on his staff, then the one who struck him is innocent, except he must payt for the injured person’st loss of timet and see to it that he is fully healed.
20 “If a man strikes his male servant or his female servant with a staff so that he or shet dies as a result of the blow,t he will surely be punished.t

21 However, if the injured servantt survives one or two days, the ownert will not be punished, for he has suffered the loss.t
22 “If men fight and hit a pregnant woman and her child is born prematurely,t but there is no serious injury, he will surely be punished in accordance with what the woman’s husband demands of him, and he will pay what the court decides.t23 But if there is serious injury, then you will give a life for a life,24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,

25 burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.s
26 “If a man strikes the eye of his male servant or his female servant so that he destroys it,t he will let the servantt go frees as compensation for the eye.

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

Laws about Animals

28 s “If an oxt gores a man or a woman so that either dies,t then the ox must surelyt be stoned and its flesh must not be eaten, but the owner of the ox will be acquitted.29 But if the ox had the habit of goring, and its owner was warned,t and he did not take the necessary precautions,t and then it killed a man or a woman, the ox must be stoned and the man must be put to death.30 If a ransom is set for him,s then he must pay the redemption for his life according to whatever amount was set for him.31 If the oxt gores a son or a daughter, the ownert will be dealt with according to this rule.t

32 If the ox gores a male servant or a female servant, the ownert must pay thirty shekels of silver,s and the ox must be stoned.s
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,34 the owner of the pit must repayt the loss. He must give moneyt to its owner, and the dead animalt will become his.35 If the ox of one man injures the ox of his neighbor so that it dies, then they will sell the live ox and divide its proceeds,t and they will also divide the dead ox.t

36 Or if it is known that the ox had the habit of goring, and its owner did not take the necessary precautions, he must surely payt ox for ox, and the dead animal will become his.s

Exodus 22

Laws about Property

1 s “If a man steals an ox or a sheep and kills it or sells it, he must pay backt five head of cattle for the ox, and four sheep for the one sheep.t
2 “If a thief is caughtt breaking int and is struck so that he dies, there will be no blood guilt for him.ts3 If the sun has risen on him, then there is blood guilt for him. A thieft must surely make full restitution; if he has nothing, then he will be sold for his theft.

4 If the stolen item should in fact be foundt alive in his possession,t whether it be an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he must pay back double.s

5 “If a man grazest his livestockt in a field or a vineyard, and he lets the livestock loose and they graze in the field of another man, he must make restitution from the best of his own field and the best of his own vineyard.
6 “If a fire breaks out and spreadst to thorn bushes,s so that stacked grain or standing grain or the whole field is consumed, the one who startedt the fire must surely make restitution.7 “If a man gives his neighbor money or articlest for safekeeping,t and it is stolen from the man’s house, if the thief is caught,t he must repay double.8 If the thief is not caught,t then the owner of the house will be brought before the judgest to seet whether he has laidt his hand on his neighbor’s goods.9 In all cases of illegal possessions,t whether for an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or any kind of lost item, about which someone says ‘This belongs to me,’t the matter of the two of them will come before the judges,t and the one whomt the judges declare guiltyt must repay double to his neighbor.10 If a man gives his neighbor a donkey or an ox or a sheep or any beast to keep, and it dies or is hurtt or is carried awayt without anyone seeing it,t11 then there will be an oath to the Lordt between the two of them, that he has not laid his hand on his neighbor’s goods, and its owner will accept this, and he will not have to pay.12 But if it was stolent from him,s he will pay its owner.

13 If it is torn in pieces, then he will bring it for evidence,t and he will not have to pay for what was torn.
14 “If a man borrows an animalt from his neighbor, and it is hurt or dies when its owner was not with it, the man who borrowed itt will surely pay.

15 If its owner was with it, he will not have to pay; if it was hired, what was paid for the hire covers it.t

Moral and Ceremonial Laws

16 s “If a man seduces a virgint who is not engagedt and has sexual relations with her, he must surely endowt her to be his wife.17 If her father refuses to give her to him, he must pay money for the bride price of virgins.

18 “You must not allow a sorceress to live.s

19 “Whoever has sexual relationst with a beast must surely be put to death.
20 “Whoever sacrifices to a god other than the Lordt alone must be utterly destroyed.t

21 “You must not wrongt a foreignert nor oppress him, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
22 “You must not afflictt any widow or orphan.23 If you afflict themt in any wayt and they cry to me, I will surely heart their cry,

24 and my anger will burn and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives will be widows and your children will be fatherless.s
25 “If you lend money to any oft my people who are needy among you, do not be like a moneylenders to him; do not charget him interest.s26 If you do taket the garment of your neighbor in pledge, you must return it to him by the time the sun goes down,t

27 for it is his only covering – it is his garment for his body.t What else can he sleep in?t Andt when he cries out to me, I will hear, for I am gracious.

28 “You must not blasphemet Godt or curse the ruler of your people.
29 “Do not hold back offerings from your granaries or your vats.t You must give me the firstborn of your sons.

30 You must also do this for your oxen and for your sheep; seven days they may remain with their mothers, but give them to me on the eighth day.

31 “You will be holys people to me; you must not eat any meat torn by animals in the field.t You must throw it to the dogs.

Exodus 23

Justice

1 s “You must not givet a false report.t Do not make common causet with the wickedt to be a malicioust witness.
2 “You must not follow a crowdt in doing evil things;t in a lawsuit you must not offer testimony that agrees with a crowd so as to pervert justice,t

3 and you must not show partialityt to a poor man in his lawsuit.
4 “If you encountert your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering off, you must by all means returnt it to him.

5 If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen under its load, you must not ignore him,t but be sure to helpt him with it.s
6 “You must not turn away justice for your poor people in their lawsuits.

7 Keep your distancet from a false charget – do not kill the innocent and the righteous,t for I will not justify the wicked.s

8 “You must not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who seet and subverts the words of the righteous.

9 “You must not oppresst a foreigner, since you know the lifet of a foreigner, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

Sabbaths and Feasts

10 s “For six yearst you are to sow your land and gather in its produce.11 But in the seventh yeart you must let it lie fallow and leave it alone so that the poor of your people may eat, and what they leave any animal in the fieldt may eat; you must do likewise with your vineyard and your olive grove.

12 For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you must cease, in order that your ox and your donkey may rest and that your female servant’s son and any hired helpt may refresh themselves.t

13 “Pay attention to dot everything I have told you, and do not even mentiont the names of other gods – do not let them be heard on your lips.ts
14 “Three timest in the year you must make a pilgrim feastt to me.

15 You are to observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread; seven dayst you must eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you, at the appointed time of the month of Abib, for at that timet you came out of Egypt. No one may appear beforet me empty-handed.
16 “You are also to observet the Feast of Harvest, the firstfruits of your labors that you have sown in the field, and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the yeart when you have gathered int your harvestt out of the field.

17 Att three times in the year all your males will appear before the Lord God.t
18 “You must not offert the blood of my sacrifice with bread containing yeast; the fat of my festal sacrifice must not remain until morning.s

19 The first of the firstfruits of your soil you must bring to the house of the Lord your God.
“You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.s

The Angel of the Presence

20 s “I am going to sendt an angels before you to protect you as you journeyt and to bring you into the place that I have prepared.t21 Take heed because of him, and obey his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgressions, for my names is in him.22 But if you diligently obey himt and do all that I command, then I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will be an adversary to your adversaries.

23 For my angel will go before you and bring you to the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, and I will destroy them completely.t
24 “You must not bow down to their gods; you must not serve them or do according to their practices. Instead you must completely overthrow them and smash their standing stonest to pieces.t25 You must servet the Lord your God, and het will bless your bread and your water,s and I will remove sickness from your midst.

26 No woman will miscarry her youngt or be barren in your land. I will fulfills the number of your days.
27 “I will send my terrort before you, and I will destroyt all the people whom you encounter; I will make all your enemies turn their backst to you.28 I will sendt hornets before you that will drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite before you.29 I will not drive them out before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild animalst multiply against you.30 Little by littlet I will drive them out before you, until you become fruitful and inherit the land.

31 I will sett your boundaries from the Red Sea to the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the River,t for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you will drive them out before you.
32 “You must make no covenant with them or with their gods.

33 They must not live in your land, lest they make you sin against me, for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snaret to you.”