Exodus 21-22

Complete Jewish Bible

Parashah 18: Mishpatim (Rulings) 21:1–24:18

21 “These are the rulings you are to present to them:

²“If you purchase a Hebrew slave, he is to work six years; but in the seventh, he is to be given his freedom without having to pay anything. ³If he came single, he is to leave single; if he was married when he came, his wife is to go with him when he leaves. ⁴But if his master gave him a wife, and she bore him sons or daughters, then the wife and her children will belong to her master, and he will leave by himself. ⁵Nevertheless, if the slave declares, ‘I love my master, my wife and my children, so I don’t want to go free,’ ⁶then his master is to bring him before God; and there at the door or doorpost, his master is to pierce his ear with an awl; and the man will be his slave for life.

⁷“If a man sells his daughter as a slave, she is not to go free like the men-slaves. ⁸If her master married her but decides she no longer pleases him, then he is to allow her to be redeemed. He is not allowed to sell her to a foreign people, because he has treated her unfairly. ⁹If he has her marry his son, then he is to treat her like a daughter. ¹⁰If he marries another wife, he is not to reduce her food, clothing or marital rights. ¹¹If he fails to provide her with these three things, she is to be given her freedom without having to pay anything.

¹²“Whoever attacks a person and causes his death must be put to death. ¹³If it was not premeditated but an act of God, then I will designate for you a place to which he can flee. ¹⁴But if someone willfully kills another after deliberate planning, you are to take him even from my altar and put him to death.

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

¹⁶“Whoever kidnaps someone must be put to death, regardless of whether he has already sold him or the person is found still in his possession.

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

¹⁸“If two people fight, and one hits the other with a stone or with his fist, and the injured party doesn’t die but is confined to his bed; ¹⁹then, if he recovers enough to be able to walk around outside, even if with a cane, the attacker will be free of liability, except to compensate him for his loss of time and take responsibility for his care until his recovery is complete.

(ii) ²⁰“If a person beats his male or female slave with a stick so severely that he dies, he is to be punished; ²¹except that if the slave lives for a day or two, he is not to be punished, since the slave is his property.

²²“If people are fighting with each other and happen to hurt a pregnant woman so badly that her unborn child dies, then, even if no other harm follows, he must be fined. He must pay the amount set by the woman’s husband and confirmed by judges. ²³But if any harm follows, then you are to give life for life, ²⁴eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, ²⁵burn for burn, wound for wound and bruise for bruise.

²⁶“If a person hits his male or female slave’s eye and destroys it, he must let him go free in compensation for his eye. ²⁷If he knocks out his male or female slave’s tooth, he must let him go free in compensation for his tooth.

²⁸“If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox is to be stoned and its flesh not eaten, but the owner of the ox will have no further liability. ²⁹However, if the ox was in the habit of goring in the past, and the owner was warned but did not confine it, so that it ended up killing a man or a woman; then the ox is to be stoned, and its owner too is to be put to death. ³⁰However, a ransom may be imposed on him; and the death penalty will be commuted if he pays the amount imposed. ³¹If the ox gores a son or daughter, the same rule applies. ³²If the ox gores a male or female slave, its owner must give their master twelve ounces of silver; and the ox is to be stoned to death.

³³“If someone removes the cover from a cistern or digs one and fails to cover it, and an ox or donkey falls in, ³⁴the owner of the cistern must make good the loss by compensating the animal’s owner; but the dead animal will be his.

³⁵“If one person’s ox hurts another’s, so that it dies, they are to sell the live ox and divide the revenue from the sale; and they are also to divide the dead animal. ³⁶But if it is known that the ox was in the habit of goring in the past, and the owner did not confine it; he must pay ox for ox, but the dead animal will be his.

³⁷^(22:1)“If someone steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters or sells it, he is to pay five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep.

22 ⁽²⁾“If a thief caught in the act of breaking in is beaten to death, it is not murder; ²⁽³⁾unless it happens after sunrise, in which case it is murder. A thief must make restitution; so if he has nothing, he himself is to be sold to make good the loss from the theft. ³⁽⁴⁾If what he stole is found alive in his possession, he is to pay double, no matter whether it is an ox, a donkey or a sheep.

(iii) ⁴⁽⁵⁾“If a person causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over or lets his animal loose to graze in someone else’s field, he is to make restitution from the best produce of his own field and vineyard.

⁵⁽⁶⁾“If a fire is started and spreads to thorns, so that stacked grain, standing grain or a field is destroyed, the person who lit it must make restitution.

⁶⁽⁷⁾“If a person entrusts a neighbor with money or goods, and they are stolen from the trustee’s house, then, if the thief is found, he must pay double. ⁷⁽⁸⁾But if the thief is not found, then the trustee must state before God that he did not take the person’s goods himself. ⁸⁽⁹⁾In every case of dispute over ownership, whether of an ox, a donkey, a sheep, clothing, or any missing property, where one person says, ‘This is mine,’ both parties are to come before God; and the one whom God condemns must pay the other one double.

⁹⁽¹⁰⁾“If a person trusts a neighbor to look after a donkey, ox, sheep or any animal, and it dies, is injured or is driven away unseen, ¹⁰⁽¹¹⁾then the neighbor’s oath before Adonai that he has not taken the goods will settle the matter between them — the owner is to accept it without the neighbor’s making restitution. ¹¹⁽¹²⁾But if it was stolen from the neighbor, he must make restitution to the owner. ¹²⁽¹³⁾If it was torn to pieces by an animal, the neighbor must bring it as evidence, and then he doesn’t need to make good the loss.

¹³⁽¹⁴⁾“If someone borrows something from his neighbor, and it gets injured or dies with the owner not present, he must make restitution. ¹⁴⁽¹⁵⁾If the owner was present, he need not make good the loss. If the owner hired it out, the loss is covered by the hiring fee.

¹⁵⁽¹⁶⁾“If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price for her to be his wife. ¹⁶⁽¹⁷⁾But if her father refuses to give her to him, he must pay a sum equivalent to the bride-price for virgins.

¹⁷⁽¹⁸⁾“You are not to permit a sorceress to live.

¹⁸⁽¹⁹⁾“Whoever has sexual relations with an animal must be put to death.

¹⁹⁽²⁰⁾“Anyone who sacrifices to any god other than Adonai alone is to be completely destroyed.

²⁰⁽²¹⁾“You must neither wrong nor oppress a foreigner living among you, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

²¹⁽²²⁾“You are not to abuse any widow or orphan. ²²⁽²³⁾If you do abuse them in any way, and they cry to me, I will certainly heed their cry. ²³⁽²⁴⁾My anger will burn, and I will kill you with the sword — your own wives will be widows and your own children fatherless.

²⁴⁽²⁵⁾“If you loan money to one of my people who is poor, you are not to deal with him as would a creditor; and you are not to charge him interest. ²⁵⁽²⁶⁾If you take your neighbor’s coat as collateral, you are to restore it to him by sundown, ²⁶⁽²⁷⁾because it is his only garment — he needs it to wrap his body; what else does he have in which to sleep? Moreover, if he cries out to me, I will listen; because I am compassionate.

(iv) ²⁷⁽²⁸⁾“You are not to curse God, and you are not to curse a leader of your people.

²⁸⁽²⁹⁾“You are not to delay offering from your harvest of grain, olive oil or wine.

“The firstborn of your sons you are to give to me. ²⁹⁽³⁰⁾You are to do the same with your oxen and your sheep — it is to stay with its mother seven days, and on the eighth day you are to give it to me.

³⁰⁽³¹⁾“You are to be my specially separated people. Therefore you are not to eat any flesh torn by wild animals in the countryside; rather, throw it out for the dogs.