Add parallel Print Page Options

21 Y ESTOS son los derechos que les propondrás.

Si comprares siervo hebreo, seis años servirá; mas al séptimo saldrá horro de balde.

Si entró solo, solo saldrá: si tenía mujer, saldrá él y su mujer con él.

Si su amo le hubiere dado mujer, y ella le hubiere parido hijos ó hijas, la mujer y sus hijos serán de su amo, y él saldrá solo.

Y si el siervo dijere: Yo amo á mi señor, á mi mujer y á mis hijos, no saldré libre:

Entonces su amo lo hará llegar á los jueces, y harále llegar á la puerta ó al poste; y su amo le horadará la oreja con lesna, y será su siervo para siempre.

Y cuando alguno vendiere su hija por sierva, no saldrá como suelen salir los siervos.

Si no agradare á su señor, por lo cual no la tomó por esposa, permitirle ha que se rescate, y no la podrá vender á pueblo extraño cuando la desechare.

Mas si la hubiere desposado con su hijo, hará con ella según la costumbre de las hijas.

10 Si le tomare otra, no disminuirá su alimento, ni su vestido, ni el débito conyugal.

11 Y si ninguna de estas tres cosas hiciere, ella saldrá de gracia sin dinero.

12 El que hiriere á alguno, haciéndole así morir, él morirá.

13 Mas el que no armó asechanzas, sino que Dios lo puso en sus manos, entonces yo te señalaré lugar al cual ha de huir.

14 Además, si alguno se ensoberbeciere contra su prójimo, y lo matare con alevosía, de mi altar lo quitarás para que muera.

15 Y el que hiriere á su padre ó á su madre, morirá.

16 Asimismo el que robare una persona, y la vendiere, ó se hallare en sus manos, morirá.

17 Igualmente el que maldijere á su padre ó á su madre, morirá.

18 Además, si algunos riñeren, y alguno hiriere á su prójimo con piedra ó con el puño, y no muriere, pero cayere en cama;

19 Si se levantare y anduviere fuera sobre su báculo, entonces será el que le hirió absuelto: solamente le satisfará lo que estuvo parado, y hará que le curen.

20 Y si alguno hiriere á su siervo ó á su sierva con palo, y muriere bajo de su mano, será castigado:

21 Mas si durare por un día ó dos, no será castigado, porque su dinero es.

22 Si algunos riñeren, é hiriesen á mujer preñada, y ésta abortare, pero sin haber muerte, será penado conforme á lo que le impusiere el marido de la mujer y juzgaren los árbitros.

23 Mas si hubiere muerte, entonces pagarás vida por vida,

24 Ojo por ojo, diente por diente, mano por mano, pie por pie,

25 Quemadura por quemadura, herida por herida, golpe por golpe.

26 Y cuando alguno hiriere el ojo de su siervo, ó el ojo de su sierva, y lo entortare, darále libertad por razón de su ojo.

27 Y si sacare el diente de su siervo, ó el diente de su sierva, por su diente le dejará ir libre.

28 Si un buey acorneare hombre ó mujer, y de resultas muriere, el buey será apedreado, y no se comerá su carne; mas el dueño del buey será absuelto.

29 Pero si el buey era acorneador desde ayer y antes de ayer, y á su dueño le fué hecho requerimiento, y no lo hubiere guardado, y matare hombre ó mujer, el buey será apedreado, y también morirá su dueño.

30 Si le fuere impuesto rescate, entonces dará por el rescate de su persona cuanto le fuere impuesto.

31 Haya acorneado hijo, ó haya acorneado hija, conforme á este juicio se hará con él.

32 Si el buey acorneare siervo ó sierva, pagará treinta siclos de plata su señor, y el buey será apedreado.

33 Y si alguno abriere hoyo, ó cavare cisterna, y no la cubriere, y cayere allí buey ó asno,

34 El dueño de la cisterna pagará el dinero, resarciendo á su dueño, y lo que fue muerto será suyo.

35 Y si el buey de alguno hiriere al buey de su prójimo, y éste muriere, entonces venderán el buey vivo, y partirán el dinero de él, y también partirán el muerto.

36 Mas si era notorio que el buey era acorneador de ayer y antes de ayer, y su dueño no lo hubiere guardado, pagará buey por buey, y el muerto será suyo.

Laws About Slaves

21 “Now these are the (A)rules that you shall set before them. (B)When you buy a Hebrew slave,[a] he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing. If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out alone. But (C)if the slave plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,’ then his master shall bring him to (D)God, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever.

“When a man (E)sells his daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. If she does not please her master, who has designated her[b] for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has broken faith with her. If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter. 10 If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or (F)her marital rights. 11 And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.

12 (G)“Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. 13 (H)But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then (I)I will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. 14 But if a man willfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, (J)you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.

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

16 (K)“Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found (L)in possession of him, shall be put to death.

17 (M)“Whoever curses[c] his father or his mother shall be put to death.

18 “When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed, 19 then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear; only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed.

20 “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. 21 But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the (N)slave is his money.

22 “When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman's husband shall impose on him, and (O)he shall pay as the (P)judges determine. 23 But if there is harm,[d] then you shall pay (Q)life for life, 24 (R)eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

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

28 “When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the (S)ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable. 29 But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death. 30 If (T)a ransom is imposed on him, then (U)he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed on him. 31 If it gores a man's son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule. 32 If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master (V)thirty shekels[e] of silver, and (W)the ox shall be stoned.

Laws About Restitution

33 “When a man opens a pit, or when 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 shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his.

35 “When one man's ox butts another's, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and share its price, and the dead beast also they shall share. 36 Or if it is known that the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall repay ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his.

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 21:2 Or servant; the Hebrew term ‘ebed designates a range of social and economic roles; also verses 5, 6, 7, 20, 21, 26, 27, 32 (see Preface)
  2. Exodus 21:8 Or so that he has not designated her
  3. Exodus 21:17 Or dishonors; Septuagint reviles
  4. Exodus 21:23 Or so that her children come out and it is clear who was to blame, he shall be fined as the woman's husband shall impose on him, and he alone shall pay. 23 If it is unclear who was to blame
  5. Exodus 21:32 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams