Hebrew Servants (Deuteronomy 15:12–18)
1 ULT And these are the ordinances that you shall set before their faces: BSB BSB: “These are the ordinances that you are to set before them:
3 ULT If he came by himself, he shall go free by himself; if he is the husband of a wife, then his wife shall go free with him. BSB BSB: If he arrived alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrived with a wife, she is to leave with him.
4 ULT If his master gave him a wife and she bore him sons or daughters, the wife and her children are her master’ s, and he must go out by himself. BSB BSB: If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the woman and her children shall belong to her master, and only the man shall go free.
5 ULT But if the servant plainly says,“I love my master, my wife, and my children; I shall not go out free,” BSB BSB: But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children; I do not want to go free,’
6 ULT then his master shall bring him to God. He shall bring him to a door or to a doorpost, and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl. Then he shall serve him forever. BSB BSB: then his master is to bring him before the judges. And he shall take him to the door or doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he shall serve his master for life.
7 ULT And if a man sells his daughter as a female servant, she shall not go out as the male servants go out. BSB BSB: And if a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as the menservants do.
8 ULT If she is bad in the eyes of her master, who has appointed her for himself, then he shall cause her to be ransomed. He has no authority to sell her to a foreign people, since he has acted treacherously with her. BSB BSB: If she is displeasing in the eyes of her master who had designated her for himself, he must allow her to be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, since he has broken faith with her.
9 ULT And if he appoints her for his son, he shall act toward her according to the custom of daughters. BSB BSB: And if he chooses her for his son, he must deal with her as with a daughter.
10 ULT If he takes another to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or her marital rights. BSB BSB: If he takes another wife, he must not reduce the food, clothing, or marital rights of his first wife.
11 ULT But if he does not provide these three things to her, then she can go free without silver. BSB BSB: If, however, he does not provide her with these three things, she is free to go without monetary payment.
Personal Injury Laws 12 ULT Whoever strikes a man and he dies, he shall surely be put to death. BSB BSB: Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death.
13 ULT But if he did not lie in wait, but God let it happen by his hand, then I will appoint a place for you where he can flee. BSB BSB: If, however, he did not lie in wait, but God allowed it to happen, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.
14 ULT If a man willfully acts against his neighbor to kill him with cunning, then you shall take him from my altar for execution. BSB BSB: But if a man schemes and acts willfully against his neighbor to kill him, you must take him away from My altar to be put to death.
15 ULT Whoever hits his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. BSB BSB: Whoever strikes his father or mother must surely be put to death.
17 ULT Whoever acts contemptuously toward his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. BSB BSB: Anyone who curses his father or mother must surely be put to death.
18 ULT If men fight and a man hits his neighbor with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but falls to bed, BSB BSB: If men are quarreling and one strikes the other with a stone or a fist, and he does not die but is confined to bed,
19 ULT if he rises and walks about in the outdoors on his staff, then the striker is free. He only shall pay for his sitting and for his complete healing. BSB BSB: then the one who struck him shall go unpunished, as long as the other can get up and walk around outside with his staff. Nevertheless, he must compensate the man for his lost work and see that he is completely healed.
20 ULT And if a man hits his male servant or his female servant with a staff and he dies under his hand, he shall certainly be avenged. BSB BSB: If a man strikes his manservant or maidservant with a rod, and the servant dies by his hand, he shall surely be punished.
21 ULT However, if he stands a day or two, he shall not be avenged, for he is his silver. BSB BSB: However, if the servant gets up after a day or two, the owner shall not be punished, since the servant is his property.
22 ULT And if men fight together and strike a pregnant woman and her children come out, but there is no serious injury, then he shall surely be fined as the husband of the woman puts on him, and he shall give according to the judges. BSB BSB: If men who are fighting strike a pregnant woman and her child is born prematurely, but there is no further injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband demands and as the court allows.
24 ULT an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot, BSB BSB: eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
25 ULT a burn for a burn, a wound for a wound, or a bruise for a bruise. BSB BSB: burn for burn, wound for wound, and stripe for stripe.
27 ULT And if he knocks out a tooth of his male servant or a tooth of his female servant, he shall let him go free as compensation for the tooth. BSB BSB: And if he knocks out the tooth of his manservant or maidservant, he must let the servant go free as compensation for the tooth.
28 ULT And if an ox gores a man or a woman and he dies, the ox shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox is innocent. BSB BSB: If an ox gores a man or woman to death, the ox must surely be stoned, and its meat must not be eaten. But the owner of the ox shall not be held responsible.
29 ULT But if the ox had a habit of goring in the past, and its owner was warned but did not keep it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death. BSB BSB: But if the ox has a habit of goring, and its owner has been warned yet does not restrain it, and it kills a man or woman, then the ox must be stoned and its owner must also be put to death.
30 ULT If a ransom is imposed on him, he shall give the ransom of his life, according to all that is imposed on him. BSB BSB: If payment is demanded of him instead, he may redeem his life by paying the full amount demanded of him.
31 ULT If it gores a son or it gores a daughter, it shall be done to him according to this ordinance. BSB BSB: If the ox gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same rule.
32 ULT If the ox gores a male servant or a female servant, he shall give thirty silver shekels to the master, and the ox shall be stoned. BSB BSB: If the ox gores a manservant or maidservant, the owner must pay thirty shekels of silver to the master of that servant, and the ox must be stoned.
33 ULT And if a man opens a cistern or if a man digs a cistern and does not cover it and an ox or a donkey falls there, BSB BSB: If a man opens or digs a pit and fails to cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,
34 ULT the owner of the pit shall compensate. He shall cause silver to return to its owner, and the dead animal shall become his. BSB BSB: the owner of the pit shall make restitution; he must pay its owner, and the dead animal will be his.
35 ULT And if the ox of a man strikes the ox of another and it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide its silver, and they shall also divide the dead{ ox}. BSB BSB: If a man’s ox injures his neighbor’s ox and it dies, they must sell the live one and divide the proceeds; they also must divide the dead animal.
36 ULT If it was known that the ox had a habit of goring in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall surely compensate ox for ox, and the dead animal shall become his own. BSB BSB: But if it was known that the ox had a habit of goring, yet its owner failed to restrain it, he shall pay full compensation, ox for ox, and the dead animal will be his.