Exodus 21
1 “Here are some [other] instructions to give to [the Israeli people]:
| ואלה המשפטים אשר תשים לפניהם |
2 When/If you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve you for [only] six years. In the seventh year you must free him [from being your slave], and he is not required to pay you anything [for setting him free].
| כי תקנה עבד עברי שש שנים יעבד ובשבעת--יצא לחפשי חנם |
3 If he was not married before he became your slave, and if he marries [someone while he is your slave], his wife is not to be set free [with him]. But if he was married before he became your slave, you must free both him and his wife.
| אם בגפו יבא בגפו יצא אם בעל אשה הוא ויצאה אשתו עמו |
4 If a slave’s master gives him a wife, and she gives birth to sons or daughters [while her husband is a slave], only the man is to be freed. His wife and children will continue to be slaves of their master.
| אם אדניו יתן לו אשה וילדה לו בנים או בנות--האשה וילדיה תהיה לאדניה והוא יצא בגפו |
5 But when it is time for the slave to be set free, if the slave says, ‘I love my master and my wife and my children, and I do not want to be set free,’
| ואם אמר יאמר העבד אהבתי את אדני את אשתי ואת בני לא אצא חפשי |
6 then his master must take him to [the place where they worship] God (OR, to [the owner’s] house). There he must make the slave stand against the door or the doorpost. Then the master will use an (awl/pointed metal rod) to make a hole in the slave’s ear. Then [he will fasten a tag to the slave’s ear to indicate that] (he will own that slave for the rest of his life/he will own the slave as long as the slave lives).
| והגישו אדניו אל האלהים והגישו אל הדלת או אל המזוזה ורצע אדניו את אזנו במרצע ועבדו לעלם |
7 If a man sells his daughter to become a slave, she should not be set free [after six years], as the male slaves are.
| וכי ימכר איש את בתו לאמה--לא תצא כצאת העבדים |
8 If the man who bought her wanted her to be his wife, but if [later] he is not pleased with her, he must sell her back to her father. He must not sell her to a foreigner, because that would be breaking the contract/agreement [he made with the girl’s father].
| אם רעה בעיני אדניה אשר לא (לו) יעדה--והפדה לעם נכרי לא ימשל למכרה בבגדו בה |
9 If the man who buys her wants her to be a wife for his son, he must then treat her as though she were his own daughter.
| ואם לבנו ייעדנה--כמשפט הבנות יעשה לה |
10 If the master takes another slave girl to be another wife for himself, he must continue to give the first slave wife the same amount of food and clothing that he gave to her before, and he must continue to have sex [EUP] with her as before.
| אם אחרת יקח לו--שארה כסותה וענתה לא יגרע |
11 If he does not do all these three things for her, he must free her [from being a slave], and she is not required to pay anything [for being set free].
| ואם שלש אלה--לא יעשה לה ויצאה חנם אין כסף |
12 You must execute anyone who strikes another person with the result that the person who is struck dies.
| מכה איש ומת מות יומת |
13 But if the one who struck the other did not intend to kill that person, the one who struck him can escape to a place that I will choose for you, [and he will be safe there].
| ואשר לא צדה והאלהים אנה לידו--ושמתי לך מקום אשר ינוס שמה |
14 But if someone gets angry with another person and kills him, even if the murderer runs to the altar, [a place that God designated as a place to be safe], you must execute him.
| וכי יזד איש על רעהו להרגו בערמה--מעם מזבחי תקחנו למות |
15 Anyone who strikes his father or mother must surely be executed.
| ומכה אביו ואמו מות יומת |
16 Anyone who kidnaps another person, either in order to sell that person or to keep him as a slave, must be executed.
| וגנב איש ומכרו ונמצא בידו מות יומת |
17 Anyone who reviles/curses his father or his mother must be executed.
| ומקלל אביו ואמו מות יומת |
18 Suppose two people fight, and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist. And suppose the person he strikes does not die but is injured and has to stay in bed [for a while],
| וכי יריבן אנשים--והכה איש את רעהו באבן או באגרף ולא ימות ונפל למשכב |
19 and later he is able to walk outside using a cane. Then the person who struck him does not have to be punished. However, he must pay the injured person the money he could not earn [while he was recovering], and he must also pay the injured person’s medical expenses until that person is well.
| אם יקום והתהלך בחוץ על משענתו--ונקה המכה רק שבתו יתן ורפא ירפא |
20 If someone strikes his male or female slave with a stick, if the slave dies (immediately/as a result) [IDM], the one who struck him must be punished.
| וכי יכה איש את עבדו או את אמתו בשבט ומת תחת ידו--נקם ינקם |
21 But if the slave lives for a day or two after he is struck [and then dies], you must not punish the one who struck him. Not having that slave to be able to work for him any longer is enough punishment.
| אך אם יום או יומים יעמד--לא יקם כי כספו הוא |
22 Suppose two people are fighting and they hurt a pregnant woman with the result that (she has a miscarriage/her baby is born prematurely and dies). If the woman is not harmed in any other way, the one who injured her must pay a fine. He must pay whatever the woman’s husband demands, after a judge approves of the fine.
| וכי ינצו אנשים ונגפו אשה הרה ויצאו ילדיה ולא יהיה אסון--ענוש יענש כאשר ישית עליו בעל האשה ונתן בפללים |
23 But if the woman is injured in some additional way, the one who injured her must be caused to suffer in exactly the same way [that he caused her to suffer]. If she dies, he must be executed.
| ואם אסון יהיה--ונתתה נפש תחת נפש |
24 If her eye is injured or destroyed, or if he knocks out one of her teeth, or her hand or foot is injured, or if she is burned or bruised, the one who injured her must be injured in the same way.
| עין תחת עין שן תחת שן יד תחת יד רגל תחת רגל |
| כויה תחת כויה פצע תחת פצע חבורה תחת חבורה |
26 If the owner of a slave strikes the eye of his male or female slave and ruins it, he must free that slave because of [what he did to] the slave’s eye.
| וכי יכה איש את עין עבדו או את עין אמתו--ושחתה לחפשי ישלחנו תחת עינו |
27 If someone knocks out one of his slave’s teeth, he must free the slave because of [what he did to] the slave’s tooth.
| ואם שן עבדו או שן אמתו יפיל--לחפשי ישלחנו תחת שנו |
28 If a bull gores a man or woman with the result that the person dies, you [must kill the bull by] throwing stones at it, but you must not punish the owner of the bull.
| וכי יגח שור את איש או את אשה ומת--סקול יסקל השור ולא יאכל את בשרו ובעל השור נקי |
29 But suppose the bull had attacked people several times before, and its owner had been warned, but he did not keep the bull inside a fence. Then you [must kill the bull by] throwing stones at it, but you must also execute its owner.
| ואם שור נגח הוא מתמל שלשם והועד בבעליו ולא ישמרנו והמית איש או אשה--השור יסקל וגם בעליו יומת |
30 However, if the owner of the bull is allowed to pay a fine (to save his own life/in order not to be executed), he must pay the full amount that the judges say that he must pay.
| אם כפר יושת עליו--ונתן פדין נפשו ככל אשר יושת עליו |
31 If someone’s bull attacks and gores another person’s son or daughter, you must treat the bull’s owner according to that same rule.
| או בן יגח או בת יגח--כמשפט הזה יעשה לו |
32 If a bull attacks and gores a male or female slave, its owner must pay to the slave’s owner 30 pieces of silver. Then you must [kill the bull by] throwing stones at it.
| אם עבד יגח השור או אמה--כסף שלשים שקלים יתן לאדניו והשור יסקל |
33 Suppose someone has a pit/cistern and does not keep it covered, and someone’s bull or donkey falls into it [and dies].
| וכי יפתח איש בור או כי יכרה איש בר--ולא יכסנו ונפל שמה שור או חמור |
34 Then the owner of the pit/cistern must pay for the animal that died. He must give the money to the animal’s owner, but then he can take away the animal that died and [do whatever he wants to with it].
| בעל הבור ישלם כסף ישיב לבעליו והמת יהיה לו |
35 If someone’s bull hurts another person’s bull with the result that it dies, the owners of both bulls must sell the bull that is living, and they must divide [between them] the money [that they receive] for it. They must also divide [between them the meat of] the animal that died.
| וכי יגף שור איש את שור רעהו ומת--ומכרו את השור החי וחצו את כספו וגם את המת יחצון |
36 However, if people know that the bull often attacked other animals previously, and its owner did not keep it inside a fence, then the owner of that bull must give the owner of the bull that died one of his own bulls, but he can take away the animal that died [and do with it whatever he wants to do].”
| או נודע כי שור נגח הוא מתמול שלשם ולא ישמרנו בעליו--שלם ישלם שור תחת השור והמת יהיה לו |
