Exodus 21:21
New International Version
but they are not to be punished if the slave recovers after a day or two, since the slave is their property.

New Living Translation
But if the slave recovers within a day or two, then the owner shall not be punished, since the slave is his property.

English Standard Version
But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.

Berean Standard Bible
However, if the servant gets up after a day or two, the owner shall not be punished, since the servant is his property.

King James Bible
Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.

New King James Version
Notwithstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property.

New American Standard Bible
If, however, the slave survives a day or two, no vengeance shall be taken; for the slave is his property.

NASB 1995
“If, however, he survives a day or two, no vengeance shall be taken; for he is his property.

NASB 1977
“If, however, he survives a day or two, no vengeance shall be taken; for he is his property.

Legacy Standard Bible
But if for a day or two he is able to stand, no punishment shall be taken; for he is his property.

Amplified Bible
If, however, the servant survives for a day or two, the offender shall not be punished, for the [injured] servant is his own property.

Christian Standard Bible
However, if the slave can stand up after a day or two, the owner should not be punished because he is his owner’s property.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
However, if the slave can stand up after a day or two, the owner should not be punished because he is his owner’s property.”

American Standard Version
Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.

Contemporary English Version
However, if the slave lives a few days after the beating, you are not to be punished. After all, you have already lost the services of that slave who was your property.

English Revised Version
Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
But if the slave gets up in a day or two, the owner must not be punished. The slave is his property.

Good News Translation
But if the slave does not die for a day or two, the master is not to be punished. The loss of his property is punishment enough.

International Standard Version
But if the servant survives a day or two, the master is not to be punished because the servant is his property.

Majority Standard Bible
However, if the servant gets up after a day or two, the owner shall not be punished, since the servant is his property.

NET Bible
However, if the injured servant survives one or two days, the owner will not be punished, for he has suffered the loss.

New Heart English Bible
Notwithstanding, if he gets up after a day or two, he shall not be punished, for he is his property.

Webster's Bible Translation
Notwithstanding, if he shall continue a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his money.

World English Bible
Notwithstanding, if his servant gets up after a day or two, he shall not be punished, for the servant is his property.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
only if he remains a day, or two days, he is not avenged, for he [is] his money.

Young's Literal Translation
only if he remain a day, or two days, he is not avenged, for he is his money.

Smith's Literal Translation
But if a day or two days he shall stand, he shall not be avenged, for he is his silver.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
But if the party remain alive a day or two, he shall not be subject to the punishment, because it is his money.

Catholic Public Domain Version
But if he survives for one day or two, he shall not be subject to punishment, because it is his money.

New American Bible
If, however, the slave survives for a day or two, he is not to be punished, since the slave is his own property.

New Revised Standard Version
But if the slave survives a day or two, there is no punishment; for the slave is the owner’s property.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
But if the victim is well after a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
However, if one shall live one day or two days, he will not be judged because that is his money.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Notwithstanding if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his money.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
But if the servant continue to live a day or two, let not the master be punished; for he is his money.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Personal Injury Laws
20If a man strikes his manservant or maidservant with a rod, and the servant dies by his hand, he shall surely be punished. 21However, if the servant gets up after a day or two, the owner shall not be punished, since the servant is his property. 22If 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.…

Cross References
Leviticus 25:44-46
Your menservants and maidservants shall come from the nations around you, from whom you may purchase them. / You may also purchase them from the foreigners residing among you or their clans living among you who are born in your land. These may become your property. / You may leave them to your sons after you to inherit as property; you can make them slaves for life. But as for your brothers, the Israelites, no man may rule harshly over his brother.

Deuteronomy 15:12-18
If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you must set him free. / And when you release him, do not send him away empty-handed. / You are to furnish him liberally from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. You shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you. ...

Deuteronomy 24:14-15
Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother or a foreigner residing in one of your towns. / You are to pay his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he may cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.

Job 31:13-15
If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or maidservant when they made a complaint against me, / what will I do when God rises to judge? How will I answer when called to account? / Did not He who made me in the womb also make them? Did not the same One form us in the womb?

Proverbs 12:10
A righteous man regards the life of his animal, but the tender mercies of the wicked are only cruelty.

Proverbs 29:21
A servant pampered from his youth will bring grief in the end.

Isaiah 58:3-7
“Why have we fasted, and You have not seen? Why have we humbled ourselves, and You have not noticed?” “Behold, on the day of your fast, you do as you please, and you oppress all your workers. / You fast with contention and strife to strike viciously with your fist. You cannot fast as you do today and have your voice be heard on high. / Is this the fast I have chosen: a day for a man to deny himself, to bow his head like a reed, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the LORD? ...

Jeremiah 34:8-17
After King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to proclaim liberty, the word came to Jeremiah from the LORD / that each man should free his Hebrew slaves, both male and female, and no one should hold his fellow Jew in bondage. / So all the officials and all the people who entered into this covenant agreed that they would free their menservants and maidservants and no longer hold them in bondage. They obeyed and released them, ...

Malachi 3:5
“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.

Matthew 18:23-35
Because of this, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. / As he began the settlements, a debtor owing ten thousand talents was brought to him. / Since the man was unable to pay, the master ordered that he be sold to pay his debt, along with his wife and children and everything he owned. ...

Matthew 24:45-51
Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household, to give the others their food at the proper time? / Blessed is that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. / Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ...

Luke 12:42-48
And the Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their portion at the proper time? / Blessed is that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. / Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ...

Luke 17:7-10
Which of you whose servant comes in from plowing or shepherding in the field will say to him, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? / Instead, won’t he tell him, ‘Prepare my meal and dress yourself to serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you may eat and drink’? / Does he thank the servant because he did what he was told? ...

John 13:16
Truly, truly, I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.

Romans 6:16-18
Do you not know that when you offer yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves to the one you obey, whether you are slaves to sin leading to death, or to obedience leading to righteousness? / But thanks be to God that, though you once were slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were committed. / You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.


Treasury of Scripture

Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.

Leviticus 25:45,46
Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession…

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Avenged Continue Gets Goes However Live Master Money Notwithstanding Property Punished Punishment Servant Slave Survives Time Vengeance
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Avenged Continue Gets Goes However Live Master Money Notwithstanding Property Punished Punishment Servant Slave Survives Time Vengeance
Exodus 21
1. Laws for men servants
5. For the servant whose ear is bored
7. For women servants
12. For manslaughter
16. For kidnappers
17. For cursers of parents
18. For smiters
22. For a hurt by chance
28. For an ox that gores
33. For him who is an occasion of harm














But if the servant recovers
This phrase introduces a conditional situation, emphasizing the potential for recovery. The Hebrew word for "servant" here is "עֶבֶד" (eved), which can mean servant, slave, or bondman. In ancient Israelite society, servitude was often a result of debt or poverty, and the law provided certain protections for servants. The possibility of recovery suggests a concern for the well-being of the servant, indicating that the injury was not intended to be fatal or permanently debilitating.

after a day or two
This time frame indicates a short period, suggesting that the injury was not severe enough to cause immediate death. The Hebrew context implies a waiting period to assess the servant's condition. In the ancient Near Eastern context, this reflects a legal principle of assessing the outcome of an injury before determining culpability. It underscores the importance of patience and careful judgment in legal matters.

the owner shall not be punished
The Hebrew word for "punished" is "נָקָם" (naqam), which means to avenge or take vengeance. This phrase indicates that if the servant recovers, the owner is not subject to retribution. This reflects the legal principle of lex talionis, or the law of retaliation, which was common in ancient legal systems. The absence of punishment in this case suggests that the injury was not deemed intentional or malicious.

since the servant is his property
The term "property" here is translated from the Hebrew word "כֶּסֶף" (kesef), which literally means "silver" or "money," but in this context, it refers to the economic value or investment the owner has in the servant. This phrase reflects the socio-economic realities of the time, where servants were considered part of a household's assets. However, it is crucial to understand this within the broader biblical narrative, which includes numerous laws aimed at protecting the rights and dignity of servants, such as the Year of Jubilee and the prohibition against harsh treatment.

(21) If he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished.--Comp. the proviso with respect to freemen (Exodus 21:19). The notion is, that unless the death follows speedily it must be presumed not to have been intended; and this might be especially presumed in the case of a man killing his slave, since thereby he inflicted on himself a pecuniary loss.

Verse 21. - If he continue a day or two - i.e., "If the slave does not die till a day or two afterwards." Compare the provision in ver. 19, with respect to persons who were not slaves. No special callousness to the sufferings of slaves is implied. He is his money. The slave had been purchased for a stun of money, or was at any rate money' s worth; and the master would suffer a pecuniary loss by his death.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
However,
אַ֥ךְ (’aḵ)
Adverb
Strong's 389: A particle of affirmation, surely

if
אִם־ (’im-)
Conjunction
Strong's 518: Lo!, whether?, if, although, Oh that!, when, not

the slave gets up
יַעֲמֹ֑ד (ya·‘ă·mōḏ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5975: To stand, in various relations

after a day
י֛וֹם (yō·wm)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3117: A day

or
א֥וֹ (’ōw)
Conjunction
Strong's 176: Desire, if

two,
יוֹמַ֖יִם (yō·w·ma·yim)
Noun - md
Strong's 3117: A day

the owner shall not
לֹ֣א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

be punished,
יֻקַּ֔ם (yuq·qam)
Verb - QalPass - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5358: To grudge, avenge, punish

since
כִּ֥י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

[the slave is]
הֽוּא׃ (hū)
Pronoun - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are

his property.
כַסְפּ֖וֹ (ḵas·pōw)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 3701: Silver, money


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OT Law: Exodus 21:21 Notwithstanding if he gets up after (Exo. Ex)
Exodus 21:20
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