Deuteronomy 15:17

17 stick an awln through his ear into the door; he will be your slave for life. Also do this to a female slave.

Deuteronomy 15:17 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 15:17

Then thou shall take an awl, and thrust it through his ear
unto the door
Not of his master's house, but of the sanhedrim, or court of judicature, according to the Targum of Jonathan, before whom he was to be brought, and declare his desire to continue with his master; (See Gill on Exodus 21:6),

and he shall be thy servant for ever;
that is, unto the jubilee, as the same Targum; for then all servants were released, and so Jarchi calls it the ever of jubilee:

and also unto thy maidservant thou shall do likewise;
not bore her ear, for, as both Jarchi and Aben Ezra, and others say, she was not to be bored; though some are of opinion that a maidservant who was willing to continue with her master was to be bored as a manservant; but this respects the manner of dismissing her, or letting her go free, when she was not to go empty, but to be liberally furnished and supplied, as a manservant was.

Deuteronomy 15:17 In-Context

15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and the Lord your God saved you. That is why I am commanding this to you today.

16 But if your slave says to you, "I don't want to leave you," because he loves you and your family and has a good life with you,

17 stick an awln through his ear into the door; he will be your slave for life. Also do this to a female slave.

18 Do not think of it as a hard thing when you let your slaves go free. After all, they served you six years and did twice the work of a hired person. The Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.

19 Save all the first male animals born to your herds and flocks. They are for the Lord your God. Do not work the first calf born to your oxen, and do not cut off the wool from the first lamb born to your sheep.