Exodus 21:20

20 And if a man strikes his male slave or his female slave with the rod and he dies under his hand, he will surely be avenged.

Exodus 21:20 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 21:20

And if a man smite his servant or his maid with a rod
A Canaanitish servant or maid, as the Targum of Jonathan, and so Jarchi; and that only with a rod for the correction of them, and not with a sword or any such destroying weapon, which would seem as though he intended to kill, yet nevertheless:

and he die under his hand;
immediately, while he is smiting or beating him or her, on the same day, as the above Targum interprets it:

he shall be surely punished;
or condemned to the punishment of being slain with the sword, as the said Targum and Jarchi explain it: this law was made to deter masters from using severity and cruelty towards their servants.

Exodus 21:20 In-Context

18 " 'And if men quarrel and a man strikes his neighbor with a stone or with a fist and he does not die, but {he is confined to bed},

19 if he stands and walks about in the outside on his staff, the striker will be unpunished; he will only pay for his inactivity {toward his full recovery}."

20 And if a man strikes his male slave or his female slave with the rod and he dies under his hand, he will surely be avenged.

21 Yet if he survives a day or two days, he will not be avenged, because he is his money.

22 " 'And if men fight and they injure a pregnant woman, and her children go out and there is not serious injury, he will surely be fined as the woman's husband demands concerning him {and as the judges determine}.