The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
King James Version KJV
1 "These are the rulings you are to present to them:
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Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them.
2 "If you purchase a Hebrew slave, he is to work six years; but in the seventh, he is to be given his freedom without having to pay anything.
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If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing.
3 If he came single, he is to leave single; if he was married when he came, his wife is to go with him when he leaves.
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If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him.
4 But if his master gave him a wife, and she bore him sons or daughters, then the wife and her children will belong to her master, and he will leave by himself.
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If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself.
5 Nevertheless, if the slave declares, 'I love my master, my wife and my children, so I don't want to go free,'
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And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free:
6 then his master is to bring him before God; and there at the door or doorpost, his master is to pierce his ear with an awl; and the man will be his slave for life.
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Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.
7 "If a man sells his daughter as a slave, she is not to go free like the men-slaves.
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And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do.
8 If her master married her but decides she no longer pleases him, then he is to allow her to be redeemed. He is not allowed to sell her to a foreign people, because he has treated her unfairly.
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If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.
9 If he has her marry his son, then he is to treat her like a daughter.
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And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.
10 If he marries another wife, he is not to reduce her food, clothing or marital rights.
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If he take him another wife; her food, her raiment, and her duty of marriage, shall he not diminish.
11 If he fails to provide her with these three things, she is to be given her freedom without having to pay anything.
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And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money.
12 "Whoever attacks a person and causes his death must be put to death.
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He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death.
13 If it was not premeditated but an act of God, then I will designate for you a place to which he can flee.
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And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into his hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee.
14 But if someone willfully kills another after deliberate planning, you are to take him even from my altar and put him to death.
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But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die.
15 "Whoever attacks his father or mother must be put to death.
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And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death.
16 "Whoever kidnaps someone must be put to death, regardless of whether he has already sold him or the person is found still in his possession.
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And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.
17 "Whoever curses his father or mother must be put to death.
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And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.
18 "If two people fight, and one hits the other with a stone or with his fist, and the injured party doesn't die but is confined to his bed;
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And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed:
19 then, if he recovers enough to be able to walk around outside, even if with a cane, the attacker will be free of liability, except to compensate him for his loss of time and take responsibility for his care until his recovery is complete.
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If he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.
20 "If a person beats his male or female slave with a stick so severely that he dies, he is to be punished;
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And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely punished.
21 except that if the slave lives for a day or two, he is not to be punished, since the slave is his property.
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Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.
22 "If people are fighting with each other and happen to hurt a pregnant woman so badly that her unborn child dies, then, even if no other harm follows, he must be fined. He must pay the amount set by the woman's husband and confirmed by judges.
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If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.
23 But if any harm follows, then you are to give life for life,
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And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life,
24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
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Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
25 burn for burn, wound for wound and bruise for bruise.
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Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
26 "If a person hits his male or female slave's eye and destroys it, he must let him go free in compensation for his eye.
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And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go free for his eye's sake.
27 If he knocks out his male or female slave's tooth, he must let him go free in compensation for his tooth.
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And if he smite out his manservant's tooth, or his maidservant's tooth; he shall let him go free for his tooth's sake.
28 "If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox is to be stoned and its flesh not eaten, but the owner of the ox will have no further liability.
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If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit.
29 However, if the ox was in the habit of goring in the past, and the owner was warned but did not confine it, so that it ended up killing a man or a woman; then the ox is to be stoned, and its owner too is to be put to death.
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But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death.
30 However, a ransom may be imposed on him; and the death penalty will be commuted if he pays the amount imposed.
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If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.
31 If the ox gores a son or daughter, the same rule applies.
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Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him.
32 If the ox gores a male or female slave, its owner must give their master twelve ounces of silver; and the ox is to be stoned to death.
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If the ox shall push a manservant or a maidservant; he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.
33 "If someone removes the cover from a cistern or digs one and fails to cover it, and an ox or donkey falls in,
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And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit, and not cover it, and an ox or an ass fall therein;
34 the owner of the cistern must make good the loss by compensating the animal's owner; but the dead animal will be his.
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The owner of the pit shall make it good, and give money unto the owner of them; and the dead beast shall be his.
35 "If one person's ox hurts another's, so that it dies, they are to sell the live ox and divide the revenue from the sale; and they are also to divide the dead animal.
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And if one man's ox hurt another's, that he die; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of it; and the dead ox also they shall divide.
36 But if it is known that the ox was in the habit of goring in the past, and the owner did not confine it; he must pay ox for ox, but the dead animal will be his.
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Or if it be known that the ox hath used to push in time past, and his owner hath not kept him in; he shall surely pay ox for ox; and the dead shall be his own.
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
The King James Version is in the public domain.