1‘These are the laws you are to set before them:
Hebrew servants
2‘If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free, without paying anything. 3If he comes alone, he is to go free alone; but if he has a wife when he comes, she is to go with him. 4If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the woman and her children shall belong to her master, and only the man shall go free.
5‘But if the servant declares, “I love my master and my wife and children and do not want to go free,” 6then his master must take him before the judges.21:6 Or before God He shall take him to the door or the door-post and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life.
7‘If a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as male servants do. 8If she does not please the master who has selected her for himself,21:8 Or master so that he does not choose her he must let her be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, because he has broken faith with her. 9If he selects her for his son, he must grant her the rights of a daughter. 10If he marries another woman, he must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights. 11If he does not provide her with these three things, she is to go free, without any payment of money.
Personal injuries
12‘Anyone who strikes a person with a fatal blow is to be put to death. 13However, if it is not done intentionally, but God lets it happen, they are to flee to a place I will designate. 14But if anyone schemes and kills someone deliberately, that person is to be taken from my altar and put to death.
15‘Anyone who attacks21:15 Or kills their father or mother is to be put to death.
16‘Anyone who kidnaps someone is to be put to death, whether the victim has been sold or is still in the kidnapper’s possession.
17‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.
18‘If people quarrel and one person hits another with a stone or with their fist21:18 Or with a tool and the victim does not die but is confined to bed, 19the one who struck the blow will not be held liable if the other can get up and walk around outside with a staff; however, the guilty party must pay the injured person for any loss of time and see that the victim is completely healed.
20‘Anyone who beats their male or female slave with a rod must be punished if the slave dies as a direct result, 21but they are not to be punished if the slave recovers after a day or two, since the slave is their property.
22‘If people are fighting and hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely21:22 Or she has a miscarriage but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman’s husband demands and the court allows. 23But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, 24eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.
26‘An owner who hits a male or female slave in the eye and destroys it must let the slave go free to compensate for the eye. 27And an owner who knocks out the tooth of a male or female slave must let the slave go free to compensate for the tooth.
28‘If a bull gores a man or woman to death, the bull is to be stoned to death, and its meat must not be eaten. But the owner of the bull will not be held responsible. 29If, however, the bull has had the habit of goring and the owner has been warned but has not kept it penned up and it kills a man or woman, the bull is to be stoned and its owner also is to be put to death. 30However, if payment is demanded, the owner may redeem his life by the payment of whatever is demanded. 31This law also applies if the bull gores a son or a daughter. 32If the bull gores a male or female slave, the owner must pay thirty shekels21:32 That is, about 345 grams of silver to the master of the slave, and the bull is to be stoned to death.
33‘If anyone uncovers a pit or digs one and fails to cover it and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34the one who opened the pit must pay the owner for the loss and take the dead animal in exchange.
35‘If anyone’s bull injures someone else’s bull and it dies, the two parties are to sell the live one and divide both the money and the dead animal equally. 36However, if it was known that the bull had the habit of goring, yet the owner did not keep it penned up, the owner must pay, animal for animal, and take the dead animal in exchange.
Hebræiske slaver
1Giv Israels folk følgende forordninger:
2Hvis du køber dig en hebræisk slave, må du kun beholde ham i seks år. I det syvende år skal han frigives uden betaling. 3Hvis han kom til dig som ugift, men i mellemtiden har giftet sig, er det kun ham selv, der skal frigives. Men hvis han i forvejen var gift, skal hans kone frigives sammen med ham. 4Hvis du har givet ham en kone i hans slavetid, og han og konen har fået børn, tilhører konen og børnene dig, men han selv skal frigives. 5Men hvis slaven erklærer: ‚Jeg elsker min herre, min kone og mine børn, så jeg ønsker ikke at blive frigivet,’ 6så skal du overgive ham til Gud og stille ham op ad døren eller dørstolpen og gennembore hans øre med en syl, hvorefter han skal være din slave på livstid.
7Hvis en mand derimod sælger sin datter som slave, skal hun ikke frigives efter de seks år sådan som en mandlig slave. 8Men hvis hendes herre gifter sig med hende og senere ikke er tilfreds med hende, skal han give hende mulighed for at blive købt fri af sin far. Han har ikke lov til at sælge hende videre til andre. 9Hvis han lader sin søn gifte sig med hende, skal han respektere hende som sin egen datter. 10Hvis han selv senere tager sig en kone nummer to, må han ikke nægte sin slavekone mad, tøj og ægteskabelige rettigheder. 11Opfylder han ikke disse krav, skal hun frigives uden betaling.
Personlig overlast
12Enhver, der begår drab, skal selv lide døden. 13Men er det uagtsomt manddrab, vil jeg anvise steder, hvor en sådan person kan søge beskyttelse imod at blive dræbt som hævn. 14Er det derimod overlagt mord, skal han lide døden, også selv om han søger beskyttelse ved Herrens alter.
15Enhver, der angriber sin far eller mor, skal lide døden.
16Enhver, der kidnapper en anden, skal dø, uanset om han har solgt sit offer eller beholdt ham.
17Enhver, der forbander sin far eller mor, skal lide døden.
18Hvis to mænd kommer op at slås, og den ene rammer den anden med en sten eller med en knytnæve og kvæster ham, så han må holde sengen, 19og hvis det ikke er værre, end at han kan gå omkring, om nødvendigt støttet til sin stok, så skal gerningsmanden ikke straffes ud over at betale for offerets tabte arbejdsfortjeneste og i øvrigt afholde udgifterne til medicin og lægehjælp.
20Hvis en mand slår sin mandlige eller kvindelige slave så hårdt med en kæp, at vedkommende dør, skal han straffes. 21Men hvis slaven kommer sig efter en dag eller to, skal slavens herre ikke straffes, for den tabte arbejdsfortjeneste er straf i sig selv.
22Hvis to mænd under et slagsmål kommer til at støde til en gravid kvinde, så barnet bliver født, men der ellers ikke sker noget, skal den skyldige betale erstatning, efter hvad kvindens mand forlanger, og domstolene kan godkende.
23Hvis en person gør en anden fortræd, skal han straffes i forhold til den skade, han har forvoldt: liv for liv, 24øje for øje, tand for tand, hånd for hånd, fod for fod, 25brandsår for brandsår, læsion for læsion, skramme for skramme.
26Hvis en mand slår sin mandlige eller kvindelige slave i øjet, så øjet bliver ødelagt, skal han frigive slaven som erstatning for øjet. 27Hvis en mand slår en tand ud på sin mandlige eller kvindelige slave, skal han frigive slaven som erstatning for tanden.
28Hvis en tyr stanger en mand eller kvinde ihjel, skal den stenes, og dens kød må ikke spises, men tyrens ejer skal ikke straffes for ulykken. 29Men hvis den samme tyr tidligere har stanget nogen, og ejeren er blevet advaret, men ikke har taget nogen forholdsregler, og den så stanger nogen ihjel, skal den stenes og ejeren skal lide døden. 30Dog kan han beholde livet, hvis den dødes slægtninge vil gå med til at acceptere en løsesum som erstatning.
31Samme lov gælder, hvis tyren stanger en dreng eller en pige, 32men hvis den stanger en mandlig eller kvindelig slave, skal slavens herre have en erstatning på 30 sølvstykker, og tyren skal stenes.
33Hvis en mand tager dækslet af en cisterne eller graver en brønd og ikke dækker hullet til, og en ko eller et æsel falder i brønden, 34skal han betale fuld erstatning for det døde dyr, men så tilhører det også ham.
35Hvis en mands tyr stanger en anden mands tyr ihjel, skal de to ejere sælge den levende tyr og dele pengene imellem sig, og de skal også deles om den døde tyr. 36Men hvis det er kendt, at tyren før har villet stange, og ejeren ikke har taget nogen forholdsregler, skal han betale fuld erstatning for den døde tyr, som så bliver hans ejendom.
