Temporal and ciuile ordinances, appointed by God, touching ſeruitude, murthers, and wronges: the obſeruatiõ whereof doeth not iuſtifie a man, but are giuen to bridel our corrupt nature, which els wolde breake out into all miſchief and crueltie.

1.NOw theſe are the lawes, which thou ſhalt ſet before them:

2.^*If thou bye an Ebrewe ſeruant, he ſhal ſerue ſix yeres, and in the ſeuenth he ſhal go out fre, ^afor nothing.

3.If he came ^bhim ſelfe alone, he ſhal go out him ſelfe alone: if he were maried, thẽ his wife ſhal go out with him.

4.If his maſter hathe giuen him a wife, & ſhe hathe borne him ſonnes or daughters, the wife and her children ſhalbe her ^cmaſters, but he ſhal go out him ſelf alone.

5.But if the ſeruant ſay thus, I loue my maſter, my wife and my children, I wil not go out fre,

6.Then his maſter ſhal bring him vnto the ^"Iudges, and ſet him to the ^ddore, or to the poſte, and his maſter ſhal bore his eare through with a nawle, & he ſhal ſerue him for ^eeuer.

7.¶ Likewiſe if a man ^fſel his daughter to be a ſeruant, ſhe ſhal not go out as the mẽ ſeruants do.

8.If ſhe pleaſe not her maſter, who hathe betrothed her to him ſelfe, then ſhal ^ghe cauſe to bye her: he ſhal haue no power to ſel her to a ſtrange people, ſeing he ^"deſpiſed her.

9.But if he hathe betrothed her vnto his ſonne, he ſhal deale with her ^haccording to the cuſtome of the daughters.

10.If he take ⁱhim an other wife, he ſhal not diminiſh her fode, her rayment, and recompence of her virginitie.

11.And if he do not theſe ^kthre vnto her, thẽ ſhal ſhe go out fre, paying no money.

12.¶ ^*He that ſmiteth a man, and he dye, ſhal dye the death.

13.And if a man hathe not laied waite, but God hathe offred him into his hãd, ^*then I wil appoite thee a place whither he ſhal ^lflee.

14.But if a man come preſumpteouſly vpon his neighbour to ſlaye him with guile, thou ſhalt take him from mine ^maltar, that he may dye.

15.¶ Alſo he that ſmiteth his father or his mother, ſhal dye the death.

16.¶ And he that ſtealeth a man, & ſelleth him, if it be founde with him, ſhal dye the death.

17.¶ ^*And he that curſeth his father or his mother, ſhal dye the death.

18.¶ When men alſo ſtriue together, & one ſmite another with a ⁿſtone, or with the fiſt, & he dye not, but lieth in bed,

19.If he riſe againe and walke without vpon his ſtaffe, then ſhal he that ſmote him go ^oquite, ſaue onely he ſhal beare his charges ^"for his reſting, and ſhal pay for his healing.

20.¶ And if a man ſmite his ſeruant, or his mayd with a rod, & he dye vnder his hand, he ſhal be ſurely puniſhed.

21.But if he continue a day, or two daies, he ſhal not ^pbe puniſhed: for he is his money.

22.¶ Alſo if men ſtriue and hurt a woman with childe, ſo that her childe departe frõ her, & ^qdeath followe not, he ſhal be ſurely puniſhed according as the womans houſband ſhal appoint him, or he ſhal pay as the ^"Iudges determine.

23.But if death followe, thẽ thou ſhalt paye life for life,

24.^* ^rEie for eie, tothe for tothe, hand for hand, fote for fote,

25.Burning for burning, wonde for wõde, ſtripe for ſtripe.

26.¶ And if a man ſmite his ſeruant in the eie, or his maid in the eie, and hathe periſhed it, he ſhal let him go fre for his eie.

27.Alſo if he ſmite ^sout his ſeruants tothe, or his maydes tothe, he ſhal let him go out fre for his tothe.

28.¶ If an oxe gore a man or a woman, that he dye, the ^*oxe ſhal be ^tſtoned to death, and his fleſh ſhal not be eaten, but the owner of the oxe ſhal go quite.

29.If the oxe were wonte to puſh in times paſt , & it hathe bene ^"tolde his maſter, & he hathe not kept him, and after he killeth a man or a woman, the oxe ſhal be ſtoned and his owner ſhal dye alſo.

30.If there be ſet to him ^ua ^"ſumme of money, then he ſhal pay the rāſon of his life, whatſoeuer ſhalbe laied vpon him.

31.Whether he hathe gored a ſonne, or gored a daughter, he ſhal be iudged after the ſame maner.

32.If the oxe gore a ſeruant or a mayd, he ſhal giue vnto their maſter thirty ^*ſhekles of ſiluer, and the oxe ſhalbe ſtoned.

33.¶ And when a man ſhal open a well, or when he ſhal dig a pit and couer it not, & an oxe or an aſſe fall therein,

34.The owner of the pit ſhal ^*make it good, and giue money to the owners thereof, but the dead beaſt ſhalbe his.

35.¶ And if a mans oxe hurt his neighbours oxe that he dye, then thei ſhal ſel the liue oxe, & deuide the money thereof, & the dead oxe alſo thei ſhal deuide.

36.Or if it be knowen that the oxe hathe vſed to puſh in times paſt, and his maſter hathe not kept him, he ſhal pay oxe for oxe, but the dead ſhalbe his owne.

Exodus 21

Notes