The. holie. Bible. conteynyng the olde Testament and the newe.

¶The .xxi. Chapter.

2 Of bying of bondmen. 7 A daughter sold for a bondwoman. 12 Manslaughter. 15 A stry∣ker of parentes. 16 Theft. 17 A slaunderer of his father. 18 Brawlers. 20 He that smyteth his bondman. 22 He that stryketh a woman with chylde. 24 The punyshment of lyke for lyke. 26 He that pulleth out an eye, or striketh out a toothe of bondmen. 28 A pushing oxe. [unspec A] 33 He that diggeth a pitte where into an oxe falleth. 35 An oxe kyllyng another.

1 THese (a) 1.1 are the lawes whiche thou shalt set before them.

2 * 1.2If thou bye a ser∣uaunt that is an He∣brue, sixe yeres he shall serue, & in the seuenth, he shall go out free [paying] nothyng.

3 If he came alone, he shall go out a∣lone: and yf he came maryed, his wyfe shall go out with hym.

4 (b) 1.3And if his maister haue geuen hym a wyfe, and she haue borne him sonnes or daughters: then the wyfe and her chyldren shalbe her maisters, and he shall go out alone.

5 And yf the seruaunt say: I loue my maister, my wyfe, and my chyldren, I wyll not go out free:

6 (c) 1.4His maister shall bryng hym vnto the iudges, and set hym to the doore or the doorepost, and his maister shal bore his eare through with a naule, and he shalbe his seruaunt (d) 1.5 for euer.

7 And if a man sell his daughter to be a seruaunt, she shal not go out as the men seruauntes do.

8 If she please not her maister, who hath [nowe] promised her mariage, then shall he let her redeeme her selfe: To sell her vnto a straunge nation shall he haue no power, seyng (e) 1.6 he despised her.

9 If he haue promysed her vnto his sonne to wyfe, he shall deale with her as men do with their daughters.

10 And if he take hym another wyfe: yet

her foode, her rayment, and duetie of maryage shall he not minishe.

11 And if he do not (f) 1.7 these three vnto her, thē shal she go out free & pay no money.

12 (g) 1.8He that smyteth a man, that he dye, shalbe slayne for it.

13 If a man lay not awayte, but God de∣liuer [him] into his hande, then I wyll poynt thee a * 1.9 place whither he shal flee.

14 If a man come presumpteously vpon his neyghbour to slay hym with guyle, thou shalt take him from myne aulter that he dye.

15 He that smyteth his father or his mo∣ther, let hym “ 1.10 be slayne for it.

16 He that stealeth a man, and selleth him, [unspec C] if he be proued vppon hym, shalbe slayne for it.

17 And he that curseth his father or mo∣ther, shalbe put to death for it.

18 * 1.11If men stryue together, and one smite “ 1.12another with a stone, or with his fyste, and he dye not, but lyeth in his bed:

19 If he rise agayne, and walke without vpon his staffe, then shall he that smote hym go quite, saue only he shall beare his charges for leesyng his tyme, and shall paye for his healyng.

20 And if a man smyte his seruaunt or his mayde with a rod, & they dye vnder his hande, he shalbe greeuously punished.

21 And if he continue a day or two, (h) 1.13 it shal not be reuēged, for he is his money.

22 If men striue, & hurt a woman with chylde, so that her fruite depart from her, and yet no destruction folow: then he shalbe sore punished according as the womans husbande wyll laye to his charge, and he shall pay as the dayes [unspec D] men wyll appoynt hym.

23 And if any destruction folowe, (i) 1.14 then he shall geue life for life,

24 Eye for eye, tothe for tothe, hande for hande, foote for foote,

25 Burnyng for burnyng, wounde for wounde, strype for strype.

26 (k) 1.15And if a man smyte his seruaunt or his mayde in the eye, that it perishe, he shall let them go free for the eyes sake.

27 Also if he smyte out his seruaunt or his maydes tothe, he shall let them go out free for the tothes sake.

28 If an oxe “ 1.16 gore a man or a woman, that they dye, * 1.17 then the oxe shalbe sto∣ned, and his fleshe shall not be eaten: but the owner of the oxe shall go quite. [unspec E]

29 If the oxe were wont to pushe with his horne in time past, and it hath ben tolde his maister, and he hath not kept him, but that he hath killed a man or a woman: (l) 1.18 then the oxe shalbe stoned, and his owner shall dye also.

30 If there be set to hym a sūme of mo∣ney, then he shal geue for the redeeming of his life whatsoeuer is layde vpō him.

31 And whether he haue gored a sonne or a daughter, accordyng to the same iudgement shall it be done vnto him.

32 But if it be a seruaunt or a mayde that the oxe hath gored, then he shall geue vnto their maister thirtie sicles, and the oxe shalbe stoned.

33 If a man open a well, or digge a pitte, and couer it not, and an oxe or an asse fall therein:

34 The owner of the pitte shall make it good, & geue money vnto their maister, and the dead beast shall be his.

35 If one mans oxe hurt another, that he dye: then they shall sell the lyue oxe, and deuide the money, and the dead oxe also they shall deuide.

36 Or if it be knowen that the oxe hath vsed to pushe in tyme past, & his maister hath not kept hym: he shall paye oxe for oxe, and the dead shalbe his owne.

Notes

• (a) 1.1

  That is, the sixt parti∣cion of this booke after the Hebrues, called the iu∣diciall part, that is, orders taken for the dissoluyng of controuersies.
• * 1.2

  Deut. xv.
• (b) 1.3

  Albeit God made this lawe for defence of li∣bertie, yet so would he haue it kept, that the maister myght not be endammaged: for we muste not do good to one, with ano∣thers harme.
• (c) 1.4

  This might be done for two cau∣ses: first, le••t y^e maisters shuld reteyne their seruauntes at their owne pleasure, and that all men myght knowe that they con∣tinued bonde∣men of their owne accorde. Secondly that many takyng bondage in good parte, myght feare the lyke re∣proche, and the more set by their li∣bertie.
• (d) 1.5

  The word in Hebrue doth not al∣wayes sound perpetuitie, sometyme it is takē for a long continuaunce, for in this case they were ne∣uer set free tyll the yere of Iubile, which was a tyme of gene∣rall pardon.
• (e) 1.6

  He speaketh of the lothsomenesse that folowed the satisfiyng of his lustes.
• (f) 1.7

  That is, if he neyther marry to hym self, nor to his sonne, nor let her redeeme her self out of bondage.
• (g) 1.8

  Hauyng spoken of bon∣dage, he en∣treateth of murder, & the penaltie ther∣of, and of cer∣tayne other trespasses pu∣nishable by death.
• * 1.9

  Sanctuary appoynted for place of refuge.
• “ 1.10

  Dye the death.
• * 1.11

  Of harme done by oc∣casion of braules.
• “ 1.12

  Or his neyghbour.
• (h) 1.13

  In these ciuill lawes, we muste not seeke for abso∣lute perfectiō, whiche God tempered ac∣cordyng to the rudenesse of y^e people, amon∣gest whom many thinges were to be winked at for the tyme.
• (i) 1.14

  The exe∣cution hereof perteyneth to magistrates: For priuate wreche is forbidden. Math. v.
• (k) 1.15

  They that can not rule seruaūtes with modera∣tiō, as thought vnworthy of them, must let them go free.
• “ 1.16

  Pushe or smyte with his borne.
• * 1.17

  Gene. ix.
• (l) 1.18

  So God woulde do vs to vnderstand, how heynous a matter it is for any man to annoy his image.