Notwithstanding, if he gets up after a day or two, he shall not be punished, for he is his property.
Parallel translations
- KJV Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.
- BSB However, if the servant gets up after a day or two, the owner shall not be punished, since the servant is his property.
- NKJV Notwithstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property.
- NASB If, however, the slave survives a day or two, no vengeance shall be taken; for the slave is his property.
- NLT But if the slave recovers within a day or two, then the owner shall not be punished, since the slave is his property.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
If the servant survives a day or two, the master is not punished, since the loss falls on him as the owner. This is a debated and difficult text in its ancient context.
Overview
The verse limits punishment when death is not clearly the result of the beating, treating the master's economic loss as a check on abuse. Faithful interpreters note this reflects regulated Israelite servitude (often debt-bondage), not the chattel slavery of later eras, and that verse 20 still safeguards the servant's life. Christians read such hard texts in light of Scripture's trajectory toward the full dignity and freedom found in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- Lev 25:44–46“‘As for your male and your female slaves, whom you may have; of the nations that are around you, from them you may buy male and female slaves.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 21:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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