If he was single when he became your slave, he shall leave single. But if he was married before he became a slave, then his wife must be freed with him.
Parallel translations
- WEB If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself. If he is married, then his wife shall go out with him.
- KJV If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him.
- BSB If he arrived alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrived with a wife, she is to leave with him.
- ESV If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him.
- NKJV If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him.
- NASB If he comes alone, he shall leave alone; if he is the husband of a wife, then his wife shall leave with him.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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
A servant who came single left single; one who came married left with his wife. The law honored existing family bonds.
Overview
These provisions ensured that a servant's prior marriage was respected upon release, keeping families together. The law's care for the household reflects God's value for marriage and family. It shows that God's justice is never coldly mechanical but mindful of human relationships He Himself ordained.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- Deut 15:12–14If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, and serves you six years; then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 21:3 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.