If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall restore double.
Parallel translations
- WEB If the stolen property is found in his hand alive, whether it is ox, donkey, or sheep, he shall pay double.
- BSB If what was stolen is actually found alive in his possession—whether ox or donkey or sheep—he must pay back double.
- NKJV If the theft is certainlyfound alive in his hand, whether it is an ox or donkey or sheep, he shall restore double.
- NASB If what he stole is actually found alive in his possession, whether an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double.
- NLT If someone steals an ox or a donkey or a sheep and it is found in the thief’s possession, then the thief must pay double the value of the stolen animal.
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 stolen animal is found alive in the thief's possession, he repays double. Restitution is proportioned to the actual loss.
Overview
When the property is recovered intact, the lighter twofold penalty applies, distinct from the heavier penalty when the animal is killed or sold. This graded justice fits the punishment to the degree of harm. It displays the fairness of God's law, which never punishes beyond what is just.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Exod 22:7If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, let him pay double.
- Exod 22:1If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.
- Exod 22:9For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.
- Exod 21:16And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.
- Prov 6:31But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.
- Rev 18:6Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
- Jer 16:18And first I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double; because they have defiled my land, they have filled mine inheritance with the carcases of their detestable and abominable things.
- Isa 40:2Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’s hand double for all her sins.
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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 22:4 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.