Whoever kills an animal must make restitution, but whoever kills a man must be put to death.
Parallel translations
- WEB He who kills an animal shall make it good; and he who kills a man shall be put to death.
- KJV And he that killeth a beast, he shall restore it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death.
- NKJV And whoever kills an animal shall restore it; but whoever kills a man shall be put to death.
- NASB So the one who kills an animal shall make restitution, but the one who kills a person shall be put to death.
- NLT “Whoever kills an animal must pay for it in full, but whoever kills another person must be put to death.
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
Killing an animal required restitution, but killing a person required death. The verse summarizes the contrast in value between animal and human life.
Overview
This repeats the distinction to drive home that human life cannot be merely compensated like property. The clear difference in penalty teaches the surpassing worth of people made in God's image. It grounds a biblical view of justice that prizes human life supremely.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Lev 24:17–18And if a man takes the life of anyone else, he must surely be put to death.
- Exod 21:33If a man opens or digs a pit and fails to cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 24:21 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
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.