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Friday, December 19th, 2025
the Third Week of Advent
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Read the Bible

New Life Version

Exodus 21:31

If the bull kills a son or a daughter, it will be punished by the same law.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Animals;   Bullock;   Damages and Compensation;   Homicide;   Property;   Restitution;   Trespass;   The Topic Concordance - Livestock;   Recompense/restitution;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Ox, the;  

Dictionaries:

- Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Kill, Killing;   Law;   Punishment;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Punishments;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Capital Punishment;   Cattle;   Crimes and Punishments;   Exodus, Book of;   Hammurabi;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Canon of the Old Testament;   Covenant, Book of the;   Ethics;   Hexateuch;   Law;   Leviticus;   Priests and Levites;   Sabbatical Year;   Sin;   Ten Commandments;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Ox, Oxen;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Punishments;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Covenant, the Book of the;   Gore;   Hammurabi, the Code of;   Murder;   Satisfaction;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Accident;   Blood-Money;   Crime;   Daughter in Jewish Law;   Hammurabi;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Whether it has gored a son or has gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.
King James Version
Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him.
Lexham English Bible
If it gores a son or it gores a daughter, according to this regulation it shall be done to him.
New Century Version
Use this same law if the bull kills a person's son or daughter.
New English Translation
If the ox gores a son or a daughter, the owner will be dealt with according to this rule.
Amplified Bible
"If the ox has gored another's son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule.
New American Standard Bible
"Whether it gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same rule.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Whether he hath gored a sonne or gored a daughter, he shalbe iudged after the same maner.
Legacy Standard Bible
Whether it gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same judgment.
Contemporary English Version
This same law applies if the bull gores someone's son or daughter.
Complete Jewish Bible
If the ox gores a son or daughter, the same rule applies.
Darby Translation
Whether it gore a son or gore a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done to him.
Easy-to-Read Version
"This same law must be followed if the bull kills someone's son or daughter.
English Standard Version
If it gores a man's son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule.
George Lamsa Translation
Whether the ox has gored a son or a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.
Good News Translation
If the bull kills a boy or a girl, the same rule applies.
Christian Standard Bible®
If it gores a son or a daughter, he is to be dealt with according to this same law.
Literal Translation
Whether he gores a son or he gores a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Likewyse shall he be dealte withall, yf he gorre a sonne or a doughter.
American Standard Version
Whether it have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him.
Bible in Basic English
If the death of a son or of a daughter has been caused, the punishment is to be in agreement with this rule.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And whether he haue gored a sonne or a daughter, accordyng to the same iudgement shall it be done vnto him.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Whether it have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him.
King James Version (1611)
Whether hee haue gored a sonne, or haue gored a daughter, according to this iudgement shall it bee done vnto him.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And if the bull gore a son or daughter, let them do to him according to this ordinance.
English Revised Version
Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him.
Berean Standard Bible
If the ox gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same rule.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And if he smytith with horn a son, and a douytir, he schal be suget to lijk sentence.
Young's Literal Translation
whether it gore a son or gore a daughter, according to this judgment it is done to him.
Update Bible Version
Whether it has gored a son, or has gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.
Webster's Bible Translation
Whether he hath gored a son, or hath gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done to him.
World English Bible
Whether it has gored a son or has gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.
New King James Version
Whether it has gored a son or gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.
New Living Translation
"The same regulation applies if the ox gores a boy or a girl.
New Revised Standard
If it gores a boy or a girl, the owner shall be dealt with according to this same rule.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
if, a son, he gore or, a daughter, he gore, according to this regulation, shall it be done to him;
Douay-Rheims Bible
If he have gored a son, or a daughter, he shall fall under the like sentence.
Revised Standard Version
If it gores a man's son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Whether it gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same rule.

Contextual Overview

22 "If men fight with each other and hit a woman who is going to have a child so that she loses her baby but no other hurt comes to her, he must pay whatever the woman's husband says he must, as agreed upon by the judges. 23 But if there is other hurt also, then it is life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, cut for cut, sore for sore. 26 "If a man hits the eye of his male or female servant and destroys it, he will let the person go free because of the eye. 27 If he knocks out a tooth of his man or woman servant, he will let the person go free because of the tooth. 28 "When a bull kills a man or a woman with its horns, the bull will be killed with stones. And its flesh will not be eaten. But the owner of the bull will not be punished. 29 But if a bull has tried to kill with its horns before, and the owner has been told but does not keep him shut up, and the bull kills a man or a woman, the bull will be killed with stones and the owner will be put to death. 30 But if he is allowed to pay for his life, then he will pay whatever is asked of him. 31 If the bull kills a son or a daughter, it will be punished by the same law.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

judgment: or, sentence, Exodus 21:31

Reciprocal: Habakkuk 3:6 - and measured

Cross-References

Genesis 21:14
So Abraham got up early in the morning. He took bread and a leather bag of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder. He gave her the boy, and sent her away. She left, and went from place to place in the desert in Beersheba.
Genesis 26:23
Then he went from there to Beersheba.
Genesis 26:33
So he gave the well the name Shibah. So the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.
Joshua 15:28
Hazar-shual, Beer-sheba, Biziothiah,
Judges 20:1
Then all the people of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out. The people gathered together as one man to the Lord at Mizpah.
2 Samuel 17:11
But I say that all Israel should be gathered to you, from Dan to Beersheba, as much as the sand by the sea. And you yourself should go into battle.
1 Kings 4:25
So Judah and Israel were safe. Every man was safe under his vine and fig tree, from Dan to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter,.... A little son or daughter, and both Israelites, as Jarchi and Aben Ezra; this is observed, because only a man or woman are made mention of in

Exodus 21:29 persons grown up; and lest it should be thought that only adult persons were intended, this is added, to show that the same regard is had to little ones as to grown persons, should they suffer by an ox in like manner as men and women may. The Targum of Jonathan restrains this to a son or daughter of an Israelite; but the life of everyone, of whatsoever nation, is equally provided for, and guarded against by the original law of God:

according to this judgment shall it be done unto him; to the owner of the ox that has gored a child, male or female; that is, he shall be put to death, if he has been warned of the practice of his ox for three days past, and has took no care to keep him in; or he shall pay the ransom of his life, as it has been laid by the court, with the consent of the relations of the children.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The animal was slain as a tribute to the sanctity of human life (Compare the marginal references and Genesis 4:11). It was stoned, and its flesh was treated as carrion. Guilty negligence on the part of its owner was reckoned a capital offence, to be commuted for a fine.

In the case of a slave, the payment was the standard price of a slave, thirty shekels of silver. See Leviticus 25:44-46; Leviticus 27:3, and the marginal references for the New Testament application of this fact.


 
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