Exodus 22:2

Exodus 22:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.
• New International Version (NIV)“If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed;
• English Standard Version (ESV)If a thief is found breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him,
• New King James Version (NKJV)If the thief is found breaking in, and he is struck so that he dies, there shall be no guilt for his bloodshed.

Context of Exodus 22:2

1⌞The Lord continued,⌟ “Whenever someone steals a bull or a sheep and butchers it or sells it, he must make up for the loss with five head of cattle to replace the bull or four sheep to replace the sheep. “If anyone catches a thief breaking in and hits him so that he dies, he is not guilty of murder. 3But if it happens after sunrise, he is guilty of murder. “A thief must make up for what he has stolen. If he is unable to do so, he must be sold ⌞as a slave⌟ to pay for what he stole. 4But if the stolen animal is found alive in his possession, whether it’s a bull, donkey, or a sheep, he must make up for the loss with double the amount.

Exodus 22:2 word by word

אִם־בַּמַּחְתֶּ֛רֶת יִמָּצֵ֥א הַגַּנָּ֖ב וְהֻכָּ֣ה וָמֵ֑ת אֵ֥ין ל֖וֹ דָּמִֽים׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• If a thiefגַּנָּבgannâb · thiefH1590
• be foundמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
• breaking upמַחְתֶּ֫רֶתmachtereth · breakingH4290
• and be smittenנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• that he dieמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
• no bloodדָּםdâm · bloodH1818

Cross-references for Exodus 22:2

• Job 24:14At dawn murderers rise; they kill the poor and needy. At night they become thieves.
• Job 30:5They are driven from the community. People shout at them in the same way they shout at thieves.
• Hosea 7:1“Whenever I want to heal Israel, all I can see is Ephraim’s sin and Samaria’s wickedness. People cheat each other. They break into houses and steal. They rob people in the streets.
• Joel 2:9They rush into the city. They run along the wall. They climb into houses. They enter through windows like thieves.
• Matthew 6:19“Stop storing up treasures for yourselves on earth, where moths and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal.
• Matthew 24:43You realize that if a homeowner had known at what time of the night a thief was coming, he would have stayed awake. He would not have let the thief break into his house.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:2You know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
• Numbers 35:27If the relative who can avenge the death finds you outside the city of refuge and kills you, the relative is not guilty of murder.

Commentaries on Exodus 22:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2If a thief be found - If a thief was found breaking into a house in the night season, he might be killed; but not if the sun had risen, for then he might be known and taken, and the restitution made which is mentioned in the succeeding verse. So by the law of England it is a burglary to break and enter a house by night; and "anciently the day was accounted to begin only from sunrising, and to end immediately upon sunset: but it is now generally agreed…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2-4Verses 2-4 If a thief, in breaking into a dwelling in the night, was slain, the person who slew him did not incur the guilt of blood; but if the same occurred in daylight, the slayer was guilty in accordance with Exodus 21:12. The distinction may have been based on the fact that in the light of day there was a fair chance of identifying and apprehending the thief.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-15In cases involving loss of property, the responsible person had to pay compensation equal to the value of what was lost. If the person had actually stolen the property, the compensation was multiplied (22:1, 4, 7). Where there was a question of responsibility, the parties were to appear before God for adjudication (22:8). The means by which the judgment was reached is not reported.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-311-4. If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep--The law respects the theft of cattle which constituted the chief part of their property. The penalty for the theft of a sheep which was slain or sold, was fourfold; for an ox fivefold, because of its greater utility in labor; but, should the stolen animal have been recovered alive, a double compensation was all that was required, because it was presumable he (the thief) was not a practised adept in dishonesty…Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 22:2

• Animals
• Bullock
• Restitution
• Theft and Thieves

In the dictionaries

• Book
• Cause
• Curse
• Feed
• God
• Put
• Restore
• Revile
• Theft
• Torn

Commentaries on Exodus 22

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings