Deuteronomy 15:17

Deuteronomy 15:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then thou shalt take an aul, and thrust it through his ear unto the door, and he shall be thy servant for ever. And also unto thy maidservant thou shalt do likewise.
• New International Version (NIV)then take an awl and push it through his earlobe into the door, and he will become your servant for life. Do the same for your female servant.
• English Standard Version (ESV)then you shall take an awl, and put it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your slave forever. And to your female slave you shall do the same.
• New King James Version (NKJV)then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your female servant you shall do likewise.

Context of Deuteronomy 15:17

15Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore, I am commanding you to do this thing today. 16However, if the servant says to you, “I do not want to leave you,” because he loves you and your household, since he is well off with you, you shall take an awl and pierce a hole through his ear to the door. Then he will become your servant permanently (this applies to your female servant as well). 18You should not consider it difficult to let him go free, for he will have served you for six years, twice the time of a hired worker; the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do. 19You must set apart for the Lord your God every firstborn male born to your herds and flocks. You must not work the firstborn of your bulls or shear the firstborn of your flocks.

Deuteronomy 15:17 word by word

וְלָקַחְתָּ֣ אֶת־הַמַּרְצֵ֗עַ וְנָתַתָּ֤ה בְאָזְנוֹ֙ וּבַדֶּ֔לֶת וְהָיָ֥ה לְךָ֖ עֶ֣בֶד עוֹלָ֑ם וְאַ֥ף לַאֲמָתְךָ֖ תַּעֲשֶׂה־כֵּֽן׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Then thou shalt takeלָקַחlâqach · to take: takeH3947
• an aulמַרְצֵעַmartsêa‛ · awlH4836
• and thrustנָתַןnâthan · to give: putH5414
• through his earאֹ֫זֶן'ôzen · earH241
• unto the doorדֶּ֫לֶתdeleth · doorH1817
• and he shall be thy servantעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• for everעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: enduringH5769
• And also unto thy maidservantאָמָה'âmâh · maidservantH519
• thou shalt doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 15:17

• Leviticus 25:39“‘If your brother becomes impoverished with regard to you so that he sells himself to you, you must not subject him to slave service.
• 1 Samuel 1:22but Hannah did not go up with them. Instead she told her husband, “Once the boy is weaned, I will bring him and appear before the Lord, and he will remain there from then on.”

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 15:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Thou shalt take an awl - See the note on Exodus 21:6.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15-18Verses 15-18 The commands here are repeated from Exodus 21:2-6, with amplifications relative to the maidservant Deuteronomy 15:12 and to the making (Deuteronomy 15:13 ff) liberal provision for launching the freedman on an independent course of life. The release of the servant is connected with the sabbatical principle though not with the sabbatical year. It is noteworthy also that the prospect of a gift of this sort, the amount of which was left to the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-18Verses 12-18 Here the law concerning Hebrew servants is repeated. There is an addition, requiring the masters to put some small stock into their servants' hands to set up with for themselves, when sent out of their servitude, wherein they had received no wages. We may expect family blessings, the springs of family prosperity, when we make conscience of our duty to our family relations. We are to remember that we are debtors to Divine justice, and have…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17pierce it through his ear: Piercing the servant’s ear was a public sign. It showed that the bondservant had chosen to serve his master for life. This mark identified him as permanently belonging to that household. Some believe this background may help explain Paul’s words, “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus” (Galatians 6:17).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 16-1716-17. if he say unto thee, I will not go away from thee--If they declined to avail themselves of the privilege of release and chose to remain with their master, then by a peculiar form of ceremony they became a party to the transaction, voluntarily sold themselves to their employer, and continued in his service till death.Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 15:17

• Awl
• Beneficence
• Liberality
• Sabbatic Year
• Servant

In the dictionaries

• Awl
• Bless
• Cease
• Firstling
• Freedom
• Release
• Atonement, Day of
• Bore
• Criticism
• Exodus, the Book of

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 15

• 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
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings