Leviticus 25:44

Leviticus 25:44 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.
• New International Version (NIV)“ ‘Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves.
• English Standard Version (ESV)As for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And as for your male and female slaves whom you may have—from the nations that are around you, from them you may buy male and female slaves.

Context of Leviticus 25:44

42Since they are my servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt, they must not be sold in a slave sale. 43You must not rule over him harshly, but you must fear your God. “‘As for your male and female slaves who may belong to you – you may buy male and female slaves from the nations all around you. 45Also you may buy slaves from the children of the foreigners who reside with you, and from their families that are with you, whom they have fathered in your land, they may become your property. 46You may give them as inheritance to your children after you to possess as property. You may enslave them perpetually. However, as for your brothers the Israelites, no man may rule over his brother harshly.

Leviticus 25:44 word by word

וְעַבְדְּךָ֥ וַאֲמָתְךָ֖ אֲשֶׁ֣ר יִהְיוּ־לָ֑ךְ מֵאֵ֣ת הַגּוֹיִ֗ם אֲשֶׁר֙ סְבִיבֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם מֵהֶ֥ם תִּקְנ֖וּ עֶ֥בֶד וְאָמָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Both thy bondmenעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• and thy bondmaidsאָמָה'âmâh · maidservantH519
• of the heathenגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• that are round aboutסָבִיבsâbîyb sebîybâh · aroundH5439
• you; of them shall ye buyקָנָהqânâh · to buyH7069

Cross-references for Leviticus 25:44

• Exodus 12:44But everyone’s servant who is bought for money, after you have circumcised him, may eat it.
• Psalms 2:8Ask me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, the ends of the earth as your personal property.
• Isaiah 14:1The Lord will certainly have compassion on Jacob; he will again choose Israel as his special people and restore them to their land. Resident foreigners will join them and unite with the family of Jacob.
• Revelation 2:26And to the one who conquers and who continues in my deeds until the end, I will give him authority over the nations –

Commentaries on Leviticus 25:44

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 44-46Verses 44-46 Property in foreign slaves is here distinctly permitted. It was a patriarchal custom Genesis 17:12. Such slaves might be captives taken in war (Numbers 31:6 following; Deuteronomy 20:14), or those consigned to slavery for their crimes, or those purchased of foreign slave-dealers. The price of a slave is supposed to have varied from thirty to fifty shekels. See Leviticus 27:3-4, note; Exodus 21:32, note; Zechariah 11:12-13, note; Matthew…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 39-55Verses 39-55 A native Israelite, if sold for debt, or for a crime, was to serve but six years, and to go out the seventh. If he sold himself, through poverty, both his work and his usage must be such as were fitting for a son of Abraham. Masters are required to give to their servants that which is just and equal, Col 4:1. At the year of jubilee the servant should go out free, he and his children, and should return to his own family. This typified…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 44-46In Mesopotamia and Egypt, people treated slaves like property. They had no rights or protection. Among the Israelites, people could purchase non-Israelites as slaves. Yet God commanded that they be treated well and not abused. Sometimes a slave was even adopted into a childless family (Genesis 15:2–4). Slavery continued in New Testament times. However, the Old Testament taught that all people share a common beginning because God created humankind. This…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 39-4639-46. if thy brother ... be waxen poor, and be sold unto thee, thou shalt not compel him to serve as a bond-servant--An Israelite might be compelled, through misfortune, not only to mortgage his inheritance, but himself. In the event of his being reduced to this distress, he was to be treated not as a slave, but a hired servant whose engagement was temporary, and who might, through the friendly aid of a relative, be redeemed at any time before the…Read the comment

Topics related to Leviticus 25:44

• Aliens
• Jubilee
• Servant
• Strangers

In the dictionaries

• Accord
• Compel
• Decay
• Fill
• Increase
• Loan
• Redeem
• Redemption
• Rest
• Sabbath

Commentaries on Leviticus 25

• 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