21:12 1 “Whoever strikes someone 2 so that he dies 3 must surely be put to death. 4
21:28 5 “If an ox 6 gores a man or a woman so that either dies, 7 then the ox must surely 8 be stoned and its flesh must not be eaten, but the owner of the ox will be acquitted. 21:29 But if the ox had the habit of goring, and its owner was warned, 9 and he did not take the necessary precautions, 10 and then it killed a man or a woman, the ox must be stoned and the man must be put to death.
1 sn The underlying point of this section remains vital today: The people of God must treat all human life as sacred.
2 tn The construction uses a Hiphil participle in construct with the noun for “man” (or person as is understood in a law for the nation): “the one striking [of] a man.” This is a casus pendens (independent nominative absolute); it indicates the condition or action that involves further consequence (GKC 361 §116.w).
3 tn The Hebrew word וָמֵת (vamet) is a Qal perfect with vav consecutive; it means “and he dies” and not “and killed him” (which require another stem). Gesenius notes that this form after a participle is the equivalent of a sentence representing a contingent action (GKC 333 §112.n). The word shows the result of the action in the opening participle. It is therefore a case of murder or manslaughter.
4 sn See A. Phillips, “Another Look at Murder,” JJS 28 (1977): 105-26.
5 sn The point that this section of the laws makes is that one must ensure the safety of others by controlling the circumstances.
6 tn Traditionally “ox,” but “bull” would also be suitable. The term may refer to one of any variety of large cattle.
7 tn Heb “and he dies”; KJV “that they die”; NAB, NASB “to death.”
8 tn The text uses סָקוֹל יִסָּקֵל (saqol yissaqel), a Qal infinitive absolute with a Niphal imperfect. The infinitive intensifies the imperfect, which here has an obligatory nuance or is a future of instruction.
9 tn The Hophal perfect has the idea of “attested, testified against.”
10 tn Heb “he was not keeping it” or perhaps guarding or watching it (referring to the ox).