Exodus 21 · Verse 22

Exodus 21:22

If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.

Exodus 21:22, King James Version

Exodus 21:22 in other translations

BSB	If men who are fighting strike a pregnant woman and her child is born prematurely, but there is no further injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband demands and as the court allows.
WEB	“If men fight and hurt a pregnant woman so that she gives birth prematurely, and yet no harm follows, he shall be surely fined as much as the woman’s husband demands and the judges allow.
ASV	And if men strive together, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart, and yet no harm follow; he shall be surely fined, according as the woman’s husband shall lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.
YLT	‘And when men strive, and have smitten a pregnant woman, and her children have come out, and there is no mischief, he is certainly fined, as the husband of the woman doth lay upon him, and he hath given through the judges;
DARBY	And if men strive together, and strike a woman with child, so that she be delivered, and no mischief happen, he shall in any case be fined, according as the woman's husband shall impose on him, and shall give it as the judges estimate.
BBE	If men, while fighting, do damage to a woman with child, causing the loss of the child, but no other evil comes to her, the man will have to make payment up to the amount fixed by her husband, in agreement with the decision of the judges.
Webster	If men shall contend, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit shall depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.

What does Exodus 21:22 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 22 And hurt a woman with child - As a posterity among the Jews was among the peculiar promises of their covenant, and as every man had some reason to think that the Messiah should spring from his family, therefore any injury done to a woman with child, by which the fruit of her womb might be destroyed, was considered a very heavy offense; and as the crime was committed principally against the husband, the degree of punishment was left to his discretion. But if mischief followed, that is, if the child had been fully formed, and was killed by this means, or the woman lost her life in consequence, then the punishment was as in other cases of murder - the person was put to death; Exo 21:23.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 21:22-36

The cases here mentioned give rules of justice then, and still in use, for deciding similar matters. We are taught by these laws, that we must be very careful to do no wrong, either directly or indirectly. If we have done wrong, we must be very willing to make it good, and be desirous that nobody may lose by us.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

Exodus 21:22 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְכִֽי\־ve.khi-and ifH3588

יִנָּצ֣וּyi.na.Tzuthey will struggle togetherH5327

אֲנָשִׁ֗ים'a.na.ShimmenH582

וְנָ֨גְפ֜וּve.Na.ge.Fuand they will strikeH5062

אִשָּׁ֤ה'i.Shaha womanH802

הָרָה֙ha.RahpregnantH2030

וְיָצְא֣וּve.ya.tze.'Uand they will come outH3318

יְלָדֶ֔יהָye.la.Dei.hachildren herH3206

וְלֹ֥אve.Lo'and notH3808

יִהְיֶ֖הyih.Yehit will beH1961

אָס֑וֹן'a.SonharmH611

עָנ֣וֹשׁa.No.oshcertainly <to fine>H6064

יֵעָנֵ֗שׁye.'a.Neshhe will be finedH6064

כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֨רka.'a.Sherjust asH834

יָשִׁ֤יתya.Shithe will imposeH7896

עָלָיו֙'a.Lavon himH5921

בַּ֣עַלBa.'al[the] husband ofH1167

הָֽאִשָּׁ֔הha.'i.Shahthe womanH802

וְנָתַ֖ןve.na.Tanand he will giveH5414

בִּפְלִלִֽים\׃bif.li.Limfor [the] estimateH6414

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Exodus 21:22

Deuteronomy 22:18-19
And the elders of that city shall take that man and chastise him; And they shall amerce him in an hundred shekels of silver, and give them unto the father of the damsel, because he hath brought up an evil name upon a virgin of Israel: and she shall be his wife; he may not put her away all his days.
Exodus 21:30
If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.
Deuteronomy 16:18
Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, throughout thy tribes: and they shall judge the people with just judgment.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

strive.
18
as the judges.
30; De 16:18; 22:18,19

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Exodus 21:21
Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.
Exodus 21:22
If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.
Exodus 21:23
And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life,

Read all of Exodus 21

Exodus 21:22 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Si algunos riñeren, é hiriesen á mujer preñada, y ésta abortare, pero sin haber muerte, será penado conforme á lo que le impusiere el marido de la mujer y juzgaren los árbitros.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et si des hommes se querellent, et que l’un d’eux heurte une femme enceinte et qu’elle accouche sans qu’il y ait de malheur, une amende sera payée selon ce que le mari de la femme lui imposera, et il la donnera suivant la décision des juges.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und wenn Männer sich streiten und stoßen ein schwangeres Weib, daß ihr die Frucht abgeht, und es geschieht kein Schaden, so soll er gewißlich an Geld gestraft werden, jenachdem der Mann des Weibes ihm auferlegen wird, und er soll es geben durch die Richter.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Si rixati fuerint viri, et percusserit quis mulierem prægnantem, et abortivum quidem fecerit, sed ipsa vixerit: subjacebit damno quantum maritus mulieris expetierit, et arbitri judicaverint.