Hello Mr. Papageno, thanks for responding.

You said:

"Will you be my slave under the conditions of Exodus 21?"

Under the conditions of Exodus 21, I'd be fine doing that.

However, you have butchered what it says in your comment, here.

You said:

"I own you for 6 years, and I don't have to feed you or house you.. I can beat the crap out of you, unless you die within a couple of days."

Exodus 21 doesn't say any of this.

You aren't owned. Hebrew servants who work for six years are not possessed as property by any means. They retain their personal rights and liberties. It's why the law is so clear they are released every six years: it's to emphasize that they are NOT property. They're people. They're serving you for a short time only. You do not own them.

If you did own them, they'd never be able to leave.

Because they are mandated to leave, it's all the more evidence that you don't own them.

Further, you MUST feed and house them. If you don't, they'll leave.

Deuteronomy 23:15-16 clarifies that any servant/slave/worker can leave any master/boss/employer whenever they are being mistreated. The Law prevents the master from doing anything to get them back. The person is free forever as soon as they want to be.

Again, it's all the more evidence that you don't own anyone.

If you don't feed or house your servants, they'll simply walk off your property, and the Law prevents you from doing anything to get them back.

You said:

20 “Anyone who beats their male or female slave with a rod must be punished if the slave dies as a direct result"

Let's stop here for a second.

First, it's obvious you didn't bother to read the article. I deal with your objection clearly.

I'll do you the courtesy you didn't do for me: I'll respond to your points after reading what you wrote entirely.

Notice what this verse says.

If the master kills his servant by beating them, the master is punished as a murderer.

Again: it means you do not own this person.

You can't kill them. They aren't yours.

If you kill your servant, you are killed as a murderer.

Next, you said:

"21 but they are not to be punished if the slave recovers after a day or two, since the slave is their property."

You will be my property. I can whip you unless you tell me you love me, and they you belong to me for life. Then I can take you to the door or the doorpost and pierce your ear with an awl. Then you will be my servant for life."

This is all the more evidence that you aren't bothering to read what you're commenting on.

Only the servant themselves can choose to pierce their ear to become a perpetual servant. The master can never enforce such a thing.

It is a personal decision.

If the servant finds life with their master to be better than life anywhere else, they can choose to stay.

Otherwise, they leave every six years.

Next, let's deal with verse 21.

Did you read the verse you quoted?

There is only one situation in which the master avoids being punished: if the wound is so slight that the servant recovers after a day or two.

If the master kills their servant, the master dies as a murderer.

If the master inflicts a wound that lingers more than two days, the master is punished.

The only way the master avoids punishment is if the wound is incredibly slight -- something fully recovered after a day or two. Likely, this is because it's hard to prove a wound so slight. If you go to the judge the next day and the wound is gone, what is the judge supposed to judge?

Finally, the line "the slave is their property" is literally "the servant is their money." It's not the word for "property."

It means income.

The servant is the means of the master making money. If he's injuring his own workforce, he's hurting himself as well as them.

So let's put this all together.

If I work for you, you don't own me. I'm not your property.

You can't whip me at all. If you do, you'll be punished by the law, because whip wounds do not disappear after a day or two.

You can't make me a servant for life. That's my choice, not yours.

You must feed and house me, and if you don't, I can simply walk off your property and find a better place to work.

If you had read the article, you'd see all of this laid out plainly.