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Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Exodus 22:7-15

These laws are, I. Concerning trusts, Exod. 22:7-13. If a man deliver goods, suppose to a carrier to be conveyed, or to a warehouse-keeper to be preserved, or cattle to a farmer to be fed, upon a valuable consideration, and if a special confidence be reposed in the person they are lodged with, in case these goods be stolen or lost, perish or be damaged, if it appear that it was not by any fault of the trustee, the owner must stand to the loss, otherwise he that has been false to this trust... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Exodus 22:10

If a man deliver to his neighbour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast to keep ,.... And he keeps it without a reward, as the Targum of Jonathan; but Jarchi and Aben Ezra more rightly interpret this of one that keeps for hire, as herdsmen, shepherds, &c.; The Jews say F20 Misn. Bava Metzia, c. 7. sect. 8. there are"four sorts of keepers; he that keeps for nought (or freely), he that borrows, he that takes hire, and he that hires; he that keeps for nought swears in all cases... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Exodus 22:11

Then shall an oath of the Lord be between them both ,.... Either by the one, the keeper, for the satisfaction of the owner, or by them both; by the owner, that he delivered such and such cattle to the keeper; and by the keeper, that he was no ways concerned in the death, hurt, or carrying off of the same: and this is called "the oath of the Lord", not only because in this law required by him, but because sworn by him, or in his name, and made before him, in his presence, who is hereby... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Exodus 22:12

And if it be stolen from him ,.... Or "but if" F24 כי אם "si autem", Drusius. it was taken away by theft; and that "from with him" F25 מעמו "e cum eo", Montanus. , as it may be literally rendered, from among his own cattle, and they not taken; and he being present, pretending to have an eye upon them and keep them, but was careless and negligent, at least, if he did not connive at the theft: he shall make restitution to the owner thereof ; for in such a case there was... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Exodus 22:13

If it be torn in pieces ,.... By some wild beast, at least as pretended: then let him bring it for witness ; part of that which is torn, that it may be witness for him that it was torn, as in Amos 3:12 as Aben Ezra observes; and so the Jerusalem Targurn,"let him bring of the members of it a witness,'which would make it a clear case that it had been so used; but it is possible that the whole carcass might be carried off, and nothing remain to be brought as a proof of it; wherefore the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Exodus 22:14

And if a man borrow ought of his neighbour ,.... Any beast, as it should seem, as an ox to plough with, an ass, horse, or camel to ride on, though the Jewish writers carry it also to any kind of household stuff: and if he be hurt or die ; if any damage comes to it, or it dies while it is in the borrower's hands, and when employed in that work for which he borrowed it; the Targum of Jonathan is,"and the vessel should be broke, or the beast die:'and the owner thereof being not with it;... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Exodus 22:11

An oath of the Lord be between them - So solemn and awful were all appeals to God considered in those ancient times, that it was taken for granted that the man was innocent who could by an oath appeal to the omniscient God that he had not put his hand to his neighbor's goods. Since oaths have become multiplied, and since they have been administered on the most trifling occasions, their solemnity is gone, and their importance little regarded. Should the oath ever reacquire its weight and... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Exodus 22:13

If it be torn in pieces - let him bring it for witness - Rather, Let him bring הטרפה עד ed hatterephah , a testimony or evidence of the torn thing, such as the horns, hoofs, etc. This is still a law in some countries among graziers: if a horse, cow, sheep, or goat, entrusted to them, be lost, and the keeper asserts it was devoured by dogs, etc., the law obliges him to produce the horns and hoofs, because on these the owner's mark is generally found. If these can be produced, the keeper... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Exodus 22:10

Verse 10 10.If a man deliver unto his neighbor an ass. Since in the passage from whence I have taken these four verses, mention is made of a deposit, and Moses is professedly providing against frauds, and robberies, and thefts, I have thought it well to place them under this head. It has indeed some relation to the Third Commandment, because it shows the lawful use of an oath, viz., that in matters of concealment men should have recourse to the witness of God, and that, by the interposition of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 22:1-16

Restitution. We have to mark again in this chapter with how even a hand the law of Moses holds the scales of justice. The cases ruled by the principle of restitution are the following:— I. THEFT ( Exodus 22:1-5 ). The illustrations in the law relate to thefts of cattle. But the principles embodied apply to thefts generally (cf. Exodus 22:7 ). Note— 1 . The law which punishes the theft, protects the thief's life. It refuses, indeed, to be responsible for him in the event of... read more

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