Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Exodus 21:6
Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl; and he shall serve him forever.
6. unto God ] i.e. (if the rend. be correct: see below) to the nearest sanctuary (for the expression, comp. especially 1Sa 10:3), in order that he might there affirm solemnly before God his intention to remain with his master. ‘God’ is resorted to here, not for a judicial decision (see on Exo 18:15-16), but for the slave’s declaration to be solemnly ratified: still, as this would be done in the presence of God’s human representatives, the priests or judges, RVm. (= AV.), following Targ., Pesh., and Jewish interpreters (cf. LXX. , ‘the tribunal of God’), renders the judges. This, however, is only a paraphrase; for though God, in cases such as the present, may be conceived as acting through a judge, as His representative or mouth-piece, that does not make ‘Elohim’ mean ‘judge,’ or ‘judges.’ ‘God’ is used in the same sense in Exo 22:8-9, and 1Sa 2:25.
and he shall bring him ] i.e (Di.) the judge at the sanctuary: better, perhaps, one shall bring him = he shall be brought (G.-K. 144d).
the door ] not, as has been supposed, of the sanctuary, but, if the ceremony is to bear any relation to the thing which it is intended to signify, of his master’s house. The ear, as the organ of hearing, is naturally that of obedience as well; and its attachment (Deu 15:17) to the door of the house would signify the perpetual attachment of the slave to that particular household. Probably it was the right ear which was pierced: for the preference shewn for this, comp. Lev 8:23 f., Exo 14:14; Exo 14:17. The connexion ‘bring him to God ( or the gods),’ and ‘bring him to the door’ seems, however, to suggest that both were in the same place: hence, as the ‘door’ of the sanctuary seems out of the question, B. and others render h-’lhm (as is perfectly possible: cf. Gen 3:5 RVm.) by the gods, supposing the reference to be to the household gods, or Penates, of the master’s house, kept and worshipped near the door: the ceremony would then have the effect of bringing the give into a relation of dependence on the gods of his master’s family, and of admitting him to the full religious privileges of the family (cf. Eerdmans Expositor, Aug. 1909, p. 163 f.). Kautzsch, on the other hand, supposes an image of Jehovah to be referred to ( DB. v. 642 b ).
bore his ear ] Whether a hole in the ear was really among other nations a mark of slavery, or even of dependence, is very doubtful: the passages cited by Di. from Kn. (cf. Now. Arch. i. 177) do not seem to shew more than that it was a mark of nationality: the ear was often bored (for ear-rings) among Africans and Orientals in general, but not specifically by slaves. See esp. Mayor’s note on Juv. i. 104 (‘Natus ad Euphraten, molles quod in aure fenestrae Arguerint’), Macrob. Saturn, vii. 3, Plin. H.N. xi. 136: on Plaut. Poen. v. 2. 21 (‘aures anulatae’), see Ussing’s note.
for ever ] i.e. till his life’s end: cf. ‘for ever’ in 1Sa 1:22, and esp. in the expression, ‘servant for ever,’ Exo 27:12, Job 41:4 [Exo 40:28 Heb.]. The explanation ‘till the next jubilee’ (Jos. Ant. iv. 8. 28, and others), which has been adopted for harmonistic reasons (see Lev 25:39-41), is exegetically impossible: as Di. says, the difference between the two laws must be frankly recognized; they spring, it is evident, out of different periods of the history.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Forever – That is, most probably, until the next Jubilee, when every Hebrew was set free. See Lev 25:40, Lev 25:50. The custom of boring the ear as a mark of slavery appears to have been a common one in ancient times, observed in many nations.
Unto the judges – Literally, before the gods ‘elohym. The word does not denote judges in a direct way, but it is to be understood as the name of God, in its ordinary plural form, God being the source of all justice. The name in this connection always has the definite article prefixed. See the marginal references. Compare Psa 82:1, Psa 82:6; Joh 10:34.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 6. Shall bring him unto the judges] el haelohim, literally, to God; or, as the Septuagint have it, , to the judgment of God; who condescended to dwell among his people; who determined all their differences till he had given them laws for all cases, and who, by his omniscience, brought to light the hidden things of dishonesty. See Ex 22:8.
Bore his ear through with an awl] This was a ceremony sufficiently significant, as it implied,
1. That he was closely attached to that house and family.
2. That he was bound to hear all his master’s orders, and to obey them punctually. Boring of the ear was an ancient custom in the east.
It is referred to by Juvenal: –
Prior, inquit, ego adsum.
Cur timeam, dubitemve locum defendere? quamvis
Natus ad Euphraten, MOLLES quod in AURE FENESTRAE
Arguerint, licet ipse negem.
Sat. i. 102.
“First come, first served, he cries; and I, in spite
Of your great lordships, will maintain my right:
Though born a slave, though my torn EARS are BORED, ‘Tis not the birth, ’tis money makes the lord.”
DRYDEN.
Calmet quotes a saying from Petronius as attesting the same thing; and one from Cicero, in which he rallies a Libyan who pretended he did not hear him: “It is not,” said he, “because your ears are not sufficiently bored;” alluding to his having been a slave.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Shall bring him unto the judges; partly, that it may appear he chooseth this freely, and is not overawed nor overreached by his master; and partly, that the agreement being so publicly and solemnly confirmed, might be irrevocable.
He shall also bring him to the door, to wit, of his masters house, as it is expressed, Deu 15:17; a token that he was fixed there, and never to go a freeman out of these doors.
His master shall bore his ear through with an awl, as a note of a servant; as it continued to be long after this in Syria and Arabia, as Juvenal and Petpontus Arbiter affirm; and it did fitly represent his settled and perpetual obligation to abide in that house, and there to hear and obey his masters commands. See Psa 40:6.
For ever, i.e. not only for six years more, but without any limitation of time, as long as he lives, until the jubilee, which is an exception made by God to this law, Lev 25:40; Deu 15:17. The Hebrew word olam, here used, oft signifies not eternity, but only a long time. See Exo 12:14.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Then his master shall bring him unto the judges,…. To Elohim, to God, to the judgment seat of God, according to the Septuagint; to some person or persons to inquire of God what is to be done in such a case; but this seems needless, since it is here declared: no doubt civil magistrates or judges are meant by Elohim, or the gods, as in Ps 82:1, and so Jarchi interprets it of the house of judgment, or sanhedrim, the court that had convicted the servant of theft, and had sold him to him, it was proper he should acquaint them with it, have their opinion about it; and especially it was proper to have him to them, that he might before them, even in open court, declare his willingness to abide in his master’s service; and from whom, as the Targum of Jonathan, he was to receive power and authority to retain him in his service:
he shall also bring him to the door, or to the doorpost; either of the gate of the city, where the judges were sitting, before whom what follows was to be done, as Aben Ezra suggests; or rather the door of his master, or any other man’s, as Maimonides l:
and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl; or with a needle, as the Targum of Jonathan, which also says it was the right ear; and so Jarchi; and the upper part of it, as says Maimonides, who likewise observes, that that with which it is bored must be of metal; and moreover, that it is the master himself that must do it, and not his son, nor his messenger, nor a messenger of the sanhedrim m: the ear is an hieroglyphic of obedience, and the boring of it through to the doorpost denotes the strict and close obedience of such a servant to his master, and how he is, and ought to be, addicted to his service, and be constantly employed in it, and never stir from it, nor so much as go over the threshold of his master’s house. This custom of boring a servant’s ear continued in Syria till the times of Juvenal, as appears by some lines of his: n
and he shall serve him for ever; as long as he lives o; however, until the year of jubilee, as the Targum of Jonathan, and so Jarchi; if there was one before his death, for nothing else could free him; denoting freedom by Christ in his acceptable year, and day of salvation.
l Hilchot Abadim, c. 3. sect. 9. m Ibid. n “—-Molles quod in aure fenestrae Arguerint, licet ipse negem?” Satyr. 1. o “Serviet in aeternum, qui parvo nesciet uti”. Horat.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(6) His master shall bring him unto the judges.A formal act was necessary. The State must sanction the passing of a citizen into the slave condition, and so the judges were called in. The change was to be made by a significant ceremony. In order to mark that henceforth the volunteer bondman became attached to the household, he was to be physically attached to the house by having an awl forced through his ear, and then driven into the door or door-post. Hence opening the ear became a synonym for assigning a man to the slave condition in perpetuity (Psa. 40:6). The word used for judges is ha-Elohim, the gods, or the exalted ones, which has the same sense in Exo. 22:8-9.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
6. Unto the judges Hebrews, unto the gods: here meaning the local magistrates . Comp . Psa 82:6; Joh 10:34.
His master shall bore his ear On this Michaelis has the following observations: “In order to guard against all abuse, it was necessary that the transaction should be gone about judicially, and that the magistrate should know it . It was the intention of Moses that every Hebrew who wished to continue a servant for life should, with the magistrate’s previous knowledge, bear a given token thereof in his own body . He thus guarded against the risk of a master having it in his power either to pretend that his servant had promised to serve him during his life, when he had not, or, by ill usage, during the period that he had him in his service, to extort any such promise from him. The statute of Moses made the boring of the ears in some degree ignominious to a freeman; because it became the sign whereby a perpetual slave was to be known. And if the Israelites had, for this reason, abandoned the practice, Moses would not have been displeased. Indeed, this was probably the very object which he had in view to get imperceptibly effected by this law: for in the wearing of earrings superstition was deeply concerned.” Commentaries on the Laws of Moses, vol. ii, p. 178. London, 1814.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Exo 21:6. Then his master shall bring him unto the judges If the servant refused to be free, he was to be brought to the judges, elohim, gods, in the original; magistrates being so called, as the visible representatives of God upon earth. Psa 1:6. Joh 10:34. Rom 13:1. The LXX render it , to the judgment of God; by which they mean, most probably, the sanctuary and oracle: but the true meaning seems to be, that the master was to bring his slave to the temporal judges, that they might take proper cognizance of the case; which done, he was to bring the servant to the door, or door-post of his house, Deu 15:16-17 and there bore through his ear with an awl, in token of perpetual slavery. The word for ever, signifies to the end of his life; the man having refused the advantage of the day of jubilee, and willingly submitting himself to a life of slavery. This custom of boring the ears of servants is alluded to in Psa 40:6 and implied the servant’s constant obligation to hearken to his master’s orders. The custom lasted a long time in Syria and Arabia, as appears from Juvenal, Sat. i. 159 who makes a Syrian slave speak thus:
“Though born a slave, though my torn ears are bor’d, ‘Tis not the birth, ’tis money makes the Lord.”
And Petronius says, pertunde aures, ut imitemur Arabes; bore the ears, that we may imitate the Arabs. This custom of boring the ears of slaves is still usual in the East Indies, and in various other parts, and has from thence been derived even to whole nations, who have made the original mark of servitude a badge of honour, by wearing large rings in their ears. See Xenophon’s Sympos. lib. 2: cap. 1.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Exo 21:6 Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.
Ver. 6. And he shall serve him. ] Being , as Aristotle hath it; the master’s instrument, underling, and wholly his. He doeth his own, and not his master’s will, that doeth no more than himself will: this is a holiday servant, as they say.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the judges. See note on 22. e.
bore his ear. Hence a symbol of obedience an perpetual servitude. Compare Psa 40:6. Isa 48:8; Isa 50:5 and see note on Heb 10:5.
for ever. Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Whole). App-6. A time put for limited time; “for life”, or till the jubilee, Lev 25:13, Lev 25:28, Lev 25:40, Lev 25:41.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
the judges: Exo 21:22, Exo 12:12, Exo 18:21-26, Exo 22:8, Exo 22:9, Exo 22:28, Num 25:5-8, Deu 1:16, Deu 16:18, Deu 19:17, Deu 19:18, 1Sa 8:1, 1Sa 8:2, Isa 1:26, Zep 3:3
bore his ear: This significant ceremony was intended as a mark of permanent servitude, and was calculated to impress the servant with the duty of hearing all his master’s orders, and obeying them punctually. Psa 40:6-8
for ever: Lev 25:23, Lev 25:40, Deu 15:17, 1Sa 1:22, 1Sa 27:12, 1Sa 28:2, 1Ki 12:7
Reciprocal: Gen 17:8 – everlasting Deu 15:16 – General Job 41:4 – a servant Psa 82:1 – the gods
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Exo 21:6. His master shall bring him to the judges In the original, gods, magistrates being often so called as the visible representatives of God upon earth. In the Septuagint it is , to the tribunal of God, meaning probably the sanctuary. The sense seems evidently to be, that the master was to bring his slave to the temporal judges, that they might take cognizance of the case, and that the agreement, being publicly and solemnly confirmed, might be irrevocable. He shall bring him to the door To wit, of his masters house, as is expressed Deu 15:17, in token that he was fixed there, and must no more go out free. Shall bore his ear through with an awl We find from Juvenal and Petronius that this continued to be a custom in Syria and Arabia many ages after this. And it fitly represented the servants perpetual obligation to abide in that house, and there to hear and obey his masters commands, Psa 40:6. For ever As long as he lives, or till the year of jubilee.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
21:6 Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the {d} door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for {e} ever.
(d) Where the judges sat.
(e) That is, to the year of Jubile, which was every fiftieth year.