Exodus 21:12
in Exodus 21Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
He that smiteth a man, so that he dieth, shall surely be put to death.
KJV
He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death.
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This verse in Exodus 21
Commentary
4 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The case of murder of a free man and of a bondman. See Exo 21:20 note. The law was afterward expressly declared to relate also to foreigners, Lev 24:17, Lev 24:21-22; compare the marginal references.
This site's exposition
He that smiteth a man, so that he die
on Exodus 21:12-14
The law separates the man who lies in wait from the man into whose hand God delivered another, and it promises the second a place whither he shall flee. That promise becomes the six cities of refuge at Numbers 35:9 to 35:34 and Joshua 20. Verse 14 shuts the other door, since a man who kills with guile is taken from the altar itself to die, which is what Solomon does to Joab at 1 Kings 2:28 to 2:34.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
6 ), Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed. God, who by his providence gives and maintains life, thus by his law protects it; so that mercy shown to a wilful murderer is real cruelty to all mankind besides: such a one, God here says, shall be taken even from his altar (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number
He that smiteth a man, so that he die,....
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
AND IF. Scripture employed an abridged form in saying shelosh eleh (these three).
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
5 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מַכֵּ֥ה | makeh | [one who] will strike | H5221 → | 499 times |
| אִ֛ישׁ | ʾish | <of> anyone | H376 → | 1663 times |
| וָמֵ֖ת | vamet | and he will die | H4191 → | 839 times |
| מ֥וֹת | mot | certainly <to to die> | H4191 → | 839 times |
| יוּמָֽת׃ | yumat | he will be put to death | H4191 → | 839 times |
מַכֵּ֥ה[one who] will strike
makehH5221 →499 times
אִ֛ישׁ<of> anyone
ʾishH376 →1663 times
וָמֵ֖תand he will die
vametH4191 →839 times
מ֥וֹתcertainly <to to die>
motH4191 →839 times
יוּמָֽת׃he will be put to death
yumatH4191 →839 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Matthew 26:52“Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “For all who draw the sword will die by the sword.
it leads to
- Revelation 13:10
“If anyone is destined for captivity, into captivity he will go; if anyone is to die by the sword, by the sword he must be killed.” Here is a call for the perseverance and…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 9:6
Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
- Romans 12:19
Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.”
- 1 Peter 2:21–23
For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His footsteps:
- Revelation 13:10
Through
Genesis 9:6Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
it leads to
- Exodus 21:12–14
Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Leviticus 24:17
And if a man takes the life of anyone else, he must surely be put to death.
- Matthew 26:52
“Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “For all who draw the sword will die by the sword.
- Numbers 35:33
Do not pollute the land where you live, for bloodshed pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land on which the blood is shed, except by the blood of the…
- Exodus 21:12–14
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Exodus
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.