Exodus 21:9
in Exodus 21And if he chooses her for his son, he must deal with her as with a daughter.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And if he espouse her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.
KJV
And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.
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This verse in Exodus 21
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd if he have betrothed her unto his son,.... Not caring to betroth and marry her himself, as being more suitable in age for his son than for himself: he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters; as if she was his daughter, and give her a dowry: or the son shall treat her after the manner the daughters of Israel are treated when married, by giving her food, raiment, and the duty of marriage, so Jarchi: or after the manner of the daughters of Israel that are virgins, and who are not sold, as Aben Ezra.
This site's exposition
if he have betrothed her unto his son
on Exodus 21:9-11
Betrothed to the son, she is to be dealt with after the manner of daughters, which places her in the family rather than among the household staff. Verse 10 names three things a second marriage may not reduce, her food, her raiment and her duty of marriage, and verse 11 makes the penalty for withholding any of them her freedom without money. A woman with no property and no standing is handed a claim she can press against the man who bought her.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
20 And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely punished. 21 Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
if a man sell his daughter--Hebrew girls might be redeemed for a reasonable sum. But in the event of her parents or friends being unable to pay the redemption money, her owner was not at liberty to sell her elsewhere.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
Betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her - He shall give her the same dowry he would give to one of his own daughters. From these laws we learn, that if a man’s son married his servant, by his father’s consent, the father was obliged to treat her in every respect as a daughter; and if the son married another woman, as it appears he might do, Exo 21:10, he was obliged to make no abatement in the privileges of the first wife, either in her food, raiment, or duty of marriage.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
Be she a daughter of Israel who was sold, or be she a daughter of Israel that was not sold.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
If he takes himself another [wife], her sustenance, her clothing and her conjugal rights he must not diminish.
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
7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאִם־ | veim- | and if | H518 → | 1069 times |
| לִבְנ֖וֹ | livno | for son his | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| יִֽיעָדֶ֑נָּה | yiadenah | he will designate her | H3259 → | 29 times |
| כְּמִשְׁפַּ֥ט | kemishpat | according to [the] custom of | H4941 → | 422 times |
| הַבָּנ֖וֹת | habanot | <the> daughters | H1323 → | 588 times |
| יַעֲשֶׂה־ | yaaseh- | he will do | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| לָּֽהּ׃ | lah | to <the> her |
וְאִם־and if
veim-H518 →1069 times
לִבְנ֖וֹfor son his
livnoH1121 →4930 times
יִֽיעָדֶ֑נָּהhe will designate her
yiadenahH3259 →29 times
כְּמִשְׁפַּ֥טaccording to [the] custom of
kemishpatH4941 →422 times
הַבָּנ֖וֹת<the> daughters
habanotH1323 →588 times
יַעֲשֶׂה־he will do
yaaseh-H6213 →2628 times
לָּֽהּ׃to <the> her
lah
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
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; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.