Exodus 21:29

 Exodus 21:29

But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death.

a. NASB 1995: “If, however, an ox was previously in the habit of goring and its owner has been warned, yet he does not confine it and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death.  [New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.]

b. NKJV: “But if the ox tended to thrust with its horn in times past, and it has been made known to his owner, and he has not kept it confined, so that it has killed a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death.  [Scripture quotations marked "NKJV" are taken from the New King James Version®, Copyright© 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.]

c. Classic Amplified Bible: But if the ox has tried to gore before, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it closed in and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also put to death.  [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

d. Stone Edition THE CHUMASH, Rabbinic Commentary: But if it was an ox that gores habitually from yesterday and the day before yesterday, and its owners had been warnedbut did not guard it, and it killed a man or woman, the ox shall be stoned and even its owner shall die.  [The Artscroll Series/Stone Edition, THE CHUMASH Copyright 1998, 2000 by MESORAH PUBLICATIONS, Ldt.]

e. ESV: But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death.  [Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

f. There are not many instances in our modern culture where an ordinary law from Moses time can be applied to our present time. This is one of them and it concerns a dangerous animal  In my view there is no doubt after looking at all the evidence that these defendants were worthy of the death penalty.

g. Unless otherwise stated, all Greek and Hebrew definitions are from Blue Letter Bible

1. “But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in…” 

a. [But] if [Strong: 518 אִם ʼim, eem; a primitive particle; used very widely as demonstrative, lo!; interrogative, whether?; or conditional, if, although; also Oh that!, when; hence, as a negative, not:—(and, can-, doubtless, if, that) (not), + but, either, + except, + more(-over if, than), neither, nevertheless, nor, oh that, or, + save (only, -ing), seeing, since, sith, + surely (no more, none, not), though, + of a truth, + unless, + verily, when, whereas, whether, while, + yet.

b. [the] ox [Strong: 7794 שׁוֹר shôwr, shore; from H7788; a bullock (as a traveller):—bull(-ock), cow, ox, wall (by mistake for H7791).]

c. [was] want to push [with his horn] [Strong: 5056 נַגָּח naggâch, nag-gawkh'; from H5055; butting, i.e. vicious:—used (wont) to push.]

d. [in] [Strong: 8543 תְּמוֹל tᵉmôwl, tem-ole'; or תְּמֹל tᵉmôl; probably for H865; sometimes with H8032 properly, ago, i.e. a (short or long) time since; especially yesterday, or day before yesterday:— before (-time), these (three) days, heretofore, time past, yesterday.]

e. time past [Strong: 8032 שִׁלְשׁוֹם shilshôwm, shil-shome'; or שִׁלְשֹׁם shilshôm; from the same as H8028; trebly, i.e. (in time) day before yesterday:— before (that time, -time), excellent things (from the margin), heretofore, three days, time past.]

f. [and it hath been testified [Strong: 5749 עוּד ʻûwd, ood; a primitive root; to duplicate or repeat; by implication, to protest, testify (as by reiteration); intensively, to encompass, restore (as a sort of reduplication):—admonish, charge, earnestly, lift up, protest, call (take) to record, relieve, rob, solemnly, stand upright, testify, give warning, (bear, call to, give, take to) witness.]

g. [to the] owner [Strong: 1167 בַּעַל baʻal, bah'-al; from H1166; a master; hence, a husband, or (figuratively) owner (often used with another noun in modifications of this latter sense):— archer, babbler, bird, captain, chief man, confederate, have to do, dreamer, those to whom it is due, furious, those that are given to it, great, hairy, he that hath it, have, horseman, husband, lord, man, married, master, person, sworn, they of.]

h. [and he hath] not [Strong: 3808 לֹא lôʼ, lo; or לוֹא lôwʼ; or לֹה lôh; (Deuteronomy 3:11), a primitive particle; + not (the simple or abstract negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles:—× before, + or else, ere, + except, ig(-norant), much, less, nay, neither, never, no((-ne), -r, (-thing)), (× as though...,(can-), for) not (out of), of nought, otherwise, out of, + surely, + as truly as, + of a truth, + verily, for want, + whether, without.]

i. kept him in [Strong: 8104 שָׁמַר shâmar, shaw-mar'; a primitive root; properly, to hedge about (as with thorns), i.e. guard; generally, to protect, attend to, etc.:—beward, be circumspect, take heed (to self), keep(-er, self), mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure, (that lay) wait (for), watch(-man).]

2. “...but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death.”

a. [but that he hath] killed [Strong: 4191 מוּת mûwth, mooth; a primitive root; to die (literally or figuratively); causatively, to kill:—× at all, × crying, (be) dead (body, man, one), (put to, worthy of) death, destroy(-er), (cause to, be like to, must) die, kill, necro(-mancer), × must needs, slay, × surely, × very suddenly, × in (no) wise.]

b. [a] man [Strong: 376 אִישׁ ʼîysh, eesh; contracted for H582 (or perhaps rather from an unused root meaning to be extant); a man as an individual or a male person; often used as an adjunct to a more definite term (and in such cases frequently not expressed in translation):—also, another, any (man), a certain, champion, consent, each, every (one), fellow, (foot-, husband-) man, (good-, great, mighty) man, he, high (degree), him (that is), husband, man(-kind), none, one, people, person, steward, what (man) soever, whoso(-ever), worthy.]

c. or [Strong: 176 אוֹ ʼôw, o; presumed to be the 'constructive' or genitival form of אַו ʼav ; short for H185; desire (and so probably in Proverbs 31:4); hence (by way of alternative) or, also if:—also, and, either, if, at the least, × nor, or, otherwise, then, whether.]

g. [Strong: 853 'eth ayth apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).]

h. [a] woman [Strong: 802 אִשָּׁה ʼishshâh, ish-shaw'; feminine of H376 or H582; irregular plural, נָשִׁים nâshîym;(used in the same wide sense as H582) a woman:—(adulter) ess, each, every, female, × many, none, one, together, wife, woman. Often unexpressed in English.]

d. [the] ox [Strong: 7794 שׁוֹר shôwr, shore; from H7788; a bullock (as a traveller):—bull(-ock), cow, ox, wall (by mistake for H7791).]

k. [shall be] stoned [Strong: 5619 סָקַל çâqal, saw-kal'; a primitive root; properly, to be weighty; but used only in the sense of lapidation or its contrary (as if a delapidation):—(cast, gather out, throw) stone(-s), × surely.]

e. [and his] owner [Strong: 1167 בַּעַל baʻal, bah'-al; from H1166; a master; hence, a husband, or (figuratively) owner (often used with another noun in modifications of this latter sense):— archer, babbler, bird, captain, chief man, confederate, have to do, dreamer, those to whom it is due, furious, those that are given to it, great, hairy, he that hath it, have, horseman, husband, lord, man, married, master, person, sworn, they of.]

f. also [Strong: 1571 גַּם gam, gam; by contraction from an unused root meaning to gather; properly, assemblage; used only adverbially also, even, yea, though; often repeated as correl. both...and:—again, alike, also, (so much) as (soon), both (so)...and, but, either...or, even, for all, (in) likewise (manner), moreover, nay...neither, one, then(-refore), though, what, with, yea.]

g. [shall be] put to death [Strong: 4191 מוּת mûwth, mooth; a primitive root; to die (literally or figuratively); causatively, to kill:—× at all, × crying, (be) dead (body, man, one), (put to, worthy of) death, destroy(-er), (cause to, be like to, must) die, kill, necro(-mancer), × must needs, slay, × surely, × very suddenly, × in (no) wise.]

1). In January 2001, two dogs killed Diane Whipple of San Francisco as she tried to enter her apartment. In the year that followed, shocking details emerged about the case, and criminal charges ranging all the way to murder were filed against the owners of the dogs, Marjorie Knoller and Robert Noel. The guilty verdicts that were rendered in March 2002 did not finish the case. They rather were the start of its appellate phase, focusing upon the circumstances under which a dog owner should be found guilty of murder when her dog kills a person. In May 2007, the California Supreme Court sent the case back to the trial court for a new decision that most likely will start a fresh round of appeals… Attorney Kenneth Phillips, the author of Dog Bite Law, appeared regularly on CNN, CourtTV, and network television, giving extensive commentaries on the criminal prosecution as it took place. This section of Dog Bite Law was referred to as "the bible of the trial" and is the most comprehensive source of information about it, containing summaries of trial testimony, names of witnesses, legal analysis of the charges, clarification of the appellate case, and much more.

a. The crime: On January 26, 2001, shortly after 4:00 PM, San Francisco police and paramedics responded to calls from a Pacific Heights apartment building. They found a naked woman lying in blood, barely alive, her body bitten everywhere, bloody handprints covering the walls, and blood extending 4 feet up the walls and 30 feet down the hallway. Bits of clothing littered the floor, and a blood-soaked green nylon leash for a dog was lying nearby. A large dog was running loose, causing the officers to draw their guns. Nobody else could be seen.

b. The victim of this crime was Diane Whipple. She was a lacrosse coach, and lived in an apartment 50 feet from where the dogs lived. Whipple died that night at 8:55 p.m. at San Francisco General Hospital.

c. Bane and Hera were the Presa Canario dogs that savagely killed Whipple. Presa Canarios were originally bred for fighting, guarding and some herding in Spain's Canary Islands. The breed was near extinction by the 1950s and was brought back when it was mixed with mastiffs and others. Introduced in the United States in 1990, there are now more than 1,000. 

d. The dogs were obtained for eventual sale through a web site called "Dog-o'-War." Seven such dogs first lived on a Trinity County farm, where they were not trained to fight, attack or kill. Then Bane and Hera lived for a couple of months in Los Angeles, and following that, inside the San Francisco apartment of Robert Edward Noel and Marjorie F. Knoller. The "Dog-o'-War" operation was shut down by prison authorities in April 2000. 

e. Bane was euthanized the day of the attack. Following a dangerous dog hearing, Hera was ordered euthanized and was put down in January 2002. (From the website:www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/Whipple.html)

f. Testimony: “Nearly 60 witnesses testified…These witnesses, collectively, testified that there were about 30 occassions in which they or others had aggressive encounters with the dogs. Some also testified about incidents which showed the defendants lack of control over Bane and Hera. For example, several witnesses said they saw either Noel or Knoller being dragged by the dogs. A veterinarian, Donald Martin who examined the dogs while they were at Coumbs’ farm, testified that months prior to the mauling he had sent the defendants a letter warning them that Bane and Hera “would be liabilities in any household.” Several others testified about the warnings they gave the defendants; for example, the need to have the dogs muzzled.” (From the website: www.sanfranciscodogmauling.com)