“Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This verse highlights that the severe punishment of death isn't just for the act of selling a person, but also for simply being found with them in possession, emphasizing that even possessing a kidnapped person, with the intent to sell or use them, is considered theft worthy of death. It underscores that the law targets the entire chain of exploitation, not just the final transaction.
“Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This passage comes amidst laws detailing punishments for various offenses, following the commandments given at Sinai and preceding further regulations about property damage and personal injury. It addresses the severe crime of kidnapping and selling a person, clarifying that the perpetrator, and even someone found in possession of the stolen person before they are sold, faces the death penalty. This severe punishment underscores the gravity with which God viewed the theft and enslavement of a fellow human being.
This law seems harsh, but it addresses a crime so horrific it was considered on par with murder. What makes stealing a person so uniquely evil?
Exodus 21:16 condemns 'man-stealing' with the ultimate penalty. This wasn't just about theft; it was about robbing someone of their very identity, their family, their freedom, and their connection to God's covenant people.
Whether the person was sold or still in the thief's possession, the penalty was the same. Why was merely holding a stolen person a capital offense?
The law in Exodus 21:16 makes it clear that guilt is established at multiple stages of the crime. It doesn't matter if the man-stealer successfully sold the person or if the victim was still 'found in his hand.' The intent and the act of possession were enough to warrant death.
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Understand the original words
ganav · Hebrew Verb
The unlawful taking of a person or property. In a legal context, it involves violating the autonomy or ownership rights granted by God, and specifically in the context of people, it refers to kidnapping or human trafficking, which is treated as a capital offense in the Mosaic law because all humans are created in God's image.
muth · Hebrew Verb/Noun
The ultimate penalty for the most serious violations of the moral or civil law of God. It signifies the removal of the offender from the community and life as a consequence of grave sin, affirming the sanctity of the life that was violated.
This passage clarifies that the offense of man-stealing, which carried the death penalty in Exodus, was specifically intended to protect Israelites from being kidnapped and enslaved.
1 Timothy 1:9-10The Apostle Paul lists man-stealers among the most serious offenders, indicating that this prohibition against kidnapping and enslaving others was understood as a fundamental moral law that extended beyond the original context of Israel.
Genesis 37:20-28This narrative illustrates the crime of man-stealing, as Joseph's brothers plotted to sell him into slavery, showing the ancient understanding and abhorrence of this act.
Amos 1:9The prophet Amos condemns the nations for violating a treaty and handing over entire communities to slavery, highlighting the severe injustice and widespread nature of man-stealing, which God judged harshly.
Joel 3:4-8This passage directly addresses the selling of Israelites into slavery to foreigners, portraying it as a grave offense against God's people for which judgment and retribution would come.
pulpitExodus 21:16: "And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death."
Verse 16. - He that stealeth a man. Kidnapping, or stealing men to make them slaves, was a very early and very wide-spread crime. Joseph' s brothers must be regarded as having committed it (Genesis 37:28); and there are many traces of it in the remains of antiquity. (See Herod. 4:183; Strab. 7. p. 467; Sueton. Octav. § 32; etc.) Most kidnapping was of foreigners; and this…
pooleExodus 21:16: "And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death."
i.e. In the manstealer’s hand; q.d. though he keep him in his own hands for his own use; for still it is a theft, and he is made that man’s slave, and it is in his power to sell him to another when he pleaseth, and therefore deserves death.
This verse highlights that the severe punishment of death isn't just for the act of selling a person, but also for simply being found with them in possession, emphasizing that even possessing a kidnapped person, with the intent to sell or use them, is considered theft worthy of death. It underscores that the law targets the entire chain of exploitation, not just the final transaction.
This passage comes amidst laws detailing punishments for various offenses, following the commandments given at Sinai and preceding further regulations about property damage and personal injury. It addresses the severe crime of kidnapping and selling a person, clarifying that the perpetrator, and even someone found in possession of the stolen person before they are sold, faces the death penalty. This severe punishment underscores the gravity with which God viewed the theft and enslavement of a fellow human being.
This passage comes amidst laws detailing punishments for various offenses, following the commandments given at Sinai and preceding further regulations about property damage and personal injury. It addresses the severe crime of kidnapping and selling a person, clarifying that the perpetrator, and even someone found in possession of the stolen person before they are sold, faces the death penalty. This severe punishment underscores the gravity with which God viewed the theft and enslavement of a fellow human being.
"“Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death." — This verse highlights that the severe punishment of death isn't just for the act of selling a person, but also for simply being found with them in possession, emphasizing that even possessing a kidna…
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Last reviewed October 2026