Misinterpretations of this verse often portray it as endorsing perpetual chattel slavery akin to modern human trafficking, ignoring its context within temporary indentured service limited to six years with mandatory release; others erroneously claim it treats wives as mere property disposable by the master, overlooking the protective intent that safeguards pre-existing marital bonds from dissolution, or apply it anachronistically to justify patriarchal dominance without recognizing the humanitarian limits on servitude.
Exodus 21:3
King James Version (1769)
3 If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him.
Exodus 21:3 establishes a principle of equity and family protection in the Mosaic regulations for Hebrew indentured servants, ensuring that a man who enters service unmarried regains his freedom alone after six years, but if he was married upon entry, his wife departs with him, thereby preventing the master from exploiting or separating existing family units and affirming the servant's right to restore his household intact.