If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing.
God gave Israel laws framed in infinite wisdom and equity, not left to human guessing. These were not arbitrary rules but a Theocracy's constitution, suited to make them happy. The Israelites had suffered under Egyptian cruelty; now that they held power over servants, provision was made to ensure they would not replicate that abuse. Those who have felt the whip themselves have no excuse to wield it.
AI summary
Commenting on Exodus 21:1-11
A Hebrew servant sold for theft enters bondage, but the seventh year sets him free without cost. His six years of service was worth double that of hired labor, so his master gained greatly; yet the Law commanded generosity at his release, not parsimony. His chains and freedom both shadowed man's bondage to sin and his liberation through grace.
AI summary
An Israelite could fall into slavery through poverty, debt, or crime, but never permanently. After six years he went free; his wife, if she entered willingly with him, gained release also. Should he have wed a slave woman, however, she and their children remained bound; if attachment to them moved him to stay, his ear was publicly branded and he remained bound until Jubilee.
AI summary