This is not an easy text to read aloud. A father selling his daughter, a “master” who may or may not be pleased with her. But read closely, and you see how God is standing up for those who are the least, and He commands restraint in how they are treated.
“If a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as male servants do. If she does not please the master who has selected her for himself, he must let her be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, because he has broken faith with her. If he selects her for his son, he must grant her the rights of a daughter. If he marries another woman, he must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights. If he does not provide her with these three things, she is to go free, without any payment of money.” Exodus 21:7-11
Welcome to a broken and painful world. Here she is — the lowest of persons, a servant girl with no voice and no power to change her circumstances — and yet God insists early on that such people still bear His image and need to be treated as such.
This girl may not be worthy of protection in the eyes of man. But here, in the early days of history, God calls for dignity amid disorder.
The daughter in this passage has no power to demand her rights. She only has a God who insists on them for her.
In this ancient world, a daughter sold into service had no protections at all. She could be discarded, resold to strangers, left with nothing. God has His eye on such people and His voice. She cannot be sold to foreigners. If she’s chosen for a son, she must be given the rights of a daughter, not a servant’s rations, but a daughter’s inheritance of care. And if the man takes another wife, her food, clothing, and marital rights cannot be diminished. Fail on any of these, and she walks free.
Long before the cross, God protects those the world exploits, foreshadowing the gospel: He sides with those who cannot defend themselves.
