22:6 “If a fire breaks out and spreads 2 to thorn bushes, 3 so that stacked grain or standing grain or the whole field is consumed, the one who started 4 the fire must surely make restitution.
1 tn The words “a thief” have been added for clarification. S. R. Driver (Exodus, 224) thinks that these lines are out of order, since some of them deal with killing the thief and then others with the thief making restitution, but rearranging the clauses is not a necessary way to bring clarity to the paragraph. The idea here would be that any thief caught alive would pay restitution.
2 tn Heb “if a fire goes out and finds”; NLT “if a fire gets out of control.”
3 sn Thorn bushes were used for hedges between fields, but thorn bushes also burned easily, making the fire spread rapidly.
4 tn This is a Hiphil participle of the verb “to burn, kindle” used substantivally. This is the one who caused the fire, whether by accident or not.