פירוש על דברים 24:7

כי ימצא IF [A MAN] BE FOUND [STEALING …] — Found when doing so by witnesses and after legal warning. This, too, is the meaning in all cases where a form of the verb מצא is used in the Torah, under similar circumstances (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 21:16:1; Sifrei Devarim 273:1).

גונב גפש מאחיו, “kidnapping a person from among his brethren;” The reason why the Torah added the words מבני ישראל, is that Esau, and his descendants are also “brethren,” and would have been included in this legislation unless specifically excluded.

Through witnesses, and after a warning, etc. Rashi says this as you might think that since the Torah [seemingly] makes this law dependent on the [victim] being found in the perpetrator’s hand [then this law applies] even if there were no witnesses when he stole him. Therefore Rashi tells us that generally, “to be found” generally means with witnesses. Otherwise, the perpetrator could claim that he did not steal him but that he sold himself.

V. 7. כי ימצא. Es ist aber nicht nur die physische Existenz, wie im Vorhergehenden, es ist die ganze Persönlichkeit, die Freiheit und Menschenwürde des einen, die jedem andern im jüdischen Volksverein unantastbar dastehen soll, so sehr, dass, wenn es konstatiert ist — כי ימצא wie immer: בעדים — dass einer den andern "völlig wie eine Sache" behandelt hat, hat ihn gewaltsam in seine Macht gebracht (בידו, wie es bereits Schmot 21, 16 heißt), hat sich seiner bedient, והתעמר בו, wie hier hinzugefügt wird (siehe Kap. 20, 14) und hat ihn schließlich verkauft, so hat ein solcher Dieb, wie ein Mörder des physischen Lebens בסייף, den gerichtlichen Tod בחנק verschuldet (siehe zu Schmot 21, 16).

כי ימצא איש גונב נפש, “when a man is found having kidnapped a person, etc.;” why has this verse been repeated seeing that it has been written already in Exodus 21,16? In Exodus nothing is mentioned about the nationality of the kidnapped person. Here the circumstances are defined more clearly, i.e. from among his brethren, i.e. excluding gentiles and even Edomites, i.e. descendants of Yitzchok who elsewhere were addressed even by Moses as “brother.”(Numbers 20,14). An alternate interpretation: if we had only heard about the first verse dealing with this subject, I might have thought that even an eight day old baby is included in the legislation, i.e. if such a young baby had been kidnapped. (Sifri, as elaborated on by Malbim) The Torah in our verse therefore adds the word מאחיו, “from among his brethren,” meaning that a baby under 30 days old is not included, as we are not sure yet that he is healthy enough to grow up to be a man.

והתעמר בו AND TREATS HIM AS A SLAVE — he is not liable to the death penalty until he uses him as a slave (cf. Sifrei Devarim 273:5; Sanhedrin 85b).

מאחיו מבני ישראל, “from among his brethren the Children of Israel.” The words: מבני ישראל, are intended to exclude a Jew kidnapping an Edomite. The death penalty does not apply in that case. Where do we find the verse in which kidnapping is forbidden as a crime? See Exodus 20,13 in the Ten Commandments, לא תגנוב, “do not steal!”