וְאִם־אָמֹ֤ר יֹאמַר֙ הָעֶ֔בֶד אָהַ֙בְתִּי֙ אֶת־אֲדֹנִ֔י אֶת־אִשְׁתִּ֖י וְאֶת־בָּנָ֑י לֹ֥א אֵצֵ֖א חָפְשִֽׁי׃
Jeżeliby zaś powiedział niewolnik: miłuję pana mojego; żonę i dzieci moje; nie wyjdę na wolność;
Chizkuni
ואם אמר יאמר העבד, “and in the event that the ‘slave’ will say insistently, etc.;” from this verse we learn that he must express this wish already during those six years, and repeat it at the end of his term of service.
Kli Yakar
“I love my wife and my children, I will not go out free, etc.” The reason for piercing the ear, as Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai explained: The ear that heard at Mount Sinai You shall not steal and then went and stole, should be pierced… (Mechilta 34). People ask about this: why isn’t the ear pierced immediately when the court sells him or when he sells himself? In my opinion, it is more reasonable to say that he is punished in his ear as explained (in Bava Kamma 79b): Why did the Torah treat a thief more severely than a robber? Because the thief did not give equal respect to the servant [man] and to his Master [God]. He acted as if the Eye Above doesn’t see and the Ear Above doesn’t hear, etc. Therefore, it is just that he should be punished in his ear because he sinned against the Ear Above [God’s hearing].
This explains why he is pierced more than any other wrongdoer, because according to Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai’s reasoning, it would be difficult to understand why he wouldn’t be pierced for every transgression in the Torah. One cannot ask why his eye isn’t also punished, because that would blind him and render him unfit for work.
However, for one who sells himself due to poverty, there is another reason: because as long as he is a servant to servants, he must incline his ear to hear his master’s voice, and he removes his ear from hearing God’s voice since he is under the authority of others. This is unlike one who is sold for his theft, as he is compelled in the matter because the court sells him.
This explains why he is pierced more than any other wrongdoer, because according to Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai’s reasoning, it would be difficult to understand why he wouldn’t be pierced for every transgression in the Torah. One cannot ask why his eye isn’t also punished, because that would blind him and render him unfit for work.
However, for one who sells himself due to poverty, there is another reason: because as long as he is a servant to servants, he must incline his ear to hear his master’s voice, and he removes his ear from hearing God’s voice since he is under the authority of others. This is unlike one who is sold for his theft, as he is compelled in the matter because the court sells him.