Bible Dictionary · T
Theft
Punished by restitution, the proportions of which are noted in 2 Sam 12:6. If the thief could not pay the fine, he was to be sold to a Hebrew master till he could pay (Ex 22:1–4). A night-thief might be smitten till he died, and there would be no blood-guiltiness for him (Ex 22:2). A man-stealer was to be put to death (Ex 21:16). All theft is forbidden (Ex 20:15; Ex 21:16; Lev 19:11; Deut 5:19; Deut 24:7; Ps 50:18; Zech 5:3; Matt 19:18; Rom 13:9; Eph 4:28; 1 Pet 4:15).
From Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897), by Matthew George Easton.