The Goring Ox Is Stoned by a Court of Twenty-Three

An ox that is to be stoned is judged by twenty-three judges, as it is said, "the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death" (Exodus 21:29) - as the death of the owner [is judged by a court of twenty-three], so is the death of the ox. Abaye said to him: From where [do you know] that "and its owner also shall be put to death" comes to teach a death like that of the owner? Say it means actual death [of the owner himself]! [The reply:] If so, let Scripture write "and its owner also," and be silent. If it were written that way, I would have said [the owner is put to death] by stoning. [But] stoning should not enter your mind: if he killed [a person] by the sword [the death penalty for an actual murderer], shall his property [the ox, which only indirectly killed] be put to death by stoning [a graver form]? And perhaps what the Merciful One wrote, "shall be put to death," comes to be lenient toward him, to shift him from the sword to strangulation? This works well for the one who says strangulation is more severe, but for the one who says strangulation is more lenient, what can be said? [The reply:] It should not enter your mind [that the owner is liable to court-imposed death at all], for it is written, "if a ransom is laid upon him" (Exodus 21:30) - if it should enter your mind that he is liable to execution, behold it is written, "you shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer" (Numbers 35:31). On the contrary [one might argue], from that very verse: one who actually killed - it is not enough for him to pay money, but only execution suffices; one whose ox killed - let him redeem his life with money [implying he too deserves death and merely escapes it by ransom]. Rather, Hezekiah said: Scripture states, "the murderer shall surely be put to death" (Numbers 35:21) - for his own act of murder you put him to death, but you do not put him to death for his ox's act of murder.