שֶׁלֹּא לְהוֹנוֹת עֶבֶד הַבּוֹרֵחַ אֵלֵינוּ מֵחוּצָה לָאָרֶץ – שֶׁנִּמְנַעְנוּ שֶׁלֹּא לְהוֹנוֹת הָעֶבֶד הַבּוֹרֵחַ אֵלֵינוּ מֵחוּצָה לָאָרֶץ, וְעַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר (דברים כג יז) עִמְּךָ יֵשֵׁב בְּקִרְבְּךָ בַּמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר יִבְחַר בַּטּוֹב לוֹ לֹא תּוֹנֶנּוּ. וּלְשׁוֹן סִפְרֵי לֹא תּוֹנֶנּוּ, זוֹ אוֹנָאַת דְּבָרִים, כְּלוֹמַר שֶׁלֹּא נְחָרְפֵהוּ וּנְבַזֵּהוּ בִּדְבָרִים וְכָל שֶׁכֵּן בְּמַעֲשֶׂה. To not oppress a slave who has fled to us, from outside the Land, to the Land [of Israel]: That we have been prevented, that we not oppress the slave that flees to us from outside of the Land. And about this does it state (Deuteronomy 23:17), “He shall live with you in any place he may choose among the settlements in your midst, wherever he pleases; you must not oppress him.” And the language of Sifrei is “‘You must not oppress him’ — that is verbal oppression” — meaning to say, that we not curse him or disgrace him with words; and all the more so with actions.
וּמִשָּׁרְשֵׁי הַמִּצְוָה. מָה שֶׁכָּתַבְתִּי בְּלָאו דְּאוֹנָאַת הַגֵּר בְּסֵדֶר מִשְׁפָּטִים (מצוה סג), כִּי טַעַם שְׁנֵיהֶם שָׁוֶה. וְעַל כֵּן הָאֵל בָּרוּךְ הוּא, כְּמוֹ שֶׁהוֹסִיף לָאו בְּאוֹנָאַת הַגֵּר לְחֻלְשַׁת נַפְשׁוֹ בִּהְיוֹתוֹ נָכְרִי בְּתוֹךְ הָעָם, כְּמוֹ כֵן הוֹסִיף לָאו בְּאוֹנָאַת הָעֶבֶד, שֶׁהוּא יוֹתֵר חֲלוּשׁ הַנֶּפֶשׁ וְנִבְזֶה מִן הַגֵּר, שֶׁלֹּא תֹּאמַר זֶהוּ עֶבֶד וְאֵין עָלָיו קְפִידָא וְלֹא עָלֵינוּ מִמֶּנּוּ חֵטְא מֵאוֹנָאַת דְּבָרִים. And that which I wrote about with the negative commandment of oppressing the convert in the Order of Mishpatim (Sefer HaChinukh 63) is from the roots of the commandment, since both of them are the same. And therefore, just like God, may He be blessed, added a negative commandment with the oppression of a convert because of the weakness of his soul, from his being a foreigner among the [Jewish] nation; so too did He add the negative commandment of oppressing the slave, as he is [even] more weak-souled and disgraced than the convert. [It is] such that you not say, “This is a slave and there is no concern about him, and we would not have a sin upon us in oppressing him verbally.”
וְיָדַעְנוּ בְּבֵרוּר שֶׁזֶּה הָעֶבֶד וְהַגֵּר שֶׁהֻזְהַרְנוּ מִלְּהוֹנוֹת אוֹתָם אֲפִלּוּ בִּדְבָרִים שְׁנֵיהֶם קִבְּלוּ הַתּוֹרָה עַל עַצְמָם, כְּלוֹמַר שֶׁגֵּר זֶה הוּא גֵּר צֶדֶק, וְהָעֶבֶד הוּא עֶבֶד שֶׁמָּל וְטָבַל לְשֵׁם עַבְדוּת. וְשָׁם בְּאוֹנָאַת הַגֵּר וּכְמוֹ כֵן בְּלָאו אוֹנָאַת הֶחָבֵר יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּסֵדֶר בְּהַר סִינַי (מצוה שלח) כָּתַבְתִּי מְעַט בְּדִינֵי אוֹנָאַת דְּבָרִים וּבְאוֹנָאַת מָמוֹן [שם]. And we know with certainty that this convert and this slave — whom we have been warned about oppressing them even with words — both accepted the Torah upon themselves. [This is] meaning to say that this convert is a righteous convert (a ger tsedek, as opposed to a ger toshav, who is not a convert, but rather a resident alien) and that this slave is a slave that was circumcised and immersed in order to become a slave. And I wrote a few of the laws about verbal oppression and monetary oppression there — concerning oppression of the convert and, so too, concerning the negative commandment of oppression of the fellow Israelite — in the Order of Behar Sinai (Sefer HaChinukh 338).
וְנוֹהֵג אִסּוּר זֶה שֶׁלֹּא לְהוֹנוֹת הָעֶבֶד שֶׁבָּרַח מֵאֲדֹנָיו לָאָרֶץ הַקְּדוֹשָׁה בִּזְכָרִים וּנְקֵבוֹת, בְּכָל זְמַן. וְהָעוֹבֵר עַל זֶה וּמוֹנֶה אוֹתוֹ, בֵּין בִּדְבָרִים בֵּין בְּמָמוֹן, עָבַר עַל לָאו זֶה, וְאֵין בּוֹ מַלְקוּת, לְפִי שֶׁאֶפְשָׁר לַעֲבֹר עָלָיו מִבְּלִי עֲשִׂיַּת מַעֲשֶׂה. And this prohibition not to oppress the slave that fled from his master to the Holy Land is practiced by males and females at all times. And one who transgresses this, and oppresses him — whether verbally or whether monetarily — has violated this negative commandment. But there are no lashes [for it], since it is possible to transgress it without doing an act.