Bible Dictionary
KIDNAPPING (MANSTEALING)
Kidnapping, or manstealing, is the crime of unlawfully seizing a person. The Mosaic law condemned it as a capital offense, and the New Testament lists manstealers among serious sinners.
Biblical Usage
The Hebrew law directly forbade manstealing in Exodus 21:16 and Deuteronomy 24:7, making it punishable by death. The New Testament lists manstealers among serious sinners in 1 Timothy 1:10.