Charles Ellicott Commentary Exodus 23:5

"If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, thou shalt forbear to leave him, thou shalt surely release [it] with him." — Exodus 23:5 (ASV)

If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee ... — The sense is clear, but the words are greatly disputed. If a man sees his enemy’s ass prostrate under its burden, he is to help to raise it up. In this case he owes a double duty—(1) to his enemy, and (2) to the suffering animal. Geddes’ emendation of ’azar for ’azab, in all the three places where the verb occurs, is the simplest and best of those suggested. The passage would then run: “If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burthen, and wouldest forbear to help it, thou shalt surely help with him”— i.e., the owner.