Exodus 22:15 - Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible

If the owner thereof be with it: the law reasonably presumes, both that the borrower would not abuse it in the sight of its owner, and that the lender might and would take due care about it. He shall not make it good, except there be some manifest fault in the borrower, as if he should kill or wound the beast in the lender's presence; which exception is easily to be understood from divers other laws of God. It came for his hire, i.e. the benefit was the lender s, and not the borrower s, and therefore the former reason ceaseth; and whether the master were present or absent, he that receives the gain or hire shall bear the loss, except when it came through the borrower's gross and wilful default.