The Bible — World English Bible

Deuteronomy 15

In brief

Deuteronomy 15 sets out the social life of Israel in the promised land. Every seven years, debts between brothers are canceled. Moses tells the people not to harden their hearts toward a poor brother but to open their hand to him and give without regret. He also orders that the Hebrew slave be set free in the seventh year and sent off with enough to start again, because Israel remembers having been slaves in Egypt. The chapter ends with the consecration of the firstborn of the herd.

The chapter in 4 parts

  1. v. 1-6The year of release: debts canceled
  2. v. 7-11Open your hand to your poor brother
  3. v. 12-18Set the slave free in the seventh year
  4. v. 19-23The firstborn of the herd set apart

1At the end of every seven years, you shall cancel debts.

2This is the way it shall be done: every creditor shall release that which he has lent to his neighbor. He shall not require payment from his neighbor and his brother, because Yahweh’s release has been proclaimed.

3Of a foreigner you may require it; but whatever of yours is with your brother, your hand shall release.

4However there will be no poor with you (for Yahweh will surely bless you in the land which Yahweh your God gives you for an inheritance to possess)

5if only you diligently listen to Yahweh your God’s voice, to observe to do all this commandment which I command you today.

6For Yahweh your God will bless you, as he promised you. You will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow. You will rule over many nations, but they will not rule over you.

7If a poor man, one of your brothers, is with you within any of your gates in your land which Yahweh your God gives you, you shall not harden your heart, nor shut your hand from your poor brother;

8but you shall surely open your hand to him, and shall surely lend him sufficient for his need, which he lacks.

9Beware that there not be a wicked thought in your heart, saying, “The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand,” and your eye be evil against your poor brother and you give him nothing; and he cry to Yahweh against you, and it be sin to you.

10You shall surely give, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him, because it is for this thing Yahweh your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you put your hand to.

11For the poor will never cease out of the land. Therefore I command you to surely open your hand to your brother, to your needy, and to your poor, in your land.

12If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you.

13When you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty.

14You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your wine press. As Yahweh your God has blessed you, you shall give to him.

15You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Yahweh your God redeemed you. Therefore I command you this thing today.

16It shall be, if he tells you, “I will not go out from you,” because he loves you and your house, because he is well with you,

17then you shall take an awl, and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your female servant you shall do likewise.

18It shall not seem hard to you when you let him go free from you; for he has been double the value of a hired hand as he served you six years. Yahweh your God will bless you in all that you do.

19You shall dedicate all the firstborn males that are born of your herd and of your flock to Yahweh your God. You shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn of your flock.

20You shall eat it before Yahweh your God year by year in the place which Yahweh shall choose, you and your household.

21If it has any defect—is lame or blind, or has any defect whatever, you shall not sacrifice it to Yahweh your God.

22You shall eat it within your gates. The unclean and the clean shall eat it alike, as the gazelle and as the deer.

23Only you shall not eat its blood. You shall pour it out on the ground like water.

Key verses

Verse 1
At the end of every seven years, you shall cancel debts.

Every seven years Israel was to grant a release: the creditor gave up claiming what his brother owed him. This practice kept poverty from becoming a permanent trap.

Verse 7-8
If a poor man, one of your brothers, is with you within any of your gates in your land which Yahweh your God gives you, you shall not harden your heart, nor shut your hand from your poor brother; but you shall surely open your hand to him, and shall surely lend him sufficient for his need, which he lacks.

Do not harden your heart or shut your hand toward the needy brother, but open your hand and lend him enough to meet his needs. Generosity is presented as a concrete commandment.

Verse 11
For the poor will never cease out of the land. Therefore I command you to surely open your hand to your brother, to your needy, and to your poor, in your land.

There will always be needy people in the land, and that is why the hand must stay open. The verse does not excuse indifference: it establishes a permanent duty of generosity.

Verse 15
You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Yahweh your God redeemed you. Therefore I command you this thing today.

Israel must set the slave free remembering that it was once a slave in Egypt and that God redeemed it. The memory of grace received feeds the grace given to others.

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What the sermons say

Live as a Child of the LordIn a sermon from the Kumejima church, chapter 15 is read within chapters 14 to 16: the year of release shows how God resets the account, and the identity of a child of God shapes the way we live.Read the summary →What John the Baptist Would Tell You to DoThe preacher at Calvary Chapel Paris cites verse 11 in answer to the crowd that came to see John the Baptist: there will always be poor people, so share with those who have nothing.Read the summary →Does the State Owe Us Solidarity? Biblical Bearings on Church and WelfareDaniel Hillion cites Deuteronomy 15 in a talk on solidarity: the chapter speaks of ending poverty, and he offers biblical markers for thinking about the role of the state without taking sides between left and right.Read the summary →

Frequently asked questions about Deuteronomy 15

What does the year of release mean in Deuteronomy 15?

Every seven years, creditors were to give up claiming what their fellow Israelites owed them. The aim was that debt would not become lasting slavery and that poverty would not settle in for good. Jews and Christians discuss how to apply it today.

What does Deuteronomy 15:11 mean?

The verse says there will always be needy people in the land, and that for this reason we must open our hand to the poor. It is not an excuse to do nothing, but a commandment of permanent generosity. Verse 4 also says there should be no needy person if the people obey.

Why does Deuteronomy 15 speak of freed slaves leaving with gifts?

According to verses 12 to 15, the Hebrew slave is set free in the seventh year and does not leave empty-handed: his master gives him livestock and produce. The reason is given in verse 15: Israel was a slave in Egypt, and God redeemed it.

Articles quoting Deuteronomy 15

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World English Bible translation — public domain.