Deuteronomy 15:4-11

15:4 However, there should not be any poor among you, for the Lord ¹  will surely bless ²  you in the land that he ³  is giving you as an inheritance, ⁴  15:5 if you carefully obey ⁵  him ⁶  by keeping ⁷  all these commandments that I am giving ⁸  you today. 15:6 For the Lord your God will bless you just as he has promised; you will lend to many nations but will not borrow from any, and you will rule over many nations but they will not rule over you.

The Spirit of Liberality

15:7 If a fellow Israelite ⁹  from one of your villages ¹⁰  in the land that the Lord your God is giving you should be poor, you must not harden your heart or be insensitive ¹¹  to his impoverished condition. ¹²  15:8 Instead, you must be sure to open your hand to him and generously lend ¹³  him whatever he needs. ¹⁴  15:9 Be careful lest you entertain the wicked thought that the seventh year, the year of cancellation of debts, has almost arrived, and your attitude ¹⁵  be wrong toward your impoverished fellow Israelite ¹⁶  and you do not lend ¹⁷  him anything; he will cry out to the Lord against you and you will be regarded as having sinned. ¹⁸  15:10 You must by all means lend ¹⁹  to him and not be upset by doing it, ²⁰  for because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you attempt. 15:11 There will never cease to be some poor people in the land; therefore, I am commanding you to make sure you open ²¹  your hand to your fellow Israelites ²²  who are needy and poor in your land.

[15:4]  ¹ tc After the phrase “the Lord” many mss and versions add “your God” to complete the usual full epithet.

[15:4]  ² tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates with “surely.” Note however, that the use is rhetorical, for the next verse attaches a condition.

[15:4]  ³ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

[15:4]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text includes “to possess.”

[15:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “if listening you listen to the voice of.” The infinitive absolute is used for emphasis, which the translation indicates with “carefully.” The idiom “listen to the voice” means “obey.”

[15:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 15:4.

[15:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “by being careful to do.”

[15:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “commanding” (so NASB); NAB “which I enjoin you today.”

[15:7]  ⁹ tn Heb “one of your brothers” (so NASB); NAB “one of your kinsmen”; NRSV “a member of your community.” See the note at v. 2.

[15:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “gates.”

[15:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “withdraw your hand.” Cf. NIV “hardhearted or tightfisted” (NRSV and NLT similar).

[15:7]  ¹² tn Heb “from your needy brother.”

[15:8]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute before both verbs. The translation indicates the emphasis with the words “be sure to” and “generously,” respectively.

[15:8]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “whatever his need that he needs for himself.” This redundant expression has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[15:9]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “your eye.”

[15:9]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “your needy brother.”

[15:9]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “give” (likewise in v. 10).

[15:9]  ²⁰ tn Heb “it will be a sin to you.”

[15:10]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates with “by all means.”

[15:10]  ²² tc Heb “your heart must not be grieved in giving to him.” The LXX and Orig add, “you shall surely lend to him sufficient for his need,” a suggestion based on the same basic idea in v. 8. Such slavish adherence to stock phrases is without warrant in most cases, and certainly here.

[15:11]  ²⁵ tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates with “make sure.”

[15:11]  ²⁶ tn Heb “your brother.”