⁵ But you are to seek the place the Lord your God will choose from among all your tribes to put his Name^(A) there for his dwelling.^(B) To that place you must go;

The Year for Canceling Debts^(A)

15 At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts.^{(B) 2} This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel any loan they have made to a fellow Israelite. They shall not require payment from anyone among their own people, because the Lord’s time for canceling debts has been proclaimed. ³ You may require payment from a foreigner,^(C) but you must cancel any debt your fellow Israelite owes you. ⁴ However, there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless^(D) you, ⁵ if only you fully obey the Lord your God and are careful to follow^(E) all these commands I am giving you today. ⁶ For the Lord your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.^(F)

⁷ If anyone is poor^(G) among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted^(H) toward them. ⁸ Rather, be openhanded^(I) and freely lend them whatever they need. ⁹ Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: “The seventh year, the year for canceling debts,^(J) is near,” so that you do not show ill will^(K) toward the needy among your fellow Israelites and give them nothing. They may then appeal to the Lord against you, and you will be found guilty of sin.^{(L) 10} Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart;^(M) then because of this the Lord your God will bless^(N) you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. ¹¹ There will always be poor people^(O) in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.^(P)

The Festival of Tabernacles^(A)

¹³ Celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor^(B) and your winepress.^{(C) 14} Be joyful^(D) at your festival—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns. ¹⁵ For seven days celebrate the festival to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy^(E) will be complete.

² He went up to the temple of the Lord with the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets—all the people from the least to the greatest. He read^(A) in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant,^(B) which had been found in the temple of the Lord.

8 ¹ all the people came together as one in the square before the Water Gate.^(A) They told Ezra the teacher of the Law to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses,^(B) which the Lord had commanded for Israel.

² So on the first day of the seventh month^(C) Ezra the priest brought the Law^(D) before the assembly, which was made up of men and women and all who were able to understand. ³ He read it aloud from daybreak till noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate^(E) in the presence of the men, women and others who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.

⁴ Ezra the teacher of the Law stood on a high wooden platform^(F) built for the occasion. Beside him on his right stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah and Maaseiah; and on his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah and Meshullam.

⁵ Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing^(G) above them; and as he opened it, the people all stood up. ⁶ Ezra praised the Lord, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands^(H) and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

⁷ The Levites^(I)—Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan and Pelaiah—instructed^(J) the people in the Law while the people were standing there. ⁸ They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear^[a] and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read.