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Leviticus 25:35-55
New English Translation

Debt and Slave Regulations

35 “‘If your brother[a] becomes impoverished and is indebted to you,[b] you must support[c] him; he must live[d] with you like a foreign resident.[e] 36 Do not take interest or profit from him,[f] but you must fear your God and your brother must live[g] with you. 37 You must not lend him your money at interest and you must not sell him food for profit.[h] 38 I am the Lord your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan—to be your God.[i]

39 “‘If your brother becomes impoverished with regard to you so that he sells himself to you, you must not subject him to slave service.[j] 40 He must be with you as a hired worker, as a resident foreigner;[k] he must serve with you until the Year of Jubilee, 41 but then[l] he may go free,[m] he and his children with him, and may return to his family and to the property of his ancestors.[n] 42 Since the Israelites[o] are my servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt, they must not be sold in a slave sale.[p] 43 You must not rule over them harshly,[q] but you must fear your God.

44 “‘As for your male and female slaves[r] who may belong to you—you may buy male and female slaves from the nations all around you.[s] 45 Also, you may buy slaves[t] from the children of the foreigners who reside with you, and from their families that are[u] with you, whom they have fathered in your land; they may become your property. 46 You may give them as an inheritance to your children after you to possess as property. You may enslave them perpetually. However, as for your brothers the Israelites, no man may rule over his brother harshly.[v]

47 “‘If a resident foreigner who is with you prospers[w] and your brother becomes impoverished with regard to him so that[x] he sells himself to a resident foreigner who is with you or to a member[y] of a foreigner’s family, 48 after he has sold himself he retains a right of redemption.[z] One of his brothers may redeem him, 49 or his uncle or his cousin[aa] may redeem him, or any one of the rest of his blood relatives—his family[ab]—may redeem him, or if[ac] he prospers he may redeem himself. 50 He must calculate with the one who bought him the number of years[ad] from the year he sold himself to him until the Jubilee year, and the cost of his sale must correspond to the number of years, according to the rate of wages a hired worker would have earned while with him.[ae] 51 If there are still many years, in keeping with them[af] he must refund most of the cost of his purchase for his redemption, 52 but if only a few years remain[ag] until the Jubilee, he must calculate for himself in keeping with the remaining years and refund it for his redemption. 53 He must be with the one who bought him[ah] like a yearly hired worker.[ai] The one who bought him[aj] must not rule over him harshly in your sight. 54 If, however,[ak] he is not redeemed in these ways, he must go free[al] in the Jubilee year, he and his children with him, 55 because the Israelites are my own servants;[am] they are my servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.

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Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 25:35 tn It is not clear to whom this refers. It is probably broader than “sibling” (cf. NRSV “any of your kin”; NLT “any of your Israelite relatives”) but some English versions take it to mean “fellow Israelite” (so TEV; cf. NAB, NIV “countrymen”) and others are ambiguous (cf. CEV “any of your people”).
  2. Leviticus 25:35 tn Heb “and his hand slips with you.”
  3. Leviticus 25:35 tn Heb “strengthen”; NASB “sustain.”
  4. Leviticus 25:35 tn The form וָחַי (vakhay, “and shall live”) looks like the adjective “living,” but the MT form is simply the same verb written as a double ayin verb (see HALOT 309 s.v. חיה qal, and GKC 218 §76.i; cf. Lev 18:5).
  5. Leviticus 25:35 tn Heb “a foreigner and resident,” which is probably to be combined (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 170-71). tn The Hebrew terms ger (גֵּר; “resident foreigner”) and toshav (תּוֹשָׁב; “resident/dweller”) have similar meaning. The toshav was less integrated into Israelite society, had less rights, and had not fully committed to the religion of Israel. Here the combination emphasizes the impoverished Israelites change in status. Note that the native born citizen and the resident foreigner (or naturalized citizen) were equal under the law (Exod 12:49; Lev 24:22; Num 9:14; 15:15, 16, 26, 29; 19:10; 35:15; Deut 1:16) or similar obligations (Exod 20:10; 23:12; Lev 16:29; 17:10, 12, 13; 18:26; 24:16; Num 15:14).
  6. Leviticus 25:36 tn The meaning of the terms rendered “interest” and “profit” is much debated (see the summaries in P. J. Budd, Leviticus [NCBC], 354-55 and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 178). Verse 37, however, suggests that the first refers to a percentage of money and the second percentage of produce (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 421).
  7. Leviticus 25:36 tn In form the Hebrew term וְחֵי (vekhey, “shall live”) is the construct plural noun (i.e., “the life of”), but here it is used as the finite verb (cf. v. 35 and GKC 218 §76.i).
  8. Leviticus 25:37 tn Heb “your money” and “your food.” With regard to “interest” and “profit” see the note on v. 36 above.
  9. Leviticus 25:38 tn Heb “to be to you for a God.”
  10. Leviticus 25:39 tn Heb “you shall not serve against him service of a slave.” A distinction is being made here between the status of slave and indentured servant.
  11. Leviticus 25:40 tn See the note on Lev 25:6 above.
  12. Leviticus 25:41 tn Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have adversative force here.
  13. Leviticus 25:41 tn Heb “may go out from you.”
  14. Leviticus 25:41 tn Heb “fathers.”
  15. Leviticus 25:42 tn Heb “they”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  16. Leviticus 25:42 tn Or perhaps reflexive Niphal rather than passive, “they shall not sell themselves [as in] a slave sale.”
  17. Leviticus 25:43 tn Heb “You shall not rule in him in violence”; cf. NASB “with severity”; NIV “ruthlessly.”
  18. Leviticus 25:44 tn Heb “And your male slave and your female slave.” Smr has these as plural terms, “slaves,” not singular.
  19. Leviticus 25:44 tn Heb “ from the nations which surround you, from them you shall buy male slave and female slave.”
  20. Leviticus 25:45 tn The word “slaves” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied here.
  21. Leviticus 25:45 tn Heb “family which is” (i.e., singular rather than plural).
  22. Leviticus 25:46 tn Heb “and your brothers, the sons of Israel, a man in his brother you shall not rule in him in violence.”
  23. Leviticus 25:47 tn Heb “And if the hand of a foreigner and resident with you reaches” (cf. v. 26 for this idiom).
  24. Leviticus 25:47 tn Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.
  25. Leviticus 25:47 tn Heb “offshoot, descendant.”
  26. Leviticus 25:48 tn Heb “right of redemption shall be to him.”
  27. Leviticus 25:49 tn Heb “the son of his uncle.”
  28. Leviticus 25:49 tn Heb “or from the remainder of his flesh from his family.”
  29. Leviticus 25:49 tc The LXX, followed by the Syriac, actually has “if,” which is not in the MT.
  30. Leviticus 25:50 tn Heb “the years.”
  31. Leviticus 25:50 tn Heb “as days of a hired worker he shall be with him.” For this and the following verses see the explanation in P. J. Budd, Leviticus (NCBC), 358-59.
  32. Leviticus 25:51 tn Heb “to the mouth of them.”
  33. Leviticus 25:52 tn Heb “but if a little remains in the years.”
  34. Leviticus 25:53 tn Heb “be with him”; the referent (the one who bought him) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  35. Leviticus 25:53 tn Heb “As a hired worker year in year.”
  36. Leviticus 25:53 tn Heb “He”; the referent (the one who bought him) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  37. Leviticus 25:54 tn Heb “And if.”
  38. Leviticus 25:54 tn Heb “go out.”
  39. Leviticus 25:55 tn Heb “because to me the sons of Israel are servants.”
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