Leviticus 25:39
39 a“If your brother becomes poor beside you and sells himself to you, you shall not make him serve as a slave:2 Kings 4:1
Elisha and the Widow’s Oil
1Now the wife of one of the bsons of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord, cbut the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.”Nehemiah 5:1-13
Nehemiah Stops Oppression of the Poor
1Now there arose da great outcry of the people and of their wives eagainst their Jewish brothers. 2For there were those who said, “With our sons and our daughters, we are many. So let us get grain, that we may eat and keep alive.” 3There were also those who said, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our houses to get grain because of the famine.” 4And there were those who said, “We have borrowed money for fthe king’s tax on our fields and our vineyards. 5Now gour flesh is as the flesh of our brothers, our children are as their children. Yet hwe are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but it is not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our vineyards.”6I was very angry when I heard itheir outcry and these words. 7I took counsel with myself, and I brought charges against the nobles and the officials. I said to them, j“You are exacting interest, each from his brother.” And I held a great assembly against them 8and said to them, “We, as far as we are able, khave bought back our Jewish brothers who have been sold to the nations, but you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us!” They were silent and could not find a word to say. 9So I said, “The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk lin the fear of our God mto prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies? 10Moreover, I and my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain. Let us abandon this exacting of interest. 11Return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive orchards, and their houses, and the percentage of money, grain, wine, and oil that you have been exacting from them.” 12Then they said, “We will restore these and nrequire nothing from them. We will do as you say.” And I called the priests and omade them swear pto do as they had promised. 13 qI also shook out the fold ▼
▼Hebrew bosom
of my garment and said, “So may God shake out every man from his house and from his labor who does not keep this promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied.” sAnd all the assembly said “Amen” and praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised. Job 24:9
9(There are those who snatch the fatherless child from the breast,and they take a pledge against the poor.)
Matthew 18:25
25 tAnd since he could not pay, his master ordered him uto be sold, with his wife and vchildren and all that he had, and payment to be made.
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