“At the end of every seven years you are to have a sh’mittah. Here is how the sh’mittah is to be done: every creditor is to give up what he has loaned to his fellow member of the community — he is not to force his neighbor or relative to repay it, because Adonai’s time of remission has been proclaimed.”-Deuteronomy 15:1-2
In the first 18 verses of Deuteronomy Chapter 15, we are presented laws given for protecting those who are the most vulnerable and dependent in any given society, namely the poor.
The instructions here specifically focus on one’s inability to pay off a loan.
This was normally the main thing that caused folks to fall into big trouble financially and often resulted in a person ending up in indentured servitude which in the those days was pretty much the only way poor folks could pay back borrowed money or even just to survive.
Now this isn’t the first time we’ve dealt with these topics.
Previously in Exodus chapters 21-23 and in Leviticus Chapter 25 we also have regulations dealing with servitude, debt and release.
Although the instructions in Exodus and Deuteronomy are nearly identical to each other.
Leviticus tends to stick out like a sore thumb a little bit.
Why?
Well, the biggest difference is in WHO is being subjected to these laws and…
…in what particular situation the regulations are being applied.
Deuteronomy and Exodus tend to focus on the welfare of individual persons whereas Leviticus more focuses on the corporate welfare of family units and the nation of Israel as a whole.
This is actually a good time to undergo a review of the structure of ancient Israelite society.
Don’t worry.
This is gonna be SUPER quick.
First, recall that Israel was a tribal society consisting of the following three different family units:
HOUSEHOLDS
CLANS
TRIBES
A household was the smallest unit and is probably most similar to what we would call the “extended family” in the West.
So we’re talking about 3 to 4 generations of a single family living in a close knit social and economic relationship.
Next up was the clan.
A clan was essentially a cluster of several branches of the extended families who could point back to one common ancestor going back many generations.
Finally, the next level up was the tribe.
A tribe was made up of a group of clans who could point back to one single founder of the tribe.
In the Bible, this is probably the unit we’re most familiar because of the term “the 12 Tribes of Israel”.
In terms of a close blood relationship among its members, obviously households had the tightest connection followed by clans and then tribes.
Now here’s what you need to know.
Leviticus focuses on the welfare and rights of clans and tribes.
On the other hand…
…Deuteronomy and Exodus focus on the welfare and rights of individuals and the household units of which they were comprised.
Recall that it is in Leviticus where we are introduced to the laws of Jubilee which state that every 50 years Hebrew servants are to be released from their servitude to their masters.
The Jubilee also states that land which has been sold is to be returned to its original owner and all money debts are to be cancelled.
Now that’s in Leviticus.
However, here in Deuteronomy, instead of a 50-year cycle, we are presented with a far shorter time cycle of 7 years, otherwise known as the Sabbatical year cycle.
Hence, every seven years, ALL debts are to be canceled and all slaves are to be released from their servitude.
Now let me ask you this…
…if you’re suffering from an unpaid such as a student loan which can NEVER be forgiven, wouldn’t you have just loved to live in ancient Israel?
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