What does Nehemiah 5:10 reveal about lending practices among God's people? Setting the Scene in Nehemiah 5 • Jerusalem’s walls are going up, but inside the city the returned exiles are groaning under famine, taxes, and debts. • Wealthier Jews have been giving loans to their poorer brothers—yet demanding interest and even seizing fields, vineyards, and children as collateral. • Nehemiah steps in, confronting the nobles and officials for breaking covenant love. Key Text: Nehemiah 5:10 “Even I, my brothers, and my servants are lending them money and grain. But let us stop charging interest.” What We Learn About Lending Among God’s People • Lending itself is permissible and, at times, necessary. • Interest (“usury”) charged to fellow Israelites violates God’s standard of brotherly compassion. • Nehemiah models repentance and leadership: he personally lends but refuses profit, urging others to do the same. • The verse exposes a heart issue—profiting from a brother’s hardship contradicts covenant faithfulness. Supporting Scriptural Background • Exodus 22:25 — “If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, you are not to act as a creditor to him; you shall not charge him interest.” • Leviticus 25:35-37 — Calls Israel to sustain a poor brother “without interest or profit.” • Deuteronomy 23:19-20 — Interest may be taken from foreigners, but never from a fellow Israelite; the community is family. • Psalm 112:5 — “Good will come to the man who is generous and lends freely.” • Proverbs 28:8 — Warning that usury ultimately enriches others more righteous than the oppressor. • Luke 6:34-35 — Jesus heightens the principle: lend expecting nothing in return, imitating the Father’s mercy. Timeless Take-Aways • Lending is a ministry of mercy, not a business of exploitation. • God measures generosity by motive: helping a brother in need should never carry a price tag. • Spiritual leaders must exemplify sacrificial giving, not profit-seeking, especially during economic hardship. • The covenant community today—believers in Christ—ought to reflect the same family economy: open-handed help, interest-free support, and restoration of any unjust gain. |
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