Regler for sabbatåret
1Hvert syvende år skal I eftergive al gæld. 2-3Enhver kreditor skal annullere gældsbeviset og eftergive den landsmand, som måtte skylde ham noget, men ikke den fremmede iblandt jer, for i det år løser Herren alle israelitter fra deres gældsforpligtelser. 4-5Det bliver I ikke fattigere af, for Herren vil velsigne jer rigeligt i det land, han giver jer, hvis ellers I adlyder hans befalinger. Forudsætningen for hans velsignelse er, at I omhyggeligt adlyder de love, jeg pålægger jer i dag. 6Så vil Herren velsigne jer, sådan som han har lovet, så I kan låne ud til andre og ikke selv have behov for at låne, og på den måde vil I blive herre over andre og ikke selv blive underlagt nogen.
7Når I er kommet ind i landet, og nogen iblandt jer er fattig, må I ikke lukke hjertet og nægte at hjælpe de fattige. 8Nej, I skal låne dem, hvad de har brug for. 9Pas på, at I ikke afslår at låne nogen noget, blot fordi eftergivelsesåret nærmer sig. Gør I det, vil Herren høre de fattiges råb og betragte jeres afslag som en synd. 10Nej, I skal låne de fattige, hvad de har brug for uden at beklage jer. Så vil Herren jeres Gud velsigne jeres arbejde og jeres ejendom. 11Der vil altid være nogle, som er fattige iblandt jer. Derfor er denne befaling nødvendig. Del gavmildt ud til jeres landsmænd i nød.
12Hvis nogle af jeres landsmænd arbejder som slaver for jer, skal I frigive dem efter det sjette år, 13men send dem ikke tomhændet bort. 14Giv dem rundhåndet nogle af jeres dyr og noget af jeres korn og vin i afskedsgave, så de får del i noget af den velsignelse, Herren har givet jer. 15Husk, at I selv var slaver i Egypten, indtil Herren befriede jer. Det er baggrunden for denne befaling.
16Hvis slaverne ikke ønsker frigivelse, fordi de er godt tilfredse med at arbejde som slaver, og fordi de er kommet til at holde af dig og din familie, 17skal du tage en syl og stikke den gennem slavens øreflip og ind i døren som tegn på, at vedkommende skal være din slave på livstid. Dette gælder både for mandlige og kvindelige slaver.
18Når du frigiver en slave, skal du ikke beklage dig over at miste en god arbejdskraft. Tænk på, at du trods alt i seks år har haft en medhjælp, der kostede dig under halvdelen af, hvad en almindelig daglejer koster. Da vil Herren, din Gud, velsigne dig i dit arbejde.
Regler om det førstefødte
19Af de kalve og lam, der fødes blandt jeres husdyr, skal I udtage de førstefødte handyr som en gave til Herren. I må ikke lade en førstefødt tyrekalv udføre arbejde, og I må ikke klippe et førstefødt får. 20I og jeres familie skal spise dem for Herrens ansigt, når I hvert år drager til helligdommen. 21Men hvis dyret har fysiske skavanker, hvis det er lamt, blindt, eller der er andet i vejen med det, må I ikke ofre det i helligdommen, 22men spise det hjemme på almindelig vis, hvad enten I er rene eller urene. 23Dog skal I hælde blodet ud på jorden, for det må I ikke spise.
The Year for Forgiving People What They Owe
1At the end of every seven years you must forgive people what they owe you. 2Have you made a loan to one of your own people? Then forgive what is owed to you. You can’t require that person to pay you back. The Lord’s time to forgive what is owed has been announced. 3You can require someone from another nation to pay you back. But you must forgive what any of your own people owes you. 4There shouldn’t be any poor people among you. The Lord will greatly bless you in the land he is giving you. You will take it over as your own. 5The Lord your God will bless you if you obey him completely. Be careful to follow all the commands I’m giving you today. 6The Lord your God will bless you, just as he has promised. You will lend money to many nations. But you won’t have to borrow from any of them. You will rule over many nations. But none of them will rule over you.
7Suppose someone is poor among you. And suppose they live in one of the towns in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Then don’t be mean to them. They are poor. So don’t hold back money from them. 8Instead, open your hands and lend them what they need. Do it freely. 9Be careful not to have an evil thought in your mind. Don’t say to yourself, “The seventh year will soon be here. It’s the year for forgiving people what they owe.” If you think like that, you might treat the needy people among you badly. You might not give them anything. Then they might make their appeal to the Lord against you. And he will find you guilty of sin. 10So give freely to needy people. Let your heart be tender toward them. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all your work. He will bless you in everything you do. 11There will always be poor people in the land. So I’m commanding you to give freely to those who are poor and needy in your land. Open your hands to them.
Set Your Hebrew Servants Free
12Suppose any Hebrew men or women sell themselves to you. If they do, they will serve you for six years. Then in the seventh year you must let them go free. 13But when you set them free, don’t send them away without anything to show for all their work. 14Freely give them some animals from your flock. Also give them some of your grain and wine. The Lord your God has blessed you richly. Give to them as he has given to you. 15Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. The Lord your God set you free. That’s why I’m giving you this command today.
16But suppose your servant says to you, “I don’t want to leave you.” He loves you and your family. And you are taking good care of him. 17Then take him to the door of your house. Poke a hole through his earlobe into the doorpost. And he will become your servant for life. Do the same with your female servant.
18Don’t think you are being cheated when you set your servants free. After all, they have served you for six years. The service of each of them has been worth twice as much as the service of a hired worker. And the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.
Male Animals Born First to Their Mothers
19Set apart every male animal among your livestock that was born first to its mother. Set it apart to the Lord your God. Don’t put a firstborn cow to work. Don’t clip the wool from a firstborn sheep. 20Each year you and your family must eat them. Do it in front of the Lord your God at the place he will choose. 21Suppose an animal has something wrong with it. It might not be able to see or walk. Or it might have a bad flaw. Then you must not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. 22You must eat it in your own towns. Those who are “clean” and those who are “unclean” can eat it. Eat it as if it were antelope or deer meat. 23But you must not eat meat that still has blood in it. Pour the blood out on the ground like water.
