He lends at interest and takes a profit. Will such a man live? He will not! Because he has done all these detestable things, he is to be put to death; his blood will be on his own head. Ezekiel 18:13
“Seventh, look with a healthy skepticism at all “buy now, pay later” schemes. They are a trap and only deepen your bondage. Both Old and New Testaments condemn usury for good reasons. (“Usury” in the Bible is not used in the modern sense of exorbitant interest; it referred to any kind of interest at all.) Charging interest was viewed as an unbrotherly exploitation of another’s misfortune, hence a denial of community. Jesus denounced usury as a sign of the old life and admonished His disciples to “lend, expecting nothing in return” (Luke 6:35).”
Richard Foster (b. 1942) in Celebration of Discipline (San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1998) 93.
I find it ironic how many biblical texts the modern society ignores or labels as not applicable today. Take usury for example. Biblical texts condemn it, while it serves as the bedrock and foundation of modern society.
Think about why biblical texts would condemn it. Foster puts it best by calling it “unbrotherly exploitation at another’s misfortune.” Let’s unpack what this looks like from a biblical perspective.
I do honest work. Someone needs help. I can help by lending freely from the resources I have gained from honest work. But rather than lend and expect nothing in return, I lend and make him a slave by charging interest.
The interest I make, in biblical terms, is called dishonest gain. I did not earn it with work, but extorted it from a brother in need without work. However, in modern times we read “dishonest gain” as breaking modern or local laws, not biblical laws.
Notice how we rationalize sin as acceptable behavior. To choose a life of simplicity says that I will do honest work for honest gain, avoid dishonest gain or unbrotherly exploitation. This may call me to live totally different from the world.
I kept today in the first person “I” because this represents a sensitive topic. Each of us must take to heart the biblical words and the thinking behind them and answer to God. He cares about how we treat each other. He wants us to lend generously. Will we?
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