Deuteronomy 23:20

Deuteronomy 23:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Unto a stranger thou mayest lend upon usury; but unto thy brother thou shalt not lend upon usury: that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all that thou settest thine hand to in the land whither thou goest to possess it.
• New International Version (NIV)You may charge a foreigner interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you put your hand to in the land you are entering to possess.
• English Standard Version (ESV)You may charge a foreigner interest, but you may not charge your brother interest, that the Lord your God may bless you in all that you undertake in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.
• New King James Version (NKJV)To a foreigner you may charge interest, but to your brother you shall not charge interest, that the Lord your God may bless you in all to which you set your hand in the land which you are entering to possess.

Context of Deuteronomy 23:20

18You must not bring the money that people pay to these prostitutes into the Lord's temple. Do not use it to offer a gift that you have promised to the Lord your God. He hates prostitutes, both men and women. 19You may lend money or food or anything else to another Israelite. But do not ask him to give you back more than you lent to him. You can ask a foreign person to pay back more, but not an Israelite. If you obey this command, the Lord your God will bless you. When you live in your new land, God will bless everything that you do. 21If you promise to give something to the Lord your God, be careful to bring your gift soon. If you do not bring it, that is a sin. The Lord will certainly demand it from you. 22You may choose not to promise any gift. That is not a sin.

Deuteronomy 23:20 word by word

לַנָּכְרִ֣י תַשִּׁ֔יךְ וּלְאָחִ֖יךָ לֹ֣א תַשִּׁ֑יךְ לְמַ֨עַן יְבָרֶכְךָ֜ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֗יךָ בְּכֹל֙ מִשְׁלַ֣ח יָדֶ֔ךָ עַל־הָאָ֕רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּ֥ה בָא־שָׁ֖מָּה לְרִשְׁתָּֽהּ׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Unto a strangerנׇכְרִיnokrîy · foreignH5237
• thou mayest lend upon usuryנָשַׁךְnâshak · to biteH5391
• but unto thy brotherאָח'âch · brother: male-siblingH251
• that the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• may blessבָּרַךְbârak · to blessH1288
• thee in all that thou settestמִשְׁלַחmishlôach mishlôach mishlâch · sendingH4916
• thine handיָדyâd · hand: undertakeH3027
• to in the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• whither thou goestבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• to possessיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: takeH3423

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 23:20

• Deuteronomy 14:21You must not eat anything that you find dead already. You may give it to a foreign person who lives in any of your towns. He may eat it. You may give it to him or sell it to him. But you yourselves are special people who belong to the Lord your God. You must not cook a young goat in the milk from its mother.
• Deuteronomy 15:3You can demand to get your money back from a foreign person. But if you have lent money to another Israelite, you must forgive the debt.
• Leviticus 19:33A foreign person may live in your land. You must be kind to him or to her.
• Deuteronomy 15:10Instead, you should certainly lend money to him. Do not feel upset about it. If you are generous, the Lord your God will bless you in everything that you do.
• Proverbs 19:17If you are kind to poor people, you are lending money to the Lord. He will pay back the debt to you.
• Isaiah 1:19I will forgive you if you agree to obey me. If you are ready to do that, you will again eat plenty of good food from the land.
• Luke 14:14Then God will make you happy. Those people cannot pay you for the meal you have given to them. Instead, God will pay you, on the day when he makes good people become alive again.’
• 1 Corinthians 15:58So you must continue to be strong in your spirits, my Christian friends that I love. Do not let anything move you away from your faith. Continue to work hard as you serve the Lord. You know that whatever you do for him will not be useless.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 23:20

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-25Verses 15-25 It is honourable to shelter and protect the weak, provided they are not wicked. Proselytes and converts to the truth, should be treated with particular tenderness, that they may have no temptation to return to the world. We cannot honour God with our substance, unless it be honestly and honourably come by. It must not only be considered what we give, but how we got it. Where the borrower gets, or hopes to get, it is just that the lender…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19-20The word translated as interest is related to a noun meaning "bite." Charging interest was like "biting" the debtor. See also Exodus 22:25; Leviticus 25:36–37; Nehemiah 5:1–13; Psalm 15:5.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 19-2019-20. Thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother ... Unto a stranger thou mayest lend upon usury--The Israelites lived in a simple state of society, and hence they were encouraged to lend to each other in a friendly way without any hope of gain. But the case was different with foreigners, who, engaged in trade and commerce, borrowed to enlarge their capital, and might reasonably be expected to pay interest on their loans. Besides, the distinction was…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 23:20

• Aliens
• Creditor
• Interest
• Lending
• Strangers
• Usury

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Custom
• Loan
• Paddle
• Sickle
• Slack
• Stranger
• Usury
• Atonement, Day of

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings