English Standard Version
Deuteronomy 15:11
11For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, 'You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.'
Deuteronomy 15:11 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.
- New International Version (NIV)There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.
- New King James Version (NKJV)For the poor will never cease from the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy, in your land.’
- New Living Translation (NLT)There will always be some in the land who are poor. That is why I am commanding you to share freely with the poor and with other Israelites in need.
Context of Deuteronomy 15:11
9Take care lest there be an unworthy thought in your heart and you say, 'The seventh year, the year of release is near,' and your eye look grudgingly on your poor brother, and you give him nothing, and he cry to the Lord against you, and you be guilty of sin. 10You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, 'You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.' 12"If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. 13And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed.
Read all of Deuteronomy 15Deuteronomy 15:11 word by word
כִּ֛י לֹא־יֶחְדַּ֥ל אֶבְי֖וֹן מִקֶּ֣רֶב הָאָ֑רֶץ עַל־כֵּ֞ן אָנֹכִ֤י מְצַוְּךָ֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר פָּ֠תֹחַ תִּפְתַּ֨ח אֶת־יָדְךָ֜ לְאָחִ֧יךָ לַעֲנִיֶּ֛ךָ וּלְאֶבְיֹנְךָ֖ בְּאַרְצֶֽךָ׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- For the poorאֶבְיוֹן'ebyôn · needyH34
- shall never ceaseחָדַלchâdal · to ceaseH2308
- out ofקֶ֫רֶבqereb · entrails: amongH7130
- the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- therefore I commandצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
- thee, sayingאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Thou shalt openפָּתַחpâthach · to openH6605
- thine handיָדyâd · handH3027
- unto thy brotherאָח'âch · brother: compatriotH251
- to thy poorעָנִי‛ânîy · afflictedH6041
Cross-references for Deuteronomy 15:11
- Proverbs 22:2The rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the Maker of them all.
- Matthew 26:11For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.
- Mark 14:7For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me.
- John 12:8For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me."
- Deuteronomy 15:8but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be.
- Matthew 5:42Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
- Luke 12:33Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.
- Acts 2:45And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.
- Acts 4:32Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.
- Acts 11:28And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world (this took place in the days of Claudius).
- 2 Corinthians 8:2for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.
- 1 John 3:16By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 15:11
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 11For the poor shall never cease out of the land - To this passage our Lord appears to allude Mark 14:7; : For ye have the poor with you always. God leaves these in mercy among men to exercise the feelings of compassion, tenderness, mercy, etc. And without occasions afforded to exercise these, man would soon become a Stoic or a brute.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-11Verses 1-11 The year of release is no doubt identical with the sabbatical year of the earlier legislation (Exodus 23:10 ff, and Leviticus 25:2 ff), the command of the older legislation being here amplified. The release was probably for the year, not total and final, and had reference only to loans lent because of poverty (compare Deuteronomy 15:4, Deuteronomy 15:7). Yet even so the law was found to be too stringent for the avarice of the people, because…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11The fact that some people will always be poor in an imperfect world is not an excuse to ignore their struggles. Instead, it emphasizes the need for wealthy individuals to help improve the lives of the poor (Matthew 26:6–13).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 7-117-11. If there be among you a poor man ... thou shalt not harden thine heart--Lest the foregoing law should prevent the Israelites lending to the poor, Moses here admonishes them against so mean and selfish a spirit and exhorts them to give in a liberal spirit of charity and kindness, which will secure the divine blessing (Ro 12:8; 2Co 9:7).Read the comment
Topics related to Deuteronomy 15:11
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 15
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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