Deuteronomy 15:15

Deuteronomy 15:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee: therefore I command thee this thing to day.
• New International Version (NIV)Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you. That is why I give you this command today.
• English Standard Version (ESV)You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today.
• New King James Version (NKJV)You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today.

Context of Deuteronomy 15:15

13If you set them free, you must not send them away empty-handed. 14You must supply them generously from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress – as the Lord your God has blessed you, you must give to them. Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore, I am commanding you to do this thing today. 16However, if the servant says to you, “I do not want to leave you,” because he loves you and your household, since he is well off with you, 17you shall take an awl and pierce a hole through his ear to the door. Then he will become your servant permanently (this applies to your female servant as well).

Deuteronomy 15:15 word by word

וְזָכַרְתָּ֗ כִּ֣י עֶ֤בֶד הָיִ֙יתָ֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם וַֽיִּפְדְּךָ֖ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ עַל־כֵּ֞ן אָנֹכִ֧י מְצַוְּךָ֛ אֶת־הַדָּבָ֥ר הַזֶּ֖ה הַיּֽוֹם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And thou shalt rememberזָכַרzâkar · to rememberH2142
• that thou wast a bondmanעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• in the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• of Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
• and the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• redeemedפָּדָהpâdâh · to ransomH6299
• thee: therefore I commandצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
• thee this thingדָּבָרdâbâr · word: thingH1697
• to dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 15:15

• Deuteronomy 5:14but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. On that day you must not do any work, you, your son, your daughter, your male slave, your female slave, your ox, your donkey, any other animal, or the foreigner who lives with you, so that your male and female slaves, like yourself, may have rest.
• Deuteronomy 16:12Furthermore, remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and so be careful to observe these statutes.
• Exodus 20:2“I, the Lord, am your God, who brought you from the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery.
• Isaiah 51:1“Listen to me, you who pursue godliness, who seek the Lord! Look at the rock from which you were chiseled, at the quarry from which you were dug!
• Matthew 6:14“For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
• Matthew 18:32Then his lord called the first slave and said to him, ‘Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me!
• Ephesians 1:7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace
• Ephesians 2:12that you were at that time without the Messiah, alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
• Ephesians 4:32Instead, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you.
• Ephesians 5:1Therefore, be imitators of God as dearly loved children
• 1 John 3:16We have come to know love by this: that Jesus laid down his life for us; thus we ought to lay down our lives for our fellow Christians.
• 1 John 4:9By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God has sent his one and only Son into the world so that we may live through him.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 15:15

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15-18Verses 15-18 The commands here are repeated from Exodus 21:2-6, with amplifications relative to the maidservant Deuteronomy 15:12 and to the making (Deuteronomy 15:13 ff) liberal provision for launching the freedman on an independent course of life. The release of the servant is connected with the sabbatical principle though not with the sabbatical year. It is noteworthy also that the prospect of a gift of this sort, the amount of which was left to the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-18Verses 12-18 Here the law concerning Hebrew servants is repeated. There is an addition, requiring the masters to put some small stock into their servants' hands to set up with for themselves, when sent out of their servitude, wherein they had received no wages. We may expect family blessings, the springs of family prosperity, when we make conscience of our duty to our family relations. We are to remember that we are debtors to Divine justice, and have…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-23The law of Moses included rules about borrowing and lending. Here, God commanded Israel to cancel debts in the seventh year and to lend generously to the poor. These laws helped poor people survive times of need. They also placed limits on the wealthy so they would not take advantage of those who were vulnerable.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 13-1513-15. thou shalt not let him go away empty--A seasonable and wise provision for enabling a poor unfortunate to regain his original status in society, and the motive urged for his kindness and humanity to the Hebrew slave was the remembrance that the whole nation was once a degraded and persecuted band of helots in Egypt. Thus, kindness towards their slaves, unparalleled elsewhere in those days, was inculcated by the Mosaic law; and in all their conduct…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 15:15

• Beneficence
• Fraternity
• Humility
• Liberality
• Sabbatic Year

In the dictionaries

• Egypt
• God
• Egypt, Egyptian
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Bless
• Cease
• Debtor
• Firstling
• Freedom
• Poor

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