Revised Literal Translation
Deuteronomy 15:11
11For 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.
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.
- English Standard Version (ESV)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.'
- 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.’
Context of Deuteronomy 15:11
9Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him nought; and he cry unto Yhwh against thee, and it be sin unto thee. 10Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing Yhwh thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto. 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. 12And if thy brother, an Hebrew man, or an Hebrew woman, be sold unto thee, and serve thee six years; then in the seventh year thou shalt let him go free from thee. 13And when thou sendest him out free from thee, thou shalt not let him go away empty:
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
- 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 poor meet together: Yhwh is the maker of them all.
- Matthew 26:11For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.
- Mark 14:7For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.
- John 12:8For the poor always ye have with you; but me ye have not always.
- Deuteronomy 15:8But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.
- Matthew 5:42Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.
- Luke 12:33Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.
- Acts 2:45And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
- Acts 4:32And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.
- Acts 11:28And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Cæsar.
- 2 Corinthians 8:2How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.
- 1 John 3:16Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
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
Revised Literal Translation — © 2018 Michael W. Jones, Sr. — GPL
Commentaries