Eighth Commandment: Love Your Neighbor IV

Deuteronomy 23:15-24:7

You shall not steal.

Like the other commandments,

stealing is a broader principle than just outright theft.

1) Moses outlines several forms of theft against man

23:15-16 speaks of the runaway slave.

The implication is that this slave has come from outside Israel.

Slavery was very carefully regulated in Israel,

and the assumption is that Israelite slaves would be so well treated

that only foreign slaves would be runaways .

But the principle is clear:

You were once slaves in Egypt-don't forget how God helped you escape.

You must give refuge to those who are mistreated.

Israel is to be a safe haven for those who are oppressed.

We do not have runaway slaves showing up in Michiana very often.

But battered wives and children live all around us.

Are you ready to give them refuge?

23:19-20 forbids charging interest to your brother.

You may charge interest to a foreigner, but not to a fellow Israelite.

You should not seek to make money at the expense of your brother.

This has led to all sorts of interesting debates in the history of the church.

This is why Jews became the chief bankers of Europe.

Since Christians could not charge interest of other Christians,

and Jews could not charge interest of other Jews,

money-lending was only possible across religious lines.

At the time of the Reformation,

this became a heated debate.

The early modern economy was beginning to move in mercantile directions.

Investing was becoming a way of making money for a broader range of people.

The Reformers were divided over the question of interest (or usury).

Some defined usury as any charging of interest (some of the Westminster Divines)

but others insisted that usury was only exorbitant interest.

Calvin argued that there were three sorts of people:

to the very poor you should give-and don't even expect to get the money back;

to those in temporary need, loan them money, but without interest;

to those who are wealthy, and are using the money as a business deal,

you may charge interest

(the standard rate was 6%-anything more was considered usury).

Many Reformed theologians and pastors were deeply concerned about this new economy.

It seemed right to them that a man should make money through using his talents,

--whether physical or intellectual-doing something productive.

Those who made money on interest, however,

were not adding anything to society.

Part of it was that they were convinced that the economic pie was only so big.

If one person gains, another person loses.

If you make shoes, then you gain money and the other person gains shoes.

That's a fair trade.

But if you charge interest, then you gain money and the other person loses money,

gaining nothing in return.

If you consider the first two categories of people:

those who are very poor, and those in temporary difficulties,

this is true.

And this is why we should give to the very poor,

and loan without interest to those in temporary difficulties.

It is theft to take advantage of the poor, and seek to make money out of their misfortune.

But business loans are of a different sort.

The borrower is seeking to make money,

or derive some similar benefit from the loan.

The simple point is that you are not to step on your brother

as a means to your economic improvement.

Israel is warned that God will not bless them if they charge interest of each other.

If you seek to make money at the expense of your brother,

God will not be pleased!

23:24-25 speaks of how to behave when you are in your neighbor's field.

You may snack on your neighbor's produce without asking.

But you may not harvest it as your own.

Now, children, what I'm about to say is true,

but we live in a culture that generally does not accept the truth,

so make sure you talk to your parents before trying to do this!

The point of this law is that the land isn't yours.

Not only is Moses a treehugger, and a bunnyhugger,

he is also pretty thoroughly anti-capitalist.

You may snack from your neighbor's vineyard because the Land belongs to God.

You may NOT take any home, however,

because God has given that harvest to your neighbor.

And likewise, the implication is that you may not fuss

about other people snacking from your crops.

The blessings of God are to be shared with others.

You may not selfishly and greedily keep them to yourself.

In our day, however, when so many of our neighbors are capitalists,

we should be polite and ask before we snack from their garden.

24:5 speaks of a different sort of theft.

You may not steal a man from his bride.

No public service could be required of a newly married man.

24:6 warns against harming a man's livelihood.

Taking a millstone in pledge would be to steal a man's life.

24:7 concludes the section where it began.

To kidnap a fellow Israelite and take him into slavery, or sell him as a slave,

is an evil beyond all other theft.

Exodus and Numbers speak of the penalties for theft.

Usually the penalty is to repay double the amount stolen,

(though more is required under certain circumstances).

But how do you repay a human life?

There is only one way-with your own.

This first section has several practical applications.

1) for the church

we should give money without expecting repayment to those in dire need

we should loan money without interest for those of limited means

(often this is done for seminary students-

some churches do this with home missions funds,

though they are given as gifts)

we should keep interest rates as low as possible

so that we are not guilty of making money at the expense of others.

2) for the state

theft should be punished in a fashion more appropriate to the crime.

The idea of double repayment would make a lot more sense than imprisonment.

In a mass society we might need large workhouses

where thieves could work off their debt,

but restitution plus should be the centerpiece of any just system.

The thief intended to do damage to this person,

but the result of his crime was to benefit them.

2) But Moses also speaks of theft against God.

23:21-23 speaks of paying your vows.

If you fail to keep your vows, you are stealing from God.

Most of us have made certain vows:

baptism (the vow is implicit in the rite-and made explicit through profession)

marriage

ordination

Other vows may take various forms.

When I was single I once vowed not to pursue a woman

unless my best friends thought it was a good idea.

If I had refrained from making that vow,

it wouldn't have been a sin to pursue a woman without their consent;

but once that vow was made,

I was bound to perform it.

Once you make a vow, you are bound to perform it.

This is why you need to be careful to avoid rash vows.

Numbers 30 speaks of such things.

Notice that women had a way out.

If they made a foolish vow,

their husband or father could annul it.

But men had no such option.

If they made a rash vow, they were bound to fulfill it.

Our Confession says in chapter 22, section 7:

VII. No man may vow to do anything forbidden in the Word of God, or what would hinder any duty therein commanded, or which is not in his own power, and for the performance whereof he hath no promise of ability from God.[15]

15. Acts 23:12-14; Mark 6:26; Num. 30:5, 8, 12-13

It cites Numbers 30:5, 8, 12-13 to prove that certain vows are null and void.

Interesting, isn't it?