| King James Bible | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. | 1At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. |
| 2And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbour shall release it; he shall not exact it of his neighbour, or of his brother; because it is called the LORD'S release. | 2This is how to cancel debt: Every creditor is to cancel what he has lent his neighbor. He is not to collect anything from his neighbor or brother, because the LORD's release of debts has been proclaimed. |
| 3Of a foreigner thou mayest exact it again: but that which is thine with thy brother thine hand shall release; | 3You may collect something from a foreigner, but you must forgive whatever your brother owes you." |
| 4Save when there shall be no poor among you; for the LORD shall greatly bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to possess it: | 4There will be no poor among you, however, because the LORD is certain to bless you in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance-- |
| 5Only if thou carefully hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all these commandments which I command thee this day. | 5if only you obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow every one of these commands I am giving you today. |
| 6For the LORD thy God blesseth thee, as he promised thee: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow; and thou shalt reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over thee. | 6When the LORD your God blesses you as He has promised you, you will lend to many nations but not borrow; you will rule over many nations, but they will not rule over you." |
| 7If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: | 7If there is a poor person among you, one of your brothers within any of your gates in the land the LORD your God is giving you, you must not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. |
| 8But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth. | 8Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him enough for whatever need he has. |
| 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 the LORD against thee, and it be sin unto thee. | 9Be careful that there isn't this wicked thought in your heart, 'The seventh year, the year of canceling debts, is near,' and you are stingy toward your poor brother and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty. |
| 10Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto. | 10Give to him, and don't have a stingy heart when you give, and because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you do. |
| 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. | 11For there will never cease to be poor people in the land; that is why I am commanding you, 'You must willingly open your hand to your afflicted and poor brother in your 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. | 12If your fellow Hebrew, a man or woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, you must set him free in the seventh year. |
| 13And when thou sendest him out free from thee, thou shalt not let him go away empty: | 13When you set him free, do not send him away empty-handed. |
| 14Thou shalt furnish him liberally out of thy flock, and out of thy floor, and out of thy winepress: of that wherewith the LORD thy God hath blessed thee thou shalt give unto him. | 14Give generously to him from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. You are to give him whatever the LORD your God has blessed you with. |
| 15And 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. | 15Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and the LORD your God redeemed you; that is why I am giving you this command today. |
| 16And it shall be, if he say unto thee, I will not go away from thee; because he loveth thee and thine house, because he is well with thee; | 16But if your slave says to you, 'I don't want to leave you,' because he loves you and your family, and is well off with you, |
| 17Then thou shalt take an aul, and thrust it through his ear unto the door, and he shall be thy servant for ever. And also unto thy maidservant thou shalt do likewise. | 17take an awl and pierce through his ear into the door, and he will become your slave for life. Also treat your female slave the same way. |
| 18It shall not seem hard unto thee, when thou sendest him away free from thee; for he hath been worth a double hired servant to thee, in serving thee six years: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all that thou doest. | 18Do not regard it as a hardship when you set him free, because he worked for you six years--worth twice the wages of a hired hand. Then the LORD your God will bless you in everything you do." |
| 19All the firstling males that come of thy herd and of thy flock thou shalt sanctify unto the LORD thy God: thou shalt do no work with the firstling of thy bullock, nor shear the firstling of thy sheep. | 19You must consecrate to the LORD your God every firstborn male produced by your herd and flock. You are not to put the firstborn of your oxen to work or shear the firstborn of your flock. |
| 20Thou shalt eat it before the LORD thy God year by year in the place which the LORD shall choose, thou and thy household. | 20Each year you and your family are to eat it before the LORD your God in the place the LORD chooses. |
| 21And if there be any blemish therein, as if it be lame, or blind, or have any ill blemish, thou shalt not sacrifice it unto the LORD thy God. | 21But if there is a defect in the animal, if it is lame or blind or has any serious defect, you must not sacrifice it to the LORD your God. |
| 22Thou shalt eat it within thy gates: the unclean and the clean person shall eat it alike, as the roebuck, and as the hart. | 22Eat it within your gates; both the unclean person and the clean may eat it, as though it were a gazelle or deer. |
| 23Only thou shalt not eat the blood thereof; thou shalt pour it upon the ground as water. | 23But you must not eat its blood; pour it on the ground like water." |
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