What does the command about a runaway servant mean?

The command about a runaway servant tells Israel not to send back a servant who has escaped to them from a harsh master. Instead, the servant is to be allowed to live among them in whatever town he chooses, without being oppressed. This protects people who are being treated cruelly and gives them a safe place. It also hints that those who come into Israel should be welcomed into a life that honors God, not pushed back into violent or idolatrous situations.

Why does this passage forbid prostitutes and certain offerings?

The passage says there must not be a daughter of Israel who is a prostitute or a son who practices that kind of sin. It also says their earnings, and the price of a “dog,” likely meaning male prostitution, must never be brought to God’s house as an offering. The point is that God’s people are to be sexually pure, and worship must be clean. God does not want money gained through open sin used in his service, because that mixes evil gain with holy things and shows a double life.

Why were Israelites not to charge interest to a brother?

Israelites were told not to charge interest on loans to a “brother,” meaning a fellow Israelite. They were not to profit from someone else’s need. This encouraged kindness and family‑like care inside the covenant people. They were allowed to charge interest to a foreigner, which shows a different economic relationship. God promised to bless them in the land as they treated one another with generosity instead of trying to squeeze more out of each other when someone was in trouble.

What does this passage teach about making vows to God?

The passage teaches that if you make a vow to God, you must not delay to keep it, because God will require it and it becomes sin if you refuse. At the same time, it says that if you choose not to vow, you are not sinning. Promises to God are voluntary, but once spoken they must be carried out. Even freewill offerings fall under this. The simple point is that your word to God should be honest and careful, not rushed, and never taken lightly.

Why could people eat from a neighbor’s vineyard or field?

The law allowed someone walking through a neighbor’s vineyard to eat grapes as much as they wanted, and to pluck grain by hand from a neighbor’s field. But they were not allowed to put grapes into a container or use a sickle on the grain. This balanced kindness and property rights. A traveler or worker could satisfy hunger freely, but could not take home a harvest or damage the crop. It taught generosity to the hungry and respect for another person’s livelihood at the same time.

What does this passage show about God’s view of justice and mercy?

These verses show that God cares about both justice and mercy in everyday life. He protects the oppressed runaway servant, rejects sexual practices tied to idolatry, forbids trying to buy favor with dirty money, and tells his people not to profit from each other’s hardship through interest. He also insists that promises to him be kept and that people share food in a fair way. Justice here is not just court decisions, but how people treat each other in money, sex, promises, and daily needs.

How can these laws about usury and fields apply today?

The details belong to ancient Israel, but the heart of the laws still speaks. The ban on interest toward a brother reminds us not to take advantage of someone who is struggling, especially within the family of faith. The rules about vineyards and grain show that it is good to be generous to those in need while still respecting personal property. Today that can mean fair lending, honest business, open‑handed sharing, and setting wise limits so kindness does not turn into abuse.

Why is the wording about strangers and interest sometimes seen as difficult?

Some readers find it hard that interest is banned toward a brother but allowed toward a stranger. This has been understood in more than one way. Many see it as God drawing a line between family‑like care inside Israel and normal business relations with outsiders. Others wonder how this fits with loving the outsider too. What is clear is that God wants his people to treat each other with special mercy, and any use of this verse should not excuse hardness of heart toward others.

Deut.23.15

Deuteronomy 23:15

KJV

¶ Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant which is escaped from his master unto thee:

Miscellaneous Laws

¶ Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant which is escaped from his master unto thee:

He shall dwell with thee, even among you, in that place which he shall choose in one of thy gates, where it liketh him best: thou shalt not oppress him.

¶ There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel.

Thou shalt not bring the hire of a whore, or the price of a dog, into the house of the Lord thy God for any vow: for even both these are abomination unto the Lord thy God.

¶ Thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother; usury of money, usury of victuals, usury of any thing that is lent upon usury:

Unto a stranger thou mayest lend upon usury; but unto thy brother thou shalt not lend upon usury: that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all that thou settest thine hand to in the land whither thou goest to possess it.

¶ When thou shalt vow a vow unto the Lord thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the Lord thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee.

But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee.

That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the Lord thy God, which thou hast promised with thy mouth.

¶ When thou comest into thy neighbour’s vineyard, then thou mayest eat grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure; but thou shalt not put any in thy vessel.

When thou comest into the standing corn of thy neighbour, then thou mayest pluck the ears with thine hand; but thou shalt not move a sickle unto thy neighbour’s standing corn.

Cross References

No cross references available for this verse.