Leviticus 25:33–36

¹THE priests the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi, shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and his inheritance.

²Therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the Lord is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.

²⁰¶ And the Lord spake unto Aaron, Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel.

²¹And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.

²²Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the congregation, lest they bear sin, and die.

²³But the Levites shall do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they shall bear their iniquity: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they have no inheritance.

²⁴But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering unto the Lord, I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said unto them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

³⁶And Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, The son of consolation,) a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus,

³⁷Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

²³¶ The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine; for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.

²Command the children of Israel, that they give unto the Levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and ye shall give also unto the Levites suburbs for the cities round about them.

³And the cities shall they have to dwell in; and the suburbs of them shall be for their cattle, and for their goods, and for all their beasts.

⁴And the suburbs of the cities, which ye shall give unto the Levites, shall reach from the wall of the city and outward a thousand cubits round about.

⁵And ye shall measure from without the city on the east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits; and the city shall be in the midst: this shall be to them the suburbs of the cities.

⁷¶ If 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:

⁸But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.

²⁹Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judæa:

¹⁸He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment.

¹⁹Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

⁹¶ Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

³⁴But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

²⁵¶ If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother sold.

³⁵But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

¹⁷But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?

¹⁴¶ Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates:

¹⁵At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the Lord, and it be sin unto thee.

³¹He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor.

⁵A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion.

⁹He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor; his righteousness endureth for ever; his horn shall be exalted with honour.

²⁶He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.

¹BLESSED is he that considereth the poor: the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.

⁹For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.

¹FOR as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you:

¹²For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God;

¹³Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men;

¹⁴And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God in you.

¹⁵Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.

¹⁰Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.

²Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

⁵Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

⁶But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?

⁸For the poor always ye have with you; but me ye have not always.

⁷For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.

³⁵For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

²⁰The poor is hated even of his own neighbour: but the rich hath many friends.

²¹He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.

⁵Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his Maker: and he that is glad at calamities shall not be unpunished.

¹⁷He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.

¹³Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.

¹⁸If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

²⁰Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

²⁵¶ If thou lend money to any of my people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury.

¹⁹¶ Thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother; usury of money, usury of victuals, usury of any thing that is lent upon usury:

²⁰Unto 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.

⁸He that hath not given forth upon usury, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, hath executed true judgment between man and man,

¹³Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him.

¹⁷That hath taken off his hand from the poor, that hath not received usury nor increase, hath executed my judgments, hath walked in my statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live.

¹⁷Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt fear thy God: for I am the Lord your God.

¹²In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord God.

¹⁵But the former governors that had been before me were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God.

⁷Then I consulted with myself, and I rebuked the nobles, and the rulers, and said unto them, Ye exact usury, every one of his brother. And I set a great assembly against them.

⁸And I said unto them, We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, which were sold unto the heathen; and will ye even sell your brethren? or shall they be sold unto us? Then held they their peace, and found nothing to answer.

⁹Also I said, It is not good that ye do: ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies?

¹⁰I likewise, and my brethren, and my servants, might exact of them money and corn: I pray you, let us leave off this usury.

⁸He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.

⁵He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.