1 At the end of every seven years thou shall make a release. 2 And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor shall release that which he has lent to his neighbor. He shall not exact it from his neighbor and his brother, because LORD's release has been proclaimed. 3 From a foreigner thou may exact it, but whatever of thine is with thy brother, thy hand shall release.
4 However there shall be no poor with thee (for LORD will surely bless thee in the land which LORD thy God gives thee for an inheritance to possess it), 5 if only thou diligently hearken to the voice of LORD thy God, to observe to do all this commandment which I command thee this day. 6 For LORD thy God will bless thee as he promised thee, and thou shall lend to many nations, but thou shall not borrow, and thou shall rule over many nations, but they shall not rule over thee.
7 If there be with thee a poor man, one of thy brothers, within any of thy gates in thy land which LORD thy God gives thee, thou shall not harden thy heart, nor shut thy hand from thy poor brother, 8 but thou shall surely open thy hand to him, and shall surely lend him sufficient for his need which he wants. 9 Beware that there not be a base thought in thy heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand, and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou give him nothing, and he cry to LORD against thee, and it be 10 Thou shall surely give him, and thy heart shall not be grieved when thou give to him, because for this thing LORD thy God will bless thee in all thy work, and in all that thou put thy hand to. 11 For the poor will never cease out of the land. Therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shall surely open thy hand to thy brother, to thy needy, and to thy poor, in thy land.
12 If thy brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to thee, and serves thee six years, then in the seventh year thou shall let him go free from thee. 13 And when thou let him go free from thee, thou shall not let him go empty. 14 Thou shall furnish him liberally out of thy flock, and out of thy threshing-floor, and out of thy winepress. As LORD thy God has blessed thee thou shall give to him. 15 And thou shall remember that thou were a bondman in the land of Egypt, and LORD thy God redeemed thee. Therefore I command thee this thing today. 16 And it shall be, if he says to thee, I will not go out from thee, because he loves thee and thy house, because he is well with thee, 17 then thou shall take an awl, and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be thy servant forever. And also to thy maid-servant thou shall do likewise. 18 It shall not seem hard to thee when thou let him go free from thee, for he has been worth a double hired servant to thee, in serving thee six years. And LORD thy God will bless thee in all that thou do.
19 All the firstling males that are born of thy herd and of thy flock thou shall sanctify to LORD thy God. Thou shall do no work with the firstling of thy herd, nor shear the firstling of thy flock. 20 Thou shall eat it before LORD thy God year by year in the place which LORD shall choose, thou and thy household. 21 And if it has any blemish, [as] lame or blind, any ill blemish whatever, thou shall not sacrifice it to LORD thy God. 22 Thou shall eat it within thy gates. The unclean [man] and the clean [man] alike, as the gazelle, and as the hart. 23 Only thou shall not eat the blood of it. Thou shall pour it out upon the ground as water.