The Levites have no land of their own, so you must give them food from the storehouse. You must also give food to the poor who live in your town, including orphans, widows, and foreigners. If they have enough to eat, then the Lord your God will be pleased and make you successful in everything you do.

No one in Israel should ever be poor. The Lord your God is giving you this land, and he has promised to make you very successful, if you obey his laws and teachings that I'm giving you today. You will lend money to many nations, but you won't have to borrow. You will rule many nations, but they won't rule you.

After the Lord your God gives land to each of you, there may be poor Israelites in the town where you live. If there are, then don't be mean and selfish with your money.

Be careful! Don't say to yourself, “Soon it will be the seventh year, and then I won't be able to get my money back.” It would be horrible for you to think that way and to be so selfish that you refuse to help the poor. They are your relatives, and if you don't help them, they may ask the Lord to decide whether you have done wrong. And he will say that you are guilty.

You should be happy to give the poor what they need, because then the Lord will make you successful in everything you do.

There will always be some Israelites who are poor and needy. That's why I am commanding you to be generous with them.

go to the place where the Lord chooses to be worshiped and celebrate the Harvest Festival in honor of the Lord your God. Bring him an offering as large as you can afford, depending on how big a harvest he has given you. Be sure to take along your sons and daughters and all your servants. Also invite the poor, including Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows.

The Festival of Shelters

(Leviticus 23.33-43; Numbers 29.12-38)

Moses said to Israel:

After you have finished the grain harvest and the grape harvest, take your sons and daughters and all your servants to the place where the Lord chooses to be worshiped. Celebrate the Festival of Shelters for seven days. Also invite the poor, including Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows. The Lord will give you big harvests and make you successful in everything you do. You will be completely happy, so celebrate this festival in honor of the Lord your God.

Suppose someone is so poor that a coat is the only thing that can be offered as a guarantee on a loan. Don't keep the coat overnight.

Poor People's Wages

Moses said:

If you hire poor people to work for you, don't hold back their pay, whether they are Israelites or foreigners who live in your town.

Leave Some of Your Harvest for the Poor

Moses said to Israel:

If you forget to bring in a stack of harvested grain, don't go back in the field to get it. Leave it for the poor, including foreigners, orphans, and widows, and the Lord will make you successful in everything you do.

When you harvest your olives, don't try to get them all for yourself, but leave some for the poor.

And when you pick your grapes, go over the vines only once, then let the poor have what is left.

Ten Percent of the Harvest

Moses said to Israel:

Every year you are to give ten percent of your harvest to the Lord. But every third year, this ten percent must be given to the poor who live in your town, including Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows. That way, they will have enough to eat.

Then you must pray: Our Lord and our God, you have said that ten percent of my harvest is sacred. I have obeyed your command and given this to the poor, including the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows.

The people of the Levi tribe will speak each curse in a loud voice, then the rest of the people will agree to that curse by saying, “Amen!” Here are the curses: We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who makes an idol or worships idols, even secretly. The Lord is disgusted with idols. We ask the Lord to put a curse on all who do not show respect for their father and mother. We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who moves the rocks that mark property lines. We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who tells blind people to go the wrong way. We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who keeps the poor from getting justice, whether these poor are foreigners, widows, or orphans. We ask the Lord to put a curse on any man who sleeps with his father's wife; that man has shown no respect for his father's marriage. We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who has sex with an animal. We ask the Lord to put a curse on any man who sleeps with his sister or his half sister or his mother-in-law. We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who commits murder, even when there are no witnesses to the crime. We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who accepts money to murder an innocent victim. We ask the Lord to put a curse on anyone who refuses to obey his laws. And so, to each of these curses, the people will answer, “Amen!”

Obey the laws and teachings that I'm giving you today, and the Lord your God will make Israel a leader among the nations, and not a follower. Israel will be wealthy and powerful, not poor and weak.

Foreigners in your towns will become wealthy and powerful, while you become poor and powerless.