Deuteronomy 15

1 At the end of seven years, shalt thou make a release.

You are to cancel debts the end of every seven years.

2 And, this, shall be the manner of the release, Every creditor who lendeth aught to his neighbour, his hand shall release it, —he shall not exact it of his neighbour or his brother, because there hath been proclaimed a release unto Yahweh.

This is the way the it will work: If you provided a loan to someone you must cancel it. You are not allowed to collect anything from another Israelite, because the Lord's time of debt cancelation has been announced.

3 Of a foreigner, thou mayest exact it, —but, what thou hast with thy brother, thy hand shall release;

You are allowed to collect payments from a foreigner, but you must cancel whatever your fellow Israelite owes you.

4 save, when there shall be among you no needy person, —for Yahweh will indeed bless, thee, in the land which Yahweh thy God is giving unto thee as an inheritance to possess it:

However, you shouldn't have poor people among you, for the Lord will really bless you in the country that the Lord your God is giving you to own.

5 only if thou do hearken unto the voice of Yahweh thy God, —to observe to do—all this commandment which I am commanding thee to-day.

You just need to make sure you obey the Lord your God, and that you're careful to follow all these commandments I'm giving you today.

6 When, Yahweh thy God, hath blessed thee, as he spake unto thee, then shalt thou lend unto many nations but thou, shalt not borrow, and, thou shalt rule over many nations but over thee, shall they not rule.

The Lord your God is going to bless you as he promised. You will lend money to many nations but you won't need to borrow from any of them; you will rule over many nations but you won't be ruled by them.

7 When there cometh to be among you a needy person any one of thy brethren within any one of thy gates, in thy land, which Yahweh thy God is giving unto thee, thou shalt not harden thy heart nor shut thy hand from thy needy brother;

If there are Israelites who are poor in any of your towns in the country the Lord your God is giving you, then you must not be unfeeling or miserly towards them.

8 but thou shalt, open, thy hand unto him, —and, lend, him enough to meet the poverty which doth impoverish him.

On the contrary. You should be generous to them, and lend them whatever they need.

9 Take thou heed to thyself lest there be something near thine abandoned heart, saying—Drawing nigh, is the seventh year the year of release, and so thine eye be evil, against thy needy brother, and thou give not unto him, —and he cry out against thee unto Yahweh, and it become in thee a sin!

Make sure you don't think evil thoughts like, “The seventh year is coming up when debts will be canceled,” so that you look down on the poor with a sneer and refuse to give them anything. They will complain to the Lord about you, and you will be found guilty of sin.

10 Thou shalt, give, unto him, and thy heart shall not be evil when thou givest unto him, —for on account of this very thing, will Yahweh thy God bless thee, in all that thou doest and in all whereunto thou puttest thy hand.

Give and give again to them, and don't feel irritated when you give. When you give generously the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you decide to do.

11 For the needy will not cease out of the midst of the land—for this cause, am I commanding thee, saying, Thou shalt open, thy hand unto thy brother to thy poor and to thy needy, in thy land.

You will always have those who are poor and in need among you, so that's why I'm telling you to give generously to them.

12 When thy brother a Hebrew man (or a Hebrew woman) selleth himself unto thee, then shall he serve thee six years, —and in the seventh year, shalt thou let him go out free from thee;

If a Hebrew, one of your own people, whether man or woman, sells themselves to you as a slave and works for you for six years, you have to free them in the seventh year.

13 and when thou lettest him go out free, from thee, thou shalt not let him go out empty:

And when you free them, don't send them away with nothing.

14 thou shalt, richly load, him out of thy flock, and out of thy threshing-floor and out of thy wine-vat, —of that wherewith Yahweh thy God hath blessed thee, shalt thou give unto him;

Give them plenty of gifts: animals from your flocks, grain from your threshing floor, and wine from your winepress. Give to them as generously as the Lord your God has blessed you.

15 and thou shalt remember that a servant, thou wast in the land of Egypt, and that Yahweh thy God, redeemed thee, —for this cause, am I commanding thee this thing, to-day.

Don't forget that you were once slaves in Egypt, and the Lord your God set you free. That's why I'm giving you this command today.

16 And it shall be, if he shall say unto thee, I will not go away from thee, —because he loveth thee, and thy household, because he is well off with thee,

However, if your male slave tells you, “I don't want to leave you,” because he loves you and your family and is better off staying with you,

17 then shalt thou take an awl and thrust it through his ear unto the door, so shall he be thy servant all his life. And unto thine handmaid also, shalt thou do thus.

then use a metal tool to pierce his ear against the door, and he will be your slave for life. Do the same for your female slave.

18 It shall not be hard in thine eyes when thou lettest him go out free, from thee; for to the double of the hire of a hireling, hath he served thee six years, —so will Yahweh thy God bless thee, in all that thou doest.

Don't see it as a problem to free your slave, because your slave's six years of service to you was worth twice what you would have paid to hire someone. The Lord your God will bless you in everything you do for acting in this way.

19 Every firstling that is brought forth in thy herd and in thy flock that is a male, shalt thou hallow unto Yahweh thy God, —thou shalt not work with a firstling of thine oxen, neither shalt thou shear a firstling of thy flock:

You are to separate out to give the Lord your God all the firstborn males of your herds and flocks. You must not have the firstborn of your cattle work, and don't shear the firstborn of your sheep.

20 before Yahweh thy God, shalt thou eat it year by year, in the place which Yahweh shall choose, —thou, and thy household.

Every year you and your family are to eat these animals that have been sacrificed in the presence of the Lord your God in the place that the Lord will choose.

21 But, when there is in it any blemish, lameness or blindness, any ill blemish, thou shalt not sacrifice it unto Yahweh thy God:

However, if an animal has some defect or is lame or blind, in fact if it has any serious defect at all, you are not to sacrifice it to the Lord your God.

22 within thine own gates, mayest thou eat it, —the unclean of you and the clean alike, as the gazelle and as the hart.

Eat it at home. All of you, whether you're ceremonially clean or not, can it eat it just like you would eat a gazelle or a deer,

23 Only the blood thereof, shalt thou not eat, —on the earth, shalt thou pour it out like water.

but you are not to eat the blood—pour that out on the ground.