The sixth commandment

Deuteronomy 24.6

“No one shall take a mill or an upper millstone in pledge, for that would be taking a life in pledge.”

Taking someone’s livelihood in pledge for a loan was absolutely forbidden. It is part of being in the image of God for me to work; thus, no one could deprive another of his vocation and means of support without, at the same time, assaulting his dignity as the image-bearer of God.

Loans were not encouraged, but, of course, they were necessary from time to time. With the loan came the pledge, usually, a physical token given to the lender as a declaration of intent to repay. But that pledge could not be of the sort that jeopardized a man’s ability to provide for himself and his family or his ability to repay his pledge, or that compromised his dignity as the image-bearer of God. Nor, if he was a Hebrew, could interest be fixed to the loan (although there is a debate about whether the issue is interest or inordinate interest, that is, usury).

This series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.ailbe.org and click on our Book Store.