Habakkuk: Woe to the Plunderers of the Poor!

Shall not all these take up their taunt against him, with scoffing and riddles for him, and say,
“Woe to him who heaps up what is not his own—
for how long?—
and loads himself with pledges!”
Will not your debtors suddenly arise,
and those awake who will make you tremble?
Then you will be spoil for them.
Because you have plundered many nations,
all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you,
for the blood of man and violence to the earth,
to cities and all who dwell in them.

Habakkuk 2:6-8

Habakkuk proclaims the first of his five woes. Woe to the one who takes advantage of the less fortunate!

Pledge

The word “pledge” (עַבְטִיט, avtit, elsewhere spelled avot) comes from the verb borrow/loan (avat). Deuteronomy instructs how to properly loan to others in need. “When you make your neighbor a loan of any sort, you shall not go into his house to collect (avat) his pledge (avot)” (Deuteronomy 24:10). A pledge is collateral to help guarantee the loan will be repaid. Moses’ instructions are to protect the poor from mistreatment.

He goes even further: “And if he is a poor man, you shall not sleep in his pledge (avot). You shall restore to him the pledge (avot) as the sun sets, that he may sleep in his cloak and bless you. And it shall be righteousness for you before the LORD your God” (Deuteronomy 24:12-13). If his pledge is something he needs, give it back to him when he needs to use it. This is not how our natural inclination. Nevertheless, even though it is a risky business practice, God says he is watching.

The only other place this word group is found is in Deuteronomy 15. If the people obey God, he will bless them and “you shall lend (avat in causative form) to many nations, but you shall not borrow (avat)” (Deuteronomy 15:6). I like how Hebrew has related terms. Here we can see the word avat used twice but in different ways. The people of Israel will not borrow but they will cause other nations to borrow from them (i.e. lend to them). A blessed nation is one that lends and does not borrow.

Debtors

The word “debtors” comes from the verb נָשַׁךְ (nashak), to pay/give interest or (in causative form) to charge interest. The interest charged (noun) is neshek.

The Lord instructed his people to lend to one another and to not exact interest on the loan: “You shall not charge interest (nashak causitive) on loans (neshek) to your brother, interest (neshek) on money, interest (neshek) on food, interest (neshek) on anything that is lent for interest (nashak). You may charge a foreigner interest (nashak causitive), but you may not charge your brother interest (nashak causitive), that the LORD your God may bless you in all that you undertake in the land that you are entering to take possession of it” (Deuteronomy 23:19-20).

Earlier God said, “Take no interest (neshek) from him or profit (tarbit), but fear your God, that your brother may live beside you. You shall not lend (literally “give”) him your money at interest (neshek), nor give him your food for profit (tarbit). I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God” (Leviticus 25:36-38). God expects his people to give to the poor and not profit from it. Why? God himself gave the land of Canaan to them. Just as God is generous, so we are to be generous with those in need.

Not long before the exile, God condemned his people for charging interest among a variety of sins. Through the prophet Ezekiel, he said, “you take interest (neshek) and profit (tarbit) and make gain of your neighbors by extortion” (Ezekiel 22:12). On the other hand, among the qualities of the righteous is one who “does not lend at interest (neshek) or take any profit (tarbit)” (Ezekiel 18:8).

Woe to the Profiteering Plunderer!

Looking back at Habakkuk, he condemns the one who “loads himself (literally “make heavy”) with pledges”. This is someone who takes pledges without considering others’ needs. In the end, their harsh loans will be their downfall. They had plundered nations, and so they will be plundered. What they had done will come back to bite them.

Whoever multiplies his wealth by interest (neshek) and profit (tarbit)
gathers it for him who is generous to the poor.

Proverbs 28:8

To Ponder…

How does our culture denigrate and take advantage of the poor? How can we help the poor by lifting them up rather than lifting ourselves up? What are ways you be more generous?

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