Borrow

Borrowing in the Old Testament was regulated by the covenant community's obligations of mutual care. The law prohibited charging interest on loans to fellow Israelites (Ex. 22:25; Lev. 25:36–37; Deut. 23:19–20), and Deuteronomy 15:6 envisioned Israel as a lending rather than borrowing nation, enjoying covenant blessing. Psalm 37:21 identifies the wicked as those who borrow and do not repay, contrasting them with the righteous who are generous and give.

The most significant biblical “borrowing” episode is Israel's request of the Egyptians for silver, gold, and clothing upon the Exodus (Ex. 12:35–36). The Hebrew verb (sha'al) more precisely means “to ask” rather than “to borrow with intent to repay,” and the Revised Version renders it accordingly. This transaction, understood as God's provision of back-wages from their Egyptian masters after generations of unpaid labor, fulfilled the promise made to Abraham that his descendants would leave their place of affliction with great possessions (Gen. 15:14).