Leviticus 25:47

New Century Version

"‘Suppose a foreigner or visitor among you becomes rich. If someone in your country becomes so poor that he has to sell himself as a slave to the foreigner living among you or to a member of the foreigner's family,

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
If a stranger or sojourner with you has grown rich, and your brother has grown poor beside him, and sell himself to the stranger [or] sojourner with you, or to the stock of the stranger's family;

King James Version
And if a sojourner or stranger wax rich by thee, and thy brother that dwelleth by him wax poor, and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner by thee, or to the stock of the stranger's family:

Lexham English Bible
"‘And if the alien or the temporary resident who are with you prosper, but your countryman who is with him becomes poor and he is sold to an alien, a temporary resident who is with you, or to a descendant of an alien's clan,

New English Translation
"‘If a resident foreigner who is with you prospers and your brother becomes impoverished with regard to him so that he sells himself to a resident foreigner who is with you or to a member of a foreigner's family,

Amplified Bible
'Now if the financial means of a stranger or temporary resident among you become sufficient, and your fellow countryman becomes poor in comparison to him and sells himself to the stranger who is living among you or to the descendants of the stranger's family,

New American Standard Bible
'Now if the means of a stranger or of a foreign resident with you becomes sufficient, and a countryman of yours becomes poor in relation to him and sells himself to a stranger who is residing with you, or to the descendants of a stranger's family,

Geneva Bible (1587)
If a soiourner or a stranger dwelling by thee get riches, & thy brother by him be impouerished, and sell him selfe vnto the stranger or soiourner dwelling by thee, or to the stocke of the strangers familie,

Legacy Standard Bible
‘Now if the means of a sojourner or of a foreign resident with you becomes sufficient, and a brother of yours becomes so poor with regard to him as to sell himself to a sojourner who resides with you or to the descendants of a sojourner's family,

Contemporary English Version
Even if some of you Israelites become so much in debt that you must sell yourselves to foreigners in your country,

Complete Jewish Bible
(LY: vii) "‘If a foreigner living with you has grown rich, and a member of your people has become poor and sells himself to this foreigner living with you or to a member of the foreigner's family,

Darby Translation
And if a stranger or sojourner become wealthy beside thee, and thy brother beside him grow poor, and sell himself unto the stranger, who is settled by thee, or to a scion of the stranger's family,

Easy-to-Read Version
"Maybe a foreigner or visitor among you becomes rich. Or maybe someone from your own country becomes so poor that they sell themselves as slaves to a foreigner living among you or to a member of a foreigner's family.

English Standard Version
"If a stranger or sojourner with you becomes rich, and your brother beside him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner with you or to a member of the stranger's clan,

George Lamsa Translation
And if a sojourner or stranger who dwells with you becomes rich, and your brother who dwells with him becomes poor and is sold to the stranger or sojourner who dwells with you or to a native born of the strangers family who dwells with you,

Good News Translation
Suppose a foreigner living with you becomes rich, while some Israelites become poor and sell themselves as slaves to that foreigner or to a member of that foreigner's family.

Christian Standard Bible®
“If an alien or temporary resident living among you prospers, but your brother living near him becomes destitute and sells himself to the alien living among you, or to a member of the resident alien’s clan,

Literal Translation
And if an alien or a tenant lifts up a hand with you, and your brother grows poor with him, and he sells himself to an alien, a tenant with you, or to the offshoot of the family of an alien,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Whan a straunger or soiourner waxeth ryche by the, and thy brother waxeth poore besyde him, & selleth him self vnto ye straunger or soiourner by the, or to eny of his kynne, then shall he haue right

American Standard Version
And if a stranger or sojourner with thee be waxed rich, and thy brother be waxed poor beside him, and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner with thee, or to the stock of the stranger's family;

Bible in Basic English
And if one from another nation living among you gets wealth, and your countryman, at his side, becomes poor and gives himself for money to the man from another nation or to one of his family;

Bishop's Bible (1568)
If a soiourner or straunger waxe riche by thee, and thy brother that dwelleth by hym waxe poore, and sell hym selfe vnto the straunger or soiourner by thee, or to the stocke of the straungers kinne:

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And if a stranger who is a settler with thee be waxen rich, and thy brother be waxen poor beside him, and sell himself unto the stranger who is a settler with thee, or to the offshoot of a stranger's family,

King James Version (1611)
And if a soiourner or stranger waxe rich by thee, and thy brother that dwelleth by him waxe poore, and sell himselfe vnto the stranger or soiourner by thee, or to the stocke of the strangers family:

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And if a stranger or sojourner with thee wax rich, and thy brother in distress be sold to the stranger or the sojourner that is with thee, or to a proselyte by extraction;

English Revised Version
And if a stranger or sojourner with thee be waxen rich, and thy brother be waxen poor beside him, and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner with thee, or to the stock of the stranger's family:

Berean Standard Bible
If a foreigner or temporary resident living among you prospers, but your brother dwelling near him becomes poor and sells himself to the foreigner or to a member of his clan,

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
If the hond of a comelyng and of a pilgrim wexith strong at you, and thi brother is maad pore, and sillith hym silf to hym,

Young's Literal Translation
`And when the hand of a sojourner or settler with thee attaineth [riches], and thy brother with him hath become poor, and he hath been sold to a sojourner, a settler with thee, or to the root of the family of a sojourner,

Update Bible Version
And if a stranger [who is a] sojourner with you is waxed rich, and your brother is waxed poor beside him, and sells himself to a stranger [who is a] sojourner with you, or to the stock of the stranger's family;

Webster's Bible Translation
And if a sojourner or a stranger shall become rich by thee, and thy brother [that dwelleth] by him shall become poor, and sell himself to the stranger [or] sojourner by thee, or to the stock of the stranger's family:

World English Bible
If a stranger or sojourner with you has grown rich, and your brother has grown poor beside him, and sell himself to the stranger [or] sojourner with you, or to the stock of the stranger's family;

New King James Version
"Now if a sojourner or stranger close to you becomes rich, and one of your brethren who dwells by him becomes poor, and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner close to you, or to a member of the stranger's family,

New Living Translation
"Suppose a foreigner or temporary resident becomes rich while living among you. If any of your fellow Israelites fall into poverty and are forced to sell themselves to such a foreigner or to a member of his family,

New Life Bible
‘Now a stranger or one visiting you may become rich. And your brother may become so poor that he sells himself to a stranger living among you, or to the children of a stranger's family.

New Revised Standard
If resident aliens among you prosper, and if any of your kin fall into difficulty with one of them and sell themselves to an alien, or to a branch of the alien's family,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, when the hand of the sojourner and settler with thee getteth possessions, and thy brother with him, waxeth poor, - and so he selleth himself to the sojourner who is a settler with thee, or to one who hath taken root, of the family of the sojourner,

Douay-Rheims Bible
If the hand of a stranger or a sojourner grow strong among you, and thy brother being impoverished sell himself to him, or to any of his race:

Revised Standard Version
"If a stranger or sojourner with you becomes rich, and your brother beside him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner with you, or to a member of the stranger's family,

THE MESSAGE
"If a foreigner or temporary resident among you becomes rich and one of your brothers becomes poor and sells himself to the foreigner who lives among you or to a member of the foreigner's clan, he still has the right of redemption after he has sold himself. One of his relatives may buy him back. An uncle or cousin or any close relative of his extended family may redeem him. Or, if he gets the money together, he can redeem himself. What happens then is that he and his owner count out the time from the year he sold himself to the year of Jubilee; the buy-back price is set according to the wages of a hired hand for that number of years. If many years remain before the Jubilee, he must pay back a larger share of his purchase price, but if only a few years remain until the Jubilee, he is to calculate his redemption price accordingly. He is to be treated as a man hired from year to year. You must make sure that his owner does not tyrannize him.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
'Now if the means of a stranger or of a sojourner with you becomes sufficient, and a countryman of yours becomes so poor with regard to him as to sell himself to a stranger who is sojourning with you, or to the descendants of a stranger's family,

Contextual Overview

³⁹ "‘If anyone from your country becomes very poor and sells himself as a slave to you, you must not make him work like a slave. ⁴⁰ He will be like a hired worker and a visitor with you until the year of Jubilee. ⁴¹ Then he may leave you, take his children, and go back to his family and the land of his ancestors. ⁴² This is because the Israelites are my servants, and I brought them out of slavery in Egypt. They must not become slaves again. ⁴³ You must not rule this person cruelly, but you must respect your God. ⁴⁴ "‘Your men and women slaves must come from other nations around you; from them you may buy slaves. ⁴⁵ Also you may buy as slaves children from the families of foreigners living in your land. These child slaves will belong to you, ⁴⁶ and you may even pass them on to your children after you die; you can make them slaves forever. But you must not rule cruelly over your own people, the Israelites. ⁴⁷ "‘Suppose a foreigner or visitor among you becomes rich. If someone in your country becomes so poor that he has to sell himself as a slave to the foreigner living among you or to a member of the foreigner's family, ⁴⁸ the poor person has the right to be bought back and become free. One of his relatives may buy him back:

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

sojourner or stranger wax rich: Heb. the hand of a stranger, etc. obtain, etc. Leviticus 25:26, 1 Samuel 2:7, 1 Samuel 2:8, James 2:5

Reciprocal: Nehemiah 5:8 - redeemed

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And if a sojourner or stranger wax rich by thee,.... An uncircumcised one, as the Targums, a proselyte of the gate, who by living among and trading with the Israelites, might grow rich and wealthy in money, at least so as to be able to purchase an Hebrew servant, though not his lands, which he might not buy:

and thy brother [that dwelleth] by him wax poor; comes into low circumstances, and is reduced to great poverty, even extreme poverty; for only in such a case might he sell himself to an Israelite, and much less to a stranger, if this was not the case. Jarchi suggests, as in the phrase, "by thee", points at the cause or occasion of the sojourner or stranger becoming rich, his nearness unto, or cleaving to all Israelite; and so here the phrase, "by him", directs to the cause or occasion of the Israelite's becoming poor, his being near and cleaving to the sojourner or stranger: but they seem rather to be used, to show the reason of the poor Israelite falling into the hands of a rich sojourner; they being near neighbours to one another, and having a familiarity, the following bargain is struck between them:

and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner thee; the uncircumcised sojourner, as the Targum of Jonathan:

or to the stock of a stranger's family; or "root" a, one that sprung from a family, originally proselytes; which some understand of one, who though he be descended from such a family, was now rooted among the people of God, and incorporated into the commonwealth of Israel; and yet such an one could not detain an Hebrew servant longer than the year of jubilee: but the Jewish writers generally interpret it of an idolater b.

a לעקר "radici", Vatablus, Piscator. b Targum Onk. Jon. Jarchi & Ben Melech, in loc. Kimchi in Sepher Shorash, rad. עקר.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

A sojourner or stranger - Rather, a foreigner who has settled among you. See Leviticus 16:29, note; Exodus 20:10, note.

Leviticus 25:54

In these years - More properly, by one of these means. The extreme period of servitude in this case was six years, as when the master was a Hebrew Exodus 21:2.

Looking at the law of the Jubilee from a simply practical point of view, its operation must have tended to remedy those evils which are always growing up in the ordinary conditions of human society. It prevented the permanent accumulation of land in the hands of a few, and periodically raised those whom fault or misfortune had sunk into poverty to a position of competency. It must also have tended to keep alive family feeling, and helped to preserve the family genealogies.

But in its more special character, as a law given by Yahweh to His special people, it was a standing lesson to those who would rightly regard it, on the terms upon which the enjoyment of the land of promise had been conferred upon them. All the land belonged to Yahweh as its supreme Lord, every Israelite as His vassal belonged to Him. The voice of the Jubilee horns, twice in every century, proclaimed the equitable and beneficent social order appointed for the people; they sounded that acceptable year of Yahweh which was to bring comfort to all that mourned, in which the slavery of sin was to be abolished, and the true liberty of God’s children was to be proclaimed Luke 2:25; Isaiah 61:2; Luke 4:19; Acts 3:21; Romans 8:19-23; 1 Peter 1:3-4.