Deuteronomy 15:6

15:6 You will lend money to many nations: An obedient Israel would become an affluent nation able to provide international aid. This bounty would bear testimony to God’s promise to Abraham that his seed would be a blessing to all nations (Gen 12:2-3; 17:4-6; 26:3-4).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

(6) As he promised thee.—“1 will bless thee” was said to Abram (Gen_12:2).

Thou Shalt lend.—The root of the word in Hebrew is closely connected with the word for “slave.” “The borrower is servant to the lender” (Pro_22:7).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6. will bless thee] Heb. is stronger, shall have blessed thee.

thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow] Heb. shalt take, but shalt not give, pledges; cp. 8, Deu_24:10-13. This promise of a large foreign commerce, repeated Deu_28:12 f. (with the contrast in 43 f.) is peculiar to D among the codes of Israel. It covers, of course, not only the lending of money and bullion (banking proper), but the sale of goods on credit at interest, to other nations. Such a foreign trade appears to have flourished with great profit both to Judah and Israel under the long contemporary reigns of Uzziah and Jeroboam II (Isa_2:7; Hos_12:7). There was large commerce with foreigners under Manasseh: cp. Ezekiel’s name for Jerusalem, the gate of the peoples (Deu_26:2, LXX), and the king of Persia’s refusal to allow the walls of Jerusalem to be rebuilt lest her former power of exacting tolls and customs should revive (Ezr_4:20). It is striking, however, that the fulfilment of D’s promise was most fully realised not while Israel remained on their own land but after their dispersion among the nations, from the Greek period onwards. Strabo’s words (quoted in Jos. XIV. Antt. vii. 2) are a remarkable acknowledgement of the political as well as financial superiority foreseen by D for Israel: ‘These Jews have penetrated to every city and it would not be easy to find a single place in the inhabited world which has not received this race, and where it has not become master.’ See further Jerusalem, i. 370 f., ii. 193 f., 392 ff.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

For the Lord thy God blesseth thee, as he promised thee,.... He is faithful that has promised, and he always gives the blessing he promises according to the nature of the promise; if absolute, and without conditions, he gives it without respect to any; but if conditional, as the promises of temporal good things to Israel were, he gives according as the condition is performed:

and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shall not borrow; signifying they should be so rich and increased in goods, and worldly substance, that they should be able to lend to their neighbouring nations round about, but should stand in no need of borrowing of any of them. This is sometimes said of the language of these people, the Hebrew language, that it lends to all, but borrows of none, being an original primitive language; see Deu 28:12.

and thou shalt reign over many nations: which was fulfilled in the times of David and Solomon:

but they shall not reign over thee; that is, as long as they observed the commands of God; otherwise, when they did not, they were carried captive into other countries, and other people reigned over them, as at this day.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Lend. The Jews give a wrong interpretation to this passage, to authorize usury with regard to strangers. But God can never sanction injustice. He promises such riches to his people, if they be faithful, that they shall be in a condition to lend to many, without wanting themselves. (Calmet) --- Over thee. Hence the Jews submitted to a foreign yoke with so much reluctance. But they should have remembered to keep God’s law. (Haydock)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Thou shalt lend unto many; thou shalt be rich and able to lend not only to thy poor brother, but even to strangers of other nations, yea, to many of them.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

כאשר דבר לך [FOR THE LORD GOD BLESSETH THEE] AS HE PROMISED THEE — and where did He promise you this? In the statement, (Deuteronomy 28:3—12) “Blessed shalt thou be in the city, etc.” (Sifrei Devarim 116:1).

והעבטת AND THOU SHALT LEND ON PLEDGE — In the case of every term that denotes transacting a loan when it refers to the lender, the Hiphil form is appropriate to it (to cause a person to do something: here, “you will make many people to be borrowers” i.e. you will lend to them), as for instance, והעבטת, והלוית; while if it stated וְעָבַטְתָּ (in the Kal), it would apply to the borrower, meaning “thou wilt borrow on pledge”, the same as ולוית (“and thou will borrow”, which in Kal refers to the borrower).

והעבטת גוים AND THOU SHALT LEND ON PLEDGE UNTO [MANY] NATIONS — One might think that you might do this in that you will borrow from one nation and lend to another! Scripture, however, states, “but you shall not borrow” (Sifrei Devarim 116:2).

ומשלת בגוים רבים AND THOU SHALT RULE OVER MANY NATIONS — One might think that at the very same time other nations will be ruling over you! Scripture, however, states, “but they shall not rule over you (Sifrei Devarim 116:3).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.