And if the man be needy, thou shalt not lie down with his pledge;
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
in any case thou shalt return him the pledge at the going down of the sun, that he may sleep in his own upper garment and bless thee; and it shall be righteousness unto thee before Jehovah thy God.
Deuteronomy 24:13 closes a short law about lending: hold a poor neighbour's cloak as security, and you must hand it back before dark. The verse ties three things together — his sleep, his blessing on you, and a righteousness God Himself counts.
The pledge in view was not a spare possession.
The other main garment was the simlah, a cloak or wide outer mantle, worn by men and women, and the one they wrapped themselves in at night. It might be of any material, depending on the season and on the wearer's position in life. If someone took this garment in pledge, he had to return it in the evening, for without it "in what else shall he sleep?"
Take it away overnight and the loss is not inconvenience but exposure.
The sun has gone down. The chill of midnight creeps over his sleeping form, his needed rest is disturbed, and his health is endangered. His skin needs a covering and warmth from outside. Now where can he find this if the garment is pledged and kept? Nowhere.
The law does not cancel the debt or forbid security. It limits the creditor on two sides: how he takes the pledge, and how long he keeps it.
The pledge is again limited: the creditor must not force his way into the debtor's house to get it. And if it is something the debtor can spare only for the day, the creditor must return it by nightfall.
One writer, commenting on the same rule in Exodus, names the principle behind it.
If a borrower gave his garment as security, the lender must not keep it even overnight. My righteous demands must in no way take priority over proper compassion.
The verse promises the lender something: the debtor will bless him. One writer notes what else such kindness gains.
Giving the pledge back for the night was proper consideration, and by it the friendship of another is gained.
The closing clause sounds strange to modern ears — mercy counted as righteousness. Yet that is how Scripture speaks about giving to the poor.
Giving to the poor was a righteous thing to do, and so it is called righteousness. The law made provision for the poor. It says that there would always be poor people in the land. If no one relieved them and they cried to the Lord, it would be counted a sin against those who should have helped them.
And what looks like money lost is, in God's reckoning, money placed with the safest borrower there is.
"Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD," as He is pleased to count it, "and he will repay him for his deed." What security can match this? Think too of the honour of being creditor to Him!
One writer links Jesus' words about a lawsuit over clothing back to this rule.
"And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well." Here we see that the Lord does not allow different rules for public life and for private life. The law forbade keeping a poor debtor's cloak overnight as a pledge. The debtor had to get his cloak back so that he might have a covering for the night (Ex. 22:26; Deut. 24:12–13). This is probably what the Lord Jesus was referring to. He tells His disciples not to resist, and to give even more than what is demanded. This is grace.
Notice what God makes a law about here: what a poor man sleeps under at night.
Touches like this remind us how detailed God's regard is. They show how deep His gracious consideration is for the small things of our life.
- Cloak. The pledge was the poor man's only covering — his coat by day, his blanket by night. Keeping it overnight put his rest and his health at risk.
- Limit. A creditor kept his rights but lost his leverage. He could not force his way into the house, and he could not keep what the debtor needs at night.
- Compassion. Fair claims never outrank mercy. The returned cloak guards a man's body and wins his friendship.
- Blessing. The debtor's blessing is the lender's return. Scripture treats kindness to the poor as a loan made to God Himself, and He repays it.
- Righteousness. God counts such mercy as righteousness before Him. Jesus goes past the rule's minimum into grace: give more than is demanded.