The Ministry of Prosperity--"There Should Be No Poor Among You" (Dt. 15:4)

The word "interest" or "usury" is interchangeable in these particular verses. The derivative is the Hebrew word "naw-shak'." The Psalmist commends, "Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? He ... who lends his money without usury .... will never be shaken (Ps. 15:1-5). My Oxford dictionary defines "usury" as:

"1. The fact or practice of lending money at interest; esp. in later use, the
practice of charging excessive or illegal rates of interest for money on a loan.
2. Premium or interest on money (or goods) lent."

Nevertheless,

(1) this charge (interest) should be excluded in loans to Christians;
(2) and Christians should resist and reject loan temptations from
non-Christian individuals and institutions;
(3) and even if the case may be that both parties are Christians and only
Christians, the loan should be without interest and not extend beyond a
period of seven years.

We need to take individual and personal action that affirms our belief in the Bible, in economics as well as every other aspect of life: Let us avoid buying homes or automobiles upon credit provisions that do not meet these Biblical standards. It is better to rent than to buy unless you have the money saved. Beware, there are many teachers calling themselves "Christian" who ignore these moral and commanded economic principles.

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