Deuteronomy 15:18

Do not regard it as a hardship to set your servant free, because his six years of service were worth twice the wages of a hired hand. And the LORD your God will bless you in all you do.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Moses addresses the Israelites on the plains of Moab, concluding the covenant stipulations before they cross the Jordan. He gives specific instructions regarding the seventh-year release of Hebrew servants after six years of labor.

The words — יִקְשֶ֣ה (yik.Sheh) translates literally as "it will be hard," and חָפְשִׁי (cha.fe.Shi) means "a free [person]." The phrasing commands the master not to count the manumission as a difficult loss.

The thread — The immediate context in Deuteronomy 15:17 establishes the alternative of lifelong servitude through ear-piercing. The promised divine blessing for compliance echoes the broader Deuteronomic pattern of covenant reward for obedience.

Why it lands — The text requires masters to release Hebrew servants without resentment, treating their six-year labor as fully compensated. It grounds the economic loss in the certainty of God's blessing on all subsequent work.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

King James Version

It shall not seem hard unto thee, when thou sendest him away free from thee; for he hath been worth a double hired servant to thee, in serving thee six years: and the Lord thy God shall bless thee in all that thou doest.

Cross-references

Isaiah 16:14 And now the LORD says, “In three years, as a hired worker counts the years, Moab’s splendor will become an object of contempt, with all her many people. And those who are left will be few and feeble.”
Isaiah 21:16 For this is what the Lord says to me: “Within one year, as a hired worker would count it, all the glory of Kedar will be gone.
Luke 17:7 Which of you whose servant comes in from plowing or shepherding in the field will say to him, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’?