Shemini Atseret, 8th day of Sukkot, Deuteronomy 14:22-23:44
LA JOLLA, California — This essay covers: ancient moneychangers; debt and slavery relief; and dealing with the needy.
These readings are part of parasha RE’EH, which was read on the Shabbat of August 15th.. I have, to the extent possible, avoided redundancy to that essay.
I have chosen three passages for comparison, from the internet, with ancient Israelites’ neighbors.
I. Deuteronomy 14:22-26 You shall set aside every year a tenth…of…the yield…(grain…wine…oil…herds)…in the…place…(God)…will choose…Should the distance be too great…convert them into money…take it with you…and spend (it there) on-cattle, sheep, wine…and…feast there…”
This passage, dealing with orders for the festivals. acknowledges the difficulty of transporting heavy goods to Jerusalem. Thus, it allows for purchase of the offerings on arrival there. The money changers (shulhani) set up tables in the outer court of the Temple.
Recent excavations around the Temple walls have uncovered kiosks, believed to be those of ancient money changers. [1]
Romans also had money changers, called argentarii, but for different purposes. Into Rome came peoples from throughout the Mediterranean, each with different currencies. In rented stalls at the Forum, the guild argentarii, carried out a form of banking. They kept up with changing current values of foreign currency. They needed to detect fake coins. If they held money for a client, they paid interest. If they loaned money, they charged interest. At auctions, they acted as agents between seller and buyer. During the Empire, they purchased newly coined money from the mint, which they circulated. [2]
II. Deuteronomy 15:1-2 ““Every seventh year you shall practice remission of debts…every creditor shall remit the due that he claims from his fellow; he shall not dun his fellow…the remission claimed is of the Lord.”
Compulsory debt clemency goes back five millennia. Back then rulers in Sumer and Babylon imposed periodic debt amnesties to maintain social stability. In particular, this was to maintain a ready military access, as citizens in debt did not make good soldiers.
As background, life in ancient times was marked by chronic resource inequality. When it grew, subsistence farmers became indebted to rich elites. Public debts, in the form of unpaid taxes, also weighed heavily.
In Mesopotamia, debtors ended up as involuntary servants, e.g. through transfer of the debtor’s land rights to a creditor. In such cases, the debtor might remain on the land, and be obliged to cultivate it for his now landlord. A substantial percentage of the harvest went to the landlord.
Another outcome was being sold into slavery, which could include separation from family.
From 2400 to 1636 BCE, a long list of Sumerian, Assyrian, and Babylonian rulers announced periodic debt amnesties. Notably Babylonian ruler Hammurabi (1792-1750 BCE) issued four edicts of debt cancellation in 30 years. His famous “Code” prescribed at least two special provisions for relief: (a) in a year in which crops failed, and (b) for time limits of three years of forced labor should a debtor sell himself and family into servitude to pay debts.
Rulers were concerned their societies might be ripped apart, as indebted subjects might flee or become landless debt peons.
Such edicts likely influenced the the Hebrew Jubilee year, declared by Nehemiah in 432 BCE. He provided for debtors to return to their lost family lands.
In Egypt, Pharaohs Ramses III (1184-1153 BCE) and Ramses IV (1153-1146 BCE) proclaimed amnesty from debts. Features included: those who had fled the country in debt could return, and those in prison were freed. The Rosetta Stone (196 BCE) confirms that this tradition of debt cancellation was upheld, onward from the eighth century BCE.
As in Mesopotamia, the Pharaoh wanted at his disposal a peasantry able to produce food and take up arms in military campaigns. [3]
Later, in Athens (6th Century BCE) lawmaker Solon instituted laws which cancelled debts that had caused slavery and serfdom. Also it enabled those debtors who fled to return to Athens [3] [4]
Romans were unconcerned with the plight of distressed debtors until a few decades before Jesus. Caesar’s new relief procedure however was not generous. Debtors could plead for relief after “ceding all of their goods.” Then, the grant of relief was dependent on a magistrate’s discretion. Also, the relief did not result in a discharge of debt. It simply prevented imprisonment, for as soon as the debtor acquired assets, creditors could renew their enforcement efforts. [5]
III. Deuteronomy 15:4-6 “There shall be no needy among you–since the Lord…will bless you in the land…(He) is giving you…you will extend loans…but require none yourself…”
I found no ancient pagan references on the internet intended to serve the needy, As for charity, in Greco-Roman culture the well-to-do weren’t expected to help the poor. Beneficence there did not have the poor as their object. ‘Philanthropia’ applied toward one’s own family and guests–not the poor. Greek moralists did not direct concern for the poor.
Greek and Roman generosity meant giving to others of means, for the desired effects of honor, prestige, fame, and status—and expecting a gift in return, i.e quid pro quo!
Greco-Roman religion also was not of help to the poor. The poor were not favorites of the gods. Zeus was not interested in the poor. The rich were the ones seen as the gods’ favorites. Implied was the belief that the poor were morally inferior to the rich. Indeed, poverty was seen as the poors’ own fault.
Accordingly there was no organized charity in ancient Greece or Rome. Cicero wrote: “…most people are generous in their gifts not so much by natural inclination as by the lure of honor.” [6]
NOTES
[1] https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/money-changers
[2] https://www.romae-vitam.com/roman-money-changers.html
[3] “The Long Tradition of Debt Cancellation in Mesopotamia and Egypt from 3000 to 1000 BCE,” Committee for the Abolition of Illegitimate Debt, 2 September 2012, Eric Toussant
[4] Wikipedia, Debt relief.en.wikipedia.org >wiki>Debt_relief
[5] “The 5000-Year Circle of Debt Clemency: From Sumer and Babylon to America and Europe,” paper by Jason J. Kilborn, Professor of Law, John Marshall Law School, etc.
[6] How the Poor Became Blessed, Peter van der Horst, Utrecht University, the Netherlands, Newsletter essay 14 March 2019, Aeon for Friends.
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Irv Jacobs is a retired medical doctor who delights in Torah analysis. He often delivers a drosh at Congregation Beth El in La Jolla, and at his chavurah.