DEUT812 In one verse of Scripture we read, "there will be no poor among you, for the Lord will surely bless you…" (Deuteronomy 15:4). Yet a bit later we find, "the poor will never cease out of the land" [this verse]. Perhaps the answer to the difficulty is that the first verse is not prophecy but a directive: "No matter what, let there be no poor man within you." [Hebrew בך -- AJL] As you view and appraise yourself, do not see a "poor man"; do not imagine yourself pitiable because the threat of poverty hovers over you and your "inadequate" earnings. The grudging evil eye that… with a miserly glance at your possessions fills you with misgivings, anxiety, or dread--let it be no part of you. If it is there, get rid of it.

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DEUT813 A poor man who is one's relative has priority over the other poor of his city, and the poor of his city have priority over the poor of another city, as it is said, "Unto your poor and needy brother, in your land" (this verse).

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DEUT814 See [[EXOD521]] Exodus 21:2 free OXFORD 47

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DEUT815 Do not send away your Jewish servant empty-handed. When the time comes to free a Jewish servant, for you have benefited from his work for six years, do not send him away from you empty handed. Rather, as stipulated in [Deuteronomy 15:14 means CHINUCH 312-3], outfit him with goods and articles that will enable him to make a new start for himself.

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DEUT816 I might think that if the house were blessed through him he receives the bestowal, and if not, not; it is, therefore, written: "Bestow shall you bestow" -- in any event. If so, why is it written: "What the Lord your God has blessed you with"? Give him in proportion to the blessing (and a designated minimum) in the event that there is no blessing] (Kiddushin 17b)

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DEUT817 It was taught: Whence is it derived that if you have already granted him the bestowal once, you must to do so even a hundred times [If he re-enters your service and leaves]? From: "Bestow shall you bestow" -- even a hundred times (Sifrei)

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DEUT818 In many modern economies, workers dismissed for reasons of health, etc., are compensated for the loss of income by severance pay. This is a form of compensation long practiced by Jewish communities. A modern application may be seen in the case of the principal of the Belz School in Haifa. This school is not part of the state school system, but rather a private institution financed primarily by donations and tuition. After years of service, the principal was dismissed and claimed severance pay. The court upheld his claim, basing its decision on the interpretation of the biblical injunction to grant a terminal payment to the Hebrew bondsman on the conclusion of his services (Deuteronomy 15:14).

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DEUT819 How much is bestowed upon him (as a minimum)? R. Yehudah says: thirty [shekalim], as the "thirty" of a man-servant, it being derived: "giving" [here] - "giving," in respect to the "thirty" of a man-servant, viz. (Exodus 21:32): "silver, thirty shekels shall he give to his master" (Kiddushin 17a)

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DEUT820 Send your Jewish servant into freedom with means to make a new start. When a Jewish servant goes free after working for us, we must take of our wealth and give it to him so that as he again enters independent life, he has the wherewithal to make a new start. … Key concept is to help us acquire positive and treasured character traits, for thereby we will merit Heaven's blessings. Wanting to bestow good upon His nation, Hashem desires that we show mercy on the Jewish servant who has worked for us. When the servant goes free, we give him of our own wealth, as a matter of charity.

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DEUT821 What is the intent of: "And you shall remember that you were a slave"? Just as I bestowed upon you [the spoils of Egypt] once [upon leaving Egypt] and again [at the splitting of the sea], so, you bestow upon him [your servant] once and again. And just as in Egypt, My bestowal to you was a lavish one, so, let your bestowal to him be a lavish one (Sifrei)

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