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You must not defraud your neighbor or rob him. You must not withhold until morning the wages due a hired hand.
Leviticus 19:13 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB “‘You shall not oppress your neighbor, nor rob him. “‘The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning.
  • KJV Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.
  • ESV “You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired worker shall not remain with you all night until the morning.
  • NKJV ‘You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning.
  • NASB ‘You shall not oppress your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of a hired worker are not to remain with you all night until morning.
  • NLT “Do not defraud or rob your neighbor. “Do not make your hired workers wait until the next day to receive their pay.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Israel must not oppress or rob a neighbor, and must pay a hired worker's wages promptly.

Overview

This command protects the vulnerable laborer who depended on daily wages to survive. Withholding pay overnight was a form of oppression God would not tolerate. The verse reveals God's concern for economic justice and the dignity of workers, a concern the New Testament echoes in its warnings against defrauding laborers.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 18

  • Jas 5:4Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.
  • Mal 3:5“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.
  • Deut 24:14–15Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother or a foreigner residing in one of your towns.
  • Jer 22:13“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms without justice, who makes his countrymen serve without pay, and fails to pay their wages,
  • Prov 20:10Differing weights and unequal measures—both are detestable to the LORD.
  • Jer 22:3This is what the LORD says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Do not shed innocent blood in this place.
  • Exod 22:21You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
  • Exod 22:15If the owner was present, no restitution is required. If the animal was rented, the fee covers the loss.
  • Mark 10:19You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not cheat others, honor your father and mother.’”
  • Ezek 22:29The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery. They have oppressed the poor and needy and have exploited the foreign resident without justice.
  • Prov 22:22Do not rob a poor man because he is poor, and do not crush the afflicted at the gate,
  • Job 31:39if I have devoured its produce without payment or broken the spirit of its tenants,
  • 1 Th 4:6and no one should ever violate or exploit his brother in this regard, because the Lord will avenge all such acts, as we have already told you and solemnly warned you.
  • Luke 3:13“Collect no more than you are authorized,” he answered.
  • Exod 22:24–27My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword; then your wives will become widows and your children will be fatherless.
  • Lev 6:3or finds lost property and lies about it and swears falsely, or if he commits any such sin that a man might commit—
  • Exod 22:8–9If the thief is not found, the owner of the house must appear before the judges to determine whether he has taken his neighbor’s property.
  • Exod 22:13If the animal was torn to pieces, he shall bring it as evidence; he need not make restitution for the torn carcass.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (10)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Leviticus videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Leviticus 19:13YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on LeviticusMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.

How Leviticus 19:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.