22 ^pYou shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. 23 If you do mistreat them, and they ^qcry out to me, I will surely ^rhear their cry, 24 and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and ^syour wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.

25 ^t“If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him. 26 ^uIf ever you take your neighbor’s cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, 27 for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he ^qcries to me, I will hear, for I am ^vcompassionate.

Elisha and the Widow’s Oil

1 Now the wife of one of the ^esons of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord, ^fbut the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.” 2 And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” 3 Then he said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels and not too few. 4 Then go in and shut the door behind yourself and your sons and pour into all these vessels. And when one is full, set it aside.” 5 So she went from him and shut the door behind herself and her sons. And as she poured they brought the vessels to her. 6 When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he said to her, “There is not another.” Then the oil stopped flowing. 7 She came and told the ^gman of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest.”