Deuteronomy 24:18

18 Remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. Therefore I am commanding you to do this.

Deuteronomy 24:18 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 24:18

But thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt,
&c.] The remembrance of which may cause sympathy with persons in distress; particularly the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow:

and the Lord thy God redeemed thee thence;
the Targum of Jonathan,

``the Word of the Lord thy God;''

which, as it was an act of great kindness and mercy in God to them, taught them, and laid them under obligation to show favour to their fellow creatures in distress:

therefore I command thee to do this thing:
not to pervert the judgment of the stranger and fatherless, nor take a widow's raiment for a pledge; and it may be carried further into the context, and respect the laws about the pledge of the poor man, and giving the hired servant his wages in due time.

Deuteronomy 24:18 In-Context

16 "Fathers are not to be put to death for [their] children or children for [their] fathers; each person will be put to death for his own sin.

17 Do not deny justice to a foreign resident [or] fatherless child, and do not take a widow's garment as security.

18 Remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. Therefore I am commanding you to do this.

19 "When you reap the harvest in your field, and you forget a sheaf in the field, do not go back to get it. It is to be left for the foreign resident, the fatherless, and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.

20 When you knock down the fruit from your olive tree, you must not go over the branches again. What remains will be for the foreign resident, the fatherless, and the widow.