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Interest
Allah has
condemned ursupation of interest in strongest
terms.
“Allah destroys the
interest and makes the charity
prosper”
He says in aya 176 of Sura 2, Al-Baqara, and
in the preceding aya He states:
“Allah has permitted trade and
prohibited interest.”
The word used for
interest in the cited aya means any financial advantage
without having done any work for it. To exploit human need and
unjustly devour others’ property calls down Allah’s wrath. In
Sura 2, Al-Baqara, aya 178, all those who don’t stop to do so
are promised war from Allah and His messenger. Western
economic system is largely built on interest and the like, and
its social structure suffers from the diseases emerging
therefrom. However, this is not based on anything in the
Bible. Rather we are told in Deuteronomy (5th
Book of Moses) 23.20:
“You shall not lend upon interest to
your brother, interest on money, interest on victuals,
interest on anything that is lent for
interest.”
The sentence following
this, that
“To a foreigner you may lend upon
interest, but to your brother you shall not lend upon
interest; that the LORD your God may bless you in all that
you undertake in the land which you are entering to take
possession of it.”
This seems to be rather
an addition deriving from Jewish pride. Allah informs us in
the Qur’an, Sura 3, Al – Imran, aya 75,
that
“they say, concerning those who do
not know the scripture there is no blame on us; and they
knowingly tell lies against Allah,
“
But even if we regarded
the second sentence of Deuteronomy 23.30-21 as being
authentic, Jews (and Christians likewise) were only entitled
to take interest from who is not following their creed. Their
exploiting each other does however not know any limits and is
described in Ezekiel 22.12 as
follows:
“In you men take bribes to shed
blood; you take interest and increase and make gain of your
neighbours by extortion; and you have forgotten me, says the
Lord GOD.”
In Ezekiel 18 8.9
on the other hand we are told the righteous
behaviour:
“does
not lend at interest or take any increase, withholds his hand
from iniquity, executes true justice between man and man,
walks in my statutes, and is careful to observe my
ordinances--he is righteous, he shall surely live, says the
Lord GOD.”
Likewise,
in Psalm 15.5 we read the praise of him
as pleasing to God.
“who
does not put out his money at interest, and does not take a
bribe against the innocent.”
[Next: The claim of Sonship to
God]
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