Loans and interest in Judaism

The combination of loans and interest in Judaism is a complicated and detailed subject. The biblical Hebrew terms for interest are neshekh (Hebrew: נשך‎‎), literally meaning a bite, and marbit/tarbit (מרבית‎/תרבית), which specifically refers to the gain by the creditor;neshekh referred to interest that was charged by deducting it from the loaned money itself, before the loaned money was handed over to the debtor, while marbit/tarbit referred to interest that was charged by adding it to the amount due to be repaid. The word marbit/tarbit, which referred to the form of interest more familiar in modern times, became ribbit (ריבית), in later Hebrew, and hence in modern Hebrew. Similar to the Arabic word Riba used in the Quran.

The Torah and Talmud encourage the granting of loans if they do not involve interest. But the halakhah [applicable Jewish law] regarding free loans apply only to loans made to other Jews. It is permissible to make loans with interest to non-Jews. Charging interest is classed in the Book of Ezekiel as being among the worst sins, and is forbidden according to Jewish law. The Talmud dwells particularly on Ezekiel's condemnation of interest, where Ezekiel denounces it as an abomination, and metaphorically portrays usurers as people who have shed blood.

The Torah expresses regulations against the charging of interest in the Exodus 22:25–27, Leviticus 25:36–37 and Deuteronomy 23:20–21. In Leviticus loans themselves are encouraged, whether of money or food, emphasizing that they enable the poor to regain their independence. Like the other two places in the Bible, the charging of interest on the loan is forbidden.

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