John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Deuteronomy 15:18
It shall not seem hard to thee when thou sendest him away free from thee ,.... He should not grudge him his liberty, nor what he gives to him when he dismisses him: for he hath been worth a double hired servant to thee in serving thee six years ; since a hired servant a man is obliged to pay him wages for his work, besides his food, whereas a bondservant received no wages. Aben Ezra remarks, that this proves that a man might not hire himself for more than three years; or however, whereas... read more
Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Deuteronomy 15:12-18
Here is, I. A repetition of the law that had been given concerning Hebrew servants who had sold themselves for servants, or were sold by their parents through extreme poverty, or were sold by the court of judgment for some crime committed. The law was, 1. That they should serve but six years, and in the seventh should go out free, Deut. 15:12. Compare Exod. 21:2. And, if the year of jubilee happened before they served out their time, that would be their discharge. God's Israel were a free... read more