16 And it shall be, if he say unto thee, I will not go away from thee; because he loveth thee and thine house, because he is well with thee;
16 But if your servant says to you, "I do not want to leave you," because he loves you and your family and is well off with you,
16 But if he says to you, 'I will not go out from you,' because he loves you and your household, since he is well-off with you,
16 But if your slave, because he loves you and your family and has a good life with you, says, "I don't want to leave you,"
16 And if it happens that he says to you, 'I will not go away from you,' because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you,
16 "But suppose your servant says, 'I will not leave you,' because he loves you and your family, and he has done well with you.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Deuteronomy 15:16
Commentary on Deuteronomy 15:12-18
(Read Deuteronomy 15:12-18)
Here the law concerning Hebrew servants is repeated. There is an addition, requiring the masters to put some small stock into their servants' hands to set up with for themselves, when sent out of their servitude, wherein they had received no wages. We may expect family blessings, the springs of family prosperity, when we make conscience of our duty to our family relations. We are to remember that we are debtors to Divine justice, and have nothing to pay with. That we are slaves, poor, and perishing. But the Lord Jesus Christ, by becoming poor, and by shedding his blood, has made a full and free provision for the payment of our debts, the ransom of our souls, and the supply of all our wants. When the gospel is clearly preached, the acceptable year of the Lord is proclaimed; the year of release of our debts, of the deliverance of our souls, and of obtaining rest in him. And as faith in Christ and love to him prevail, they will triumph over the selfishness of the heart, and over the unkindness of the world, doing away the excuses that rise from unbelief, distrust, and covetousness.