And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I am the LORD your God.
When you harvest the crops from your land, don't harvest all the way to the very edges of your fields, and don't go back to pick up the grain you missed. Leave those leftovers for the poor and for foreigners living among you. I am the LORD your God.
God is commanding His people to intentionally leave part of their harvest unharvested so that poor and needy people can gather food for themselves.
📚 Historical Context
This command was given to the Israelites as part of God's agricultural and social laws. In ancient Israel, gleaning (gathering leftover grain after harvest) was a recognized way for the poor, widows, orphans, and foreigners to obtain food with dignity rather than through begging. This practice is famously illustrated in the story of Ruth, who gleaned in Boaz's fields.
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