Kids Question, Ki Seitzei 2025

Question

What word does the Torah use to describe רבית (interest)? Why? 

Answer 

In most places, the Torah uses the word רבית for interest. רבית comes from the word להרבות, meaning "to increase". In other words, רבית is when the amount of money you pay back increased above the amount you borrowed.

There's an exception in כי תצא. When the Torah prohibits from charging interest from our fellow Jews, it uses the word "bite" to refer to the interest itself!
לא תשיך לאחיך נשך כסף נשך אכל נשך כל דבר אשר ישך

Do not bite your brothers the bite of money, the bite of food, or the bite of anything that can bite

Devarim 23:20

Chaza"l teach us the Torah uses this word to highlight a similarity between interest and a snake bite. When a snake bites a person, it injects venom into a very small wound. The immediate impact is limited to the area where the bite occurred. Over time, however, the venom spreads throughout the body. It grows and spreads until the entire body is taken over. The person is weak and debilitated, all from that one small wound!

Chaza"l warn that interest acts the exact same way. It starts with just one small financial "wound". It's small enough that the borrower barely feels the impact. However, like the snake bite, the wound spreads over time. Eventually, the interest can take over the borrower's entire financial picture and leave him unable to move!

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