[Sidenote: Cor. Isa. 58:8-12] Is it not to share thy bread with the hungry, And to bring the wanderers to thy home? When thou seest the naked, to cover him, And not hide thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the dawn, Thy restoration quickly spring forth, And thy righteousness shall go before thee, The glory of Jehovah shall be thy reward; Then when thou callest Jehovah will answer, When thou criest out he will say, Here am I. If from thy midst thou remove the yoke, The finger of scorn, and mischievous speech, And bestow thy bread upon the hungry, And satisfy the soul that is afflicted; Then shall thy light shine forth in darkness, And thy gloom shall be as noonday, Jehovah will lead thee continually, And will satisfy thy soul in parched lands, And thy strength will he renew, Thou shalt be like a watered garden, As a fountain whose waters fail not. Thy sons shall rebuild the ancient ruins, Thou shalt rear again the foundations of olden days; And men shall call thee, Repairer of Ruins, Restorer of Ruined Places for Inhabiting. [Sidenote: Neh. 5:1-5] Then there was a loud complaint from the common people and their wives against their fellow-countrymen the Jews. For there were those who were saying, 'We must give our sons and our daughters in pledge to secure grain that we may eat and live.' Some also there were who were saying, 'We must mortgage our fields and our vineyards and our houses, that we may get grain because of the dearth.' There were also those who were saying, 'We have borrowed money for the king's tribute. Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brothers, our children as their children; but now, we must ring our sons and our daughters into slavery, and some of our daughters have already thus been brought into bondage, neither is it in our power to help it, for our fields and our vineyards belong to the nobles.' [Sidenote: Neh. 5:6-11] Then I was very angry when I heard their complaint and these statements. And I took counsel with myself, and contended with the nobles and rulers, and said to them, 'You exact usury each of his brother.' And I held a great assembly against them. And I said to them, 'We ourselves have, according to our ability, redeemed our fellow-countrymen the Jews, who have been sold to the heathen; and would you yourselves sell your fellow-countrymen, and should they sell themselves to us?' Then they were silent and could not find a word to say. Therefore I said, 'The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God, because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies? For I also, my kinsmen and my servants, lend them money and grain. Let us, therefore, leave off this usury. Restore to them this day their fields, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the usury of the money and of the grain, of the new wine, and of the oil, that you exact from them.'