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Psalm 15:5

he who doesn’t lend out his money for usury, nor take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be shaken.

3he who doesn’t slander with his tongue, nor does evil to his friend, nor casts slurs against his fellow man;
4in whose eyes a vile man is despised, but who honors those who fear the LORD; he who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and doesn’t change;
5he who doesn’t lend out his money for usury, nor take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be shaken.
Notice

Loans and bribes make integrity concrete here, while the closing promise links an unshaken life with choices about money and the treatment of innocent people.

Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.

What distinction do you make between lending to help someone and lending to profit from their need?

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Where might money or favors put pressure on your judgment about an innocent person?

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What do you understand “shall never be shaken” to promise amid the cost of honest dealings?

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Connect

Where else Scripture says this

12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.

This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Exodus 22:25“If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be to him as a creditor. You shall not charge him interest.Both address lending money without charging interest, with Exodus naming the poor person who needs the loan.
Deuteronomy 16:19You shall not pervert justice. You shall not show partiality. You shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the …Both reject bribes, with the psalm naming harm to the innocent and Deuteronomy explaining how bribes corrupt judgment.
Ezekiel 22:12In you have they taken bribes to shed blood. You have taken interest and increase, and you have greedily gained of your neighbors by oppression, and have …Both name interest and bribes together, showing how financial dealings can become a means of harming other people.
Psalm 16:8I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.Both end with an assurance of remaining unshaken, though Psalm 16 names the LORD’s presence as the reason.
Ezekiel 18:8he who hasn’t lent to them with interest, hasn’t taken any increase from them, who has withdrawn his hand from iniquity, has executed true justice between man …Both describe upright conduct through refusing interest on loans and treating other people with justice.
Deuteronomy 23:19–20You shall not lend on interest to your brother: interest of money, interest of food, interest of anything that is lent on interest.Both forbid lending at interest, with Deuteronomy specifying loans to a brother and including food as well as money.
Matthew 7:21–25“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.Both emphasize conduct: the psalm speaks of doing these things, and Jesus speaks of doing his Father’s will.
1 Samuel 8:3His sons didn’t walk in his ways, but turned away after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice.Both connect bribes with injustice; Samuel’s sons practice the corrupt conduct that the psalm rejects.
Proverbs 10:25When the whirlwind passes, the wicked is no more; but the righteous stand firm forever.Both promise lasting firmness to the righteous, with Proverbs depicting that stability through the passing of a whirlwind.
James 1:22–25But be doers of the word, and not only hearers, deluding your own selves.Both emphasize doing: the psalm’s promise concerns those who act, and James warns against hearing without action.
Proverbs 12:3A man shall not be established by wickedness, but the root of the righteous shall not be moved.Both describe the righteous as unmoved, with Proverbs using the image of a root to express their stability.
John 13:17If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.Both attach a promise to action: the psalm promises stability, and Jesus pronounces blessing on those who do what they know.
Where this verse fits

Temptation. injustice and anger. sermon or Bible study notes.

One step

Something small to carry out of this verse

Write a no-interest commitment for lending to someone in need

practicaloncelight
Encouragement

The person who refuses usury and bribes may give up gain. God’s promise here attaches lasting stability to a life of integrity.

Now put it in your words.

Start an entry on Psalm 15:5. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.

Keep goingPsalm 15 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).