Chapter 65:10-12
The Prohibitions Against Interest
10.The borrower is also forbidden to grant the lender any benefit described
as tovas hano'oh, even though the benefit is not money as such. For
example, the lender is an artisan [and the borrower needs to have work of
that nature performed for him]. Though he would not normally hire him for
this task, he desires to do so because of the loan he gave him. This is
also forbidden as interest.
11. It is forbidden to lend a colleague a seah of produce with the
expectation of receiving a seah in return (even when the two measures are
given from the same type of produce.) The Sages instituted this prohibition
lest the price of produce increase and the borrower ultimately pay the
lender more than he received.
In such an instance, they should fix a monetary value for the produce.
Thus, if the price of produce increases, the borrower need return only the
sum stipulated.
If the borrower possesses even a small quantity of the produce in question,
he may borrow several korim of the produce. Similarly, if a fixed market
price for the produce has been established, it is permissible to make such
a loan even though the borrower himself does not possess any of this produce.
The above applies when a loan is made of the same type of produce. However,
making loans of one type of produce against another - e.g., millet for
wheat - is forbidden under all circumstances, even when both type of
produce share the same market price and the borrower possesses the millet
he promises.
Nevertheless, loans of small amounts of produce are permitted, since, in
this regard, people are not ordinarily concerned with an increase or
decrease of price. Therefore, one woman is allowed to lend a loaf of bread
to another.
12. When a lender grants a loan of money and takes a house, a field, or a
place in the synagogue as a security, with the provision that he can
benefit from the security on a yearly basis. This is permitted even if a
larger sum than that upon which they agreed would ordinarily be charged as
rent. However, by no means may the lender rent the property taken as
security back to the borrower.
There are many particular laws governing the use of property as security
for a loan [when the lender is allowed to benefit from it]. Hence, one
should not enter into such an arrangement without consulting a competent
Rabbinic authority.
