Deuteronomy 24:17-22
“You shall not pervert justice due to the foreigner, or to the fatherless, nor take a widow’s garment as security; but you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and Yahweh your God redeemed you from there. Therefore I command you to do this thing. When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go again to get it. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow, that Yahweh your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat your olive tree, you shall not go over the boughs again. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow. When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not glean it afterward. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt. Therefore I command you to do this thing.”
The book of Deuteronomy, written as a series of speeches from Moses to the Israelites on the plains of Moab, reiterates the law before they enter the promised land. This passage emphasizes economic and social justice, reminding the people of their own history as vulnerable outsiders.
What does this passage reveal about the inherent dignity of all people, regardless of their social standing or economic means?