Prices – The Law of God and Public Policy: The Economy (10)

Prices

The Law of God and Public Policy: The Economy (10)

Prices are not fixed in a just economy, but they are reliable.

“If a man dedicates to the LORD part of the land that is his possession, then the valuation shall be in proportion to its seed. A homer of barley seed shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver.” Leviticus 27:16

There was no attempt to “fix” prices in the economy of ancient Israel. However, the Law of God was designed to help ensure that prices would be fair and stable. Prices—as well as money—were fixed to grain, which was the staple of the Israelite economy. A certain measure of grain was worth so many shekels. The value of a shekel was determined by how much grain it could purchase. To charge more than what the Law prescribed would be folly, since no one would pay it and the seller might be vulnerable to charges of attempted theft. He might then be required to restore justice by giving the goods originally sought plus a percentage more.

Prices of land were fixed in two ways: to the amount of grain that could be harvested, and to the years of harvests remaining before the Sabbath Year. God discouraged buying and selling of land. Each tribe and family was assigned a certain portion of land to occupy and work. They could lease or sell it, but only for a short time. The land would be returned to the family in the Sabbath Year. Thus, one who was hoping to profit by purchasing property would have to make sure he could harvest enough grain during the time he would own the property to justify the expense of it. Even then, he would hardly expect to do more than break even.

There was undoubtedly room for “prices” to fluctuate, but probably not much. Since the value of money was rigorously conserved, just and honest measures were employed, and sellers and buyers were expected to treat one another and all their neighbors with love, it’s hard to imagine that inflation would have been able to make much headway in the economy outlined by the Law of God.

The Book of Revelation notes the injustice of an economy which favors the wealthy at the expense of the rest of the people through the manipulation of prices (cf. Rev. 6:6). Such injustice would have been unthinkable in a society where the Law of God set the standards and parameters for economic activity. This was almost never the case in ancient Israel; however, this fact should not be allowed to obscure the Law’s intention of ensuring stable prices on traded goods and services. Public policies must be pursued which will allow people to count on stable purchasing power over time.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.