עָבַט

From the study of Deuteronomy 15:6

Range of meaning

A verb for securing loans with a pledge, an object handed over as collateral. In the simple form it means to give or take a pledge, and so to borrow on security (Deut 15:6) or to take someone's pledge (Deut 24:10). In the causative form it means to make someone give a pledge, that is, to lend on security (Deut 15:6, 8). The related noun ʿavot means "the pledge" itself (Deut 24:10–13), for example a cloak held overnight.

Against the English

English "lend/borrow" suggests a modern bank loan, money in exchange for interest. The Hebrew picture is an item of security changing hands. The English is not wrong, but it loses the collateral, the visible sign of dependence.

Used elsewhere in the period

Its uses are concentrated in Deuteronomy 15 and 24. The parallel promise in Deut 28:12, 44 uses a different and more common verb pair (lavah, "lend/borrow"), which shows that ʿavat here is chosen to echo verse 8. The pledge laws of Deut 24:6, 10–13, 17 and Exod 22:25–26 show how much power a pledge-holder had and why the law limited it.