God’s Word is pretty clear about some things, particularly in regards to His divine sense of justice on the earth. It’s bad enough not a single nation shows much interest in building on His laws, but some things are particularly egregious. Every nation flouting His commands will eventually be crushed in His wrath.
The Bible does not use the term, but most certainly addresses something now called “predatory lending.” In general, the accusation behind that term refers to suckering someone into believing they can safely borrow to purchase something, when the lender knows without any doubt the borrower cannot pay. The objective is to build up a mass of debt instruments, making the loan department appear productive and worthy of some extra bonus money at the end of the accounting period. Then the loans were bundled, sliced and diced and sold off as things of value to suckers for even more money.
Meanwhile, the poor borrower soon enough comes to the end of their ability to pay and loses far more than they ever had in the first place. God is not pleased with such lending practices. We read and hear a lot about honesty and accepting the consequences directed at borrowers, while the slimy lender gets off with a golden handshake. It’s nothing but bankers’ propaganda to keep the suckers on the hook. God calls it “lying.”
Without writing a book or two tracing through all the mistakes made getting us into this mess (it’s a sin to charge interest, for example), let’s note the Bible offers in terms utterly clear certain things which will invite God’s wrath staring right now. Eviction is a sin. Sure, you can reclaim your justly owned property if someone is tearing it up. But even if they simply live a trashy lifestyle, that does not justify eviction. The Bible makes a big deal out of having a roof over your head (unless you are a tent dwelling nomad) and how no one can justify taking that roof, or removing you from under it, without an extraordinarily good reason.
Simply failing to pay what is due is not a good reason. Yes, the Bible says that. You have to discern why they don’t pay. The Bible makes much of protecting orphans and widows. In a cross-cultural translation, that means folks who are disabled in the sense they cannot simply go out and get a job, at least not one which pays a living. You have to absorb the loss in their case.
The primary reason folks bite off more than they can chew is because someone else took advantage of common human weaknesses. I’d say here in the US, maybe 2% or 3% of commerce is approaching righteousness, and the rest just pretends they are (if that). Manipulation is a sin, and I have yet to see more than that tiny margin of advertising which isn’t manipulative, dishonest, aimed to suckering people into wanting something they don’t need and shouldn’t have. There is this command about not setting a stumbling block before others.
That applies to the entire residential market. Again, we have centuries of sin to clean up, but let’s start with one thing, and that should be a moratorium on evictions until we get this reworked into something which at least vaguely resembles God’s justice. I know; it won’t happen. I’m just offering a warning, so when it all comes apart and blood runs in the streets, there won’t be any excuses. God left plenty of prominent warnings long ago.
