What happened in Old Testament Israel if someone could not pay their mortgage?
In Old Testament Israel, a person who could not pay a due mortgage either lost the property or went to a next of kin. The kinsman needed the funds, wealth, and willingness to redeem it; these were the requirements for paying off the mortgage.
Les teaches that mortgages were not new or strictly a 20th-century matter; Old Testament Israel had the right and privilege to mortgage property, especially in the days of Ruth and Boaz. If someone got in a bind and the mortgage was due but could not be paid, he would either lose his property or go to a next of kin. Going to a next of kin was paramount and one of the first requirements. The next of kin could pay it off if he had the wherewithal, the funds and wealth, and if he wanted to. Les sums this up as the three requirements for paying off a mortgage.