A banker is someone who works with money. This person lends money, exchanges different types of money, and gives out new money.
As trade between different countries grew, people needed a way to move money easily. This led to the creation of banking. When coins were first made in the seventh century BC, money changers became important. These were people who would exchange one type of coin for another.
In the past, kings and queens controlled all trade (2 Samuel 5:11; 1 Kings 10:14–29). But over time, this changed. A new system developed that was similar to the banking we have today.
In New Testament times, money changers were one part of the banking system. Their job was to change Roman money into special coins for the temple. People needed these special coins to pay the temple tax. This tax was a type of coin called half a shekel. Money changers are mentioned in:
People who lent money (lenders) and those who gave credit (creditors) were protected. The borrowers had to give something valuable as a promise to pay back the loan.
Israelite law said people should not charge interest on loans (Exodus 22:25; Deuteronomy 15:1–18). However, some people did not follow this law and charged very high interest rates. Prophets and leaders spoke against this practice (Nehemiah 5:6–13; Ezekiel 18:8, 13, 17; 22:12).
The people of Israel often feared the creditors (2 Kings 4:1; Psalm 109:11; Isaiah 24:2; 50:1). Creditors could come into people's homes to take back what was owed. They could even take children as slaves to pay the debt (2 Kings 4:1; Isaiah 50:1). In Luke 7:41–42, Jesus tells a story about a kind creditor. This story is called a parable. Other similar stories are in Matthew 25:14–30 and Luke 19:11–27.