Every seven years, not every fifty. That said, this rule caused all sorts of problems - because debts had to be forgiven on a regular basis, no one would lend

Every seven years, not every fifty. That said, this rule caused all sorts of problems - because debts had to be forgiven on a regular basis, no one would lend to the poor at all. In the first century BCE, Rabbi Hillel came up with a novel solution - the creditor 'sold' the debt to a rabbinical court, who didn't have to cancel it since (I believe - memory's a little hazy here) the letter of the law referred to individuals. The court in turn gave the creditor power-of-attorney to collect the debt at any time and the right to all the proceeds. Problem solved. The mishnah (a codification of Jewish oral tradition) on this part of the Torah and Hillel's reinterpretation of it is really interesting - the rabbis aren't stupid, and they can see that Hillel's playing fast and loose with the original intent of the law, but write that it was necessary in order to 'repair the world'. This wouldn't be the last time something designed to protect or help the poor completely backfired due to unforseen circumstances.