68 Bible Verses about Poverty, Attitudes Towards

When one of thy brethren among you is waxed poor in any of thy cities within thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, see that thou harden not thine heart nor shut to thine hand from thy poor brother: But open thine hand unto him and lend him sufficient for his need which he hath.

Whoso laugheth the poor to scorn, blasphemeth his maker; and he that is glad of another man's hurt, shall not be unpunished.

Distribute unto the necessity of the saints, and diligently to harbour.

While we have, therefore, time; let us do good unto all men, and specially, unto them which are of the household of faith.

If a brother or a sister be naked or destitute of daily food, and one of you say unto them, "Depart in peace, God send you warmness and food," notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body: what helpeth it them?

He, then, that hath the substance of the world, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his compassion from him: how dwelleth the love of God in him?

Thou shalt not hinder the right of the poor that are among you in their suit.

"'If thy brother be waxed poor and fallen in decay with thee, receive him as a stranger or a sojourner, and let him live by thee. And thou shalt take none usury of him, nor yet vantage. But shalt fear thy God, that thy brother may live with thee. Thou shalt not lend him thy money upon usury, nor lend him of thy food to have advantage by it;

Thou shalt not defraud a hired servant that is needy and poor, whether he be of thy brethren or a stranger that is in thy land within thy cities. Give him his hire the same day, and let not the sun go down thereon. For he is needy and therewith sustaineth his life, lest he cry against thee unto the LORD and it be sin unto thee.

And the LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him and said unto him, "There were two men in one city, a rich and a poor. And the rich had exceeding great abundance of sheep and oxen. But the poor had nothing, save one little lamb which he bought and nourished up. And it grew up with him and his children, and did eat of his own meat and drank of his own cup, and slept in his bosom, and was as dear unto him as his daughter.read more.
And there came a stranger unto the rich man. And he could not find in his heart to take of his own sheep nor of his beasts to dress for the stranger that was come unto him. But took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man that was come to him."

Considering then that there is no time hid from the Almighty, how happeneth it, that they which know him, will not regard his days? For some men there be, that remove other men's landmarks; that rob them of their cattle, and keep the same for their own; that drive away the ass of the fatherless; that take the widow's ox for a pledge;read more.
that thrust the poor out of the way, and oppress the simple of the world together.

See that thou rob not the poor because he is weak, and oppress not the simple in judgment;

The righteous considereth the cause of the poor, but the ungodly regardeth no understanding.

and say, 'Hear the word of the LORD, thou king of Judah that sittest in the kingly seat of David: thou, and thy servants, and thy people, that go in and out at this gate. Thus the LORD commandeth: Keep equity and righteousness, deliver the oppressed from the power of the violent: do not grieve nor oppress the stranger, the fatherless nor the widow, and shed no innocent blood in this place.

"If he now get a son, that is a murderer, a shedder of blood: if he do one of these things - though he do not all - he eateth upon the hills; he defileth his neighbour's wife; he grieveth the poor and needy; he robbeth and spoileth; he giveth not the debtor his pledge again; he lifteth up his eyes unto Idols, and meddle with abominable things;read more.
he lendeth upon usury, and taketh moreover. Shall this man live? He shall not live. Seeing he hath done all these abominations, he shall die: his blood shall be upon him.

"Thus sayeth the LORD, 'For three and four wickednesses of Israel, I will not spare him: because he hath sold the righteous for money, and the poor for shoes. They tread upon poor men's heads, in the dust of the earth, and crook the ways of the meek. The son and the father go to the harlot, to dishonour my holy name,

Do the widow, the fatherless, the stranger, and poor no wrong: and let no man imagine evil against his brother in his heart."

If there come into your company a man with a golden ring, and in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment, and ye have a respect to him that weareth the gay clothing and say unto him, "Sit thou here in a good place," and say unto the poor, "stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool" - are ye not even partial in your selves, and have judged after evil thoughts?

At the end of three years, thou shalt bring forth all the tithes of thine increase the same year and lay it up within thine own city, and the Levite shall come because he hath neither part nor inheritance with thee, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow which are within thy city, and shall eat and fill themselves: that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the works of thine hand which thou doest.

and the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still, that the poor of thy people may eat, and what they leave, the beasts of the field shall eat: In like manner thou shalt do with thy vineyard and thine olive trees.

When ye reap down the ripe corn of your land, ye shall not reap down the utmost borders of your fields, neither shalt thou gather that which is left behind in thy harvest. Thou shalt not pluck in all thy vineyard clean, neither gather in the grapes that are overscaped. But thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger. I am the LORD your God.

The corn that groweth by itself thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes that grow without thy dressing: but it shall be a Sabbath of rest unto the land. Nevertheless the Sabbath of the land shall be meat for you: even for thee and thy servant and for thy maid and for thy hired servant and for the stranger that dwelleth with thee:

He that hath pity upon the poor, lendeth unto the LORD; and look, what he layeth out, it shall be paid him again.

Defend the poor and fatherless, see that such as be in need and necessity have right. Deliver the outcast and poor, and save them from the hand of the ungodly.

When all they that heard me, called me happy, and when all they that saw me, wished me good. "For I delivered the poor when he cried, and the fatherless that wanted help. He that should have been lost, gave me a good word, and the widow's heart praised me.read more.
And why? I put upon me righteousness, which covered me as a garment, and equity was my crown. I was an eye unto the blind, and a foot to the lame; I was a father unto the poor, and when I knew not their cause, I sought it out diligently. I brake the jaws of the unrighteous, and plucked the spoil out of their teeth.

He answered and said unto them, "He that hath two coats, let him part with him that hath none: And he that hath meat, let him do likewise."

There was at Joppa a certain woman, which was a disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas: the same was full of good works and alms deeds, which she did.

And beware that there be not a point of Belial in thine heart, that thou wouldest say, 'The seventh year, the year of freedom is at hand,' and therefore it grieve thee to look on thy poor brother and givest him nought and he then cry unto the LORD against thee and it be sin unto thee. But give him, and let it not grieve thine heart to give. Because that for that thing, the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thy works and in all that thou puttest thine hand to. For the land shall never be without poor. Wherefore I command thee, saying, 'Open thine hand unto thy brother that is needy and poor in thy land.'

and the Levite shall come because he hath neither part nor inheritance with thee, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow which are within thy city, and shall eat and fill themselves: that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the works of thine hand which thou doest.

And Boaz, when the time of refection was come, said unto her, "Come hither and eat of the bread, and dip thy sop in the vinegar." And she sat down by the reapers, and he reached her parched corn. And so she did eat and was sufficed, and left part.

He hath dispersed abroad, and given to the poor, his righteousness remaineth for ever; his horn shall be exalted with honor.

But Nebuzaradan the chief captain let the rascal people, and those that had nothing, dwell still in the land of Judah, and gave them vineyards and corn fields at the same time.

And Zacchaeus stood forth and said unto the Lord, "Behold Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I have done any man wrong, I will restore him four fold."

a devout man, and one that feared God with all his household, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed God always.

And let every man do according as he hath purposed in his heart, not grudgingly, or of necessity. For God loveth a cheerful giver.

Whensoever therefore thou givest thine alms, thou shalt not make a trumpet to be blown before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues, and in the streets, for to be praised of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.

Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion on the people, because they have continued with me now three days, and have nought to eat: and I will not let them depart fasting lest they perish in the way."

In those days when there was a very great company, and had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said unto them, "I have compassion on this people, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat: And if I should send them away fasting to their own houses, they should faint by the way. For divers of them came from far."

"The spirit of the Lord upon me, because he hath anointed me; To preach the gospel to the poor he hath sent me; And to heal which are broken hearted: To preach deliverance to the captive; And sight to the blind; And freely to set at liberty them that are bruised; And to preach the acceptable year of the Lord."

Some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, "Buy those things that we have need of against the feast," or that he should give something to the poor.

How God had anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the holy ghost, and with power; which Jesus went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devils, for God was with him.

And all that believed kept themselves together, and had all things common. And sold their possessions and goods, and departed them to all men, as every man had need.

And the multitude of them that believed, were of one heart; And of one soul. Also, none of them said that any of the things which he possessed was his own: But had all things common. And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was with them all. Neither was there any among them that lacked. For as many as were possessors of lands or houses, sold them and brought the price of the things that were sold,read more.
and laid it down at the apostles' feet. And distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.

Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, purposed to send succour unto the brethren which dwelt in Jewry, which thing they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.

I have showed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to receive the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how that he said, 'It is more blessed to give, than to receive.'"

"But after many years, I came and brought alms to my people and offerings,

Now go I unto Jerusalem, and minister unto the saints. For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia, to make a certain distribution upon the poor saints which are at Jerusalem. It hath pleased them verily, and their debtors are they. For if the gentiles be made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is to minister unto them in carnal things.

It is not my mind that other be set at ease, and ye brought into cumbrance: but that there be equalness now at this time, that your abundance succor their lack at this present time of dearth - that their abundance may supply your lack; that there may be equality, agreeing to that which is written, "He that gathered much had never the more abundance, and he that gathered little, had nevertheless."

warning only that we should remember the poor, which thing also I was diligent to do.

{To the Chanter, a Psalm of David} Blessed is he, that considereth the poor; the LORD shall deliver him in the time of trouble.

He that giveth unto the poor, shall not want; but he that turneth away his eyes from such as be in necessity, shall suffer great poverty himself.

And Jesus said unto him, "If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give it to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me."

Then shall the King say to them on his right hand, 'Come, ye blessed children of my father, inherit ye the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was a hungered, and ye gave me meat. I thirsted, and ye gave me drink. I was harborless, and ye lodged me. I was naked and ye clothed me. I was sick and ye visited me. I was in prison and ye came unto me.'

"And whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink for my name's sake because ye are belonging to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward.

To do good, and to distribute, forget not: for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

but doeth right unto the fatherless and widow and loveth the stranger, to give him food and raiment.

Surely thou hast seen it; for thou beholdest ungodliness and wrong, that thou mayest take the matter into thy hand. The poor committeth himself unto thee, for thou art the helper of the friendless.

The LORD careth for the strangers; he defendeth the fatherless and widow. As for the way of the ungodly, he turneth it upside down.

Remove not the old landmark, and come not within the field of the fatherless.

wherethrough the poor are oppressed on every side, and the innocents of my people are therewith robbed of judgment: that widows may be your prey, and that ye may rob the fatherless.

And rejoice before the LORD thy God: both thou, thy son, thy daughter, thy servant and thy maid, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, the fatherless and the widow that are among you, in the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to make his name dwell there.

Then said Boaz, "What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must take also Ruth the Moabite the wife of the dead, to stir up the name of the dead upon his inheritance."

And there cried a certain woman of the wives of the children of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, "Thy servant my husband is dead, and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD. And the creditor is come to fetch my two sons, to be his bondmen."

Thou hast sent widows away empty and oppressed the poor fatherless.

I will come and punish you, and I myself will be a swift witness against the witches, against the adulterers, against false swearers: yea, and against those that wrongfully keep back the hireling's duty, which vex the widows and the fatherless, and oppress the stranger, and fear not me, sayeth the LORD of Hosts.

In those days, as the number of the disciples grew, there arose a grudge among the Greeks against the Hebrews, because their widows were despised in the daily ministration.

Honour widows which are true widows.

Pure devotion, and undefiled before God the father, is this: To visit the friendless, and widows in their adversity, and to keep himself unspotted of the world.