'Poor' in the Bible

He who loves [only selfish] pleasure will become a poor man;He who loves and is devoted to wine and [olive] oil will not become rich.

The rich and poor have a common bond;The Lord is the Maker of them all.

The rich rules over the poor,And the borrower is servant to the lender.

He who is generous will be blessed,For he gives some of his food to the poor.

He who oppresses or exploits the poor to get more for himselfOr who gives to the rich [to gain influence and favor], will only come to poverty.

Do not rob the poor because he is poor [and defenseless],Nor crush the afflicted [by legal proceedings] at the gate [where the city court is held],

For the Lord will plead their caseAnd take the life of those who rob them.

A poor man who oppresses and exploits the lowlyIs like a sweeping rain which leaves no food.

Better is the poor who walks in his integrityThan he who is crooked and two-faced though he is rich.

He who increases his wealth by interest and usury (excessive interest)Gathers it for him who is gracious to the poor.

The rich man [who is conceited and relies on his wealth instead of God] is wise in his own eyes,But the poor man who has understanding [because he relies on God] is able to see through him.

Like a roaring lion and a charging bearIs a wicked ruler over a poor people.

He who gives to the poor will never want,But he who shuts his eyes [from their need] will have many curses.

The righteous man cares for the rights of the poor,But the wicked man has no interest in such knowledge.

The poor man and the oppressor have this in common:The Lord gives light to the eyes of both.

If a king faithfully and truthfully judges the poor,His throne shall be established forever.

So that I will not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?”Or that I will not be poor and steal,And so profane the name of my God.

There is a generation (class of people) whose teeth are like swordsAnd whose jaw teeth are like knives,To devour the afflicted from the earthAnd the needy from among men.

Open your mouth, judge righteously,And administer justice for the afflicted and needy.

She opens and extends her hand to the poor,And she reaches out her filled hands to the needy.

A poor yet wise youth is better than an old and foolish king who no longer knows how to receive instruction and counsel (friendly reproof, warning)—

If you see the oppression of the poor and the denial of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be shocked at the sight [of corruption]; for a higher official watches over another official, and there are higher ones over them [looking out for one another].

For what advantage has the wise man over the fool [for being worldly-wise is not the secret to happiness]? What advantage has the poor man who has learned how to walk [publicly] among the living [with men’s eyes on him; for being poor is not the secret to happiness either]?

But there was found in it a poor wise man, and by his wisdom he rescued the city. Yet no man [seriously] remembered that poor man.

But I say that wisdom is better than strength, though the poor man’s wisdom is despised and his words are not heeded.

(The Chorus)“Return, return, O Shulammite;Return, return, that we may gaze at you.”

The Lord enters into judgment with the elders of His people and their princes,“For it is you who have devoured the vineyard [with your oppression, you have robbed the people and ruined the country];The plunder of the poor is in your houses.

“What do you mean by crushing My peopleAnd grinding the face of the poor?”Declares the Lord God of hosts.

Now in that day [because of the poverty caused by the invaders] a man will keep alive only a young milk cow and two sheep;

So as to deprive the needy of justiceAnd rob the poor of My people of rightful claims,So that widows may be their spoilAnd that they may plunder the fatherless.

Cry aloud with your voice [in consternation], O Daughter of Gallim!Pay attention, Laishah! Answer her, Anathoth!

But with righteousness and justice He will judge the poor,And decide with fairness for the downtrodden of the earth;And He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.

“The firstborn of the helpless [of Judah] will feed [on My meadows],And the needy will lie down in safety;But I will kill your root with famine,And your survivors will be put to death.

“Then what answer will one give the messengers of the [Philistine] nation?That the Lord has founded Zion,And the afflicted of His people will seek and find refuge in it.”

For You have been a stronghold for the helpless,A stronghold for the poor in his distress,A shelter from the storm, a shade from the heat;For the breath of tyrantsIs like a rainstorm against a wall.

“The foot will trample it,Even the feet of the suffering, and the steps of the helpless.”

The afflicted also will increase their joy in the Lord,And the needy of mankind will rejoice and celebrate in the Holy One of Israel.

As for the rogue, his weapons are evil;He conceives wicked plansTo ruin the poor with lies,Even when the plea of the needy one is just and right.

“The poor and needy are seeking water, but there is none;Their tongues are parched with thirst.I, the Lord, will answer them Myself;I, the God of Israel, will not neglect them.

“Is it not to divide your bread with the hungryAnd bring the homeless poor into the house;When you see the naked, that you cover him,And not to hide yourself from [the needs of] your own flesh and blood?

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,Because the Lord has anointed and commissioned meTo bring good news to the humble and afflicted;He has sent me to bind up [the wounds of] the brokenhearted,To proclaim release [from confinement and condemnation] to the [physical and spiritual] captivesAnd freedom to prisoners,

“Also on your skirts is foundThe lifeblood of the innocent poor;You did not find them breaking in [a house].But in spite of all these things [your disobedience, your love of idolatry, your lack of compassion]—

Then I said, “[Surely] these are only the poor (uneducated);They are [sinfully] foolish and have no [spiritual] understanding,For they do not know the way of the LordOr the ordinance of their God [and the requirements of His just and righteous law].

Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord!For He has rescued the life of the needy oneFrom the hand of evildoers.

“He defended the cause of the afflicted and needy;Then all was well.Is that not what it means to know Me?”Says the Lord.

But Nebuzaradan the [Babylonian] captain of the bodyguard left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people who had nothing, and gave them vineyards and fields at that time.

Behold, this was the sin of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters (outlying cities) had arrogance, abundant food, and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy.

oppresses the poor and needy, commits robbery, does not restore [to the debtor] his pledge, but raises his eyes to the idols, and commits repulsive acts,

he keeps his hand from [oppressing] the poor, does not receive interest or increase [from the needy], but executes My ordinances and walks in My statutes; he shall not die for the sin (guilt) of his father; he shall certainly live.

The people of the land have practiced oppression and extortion and have committed robbery; they have wronged the poor and needy and they have oppressed the stranger without justice.

Therefore, O king, let my advice to you be [considered and found] acceptable; break away now from your sins and exhibit your repentance by doing what is right, and from your wickedness by showing mercy to the poor, so that [if you repent] there may possibly be a continuance of your prosperity and tranquility and a healing of your error.’

“These who pant after (long to see) the dust of the earth on the head of the helpless [as sign of their grief and distress]Also turn aside the way of the humble;And a man and his father will go to the same girlSo that My holy name is profaned.

Hear this word, you [well-fed, pampered] cows (women) of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria,Who oppress the poor, who crush the needy,Who say to their husbands, “Bring [the wine] now, and let us drink!”

Therefore, because you impose heavy rent on the poorAnd demand a tribute (food-tax) of grain from them,Though you have built [luxurious] houses of square stone,You will not live in them;You have planted beautiful vineyards, but you will not drink their wine.

Hear this, you who trample down the needy, and do away with the poor of the land,

So that we may buy the poor [as slaves] for silver [since they are unable to support themselves]And the needy for a pair of sandals,And that we may sell the leftovers of the wheat [as if it were a good grade of grain]?”

With the enemy’s own spears, You piercedThe head of his hordes.They stormed out to scatter us,Rejoicing like thoseWho secretly devour the oppressed [of Israel].

“But I will leave among youA humble and lowly people,And they will take refuge and trust confidently in the name of the Lord.

and do not oppress or exploit the widow or the fatherless, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise or even imagine evil in your hearts against one another.’

“Blessed [spiritually prosperous, happy, to be admired] are the poor in spirit [those devoid of spiritual arrogance, those who regard themselves as insignificant], for theirs is the kingdom of heaven [both now and forever].

“So whenever you give to the poor and do acts of kindness, do not blow a trumpet before you [to advertise it], as the hypocrites do [like actors acting out a role] in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored and recognized and praised by men. I assure you and most solemnly say to you, they [already] have their reward in full.

the blind receive [their] sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed [by healing] and the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.

Jesus answered him, “If you wish to be perfect [that is, have the spiritual maturity that accompanies godly character with no moral or ethical deficiencies], go and sell what you have and give [the money] to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me [becoming My disciple, believing and trusting in Me and walking the same path of life that I walk].”

For this perfume might have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”

For you always have the poor with you; but you will not always have Me.

Looking at him, Jesus felt a love (high regard, compassion) for him, and He said to him, “You lack one thing: go and sell all your property and give [the money] to the poor, and you will have [abundant] treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me [becoming My disciple, believing and trusting in Me and walking the same path of life that I walk].”

For this perfume might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii [a laborer’s wages for almost a year], and the money given to the poor.” And they scolded her.

For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do something good to them; but you will not always have Me.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me (the Messiah),Because He has anointed Me to preach the good news to the poor.He has sent Me to announce release (pardon, forgiveness) to the captives,And recovery of sight to the blind,To set free those who are oppressed (downtrodden, bruised, crushed by tragedy),

And looking toward His disciples, He began speaking: “Blessed [spiritually prosperous, happy, to be admired] are you who are poor [in spirit, those devoid of spiritual arrogance, those who regard themselves as insignificant], for the kingdom of God is yours [both now and forever].

So He replied to them, “Go and tell John about everything you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the good news (gospel) preached to them.

But give that which is within as charity [that is, acts of mercy and compassion, not as a public display, but as an expression of your faithfulness to God], and then indeed all things are clean for you.

“Sell your possessions (show compassion) and give [donations] to the poor. Provide money belts for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing and inexhaustible treasure in the heavens, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

But when you give a banquet or a reception, invite the poor, the disabled, the lame, and the blind,

So the servant came back and reported this to his master. Then [his master,] the head of the household, became angry [at the rejections of his invitation] and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and the lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and the disabled and the blind and the lame.’

When Jesus heard this, He said to him, “You still lack one thing; sell everything that you have and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have [abundant] treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me [becoming My disciple, believing and trusting in Me and walking the same path of life that I walk].”

Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, “See, Lord, I am [now] giving half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone out of anything, I will give back four times as much.”

And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins.

He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow has put in [proportionally] more than all of them;

“Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and [the money] given to the poor?”

Now he said this, not because he cared about the poor [for he had never cared about them], but because he was a thief; and since he had the money box [serving as treasurer for the twelve disciples], he used to pilfer what was put into it.

You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.”

Some thought that, since Judas [as the treasurer of the group] had the money box, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he was to give something to the poor.

Cornelius was frightened and stared intently at him and said, “What is it, lord (sir)?” And the angel said to him, “Your prayers and gifts of charity have ascended as a memorial offering before God [an offering made in remembrance of His past blessings].

and he said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your acts of charity have been remembered before God [so that He is about to help you].

For [Gentile believers in] Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints (Jewish believers) in Jerusalem.

for when you eat, each one hurries to get his own supper first [not waiting for others or the poor]. So one goes hungry while another gets drunk.

What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you show contempt for the church of God and humiliate those [impoverished believers] who have nothing? What will I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? In this I will not praise you!

If I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it does me no good at all.

as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet bestowing riches on many; as having nothing, yet possessing all things.

For you are recognizing [more clearly] the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ [His astonishing kindness, His generosity, His gracious favor], that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that by His poverty you might become rich (abundantly blessed).

As it is written and forever remains written,“He [the benevolent and generous person] scattered abroad, he gave to the poor,His righteousness endures forever!”

They asked only [one thing], that we remember the poor, the very thing I was also eager to do.

O you foolish and thoughtless and superficial Galatians, who has bewitched you [that you would act like this], to whom—right before your very eyes—Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified [in the gospel message]?

For if a man comes into your meeting place wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in,

and you pay special attention to the one who wears the fine clothes, and say to him, “You sit here in this good seat,” and you tell the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down [on the floor] by my footstool,”

Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters: has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and [as believers to be] heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?

But you [in contrast] have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress and exploit you, and personally drag you into the courts of law?

Be hospitable to one another without complaint.

Because you say, “I am rich, and have prospered and grown wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked [without hope and in great need],