DEVARIM

Words [of Moses]

7 If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates [she'arim] in thy land which Yahweh thy Elohim giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart [lev], nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother:

The poor are a standing institution

‭

‭"‬The poor shall never cease out of the land.‭"

‭ ‬They are a means of testing our faithfulness to the will of God.‭ ‬They are also a means of exercising the heavenly organs of sympathy and benevolence.‭ ‬Read‭ ‬Deut.‭ xv‬.,‭ ‬and you have God's mind respecting the poor.

‭ "‬Open thine hand wide unto him,‭" "‬Lend him sufficient for his need,‭" "‬Thou shalt furnish him liberally out of thy flock,‭"

‭ ‬etc.‭ ‬Israel were warned to beware lest they invented plausible excuses for disobedience.‭ ‬How much need is there for such a warning‭! ‬How we like to selfishly hold what we have‭! ‬At the same time the Scriptures call upon us to exercise prudence and commonsense in dealing with the poor.‭ ‬Every application for help is not to be blindly yielded to.‭ ‬It would be an evil to encourage the spendthrift in his extravagance,‭ ‬or the idle man in his laziness,‭ ‬or the professional beggar in his profession,‭ ‬or the reckless fool in his gambling commercial enterprises.‭

There are poor and poor.‭ ‬It is a matter for discernment as to when to help and when to refrain from helping.‭ ‬If we honestly endeavour to do our duty we shall not go far wrong.‭ ‬Let us remember that to err in this matter on the giving side is better than to err on the not-giving side.‭ ‬Let us exhort one another in our duty towards the poor,‭ ‬but let us not judge and condemn one another.‭ ‬We live in an evil world—our duty can only be done with many short-comings.

‭ ‬If we have a good and honest heart,‭ ‬all will end well.‭—‬A.‭ ‬T.‭ ‬J.

The Christadelphian, Feb 1899

11 For the poor shall never cease out of the land [ha'aretz]: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.

The existence of the poor among the children of God is a divine arrangement.‭ ‬Probably its object is to test obedience and develop neighbourly love.‭ ‬The Israelites were commanded not only to open their hand to the poor,‭ ‬but to open it‭ ‬wide‭ (‬Deut.‭ xv. ‬11‭)‬.‭

With equal emphasis has this requirement been introduced into the law of Christ.‭ ‬The fact that God should have to be so emphatic in regard to such a matter shows how lamentably selfish is man.‭ ‬God,‭ ‬however,‭ ‬will have this defect remedied in His children.‭ ‬He has provided the things needful to remedy it.‭ ‬If‭ "‬that day‭" ‬should reveal that we are still imperfect,‭ ‬the fault will be ours‭ — ‬we shall find ourselves without excuse.

‭ ‬God's command concerning the poor has been enhanced by the promise that He will repay all that has been given,‭ ‬and also by the threat that the one who heeds not shall himself surely come to want‭ (‬Prov.‭ xxi. ‬13‭; xxii. ‬16‭)‬.‭ ‬The day is fast approaching when both the obedient and the disobedient will realise that God meant exactly what He said‭ (‬Matt.‭ xxv. ‬31‭–‬46‭)‬. ATJ

TC 07 1887