The Bible is full of positive references to the poors, summarized in the first of the Beatitudes of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount.
The poor, together with the sinners of the world, is whom Jesus came to save.
However, today’s world is full of poverty, financially and spiritually.
So, what does the Bible say about the poor? There are many verses about the poor in the Bible, but we will leave seven of them with a brief comment on each one:
The kingdom belongs to the poor in spirit
The Gospel Coalition gives us the following definition of “poor in spirit”: It is a person who recognizes his spiritual misery in the presence of God. A poor in spirit is one who knows that he is spiritually ruined when we are without God. He is the one who is devoid of all virtue and recognizes his total poverty before the Lord. Taking this into account:
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.Matthew 5:3
While we are all spiritually miserable, only those who realize this and recognize it, those are the poor in spirit and it is for them the promise of the second part of Matthew 5:3 that says that the kingdom of Heavens belogns to them.
Treasures in the heaven
The Bible teaches us in different places that it is better to make treasures in heaven, because the treasure of the earth perishes, but the treasure of the heavens abides forever.
Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
Mark 10:21
Good news to the poor
Jesus came to give good news to the poor, so He said when He read the following passage from Isaiah in the synagogue:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luke 4:18
After reading this passage, Jesus said that this Scripture was fulfilled in Him, because He came into the world to fulfill this mission.
Do not close your hand against the poor
Do not blind yourself to the needs of people with less resources in your city, do not harden your heart, do not close your hand against them.
If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother:
Deuteronomy 15:7
The salvation of the poor
The Lord our God hears the groans of those in need, and one day He will rise at the cry of them, to put them to safety.
For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
Psalm 12:5
The Lord is the hope of the poor
Although many make fun of the poor and oppress them, our God of heaven is their hope.
Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge.
Psalm 14:6
He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord
Never deny a helping hand to a poor person, because when you give to the poor, you are lending to God, and if you lend to God, will not He return multiplied the favor you have done for the poor?
...He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.
Proverbs 19:17
