Exodus 30:15 (KJV) The Rich and The Poor

Exodus 30:15 (KJV)
The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.

In our day we believe that the rich owe it to the poor to do more than their fair share. We also tend to believe that the poor deserve to be cared for, if not by the wealthy, then at least through the state treasury.

These ideas have developed through centuries of experiences where the wealthy became more so as the impoverished starved. (During, for instance, the potato famine[1]) the royal and the wealthy developed a culture of obligatory benevolence. It isn’t that they think well of the less fortunate but that they think it an obligation of their status to reach out in some perfunctory way.

The Bible teaches no such thing. God is no respecter of persons. The Bible teaches two concepts concerning the responsibilities of the rich and poor:

Give in proportion to what you receiveThe rich are not expected to give more than the poor. Each gives according to their income.

Each is equal in the eyes of GodGod does not view the wealthy as any greater than the poor. Every soul is of equal worth. Each has the same access to God.

On top of these two principles is the grace of giving – giving beyond one’s means simply out of devotion.

The wealthy owe the poor nothing but to treat them with respect and to deal with them fairly. The poor deserve nothing but the same opportunities to work and earn as others.

[1] See, for instance, www.missedinhistory.com/blogs/missed-in-history-irish-potato-famine-part-1.htm

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Exodus 30:15 (KJV) The Rich and The Poor

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