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Now hurry back to my father and say to him, 'This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don't delay.
You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me,you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.
I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.'
Genesis Chapter 45: Verses 9 - 11
"If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not be like a moneylender; charge him no interest.
Exodus Chapter 22: Verse 25
"Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd,
and do not show favoritism to a poor man in his lawsuit.
"If you come across your enemy's ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to take it back to him.
If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help him with it.
"Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits.
Exodus Chapter 23: Verses 2 - 6
"For six years you are to sow your fields and harvest the crops,
but during the seventh year let the land lie unplowed and unused. Then the poor among your people may get food from it, and the wild animals may eat what they leave. Do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.
Exodus Chapter 23: Verses 10 - 11
The rich are not to give more than a half shekel and the poor are not to give less when you make the offering to the LORD to atone for your lives.
Exodus Chapter 30: Verse 15
"If, however, he is poor and cannot afford these, he must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for him, together with a tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering, a log of oil,
and two doves or two young pigeons, which he can afford, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.
Leviticus Chapter 14: Verses 21 - 22
Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God.
Leviticus Chapter 19: Verse 10
" 'Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.
Leviticus Chapter 19: Verse 15
" 'When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God.' " Feast of Trumpets
Leviticus Chapter 23: Verse 22
" 'If one of your countrymen becomes poor and sells some of his property, his nearest relative is to come and redeem what his countryman has sold.
Leviticus Chapter 25: Verse 25
" 'If one of your countrymen becomes poor and is unable to support himself among you, help him as you would an alien or a temporary resident, so he can continue to live among you.
Leviticus Chapter 25: Verse 35
" 'If one of your countrymen becomes poor among you and sells himself to you, do not make him work as a slave.
Leviticus Chapter 25: Verse 39
" 'If an alien or a temporary resident among you becomes rich and one of your countrymen becomes poor and sells himself to the alien living among you or to a member of the alien's clan,
he retains the right of redemption after he has sold himself. One of his relatives may redeem him:
An uncle or a cousin or any blood relative in his clan may redeem him. Or if he prospers, he may redeem himself.
Leviticus Chapter 25: Verses 47 - 49
However, there should be no poor among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you,
if only you fully obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commands I am giving you today.
For the LORD your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.
If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother.
Rather be openhanded and freely lend him whatever he needs.
Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: "The seventh year, the year for canceling debts, is near," so that you do not show ill will toward your needy brother and give him nothing. He may then appeal to the LORD against you, and you will be found guilty of sin.
Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.
There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land. Freeing Servants
Deuteronomy Chapter 15: Verses 4 - 11
If the man is poor, do not go to sleep with his pledge in your possession.
Return his cloak to him by sunset so that he may sleep in it. Then he will thank you, and it will be regarded as a righteous act in the sight of the LORD your God.
Do not take advantage of a hired man who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother Israelite or an alien living in one of your towns.
Pay him his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and is counting on it. Otherwise he may cry to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.
Deuteronomy Chapter 24: Verses 12 - 15
"But sir," Gideon replied, "if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, 'Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian."
The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?"
"But Lord , " Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."
Judges Chapter 6: Verses 13 - 15
The LORD sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts.
He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor. "For the foundations of the earth are the LORD's; upon them he has set the world.
1 Samuel Chapter 2: Verses 7 - 8
The LORD sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, "There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor.
The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle,
but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.
"Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him."
2 Samuel Chapter 12: Verses 1 - 4
But the needy will not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish.
Arise, O LORD, let not man triumph; let the nations be judged in your presence.
Psalms Chapter 9: Verses 18 - 19
In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.
Psalms Chapter 10: Verse 2
"Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise," says the LORD. "I will protect them from those who malign them."
Psalms Chapter 12: Verse 5
My whole being will exclaim, "Who is like you, O LORD ? You rescue the poor from those too strong for them, the poor and needy from those who rob them."
Psalms Chapter 35: Verse 10
Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.
Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.
Psalms Chapter 82: Verses 3 - 4
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest-
and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.
Proverbs Chapter 6: Verses 10 - 11
Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.
Proverbs Chapter 10: Verse 4
The wealth of the rich is their fortified city, but poverty is the ruin of the poor.
Proverbs Chapter 10: Verse 15
One man pretends to be rich, yet has nothing; another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.
A man's riches may ransom his life, but a poor man hears no threat.
Proverbs Chapter 13: Verses 7 - 8
He who ignores discipline comes to poverty and shame, but whoever heeds correction is honored.
Proverbs Chapter 13: Verse 18
The poor are shunned even by their neighbors, but the rich have many friends.
He who despises his neighbor sins, but blessed is he who is kind to the needy.
Proverbs Chapter 14: Verses 20 - 21
He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.
Proverbs Chapter 14: Verse 31
Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.
Proverbs Chapter 16: Verse 19
He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished.
Proverbs Chapter 17: Verse 5
Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse.
It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way.
A man's own folly ruins his life, yet his heart rages against the LORD.
Wealth brings many friends, but a poor man's friend deserts him.
Proverbs Chapter 19: Verses 1 - 4
A poor man is shunned by all his relatives, how much more do his friends avoid him! Though he pursues them with pleading, they are nowhere to be found.
Proverbs Chapter 19: Verse 7
He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done.
Proverbs Chapter 19: Verse 17
Do not love sleep or you will grow poor; stay awake and you will have food to spare.
Proverbs Chapter 20: Verse 13
If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered.
Proverbs Chapter 21: Verse 13
He who loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and oil will never be rich.
Proverbs Chapter 21: Verse 17
Rich and poor have this in common: The LORD is the Maker of them all.
Proverbs Chapter 22: Verse 2
The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.
Proverbs Chapter 22: Verse 7
Do not exploit the poor because they are poor and do not crush the needy in court,
Proverbs Chapter 22: Verse 22
for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.
Proverbs Chapter 23: Verse 21
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest-
and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.
Proverbs Chapter 24: Verses 33 - 34
A ruler who oppresses the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no crops.
Proverbs Chapter 28: Verse 3
Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a rich man whose ways are perverse.
Proverbs Chapter 28: Verse 6
A rich man may be wise in his own eyes, but a poor man who has discernment sees through him.
Proverbs Chapter 28: Verse 11
Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked man ruling over a helpless people.
Proverbs Chapter 28: Verse 15
He who works his land will have abundant food, but the one who chases fantasies will have his fill of poverty.
Proverbs Chapter 28: Verse 19
He who gives to the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses.
Proverbs Chapter 28: Verse 27
Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.
Proverbs Chapter 30: Verse 8
Give beer to those who are perishing, wine to those who are in anguish;
let them drink and forget their poverty and remember their misery no more.
Proverbs Chapter 31: Verses 6 - 7
Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to take warning.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 4: Verse 13
If you see the poor oppressed in a district, and justice and rights denied, do not be surprised at such things; for one official is eyed by a higher one, and over them both are others higher still.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 5: Verse 8
Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man.
So I said, "Wisdom is better than strength." But the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 9: Verses 15 - 16
"The poor and needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the LORD will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
Isaiah Chapter 41: Verse 17
"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter, when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
Isaiah Chapter 58: Verses 6 - 7
When all the army officers and their men who were still in the open country heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam as governor over the land and had put him in charge of the men, women and children who were the poorest in the land and who had not been carried into exile to Babylon,
Jeremiah Chapter 40: Verse 7
Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue." The Dream Is Fulfilled
All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar.
Daniel Chapter 4: Verses 27 - 28
Hear this word, you cows of Bashan on Mount Samaria, you women who oppress the poor and crush the needy and say to your husbands, "Bring us some drinks!"
The Sovereign LORD has sworn by his holiness: "The time will surely come when you will be taken away with hooks, the last of you with fishhooks.
Amos Chapter 4: Verses 1 - 2
You trample on the poor and force him to give you grain. Therefore, though you have built stone mansions, you will not live in them; though you have planted lush vineyards, you will not drink their wine.
Amos Chapter 5: Verse 11
Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
Mark Chapter 10: Verse 21
But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.
Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.
Mark Chapter 12: Verses 42 - 43
While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.
Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, "Why this waste of perfume?
It could have been sold for more than a year's wages and the money given to the poor." And they rebuked her harshly.
"Leave her alone," said Jesus. "Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me.
The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.
Mark Chapter 14: Verses 3 - 7
For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.
Romans Chapter 15: Verse 26
And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches.
Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own,
they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.
And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will.
So we urged Titus, since he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part.
But just as you excel in everything,in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us ,see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others.
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.
2 Corinthians Chapter 8: Verses 1 - 9
Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in.
If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, "Here's a good seat for you," but say to the poor man, "You stand there" or "Sit on the floor by my feet,"
have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?
But you have insulted the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court?
James Chapter 2: Verses 2 - 6
"To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.
I know your afflictions and your poverty,yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
Revelation Chapter 2: Verses 8 - 9
"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation.
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!
So, because you are lukewarm,neither hot nor cold,I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.
Revelation Chapter 3: Verses 14 - 17
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