and do not show favoritism to a poor person in a lawsuit.

“Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits.

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 is left. Do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.

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.

“If, however, they are poor and cannot afford these, they must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for them, together with a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log of oil,

Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the Lord your God.

“‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.

“‘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 for the foreigner residing among you. I am the Lord your God.’”

“‘If one of your fellow Israelites becomes poor and sells some of their property, their nearest relative is to come and redeem what they have sold.

“‘If any of your fellow Israelites become poor and are unable to support themselves among you, help them as you would a foreigner and stranger, so they can continue to live among you.

“‘If any of your fellow Israelites become poor and sell themselves to you, do not make them work as slaves.

“‘If a foreigner residing among you becomes rich and any of your fellow Israelites become poor and sell themselves to the foreigner or to a member of the foreigner’s clan,

If anyone making the vow is too poor to pay the specified amount, the person being dedicated is to be presented to the priest, who will set the value according to what the one making the vow can afford.

How is the soil? Is it fertile or poor? Are there trees in it or not? Do your best to bring back some of the fruit of the land.” (It was the season for the first ripe grapes.)

However, there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you,

If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward them.

There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.

If the neighbor is poor, do not go to sleep with their pledge in your possession.

Do not take advantage of a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether that worker is a fellow Israelite or a foreigner residing in one of your towns.

Pay them their wages each day before sunset, because they are poor and are counting on it. Otherwise they may cry to the Lord against you, and you will be guilty of sin.

“The Lord bless you, my daughter,” he replied. “This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.

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; on them he has set the world.

They repeated these words to David. But David said, “Do you think it is a small matter to become the king’s son-in-law? I’m only a poor man and little known.”

Nathan Rebukes David

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.

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.”

He carried all Jerusalem into exile: all the officers and fighting men, and all the skilled workers and artisans—a total of ten thousand. Only the poorest people of the land were left.

But the commander left behind some of the poorest people of the land to work the vineyards and fields.

Nehemiah Helps the Poor

Now the men and their wives raised a great outcry against their fellow Jews.

as the time when the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month when their sorrow was turned into joy and their mourning into a day of celebration. He wrote them to observe the days as days of feasting and joy and giving presents of food to one another and gifts to the poor.

So the poor have hope, and injustice shuts its mouth.

His children must make amends to the poor; his own hands must give back his wealth.

For he has oppressed the poor and left them destitute; he has seized houses he did not build.

They thrust the needy from the path and force all the poor of the land into hiding.

Like wild donkeys in the desert, the poor go about their labor of foraging food; the wasteland provides food for their children.

The fatherless child is snatched from the breast; the infant of the poor is seized for a debt.

When daylight is gone, the murderer rises up, kills the poor and needy, and in the night steals forth like a thief.

because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist them.

Have I not wept for those in trouble? Has not my soul grieved for the poor?

“If I have denied the desires of the poor or let the eyes of the widow grow weary,

who shows no partiality to princes and does not favor the rich over the poor, for they are all the work of his hands?

They caused the cry of the poor to come before him, so that he heard the cry of the needy.

“Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord. “I will protect them from those who malign them.”

You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.

who lends money to the poor without interest; who does not accept a bribe against the innocent. Whoever does these things will never be shaken.

The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the Lord will praise him— may your hearts live forever!

This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.

My whole being will exclaim, “Who is like you, Lord? You rescue the poor from those too strong for them, the poor and needy from those who rob them.”

The wicked draw the sword and bend the bow to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose ways are upright.

But as for me, I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; you are my God, do not delay.

both low and high, rich and poor alike:

Your people settled in it, and from your bounty, God, you provided for the poor.

The poor will see and be glad— you who seek God, may your hearts live!

But as for me, I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; Lord, do not delay.

Do not let the oppressed retreat in disgrace; may the poor and needy praise your name.

Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.

Psalm 86

A prayer of David.

Hear me, Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.

For he never thought of doing a kindness, but hounded to death the poor and the needy and the brokenhearted.

For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor, their righteousness endures forever; their horn will be lifted high in honor.

He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap;

I will bless her with abundant provisions; her poor I will satisfy with food.

I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy.

The wealth of the rich is their fortified city, but poverty is the ruin of the poor.

One person pretends to be rich, yet has nothing; another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.

A person’s riches may ransom their life, but the poor cannot respond to threatening rebukes.

An unplowed field produces food for the poor, but injustice sweeps it away.

The poor are shunned even by their neighbors, but the rich have many friends.

Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.

Whoever mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished.

The poor plead for mercy, but the rich answer harshly.

Better the poor whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse.

Wealth attracts many friends, but even the closest friend of the poor person deserts them.

The poor are shunned by all their relatives— how much more do their friends avoid them! Though the poor pursue them with pleading, they are nowhere to be found.

Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done.

What a person desires is unfailing love; better to be poor than a liar.

Do not love sleep or you will grow poor; stay awake and you will have food to spare.

Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered.

Whoever loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich.

Rich and poor have this in common: The Lord is the Maker of them all.

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.

The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor.

One who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and one who gives gifts to the rich—both come to poverty.

Saying 2

Do not exploit the poor because they are poor and do not crush the needy in court,

for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

A ruler who oppresses the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no crops.

Better the poor whose walk is blameless than the rich whose ways are perverse.

Whoever increases wealth by taking interest or profit from the poor amasses it for another, who will be kind to the poor.

The rich are wise in their own eyes; one who is poor and discerning sees how deluded they are.

Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses.

The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern.

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

If a king judges the poor with fairness, his throne will be established forever.

Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.

those whose teeth are swords and whose jaws are set with knives to devour the poor from the earth and the needy from among mankind.

Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.

She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.

Advancement Is Meaningless

Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning.

Riches Are Meaningless

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.

What advantage have the wise over fools? What do the poor gain by knowing how to conduct themselves before others?

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.

The Lord enters into judgment against the elders and leaders of his people: “It is you who have ruined my vineyard; the plunder from the poor is in your houses.

What do you mean by crushing my people and grinding the faces of the poor?” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.

to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless.

Cry out, Daughter Gallim! Listen, Laishah! Poor Anathoth!

but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.

The poorest of the poor will find pasture, and the needy will lie down in safety. But your root I will destroy by famine; it will slay your survivors.

You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in their distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat. For the breath of the ruthless is like a storm driving against a wall

Feet trample it down— the feet of the oppressed, the footsteps of the poor.

Scoundrels use wicked methods, they make up evil schemes to destroy the poor with lies, even when the plea of the needy is just.

A person too poor to present such an offering selects wood that will not rot; they look for a skilled worker to set up an idol that will not topple.

“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.

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 them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

The Year of the Lord’s Favor

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,

On your clothes is found the lifeblood of the innocent poor, though you did not catch them breaking in. Yet in spite of all this

I thought, “These are only the poor; they are foolish, for they do not know the way of the Lord, the requirements of their God.

and have grown fat and sleek. Their evil deeds have no limit; they do not seek justice. They do not promote the case of the fatherless; they do not defend the just cause of the poor.

He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the Lord.

But Nebuzaradan the commander of the guard left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people, who owned nothing; and at that time he gave them vineyards and fields.

Gedaliah Assassinated

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,

Nebuzaradan the commander of the guard carried into exile some of the poorest people and those who remained in the city, along with the rest of the craftsmen and those who had deserted to the king of Babylon.

But Nebuzaradan left behind the rest of the poorest people of the land to work the vineyards and fields.

“‘Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.

He oppresses the poor and needy. He commits robbery. He does not return what he took in pledge. He looks to the idols. He does detestable things.

He withholds his hand from mistreating the poor and takes no interest or profit from them. He keeps my laws and follows my decrees. He will not die for his father’s sin; he will surely live.

In you are people who accept bribes to shed blood; you take interest and make a profit from the poor. You extort unjust gain from your neighbors. And you have forgotten me, declares the Sovereign Lord.

The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery; they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner, denying them justice.

They trample on the heads of the poor as on the dust of the ground and deny justice to the oppressed. Father and son use the same girl and so profane my holy name.

Israel Has Not Returned to God

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!”

You levy a straw tax on the poor and impose a tax on their 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.

For I know how many are your offenses and how great your sins. There are those who oppress the innocent and take bribes and deprive the poor of justice in the courts.

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

buying the poor with silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, selling even the sweepings with the wheat.

Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.

Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

“This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”

The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.

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.”

But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.

It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly.

The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,

Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

So he replied to the messengers, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.

But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.

Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,

“The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’

When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”

He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins.

“Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others.

“Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.”

He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”

Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor.

In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor.

Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked. The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.

and said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor.

“After an absence of several years, I came to Jerusalem to bring my people gifts for the poor and to present offerings.

For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the Lord’s people in Jerusalem.

If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

As it is written: “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor; their righteousness endures forever.”

All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along.

Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old 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,”

Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: 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 dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court?

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.

It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads,