The Problem of Poverty in Biblical Concept of Man

Abstract

All the cases of deprivation which people suffer from are called poverty. To be more specific, there is material poverty, physical poverty and spiritual poverty. However, the term poverty has also a broader use, and in a moral sense can mean the attitude of internal freedom towards material possessions. In a religious sense it is internal dependence on God when it comes to all necessities of life. In Biblical thought one can observe a very characteristic change of views on the reason of poverty and its meaning. At the beginning stages of history of salvation wealth of a man was considered as a sign of God’s special blessing, whereas poverty was the indication of lack of such a blessing, which was connected with God’s punishment for sins. A poor man therefore, is a sinful man deserving God’s wrath. This thought was very clearly accentuated in the biblical Book of Job, which is an extraordinary meditation on human suffering and poverty. This book is a very important stage in the development of the biblical thought concerning this matter. Poverty does not necessarily have to be an indication of God’s punishment and a poor man does not have to be a sinner. Material wealth as well as material poverty do not have significant meaning in man’s life. Its true value is spiritual poverty, which counts for God and which determines the right hierarchy of all the values. The ultimate value in this hierarchy is God who is to be totally trusted in. This trust is a kind of lodestar which can lead man through life in such a way that both wealth and poverty will serve him to follow God’s salvation plan.