Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

WEALTH

The abundance of material possessions (land, livestock, agriculture); also synonymous with “greed.”

The OT view of wealth (or “riches”) is determined by a religious understanding. Yahweh is the creator and ruler over all creation; all things belong to him (Ps. 24:1). Wealth and riches may be a sign of God’s blessing or the cause of God’s wrath. Stern warnings are directed against those who strive for wealth through greed, trickery, and treachery (2 Sam. 12:1-14; Isa. 10:3; Jer. 5:27; 17:3; Ezek. 7:11; Hos. 12:8[MT 9]; Mic. 6:12). On the other hand, to those who are faithful, Yahweh promises the wealth of the nations (Isa. 45:14; 60:5, 11). A growing refrain of charges against the wealthy emerges. The main charge is that they oppress the poor (Isa. 10:1-2; Ezek. 22:25-29; Amos 2:6; 5:11). They reflect a small group of greedy people who acquire wealth at the expense of the poor, the powerless, and those whose rights are not respected.

Most of the OT statements about wealth occur in the Wisdom Literature. Sometimes wealth is praised as the fruit of wisdom (Prov. 3:16) and humility (10:22). More often it is criticized: Job protests the view that goodness brings wealth and wickedness brings poverty. In a number of Psalms (Pss. 10, 12, 37, 41, 52, 72) “rich” is practically identical with “wicked,” while “poor” is synonymous with “righteous.”

The NT continues the growing critique of wealth. Here the terms “rich or wealthy” are synonymous with “greedy.” Morally the wealthy were evil because they opted to devote their lives to greed, rather than to God. In a sense, wealth is a force that competes with God, drawing loyalty away from God (Matt. 6:21, 24). This is illustrated in the classic example of the rich young man who rejects Jesus’ invitation to follow him (Mark 10:17-31 par.). This story prompts Jesus’ sayings on the difficulty the rich have in entering the kingdom of God as compared to a camel passing through a needle’s eye (Mark 10:25 par.). Again the perspective is that of the greedy who erect obstacles, making it impossible to enter God’s kingdom (Luke 6:24). The same incompatibility is illustrated in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). While the passages where Jesus speaks about wealth are few, they are nevertheless forceful.

The Epistle of James also depicts the wealthy as those who are godless and greedy. Jas. 5:1-6 provides the fullest critique of the wealthy: they place their trust in themselves and in the fortunes that they have amassed at the expense of the harvesters whom they have defrauded. A day of judgment awaits these greedy rich. A study of the anthropology and sociology of the world of the NT has demonstrated that the condemnation of the greed of the rich arises from a basic worldview that the supply of wealth was actually limited — the amassing of a fortune by one person occurred at the expense of someone else.

Other NT writings also pay attention to the dangers of wealth. 1 Tim. 6:9-10 describes “the love of money” (avarice) as “a root of all kinds of evil.” The book of Revelation condemns the church at Laodicea; her greed is demonstrated in her total reliance upon herself (Rev. 3:17). The greed of the Roman world is also graphically denounced in Rev. 18:17.

Bibliography. D. E. Gowan, “Wealth and Poverty in the Old Testament,” Int 41 (1987): 341-53; B. J. Malina, “Wealth and Poverty in the New Testament and Its World,” Int 41 (1987): 354-67.

Patrick J. Martin

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

WEALTH

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)