1. The God Who Does Justice
for your EVER-LIVING GOD is a GOD of GODS, and ALMIGHTY of ALMIGHTIES, the GREAT GOD, the POWERFUL, and the ENLIGHTENER;—Who will not regard appearances, and will not take bribes! Who does justice to the orphan and the widow, and loves to give bread and clothes to the stranger. Therefore you should love the stranger, for you were a stranger in the land of the Mitzeraim!
— Deuteronomy 10:17–19, FFT
Mercy begins in God. He does justice to the orphan and widow and loves to give bread and clothes to the stranger.
2. The Cry of Widow and Orphan
"You shall not persecute or oppress foreigners; for you were foreigners in the land of the Mitzeraim. "You shall not annoy any widow or orphan. If you wrong them, so that they cry to me, I shall hear their cry, and My anger will burn, and I will slay you by the sword, and your own wives shall be widows, and your own children orphans.
— Exodus 22:21–24, FFT
The vulnerable may lack earthly defenders, but they are not undefended. God hears their cry.
3. Courts, Bribes, and the Destitute
"You shall not pervert justice from the destitute when he pleads. "Keep far off from false pretence. You shall not kill the innocent, and the righteous, for I will not acquit the wicked. And you shall not receive bribes, for bribes blind open eyes, and pervert the words of the righteous. "And you shall not oppress a foreigner, for you know the feelings of a foreigner; since you were foreigners in the land of the Mitzeraim.
— Exodus 23:6–9, FFT
Justice must not be perverted from the destitute; bribes blind open eyes and pervert the words of the righteous.
4. Gleanings, Wages, and the Poor Brother
"And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not continue cutting to the sides of your field, cutting and gleaning; you shall not cut to the gleanings. And you shall not strip your vineyard; nor shall you glean the scatterings of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor, and the foreigner. I am your EVER-LIVING GOD.
— Leviticus 19:9–10, FFT
"You shall not rob; and you shall not deceive; and you shall not lie each to his neighbour; and you shall not swear by My Name to a lie; and disgrace the Name of your GOD. I am the EVER-LIVING. "And you shall not oppress; and you shall not plunder; nor retain the wages of a workman with yourself until the morning. "You shall not curse the deaf; and before the blind you shall not place a stumbling-block; but you shall fear your GOD. I am the EVER-LIVING. "You shall not do wrong instead of justice. You shall not despise the face of the lowly, and honour the face of the great. You shall judge your neighbour in righteousness. "You shall not go about slandering your neighbour. "You shall not lie in wait for the blood of your neighbour. I am the EVER-LIVING." "You shall not hate your brother in your heart. "You may reprove your neighbour, but not bear against him. "You shall not take revenge upon the child of your neighbour; but you shall love your neighbour as yourself. I am the EVER-LIVING.
— Leviticus 19:11–18, FFT
"But if your brother becomes poor, and his hand fails among you, you must help him like a foreigner and settler, and let him live with you. Take no usury or increase from him, but fear your GOD, and let your brother live with you. You shall not lend your money to him at usury, and you shall not lend him food at increase;
— Leviticus 25:35–37, FFT
The land is not to be stripped bare; wages must not be retained; the poor brother whose hand fails must be helped, not exploited.
5. Open Your Hand Freely
Yet there will be poor among you one brother with another in your villages, in the country which your EVER-LIVING GOD gives you. Harden not your heart, nor close your hand from your poor brother; but open your hand to him, and lend, according to his necessity what is needful to him. Guard yourself from saying to your vile heart, "The seventh year, the year of release, is near,"—and your eye is cruel to your poor brother, and you will not lend to him,—when he will cry against you to the EVER-LIVING, and it will be a sin to you. Lend freely to him! and let not your heart grudge against lending, but rely upon this fact that your EVER-LIVING GOD will then bless you in all you do, and in all sent from your hand. For the poor will never be wanting in the breast of the land;—therefore I have commanded you saying, "Open your hand freely to your distressed brother,—to your poor,—in the land!"
— Deuteronomy 15:7–11, FFT
You shall not oppress the poor and helpless of your brothers in their wages, nor the foreigner who is in your country, or your villages. You shall pay them their wages daily, when the sun shall set upon them, for they are poor, and their life depends upon them,—so that they may not cry to the EVER-LIVING against you; for it would be a sin against you.
— Deuteronomy 24:14–15, FFT
The worker’s life may depend on his wage. The poor brother’s need must not be met by a closed hand and cruel eye.
6. Worship Rejected Without Justice
Is not this the Fast I approve?— To free those who are wrongfully bound? And to loosen your slaves from their yoke? And to seek out and free the oppressed? And that you should remove every wrong? And to give to the famishing food? The poor wanderers to bring to your house? And those whom you see naked to clothe? And to hide not yourself from your kind?— Then your light would break forth like the morn, And your wings up on high would spread out, And before you your bounty would march, With the LORD'S power guarding your rear. You should call, and the LORD would reply, You should shout, and He answer, I'm here!' If oppression you cast from your breast, And scorn's finger, and slandering lie. When you share with the hungry your bread, And you comfort the body in pain, Your light will shoot out from the dark, And your sunset to splendour be turned.
— Isaiah 58:6–10, FFT
I hate, I reject your feasts! I am not pleased with your assemblings! When you offer burnt-offerings with foods, I am not gratified!—and I will not look at your fat thank-offerings! Take away the drone of your songs! And let Me not hear the tone of your lutes!— But let Justice flow like brooks, and right like a constant river!
— Amos 5:21–24, FFT
"He has shown you, frail man, what is right; And what does the LORD seek from you? To administer Justice aright, Love mercy, walk humbly with GOD!"
— Micah 6:8, FFT
Songs, feasts, and fasts cannot compensate for oppression. The Lord seeks justice, mercy, and humble walking with God.
7. Christ, the Poor, and Pure Religion
A SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BY WHICH HE HAS APPOINTED ME TO TELL GOOD NEWS TO THE POOR; HE HAS SENT ME TO HEAL THE BROKEN-HEARTED; TO PROCLAIM FREEDOM TO THE ENSLAVED; AND RESTORATION OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND; TO SET AT LIBERTY THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED; TO PROCLAIM THE YEAR HONOURED BY THE LORD.
— Luke 4:18–19, FFT
Then addressing His host, He said; "Whenever you provide a luncheon or a supper, do not invite merely your friends, your brothers, your relations, nor your rich neighbors; for fear they should also invite you in return, and thus reward you. But, on the contrary, when you provide an entertainment, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be happy; because they have nothing with which to repay you. You will be repaid, however, at the resurrection of the just."
— Luke 14:12–14, FFT
The King will then say to those upon His right hand, 'Come! you approved of My Father; inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry, and you gave Me food; I was thirsty, and you gave Me a drink; I was a stranger, and you entertained Me; naked, and you clothed Me; I was exhausted, and you attended Me; I was in prison, and you visited Me.' "Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'When, Master, did we see You starving, and fed You? or thirsty, and gave You a drink? When did we see You a stranger, and entertained You? or naked, and clothed You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and came to You?' "And their King will reply to them, 'I tell you indeed, that whenever you did it to one of these My poorest friends, you even did it to Me.'
— Matthew 25:34–40, FFT
Pure and undefiled religion in the presence of the God and Father is this, To care for the fatherless and widows in their distress; to preserve himself unspotted from the world.
— James 1:27, FFT
Do not, my brethren, regard the majestic faith of our Lord Jesus Christ as an instrument to flatter with! For should there enter your assembly a man wearing gold rings and splendid clothing, and there should enter at the same time a poor man in ragged attire; and you pay attention to him who has the splendid dress, saying, "Take a seat there in the place of honour," and to the poor man say, "You can stand there, or crouch under my footstool": does this not prove your partiality, and a readiness to arbitrate with wicked bias? Listen, my dear brethren: Has not God chosen the poor from a worldly point of view, yet rich in faith, as inheritors of the Kingdom which He has promised to those who love Him? But you have despised the poor. Do not the rich exceedingly oppress you, and themselves drag you to the law-courts? Do they not slander that noble Name by which you are distinguished! If, however, you observe the royal law, according to the scripture, You SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOUR AS YOUR OWN SELF, you will do well; but if you show partiality, you are guilty of sin, being convicted by that law as culprits.
— James 2:1–9, FFT
The Gospel reaches the poor; hospitality must include those who cannot repay; pure religion cares for fatherless and widows in distress; the assembly must not flatter gold rings and despise ragged poverty.
Trial
Every doctrine, practice, counsel, ministry habit, and public word touching this matter must be tried by the Word.
- Does it imitate God’s justice for orphan and widow?
- Does it hear the cry of the poor and pay wages lawfully?
- Does it refuse bribes, partiality, and flattering the rich?
- Does it make worship and mercy stand together?
- Does it love in act and truth, not tongue only?
Settlement
We will not close the hand, withhold wages, receive bribes, strip the field bare, flatter the rich, or despise the poor.
We will administer justice aright, love mercy, walk humbly with God, and remember that Christ receives mercy done to His poorest friends.