Proverbs 19:17, God’s Gild-Edged Security!

Posted on Posted in Devotions Tagged with ,

December 14, Proverbs 19:17

Matt. 25:31-46; Luke 10:33-37 “Treasures, in the Bank of Heaven.”

God’s Gild-Edged Security!

What a motive for social justice! Pagan morality never propounded such a proposition. Yet, this is one of the strongest and clearest admonitions of the Bible, both in the Old Testament, and in the New. Great indeed is the Lord’s mercy to the poor! Can His children be indifferent to what is so close to His compassionate heart when He said “Go, and do thou likewise”?

1. God’s Plea for the Gift: He that hath pity upon the poor lends unto the Lord. (vs.17a). To mock the poor is the defy God (14:31; 17:5). To give to the poor is lending to the Lord (Eccl. 11:1). Job could testify, Was not my soul grieved for the poor (30:25), but did he not also give (29:15-16)? Spurgeon spoke of the honour the Lord confers in borrowing from us! Therefore, don’t let us have Him on our books for a pittance! There are different kinds of poverty. A poor man can be defined as “one whose outgoing expenses exceeds his incoming resources.” Thus many are undeserving poor through sloth, mismanagement, or extravagance. Such have no claim on our charity! Yet, there are deserving poor, those who have fallen on bad times through no fault of their own. These are the primary subject of this proverb (Lk. 10:35). God’s plea is for our genuine, practical compassion (Isa. 58:7; Jas. 2:15-17), which is the inward test of charity (Dt. 15:7-14). “Pity without relief is like mustard without beef, very tasty, but not very nourishing” (CHS)! Such giving does not expect any return from the poor (Lu. 14:14), not even their gratitude! The gift is a loan to the Lord, and is an act of simple obedience to His Word!

2. God’s Pledge to the Giver: And that which he hath given [marg. his deed] will he pay him again (vs.17b). This is a loan we cannot loose (Pr. 28:27). With the obligation to give, God also pledges he will pay again, that is, make good or recompense. Don’t forget all His benefits, recompenses, toward you already (Ps. 103:2)! Your gift is lent upon interest, as the word implies! This is gild-edged security (Ps. 37:26). It is often paid in this world (Isa. 58:8-12), but for sure in the Day of final reckoning (Mt. 25:34). This is not suggesting “salvation by works.” Alas! Many do give “hoping for heaven thereby.” That is not genuine charity at all. No, charity must come from the heart, from true love to God, not from self-interest (Phil. 4:17; Heb. 6:10). Without heart-pity, however generous the gift, it is not acceptable to the One who searches all hearts (1 Cor. 13:3). The Lord of Heaven is Himself the pledge for His plea (Ps. 41:1; 112:9; 2 Cor. 9:6-11). “He takes the debt upon himself, and gives us the bond of his word in promise of payment” (Bridges). “God is no man’s debtor, but every man’s creditor.” Your loan cannot be in safer hands. Your stocks and bonds may go “belly up” tomorrow, but God, who possesses heaven and earth, will never fail or lie or deceive those who trust Him.

Thought: “The Saviour of sinners knows what it is to be poor” (Ryle).

Prayer: Lord, open my heart and my hand.