Interestingly, one of the richest and wisest men who ever lived wrote this proverb. God's favor was definitely upon King Solomon. God gave him riches, goods and glory, as the kings who preceded him never had, and as none of his successors ever had.
King Solomon himself, rich as he was, cared about the poor. He wrote in the previous verse: “The poor man is hated even by his companion, but the friends of the rich man are many.”.
We can easily conclude that in our human nature, our tendency is to ignore, despise, dishonor, disrespect, mistreat the poor. But inspired by the Holy Spirit, Solomon wrote that this is a sin. We sin when we are unkind and ignore the poor.
The other side of the coin, which he experienced, is that "there are many who love the rich". Thus, wealth and well-being can attract scammers and opportunists. But we thank God because he sees our heart, and not our wealth or our poverty.
In Psalm 41:1 it is written: “Blessed is he who cares for the poor! In the day of trouble the LORD will deliver him..
In Proverbs 19:17 it is written: “He who has mercy on the poor lends to the LORD, and he will repay his good work.”.
“Blessed are the merciful”, said Christ: for mercy will be shown to them
In Proverbs 14:21b it is written that he who has mercy on the poor is blessed."
All these verses are accompanied by a Promise. Promises of liberation, reward, mercy and bliss
Together we pray to the Lord telling him: God of love, I thank you for your word. Use me to help those in need. I wish to serve you with all my heart. In the name of Jesus... Amen!
With love, Ivano Salerno