Tag: others

It’s not about how much we have, but how much we care

The right attitude can always find a way to help.

Proverbs 21:25-26 – The desire of the sluggard kills him, for his hands refuse to labor. He covets greedily all day long; but the righteous give and don’t withhold.

In the Proverbs, we find many different contrasts laid out to assist our understanding and increase our knowledge: the righteous against the wicked; the rich against the poor; the proud against the lowly.

In this passage, however, is an interesting contrast: the one who is exhibiting compassion is not contrasted with one who hates, but is posited against the one who is lazy and covetous. Understanding this distinction helps us to recognize compassion for what it is.

Those who are lazy and covetous seek only what is beneficial to themselves. They refuse to work in order to have anything on their own, and yet they still desire to have that which is the result of physical labor and work. Therefore, they have no ability to help others because they don’t even have the ability to help themselves.

By contrast, the righteous person is one who is generous to a fault. This passage says they don’t withhold anything that can be of benefit to someone else. They have the ability to be generous because they have something to give based on their own industriousness and careful attention to the needs of others. Yet, it does not imply that they are only giving out of the excess of what they have, but that they give regardless of what they have.

This points out that the contrast is based not on what one has or doesn’t have, but on the attitude of the individual. The lazy person refuses to work and yet is covetous; they are concerned only with what affects them. The righteous can provide for themselves, yet they are still willing to not hold back anything if it can meet the need of someone else. They are constantly thinking of others.

The writer of Hebrews mentions a similar encouragement to the early believers in Messiah, as well.

Hebrews 13:16 But don’t forget to be doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

Giving compassionately may still be a sacrifice because of what one doesn’t have, but the best way to ensure that we are doing the pleasing acts of sharing and doing good is by keeping the focus off of ourselves and always looking around to the needs of others.

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Compassion springs from a deep bond of unity

Understanding our connections with others can provide motivation for care and concern.

And Joseph made haste; for his heart yearned over his brother: and he sought where to weep; and he entered into his chamber, and wept there.

Genesis 43:30

When Joseph had become ruler of Egypt, he had not seen his brothers for approximately twenty years. Although they were sons of different mothers, his affinity over Benjamin was immensely magnified due to the fact that he and Benjamin had the same mother. He felt a deep kinship with Benjamin due to this bond.

The word used here to describe this deep connection is the Hebrew word racham, which has its root in the concept of the womb. The close kindred feeling that Joseph and Benjamin felt for each other was because they were from the same womb of one mother.

Throughout the Bible, this word is used as a way of conveying a deep, shared connection with another, and is many times translated as compassion.

When Solomon is faced with deciding a case between two women who are both claiming the same baby as being theirs, the real mother expresses racham over her child.

1 Kings 3:26 Then the woman whose son was alive said to the king, because her heart yearned for her son, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means put him to death.” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him.”

The deep connection of the womb caused the real mother to try to preserve her son’s life, even if she had to give him up to another.

In like fashion, and quite often, this word is used of God’s care and concern for men.

2 Kings 13:23 but the LORD was gracious to them, had compassion on them, and turned toward them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He was not willing to destroy them. Even now he has not banished them from his presence.
Psalm 103:13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.
Psalm 116:5 The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is compassionate.
Isaiah 30:18 Therefore the LORD is waiting to show you mercy, and is rising up to show you compassion, for the LORD is a just God. All who wait patiently for him are happy.

Isaiah goes so far as to attribute this characteristic to God so strongly, he names him the Compassionate One.

Isaiah 49:10 They will not hunger or thirst, the scorching heat or sun will not strike them; for their Compassionate One will guide them, and lead them to springs.

As we have seen, one of the deepest relational connections is one of racham. The blessing for all believers is that the God of the Bible is compassionate toward them. In like fashion, God inspires us to have racham towards others, as exemplified among his own ancient people:

Zechariah 7:8-10 The word of the LORD came to Zechariah: “The LORD of hosts says this: ‘Make fair decisions. Show faithful love and compassion to one another. “Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the resident alien or the poor, and do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.’

It is only when we recognize our bond with others as being of the same hand of a loving Creator that we can truly express racham towards them. The “womb of God,” figuratively speaking, is that shared connection. At a very basic level, all existence is the result of one Creator. Psalm 116:5 reminds us that, “The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is compassionate.” This should encourage us to be truly mindful of our larger familial relationships with others, and to mimic our Father’s characteristic of compassion as we seek to represent him faithfully in this world.

If you enjoy these daily blog posts, be sure to visit the growing archive of the Core of the Bible podcast. Each week we take a more in-depth look at one of the various topics presented in the daily blog. You can view the podcast archive here. Questions or comments? Feel free to email me directly at coreofthebible@gmail.com.