The desire of the sluggard kills him,
Proverbs 21:25-26
for his hands refuse to labor.
All day long he craves and craves,
but the righteous gives and does not hold back
I won’t cite examples in this post, but I am growing weary of Christian books attacking capitalism or the free market in the name of helping the poor.
Where does wealth to help the poor come from?
If one believes we are obligated to help the needy then it follows that sloth is a robbery of the needy. Instead of becoming a resource for aiding others the sluggard voluntarily becomes needy and thus adds to the number of those needing help.
Even in the First Century Mediterranean world, long before there were official Capitalist economists or schools of thought that described themselves as “free market,” the Apostle Paul saw productive work and exchange as the method for securing goods to assist the needy.
Thus:
Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.
Ephesians 4:28
You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.’’
Acts 20:34, 35
Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.
1 Thessalonians 4:9-12
Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-12
After this Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them, and because he was of the same trade he stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks.
Acts 18:1-4
Honor widows who are truly widows. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God… But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever
1 Timothy 5:3, 4, 8.
Paul did not identify the realm of commercial exchange as a realm of exploitation and injustice, though we know he saw plenty of that. Rather, he saw it as a means of personal empowerment. It was the way people could gain wealth in order to share with others.
Conceptually, there are two “zones” or “realms” in Paul’s thinking. On the one hand there is a social zone where one exchanges ones labor for money or where one produces things that one can sell for money. Then there is a social zone where one is obligated to help those in need. In the first zone one makes money so one is able to give away money in the second zone.
The two zones are more conceptual than physical. They may encompass the same decision or action. If a CEO hires his brother-in-law, that will be an act of production and exchange on paper. But he might be motivated by his (via his wife’s) sense of obligation. The potential rewards are great if the wife’s brother works out as a productive employee because he will be producing for himself by doing superior work. But if not, everyone else will be worse off and he won’t have satisfaction for providing for anyone else. He will know his job is just a cover for charity, rather than his own labor producing wealth.
Notice that the way Paul’s describes his ministry and exhorts others to follow his authorized example shows he regarded this ethic as a part of his apostolic mission.
It’s almost as if he saw the Wisdom of Proverbs as a cultural imperative or something.