Mercy and Alms

Compassion is one of God’s valuable attributes (Hebrew: hannun; Greek: eleos). It often shows in practical contexts. For example, when a needy person approaches a rich person and asks for a loan, the rich might not say “no” or charge interest on the money lent (Exod 22:25). Further, the rich cannot ask for a pledge that would discomfort the poor, like taking the poor person’s clock that s/he uses to cover themselves on a cold night (22:26–27a). This command ends with YHWH saying that if the rich person fails to do any of the above, and the poor cries out to him, he will hear because he is compassionate (22:27b).

When YHWH gave the Ten Commandments to Moses, he defined himself:

“I am YHWH, the God of mercy and compassion, slow to anger, full of compassion and faithfulness.” (Exod 34.6)

YHWH’s compassion is repeated so many times in the Old Testament, in the context of showing love, justice, and mercy to others that the word for giving alms or taking care of the poor was called showing compassion or showing mercy (eleēmosunē from eleos).

The Lord Jesus said to the disciples,

“Sell your possessions (upo-archo) and give to the poor (eleēmosunē). Don’t gather an old coin bag for yourself but an indestructible treasure in heaven where thieves cannot enter and moths cannot destroy your treasures.” (Luke 12:33)

Unlike modern wallets, people in Jesus’s time carried their coins in stitched leather pouches. These pouches became frail and fell apart, or moths ate them when they lay around the house unused. Jesus wanted his disciples not to store their coins in those bags and feel secure. Instead, he wanted them to follow God and give alms to the poor, even to the point of selling their excess and giving them to the poor. The word possession has a preposition that means “above (upo) one’s need.” Whatever a person had, above his or her needs, was to be distributed to those who didn’t have necessities, the poor. When they gave away their excess, they were accumulating treasures in heaven, where thieves could not enter and steal, or moths could not enter and destroy. By helping the poor, the disciples were gaining more wealth, but the heavenly kind. That was a better investment.

Further, the Lord reminded them,

“Where your treasure is, there will be your heart.” (12:34)

When we first went as missionaries to India, we lived in a small house (600 sq foot) with two doors – one for our bedroom and one for the house. One evening, a couple from Myanmar (formerly Burma) came to our house. We were going out to eat. As we got ready, I locked the bedroom door and the house door. The Myanmar wife of my student said to Lori and me, “I am so glad we are not rich like you. We don’t lock our house. If someone wants to steal, all they will find are pots and pans.” We had passports and some money in our house, so we took great care to lock the doors – where our treasures were, our hearts were.

The Lord wanted his disciples to focus on God and heaven, not earthly treasures. The same call waits for us. Focus on God and his rule, not earthly treasures we can’t take when we die.