Proverbs 13:6
Righteousness keepeth him that is upright in the way:
But wickedness overthroweth the sinner.
The Hebrew word for ‘righteousness’ in this passage is ‘tsedaka’. This word definitely means righteousness as in the sense of rectitude, but is also used as a synonym to ‘charity’ and ‘piety’. This is the way it is translated in Hebrew Bibles; I will therefore base my expose on it.
Righteousness in its religious sense can be seen as self-motivated, it can almost reek of selfishness; we practice all the right things in order to build our final reward. Sometimes our own righteous lifestyle even causes us to allow damage in our relationships with family and friends.
But charity, true charity that is, is not self-directed. It is the engine that motivates us to do something positive towards others whether we like it, or them, or not. Even if we do it with selfish motive, somebody actually gets something from it. God allowed there to be poors in the world (those who are rich in faith), but He also made sure that a big part of the righteousness of the rich was to give to the poor. He that said, Thou shalt not kill has also, within His moral code, imbedded a system of protection and provision for the poor.
The word ‘charity’ and ‘righteousness’ being synonymous reveals a principle to us. It is not enough just to give; we must also give God’s way. The ancient Hebrew way of tithing required support of the priests and Levites, of those who cared for the temple and handled the teaching of the Word. The Torah also directed the people to give directly to the poor, and required financial support of elderly parents, from whom you inherited your farm anyways. This is what the commandment to ‘honor your mother and father that you may live long in the land’ means. Yehoshua took issues against those who gave to the Temple as a cloak to not support their elderly parents. He also taught that charity and justice were the weightier matters of the Torah, as opposed to the dietary and distinction laws for example.
It even seems that in the Torah, charitable giving to others, especially caring for poor relatives even supercedes giving to the temple. In Isaiah 58 we read that a fast was to give to the poor and not turn our eyes from our own flesh. If we look at it, just the sacrificial system (the sacrifices offered because of sin) and firstfruit tithes seemed to be more than enough to feed the priests.
Giving to the poor certainly cannot buy us a place in Heaven, but with the same measure that we judge now, we shall be judged then. Sometimes the ‘boomerang’ of our actions even returns to us in this life.
Righteousness keepeth him that is upright in the way:
But wickedness overthroweth the sinner.
The Hebrew word for ‘righteousness’ in this passage is ‘tsedaka’. This word definitely means righteousness as in the sense of rectitude, but is also used as a synonym to ‘charity’ and ‘piety’. This is the way it is translated in Hebrew Bibles; I will therefore base my expose on it.
Righteousness in its religious sense can be seen as self-motivated, it can almost reek of selfishness; we practice all the right things in order to build our final reward. Sometimes our own righteous lifestyle even causes us to allow damage in our relationships with family and friends.
But charity, true charity that is, is not self-directed. It is the engine that motivates us to do something positive towards others whether we like it, or them, or not. Even if we do it with selfish motive, somebody actually gets something from it. God allowed there to be poors in the world (those who are rich in faith), but He also made sure that a big part of the righteousness of the rich was to give to the poor. He that said, Thou shalt not kill has also, within His moral code, imbedded a system of protection and provision for the poor.
The word ‘charity’ and ‘righteousness’ being synonymous reveals a principle to us. It is not enough just to give; we must also give God’s way. The ancient Hebrew way of tithing required support of the priests and Levites, of those who cared for the temple and handled the teaching of the Word. The Torah also directed the people to give directly to the poor, and required financial support of elderly parents, from whom you inherited your farm anyways. This is what the commandment to ‘honor your mother and father that you may live long in the land’ means. Yehoshua took issues against those who gave to the Temple as a cloak to not support their elderly parents. He also taught that charity and justice were the weightier matters of the Torah, as opposed to the dietary and distinction laws for example.
It even seems that in the Torah, charitable giving to others, especially caring for poor relatives even supercedes giving to the temple. In Isaiah 58 we read that a fast was to give to the poor and not turn our eyes from our own flesh. If we look at it, just the sacrificial system (the sacrifices offered because of sin) and firstfruit tithes seemed to be more than enough to feed the priests.
Giving to the poor certainly cannot buy us a place in Heaven, but with the same measure that we judge now, we shall be judged then. Sometimes the ‘boomerang’ of our actions even returns to us in this life.
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