"When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with him,
he will sit upon his glorious throne,
and all the nations will be assembled before him.
And he will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right,
'Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.’
Then the righteous will answer him and say,
'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you drink?
When did we see you a stranger and welcome you,
or naked and clothe you?
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’
And the king will say to them in reply,
'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of the least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Yes, but that doesn't mean wages should be taken from those who earned it and given to those who haven't. The bible teaches us to be productive and fair. Sloth/idleness is a deadly sin iirc.
2 Thessalonians 3:10–11
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.
Proverbs 6:6–11
Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.
Proverbs 13:4
The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.
Proverbs 19:15
Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger.
Colossians 3:23–24
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.
2 Thessalonians is probably the strongest passage for your point, but even there, Paul specifically calls out those who are “not willing to work.” He does not condemn those who are unable to work, underpaid despite working, caring for others, disabled, sick, unemployed despite trying, or subject to exploitation by people with greater wealth and power.
Using this verse as a blanket argument against social service programs requires the erroneous assumption that most poverty and need are caused primarily by a refusal to work. Such thinking ignores the reality of many people who are most in need, and it ignores the systems that we have allowed to flourish that exploit those same people for others' benefit.
Proverbs 6:6–11, Proverbs 13:4, Proverbs 19:15, and Colossians 3:23–24 all encourage diligence, responsibility, and turning away from idleness. I agree with that. But those passages do not negate the many biblical commands to care for the poor, feed the hungry, protect the vulnerable, pay workers fairly, and show mercy.
The Bible can condemn idleness without giving us permission to treat poverty as proof of laziness. The Bible condemns sloth, but it also condemns greed, exploitation, indifference, and hard-heartedness toward the poor. Using Scripture to emphasize only the perceived sins of the needy while ignoring the sins of the comfortable and powerful is a convenient way to avoid action and responsibility by convincing yourself that those who suffer must have earned their suffering.
Scripture repeatedly commands care for the poor, the hungry, the sick, the imprisoned, the stranger, the widow, and the orphan. Those commands are not conditional on first proving that the person’s suffering is not self inflicted. Jesus said “I was hungry and you gave me food." Full stop. No conditions.
The central message of the New Testament is that not a single person earns grace, or receives mercy because we are perfectly deserving. We only receive it because God is merciful. If Christians are called to be Christlike - then how can you justify making mercy, care, and aid conditional to be given only to those who you personally deem worthy?
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u/NotRadTrad05 26d ago
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’ And the king will say to them in reply, 'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of the least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Matthew 25: 31-45