Eternal IRA

(Proverbs 19:17 KJV)  He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.

Jesus touches on our attitude toward those who want our money:

Matthew 5:42 "Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

This would seem to give an insight into what He meant.  We do not lend to those in need, we  “have pity” (is gracious NASB) (2603a).  I have a guy who owes me ten cents from when I was in Junior High School.  I bring it up when the kids at school are trying to bum money off of me.  I tell them that when he pays me back I will see about loaning money to them.  At the other end I have a friend that technically owes me $500 dollars.  I never bring it up.  I don’t expect it.  He was in need and it was “loaned” with the understanding on my part that it would not be returned.

We are to share of the blessing God has given us.  If you want to think of it as a loan, then consider the rest of the verse.  He who lends to the “poor” (1800b) really “lends” (3867b) to the Lord.  The absurdity of the idea should be apparent.  How can you lend to one to whom you owe so much?  Remember what Paul wrote in Philemon:

Philemon1:17-18 If then you regard me a partner, accept him as {you would} me.  But if he has wronged you in any way, or owes you anything, charge that to my account;

So?  I could make a case for being responsible but that is not the point here.  We need to be willing to share and not act like we are the local bank.  There are those in need around us.  You might try passing a gift through a middleman so that they don’t know who gave and you get no credit.  You can simply enjoy their joy.