What does the Bible say about poverty?

How are human beings designed to flourish?

Poverty isn’t just a lack of cash. To understand what the Bible says about poverty, you need to understand how we were created to live.

Everyone is created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27) and has innate value, worth and potential. This establishes the equality of all human beings.

Human beings are relational. We are made to live in right relationship with God, with ourselves, with one another and with creation.

We’re called to work with purpose, honouring the value of human life and the precious earth God created.

Why does poverty exist according to the Bible?

The Bible describes poverty as a scandalous condition that stands in opposition to God’s vision for the world.

The Bible shows us how sin causes relationships to fracture. This is because sin ruptures our connection to God, self, others and the world.

When fear, greed, or indifference accumulate over generations, sin becomes embedded in laws and institutions.

Scripture identifies structures of injustice such as rigged courts and exploitative markets that trap people in hardship. The prophets Isaiah and Amos cried out against unjust laws that disadvantaged people living in poverty.

The Bible shows us how injustice can be woven into laws, institutions and economies. We see this in the enslavement and oppression of the Hebrew people in Egypt. This results in unjust structures in society.

Does the Bible say that poverty will end?

Jesus will end all forms of injustice and suffering when he comes again and establishes his rule finally and forever. Scripture’s final vision is a world made completely new, where justice flows and all things are restored (Revelation 21:5).

What’s our role in ending extreme poverty?

The Bible doesn’t say that we should sit back and be resigned to the reality of poverty because God is going to make all things new in the end. This isn’t only a future hope.

Jesus announced ‘good news to the poor’ as the heartbeat of his mission (Luke 4:18). He invited his followers to join him: healing broken relationships, challenging unjust systems, and building communities that reflect his vision of abundant life.

Jesus shows us how to pray for God’s ‘will to be done, on earth as it is in heaven’ (Matthew 6:9–13). This is a revolutionary prayer. Jesus calls us to let him transform our lives so that we may speak of the world to come, not only with words, but also with acts of sacrificial love.

Christians follow Jesus’ call, choosing to stare injustice and suffering in the face as he did rather than looking away. To roll up our sleeves and get stuck into his divine work on earth, even in the darkest places. That’s where his love leads us.

What does Tearfund say about poverty?

We are called to live and love as Jesus did. To go to the hardest places. To refuse to accept lives being destroyed by extreme poverty. That is why Tearfund exists. Not just to respond to extreme poverty, but to help end it.

What do you say about poverty?

Will you respond to poverty with the love of Jesus? One simple but profound action that you can take today is to pray.

The Bible gives us a beautiful picture of prayer as a sweet-smelling offering to God: ‘May my prayer be set before you like incense...’ (Psalm 141:2).

Your prayers rise like a fragrant offering in a world that reeks of the injustice of poverty.