Proverbs 22:2 The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all. All through the Scriptures the point of view is God's, not man's. To understand any part of the Bible we must look at it from the Divine standpoint. This applies to the text. In that day the contrast between rich and poor was far greater than now. If man had spoken he would have said, "The rich and poor are divided; their interests are at war, and cannot be made to harmonise." The rich have manifest advantages. 1. They have opportunities for improvement which the poor have not. 2. They have means of influence which the poor have not. In other respects observe the essential sameness of these two classes. (1) The faculties of the mind in both rich and poor are essentially the same. (2) The same moral natures are in both. (3) They are alike responsible. (4) In the eye of God they meet together in their destiny. (5) They meet together in their sinfulness. (6) They are the same in their relation to the plan of salvation.Both are one at the centre. God equalises. The differences are slight. The differences are reciprocal and transient, while the points of agreement are permanent. Those who set the one class against the other are moving backward toward the feudal ages, whether they know it or not — a time when the poor was servant to the rich. The glory of our age is that the differences between the classes are being obliterated. They are meeting together. Our souls are being lifted to a comprehension of this exalted ideal of the Scriptures. (R. S. Storrs, D.D.) Parallel Verses KJV: The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all.WEB: The rich and the poor have this in common: Yahweh is the maker of them all. |
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