Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Receive Their Consolation
Jump to: Torrey'sLibrarySubtopicsTerms
Topical Encyclopedia
In the Scriptures, riches are often portrayed as a potential stumbling block for the faithful, particularly when they become the source of one's comfort and security. The Bible contains several warnings and denunciations against those who find their consolation in wealth rather than in God.

One of the most direct teachings on this subject comes from Jesus in the Gospel of Luke. In the Beatitudes, Jesus contrasts the blessedness of the poor with the woes pronounced upon the rich. Luke 6:24 states, "But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort." This passage highlights the spiritual danger of relying on material wealth as a source of consolation, suggesting that those who do so may miss out on the deeper, eternal blessings that come from God.

The parable of the rich man and Lazarus, found in Luke 16:19-31, further illustrates this theme. The rich man, who lived in luxury and ignored the needs of the poor beggar Lazarus, finds himself in torment after death, while Lazarus is comforted in Abraham's bosom. This parable serves as a stark warning that earthly riches can lead to spiritual complacency and neglect of one's duty to love and serve others.

The Apostle Paul also addresses the issue of wealth and its potential pitfalls. In 1 Timothy 6:9-10 , he writes, "Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows." Here, Paul emphasizes that the desire for riches can lead to spiritual ruin, warning believers to guard their hearts against the love of money.

James, the brother of Jesus, echoes these sentiments in his epistle. In James 5:1-3 , he admonishes the wealthy, saying, "Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail for the misery to come upon you. Your riches have rotted and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and consume your flesh like fire. You have hoarded treasure in the last days." James warns that hoarding wealth and finding comfort in it will ultimately lead to judgment and misery.

The Old Testament also contains warnings about the dangers of wealth. In the book of Proverbs, wisdom literature frequently contrasts the fleeting nature of riches with the enduring value of righteousness. Proverbs 11:28 states, "He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf." This verse underscores the futility of placing trust in material wealth and the enduring prosperity of those who live righteously.

Throughout Scripture, the consistent message is clear: those who receive their consolation from riches are in spiritual peril. The Bible calls believers to seek their comfort and security in God alone, warning that reliance on wealth can lead to spiritual complacency, neglect of others, and ultimately, divine judgment.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Luke 6:24
But woe to you that are rich! for you have received your consolation.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

The Two Effects of the Gospel
... often prick them, and the stern denunciations of a ... who slanders God's minister, who
speaks against his people ... after week-day, "the unsearchable riches of Christ ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 1 1855/the two effects of the.htm

Question Lxxxiii of Prayer
... use well or ill, as, for example, riches which, as ... sinners for their amendment; thirdly,
these denunciations may be ... as we forgive them the trespass against us! ...
/.../aquinas/on prayer and the contemplative life/question lxxxiii of prayer.htm

Of Faith. The Definition of It. Its Peculiar Properties.
... does not promise us length of days, riches and honors ... not found in commands or the
denunciations of punishment ... which I have committed unto him against that day ...
/.../calvin/the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 2 of faith the.htm

Hidden Manna
... the Bible are full of terrible denunciations; can they ... punished, we are not to rebel
against his righteous ... he esteemed Christ to be greater riches, an ordinary ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 17 1871/hidden manna.htm

On the Interpretation of Scripture
... have altered, we say, since these denunciations were uttered ... eh h g. Let them that
have riches be as ... Scripture, is furnished by the commandment against swearing ...
/.../on the interpretation of scripture.htm

Secret Study of the Holy Scriptures.
... follow up the fabrication with awful denunciations"all fulfilled ... He spoke His holy
mind freely against the false ... Further, all 'the riches of God in glory' [i.2 ...
/.../moule/to my younger brethren/chapter iii secret study of.htm

Introductory Notice Respecting Tauler's Life and Times
... Tauler's denunciations of this class brought him, of course ... The last error was that
against which he inveighed ... He himself was not one of those passive mystics. ...
/.../introductory notice respecting taulers life.htm

The Doctrine
... of thy soul that Jesus Christ standeth open-armed to receive thee, to ... of sins against
the law, and of the denunciations thereof against those that are ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the doctrine.htm

The Medes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
... abroad but that which tells of its riches, its industry ... the claimants for the throne
who rose against Darius, are ... him to have been one of those perfect rulers ...
/.../chapter iiithe medes and the.htm

Resources
What does the Bible say about wealth? | GotQuestions.org

Why does God allow good things to happen to bad people? | GotQuestions.org

What does the Bible say about insecurity? | GotQuestions.org

Riches: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible ConcordanceBible DictionaryBible EncyclopediaTopical BibleBible Thesuarus
Subtopics

Riches

Riches of the Wicked Laid up for the Just

Riches: Be not Over-Anxious For

Riches: Cannot Deliver in the Day of God's Wrath

Riches: Cannot Redeem the Soul

Riches: Cannot Secure Prosperity

Riches: Corruptible

Riches: Danger of Misusing-Illustrated

Riches: Deceitful

Riches: Deceitfulness of, Chokes the Word

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Abuse

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Folly and Danger of Trusting To-Illustrated

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Get, by Vanity

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Get, Unlawfully

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Hoard Up

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Increase, by Oppression

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Receive Their Consolation

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Spend, Upon Their Appetite

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Trust In

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Abram

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Barzillai

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Boaz

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: David

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Dorcas

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Hezekiah

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Isaac

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Jacob

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Jehoshaphat

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Job

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Joseph

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Joseph of Arimathea

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Lot

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Shunammite

Riches: Examples of Saints Possessing: Zacchaeus

Riches: Examples of Those Truly Rich

Riches: Examples of Wicked Men Possessing: Ammonites

Riches: Examples of Wicked Men Possessing: Esau

Riches: Examples of Wicked Men Possessing: Haman

Riches: Examples of Wicked Men Possessing: Laban

Riches: Examples of Wicked Men Possessing: Nabal

Riches: Examples of Wicked Men Possessing: People of Tyre

Riches: Examples of Wicked Men Possessing: Young Man

Riches: Figurative

Riches: Fleeting

Riches: General Scriptures Concerning

Riches: Give Worldly Power

Riches: God Gives

Riches: God Gives Power to Obtain

Riches: Guilt of Rejoicing In

Riches: Guilt of Trusting In

Riches: Heavenly Treasures Superior To

Riches: Labour not For

Riches: Liable to be Stolen

Riches: Life Consists not in Abundance of

Riches: Often an Obstruction to the Reception of the Gospel

Riches: Often Lead to an Overbearing Spirit

Riches: Often Lead to Anxiety

Riches: Often Lead to Denying God

Riches: Often Lead to Forgetting God

Riches: Often Lead to Forsaking God

Riches: Often Lead to Fraud

Riches: Often Lead to Oppression

Riches: Often Lead to Pride

Riches: Often Lead to Rebelling Against God

Riches: Often Lead to Rejecting Christ

Riches: Often Lead to Self-Sufficiency

Riches: Often Lead to Sensual Indulgence

Riches: Often Lead to Violence

Riches: Perishable

Riches: Profit not in the Day of Wrath

Riches: Temporary

Riches: The Blessing of the Lord Brings

Riches: The Love of, the Root of all Evil

Riches: The True Riches

Riches: The Wicked: Boast Themselves In

Riches: The Wicked: Have Trouble With

Riches: The Wicked: Heap Up

Riches: The Wicked: Keep, to Their Hurt

Riches: The Wicked: Must Leave, to Others

Riches: The Wicked: Often Increase In

Riches: The Wicked: Often Spend Their Day In

Riches: The Wicked: Profit not By

Riches: The Wicked: Swallow Down

Riches: The Wicked: Trust in the Abundance of

Riches: They Who Covet: Bring Trouble on Their Families

Riches: They Who Covet: Bring Trouble on Themselves

Riches: They Who Covet: Err from the Faith

Riches: They Who Covet: Fall Into Hurtful Lusts

Riches: They Who Covet: Fall Into Temptation and a Snare

Riches: They Who Covet: Use Unlawful Means to Acquire

Riches: They Who Possess, should Ascribe Them to God

Riches: They Who Possess, should be Liberal in all Things

Riches: They Who Possess, should Devote Them to God's Service

Riches: They Who Possess, should Esteem It a Privilege to be Allowed to Give

Riches: They Who Possess, should Give of Them to the Poor

Riches: They Who Possess, should not Boast of Obtaining Them

Riches: They Who Possess, should not Glory in Them

Riches: They Who Possess, should not Hoard Them Up

Riches: They Who Possess, should not Set the Heart on Them

Riches: They Who Possess, should not to be High-Minded

Riches: They Who Possess, should not Trust in Them

Riches: They Who Possess, should Use Them in Promoting the Salvation of Others

Riches: They Who Possess, should when Converted, Rejoice in Being Humbled

Riches: Thick Clay

Riches: To God Belongs This World's Riches

Riches: Uncertain

Riches: Unsatisfying

Riches: Vanity of Heaping Up

Related Terms

Mammon (4 Occurrences)

Wares (23 Occurrences)

Enrich (6 Occurrences)

Fullness (31 Occurrences)

Worries (6 Occurrences)

Treasurer (6 Occurrences)

Treasure (66 Occurrences)

Treasury (25 Occurrences)

Traffic (12 Occurrences)

Pomp (13 Occurrences)

Choke (6 Occurrences)

Cares (28 Occurrences)

Struggle (16 Occurrences)

Esteem (25 Occurrences)

Goodness (83 Occurrences)

Gold (429 Occurrences)

Partridge (2 Occurrences)

Rich (140 Occurrences)

Glorious (91 Occurrences)

Poverty (25 Occurrences)

Trust (201 Occurrences)

Fruit (318 Occurrences)

Treasures (77 Occurrences)

Unfruitful (8 Occurrences)

Untraceable (2 Occurrences)

Unfathomable (3 Occurrences)

Unsearchable (8 Occurrences)

Gains (19 Occurrences)

Gathers (27 Occurrences)

Wealthy (22 Occurrences)

Inclusion (1 Occurrence)

Failure (5 Occurrences)

Fairs (6 Occurrences)

Flying (22 Occurrences)

Fulness (76 Occurrences)

Fulfillment (19 Occurrences)

Forbearance (9 Occurrences)

Traffick (4 Occurrences)

Trusting (45 Occurrences)

Trusteth (30 Occurrences)

Trafficked (7 Occurrences)

Thorns (56 Occurrences)

Transgression (70 Occurrences)

Trading (24 Occurrences)

Richer (4 Occurrences)

Exceeded (8 Occurrences)

Eggs (7 Occurrences)

Excelled (4 Occurrences)

Desirable (49 Occurrences)

Diminution (1 Occurrence)

Durable (2 Occurrences)

Deceitfulness (7 Occurrences)

Diminishing (1 Occurrence)

Difficult (31 Occurrences)

Difficultly (3 Occurrences)

Delight (213 Occurrences)

Making (644 Occurrences)

Mariners (7 Occurrences)

Merchant (15 Occurrences)

Proves (11 Occurrences)

Possessors (14 Occurrences)

Beggarly (2 Occurrences)

Becomes (138 Occurrences)

Adventure (3 Occurrences)

Sailors (9 Occurrences)

Goods (231 Occurrences)

Merchandise (34 Occurrences)

Becometh (82 Occurrences)

Wealth (340 Occurrences)

Robbery (18 Occurrences)

Splendor (87 Occurrences)

Trespass (101 Occurrences)

Vanity (100 Occurrences)

Enter (372 Occurrences)

Understanding (248 Occurrences)

Jewels (54 Occurrences)

Loss (90 Occurrences)

Acquired (32 Occurrences)

Discernment (43 Occurrences)

Riches: Denunciations Against Those Who: Increase, by Oppression
Top of Page
Top of Page