Charitable gifts. The practice of giving alms to the poor. The English word “alms” comes from a longer Greek word used in the Septuagint to translate a Hebrew word for “righteousness.” The Septuagint is an ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament.
Old Testament Teachings on Caring for the Poor
The Hebrew term is unrelated to almsgiving. The Old Testament has no specific reference to almsgiving. The Israelites were expected to care for the poor in their midst. The law of Moses contains many commands to treat the poor justly and humanely. Important among them is Deuteronomy 15:7–11. This verse says that poor people will always live in Israel and commands Israel to take action to help.
Every seventh year all fields and gardens were to remain unharvested for the benefit of the poor and needy (Exodus 23:10–11). Every third year, one-tenth of all produce had to be given to the Levites (a Hebrew tribe that had no property), the traveler, the fatherless, and the widow (Deuteronomy 14:28–29). Forgotten bundles of grain and the grain left behind from grain fields at each harvest were left for the needy and the stranger (Leviticus 19:9; 23:22). From every vineyard and olive grove, any fallen fruit and the imperfect and topmost clusters were reserved for them (Leviticus 19:10; Deuteronomy 24:20–21). Likewise, people traveling for the festival were expected to share food with those in need (Deuteronomy 16:11–14).
The Old Testament prophets continued to champion the theme of kind treatment for the poor. The strongest expressions of the social justice theme are found in Isaiah (1:23; 3:15; 10:1–2; 11:4–5; 58:5–10) and Amos (2:6–8; 4:1; 5:11; 8:4). Similarly, the Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes each show the need of the poor. These books provide hope to those who are suffering and ask others to take up their cause or to improve their condition. The requests were based on the belief that all human beings are created by the one God. He commanded Israel to deal with the poor who lived with them with kindness that included fair treatment, not just giving.
Almsgiving Between the Old and New Testaments
During the period between the Old and New Testaments, the giving of alms became more important. Leviticus 19:18 offers a general command to show loving-kindness. This became defined as specific individual acts believed to contribute to personal merit and security. Sirach 3:30 says “almsgiving atones for sin." Tobit 4:10 says almsgiving “delivers from death.” Along with prayer and fasting, almsgiving was considered one of the most important expressions of Jewish obedience (Tobit 12:8–9).