At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore (Ps. 16: 11)
He that withholdeth corn, the people shall curse him: But blessing shall be upon the head of him that selleth it (KJV).
The people will curse him who withholds grain, But blessing will be on the head of him who sells it (NKJV).
Proverbs 11:26
A generous heart can be revealed and manifested in a number of different ways. This is surprising to some because it is easy to assume that generosity is manifested simply and solely through giving. But if we look at the sweep of scriptural teaching, we should be able to see that a generous heart can be revealed through giving on your own initiative, through giving when asked, through loaning when asked, through loaning with no expectation of a return, and through selling. The Bible does not have a “one size fits all” approach to this.
“Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 6:1).
“Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away” (Matt. 5:42).
“But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil” (Luke 6:35).
But a generous spirit can also be manifested when a merchant with grain to sell does not try to be too clever by half trying to manage the futures market. If the people need grain, and you have grain, then a generous spirit sells it now. A generous spirit does not try to manipulate the price through hard dealing now.
So there is a way to give that is selfish and a way to give that is not. There is a way to loan that is selfish and a way to loan that is not. And there is a way to sell that is selfish, and a way to sell that is not. A commercial transaction can be a manifestation of a righteous demeanor.
