What does the Bible say about money? Are there bible verses about how to use money? After all, we:
Talk about money.
We think about money.
We dream about money
We work hard for money.
We save money.
We spend money.
We tithe or give away money.
We even stress over money.
Did I miss anything? Well, you get the point. Our world is fueled by money and our lives revolve around either earning, saving, giving, or spending money. As such, you can’t just brush money aside as something devilish, unnecessary, unscriptural, or unspiritual.
After all, “money answereth all things,” (Ecclesiastes 10:19), and it’s paramount that you know what the scriptures teach about money.
In this article, we will look at four hot topics from a biblical perspective that will reveal principles and instructions on how to use and manage money well. We will look at:
What is money?
What does the bible say about money?
Bible verses about how to use money
What is the Biblical view of money?
What is Money?
Money is any object that is widely accepted in a given country or socio-economic context as payment for goods and services as well as debt repayment. Money has four main functions: a medium of exchange, a unit of account, a store of value, and, on rare occasions, a standard of deferred payment.
But here’s an interesting fact: money is amoral (lacking a moral sense; unconcerned with the rightness or wrongness of something).
To put it another way, money does not have a life.
It is incapable of acting on its own. It is incapable of doing good deeds or committing crimes. In essence, it is neither good nor bad. No matter how many bible verses there are about money; money will only do what you instruct it to.
Note, it’s the love of money that is the root of all evil (1 Tim. 6:10).
If money by itself is only a powerless object, then why do we sweat so hard over it? Why does money seem to have invisible powers drawing us to it? And why do so many church leaders talk about, and some even ask us for money to the point where we feel uncomfortable?
These are excellent questions, which brings me to my next point.
Bible Verses About Money
- Proverbs 10:22 “The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, without painful toil for it.”
- Hebrews 13:5 “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
- Proverbs 13:11 “Dishonest money dwindles, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.”
- 1 Timothy 6:9 “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”
- Proverbs 23:4 “Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness.”
- Proverbs 3:9 “Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops.”
- Proverbs 15:16 “Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil.”
- Luke 12:15 “Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
- 1 Chronicles 29:14: “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.”
- Ecclesiastes 5:10: “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.”
- Proverbs 11:28: “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.”
- Proverbs 12:25: “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.”
- Proverbs 23:4-5: “Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.”
- Mark 4:19: “But the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.”
- Mark 8:36:” For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”
- Philippians 4:6: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
- Hebrews 13:5-6: “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So, we can confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
- 1 Peter 5:7: “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
- Proverbs 11:28: “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.”
- Proverbs 12:25: “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.”
- Proverbs 23:4-5: “Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.”
- Psalm 55:22: “Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.”
- Psalm 56:3: “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”
- Psalm 62:10: “Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them.”
- Psalm 94:19: “When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.”
The scriptures that you have just read give a clear biblical view of money, but let’s summarize it in our next point:
What does the bible say about money?
The bible says a lot about money, but the bottom line is that money has the potential to become a sort of idol in our lives. God wants us to live our life to the fullest, and He knows that worshiping money will prevent us from doing so. For this reason, we must keep our eyes on the Lord and allow his principles to guide us to manage our money correctly and well. Many things in this world will vie for your affection and devotion, money no doubt is one, but you must never allow money to be an idol in your life (Matt. 6:24). That said, how should you use money? That’s my next point:
Bible verses about how to use money
Luke 14:28
Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? (NIV)
Use your money to live a content life on a budget
in Luke 14:28, Jesus makes it very clear that we must count the cost. He used the example of a builder in this verse, but truly, this verse highlights the importance of a budget or having a plan. Many people, whether Christian or non-Christian suffer and plunge into poverty because they ignore the financial principle of budgeting.
For this reason, like Jesus, I also would encourage you to sit down and craft a budget. You would be amazed at how quickly you will develop a surplus at the end of the month and not have to live from paycheck to paycheck.
Proverbs 22:7
“The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is a slave to the lender” (NIV).
Use money wisely to avoid debt
Which is better? Creating wealth for a company that is already making millions and can’t care less about you, or creating wealth for yourself and the generations to follow? Well, if you keep getting in debt you are only making others wealthy and would always be the one to borrow.
There’s nowhere in scripture that encourages us to get into debt. Moreover, as a child of God, it’s best to follow this principle, use your faith and trust God has you follow his words about money.
1 Corinthians 15:33
“Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character” (NIV).
Use Your money as a tool to foster high-quality relationships
You are known by the friends or companies you keep. Would you allow your 15-year-old son or daughter to hang around kids who smoke, cuss, disrespect their parents, and have no good intentions? Sure, you won’t. What money does is that it gives you access to sit and mingle in the company of great, creative, and wise minds. People you can learn from, pull from their experiences and live a purposeful life because of those connections. That’s what money can do, and I would encourage you to use it to this end.
Proverbs 21:20
“The wise man saves for the future, but the foolish man spends whatever he gets” (TLB).
Save and invest your money
Do you remember the “Parable of the Talents”, in Matthew 25:14–30 tells of a master who was leaving his house to travel, and, before leaving, entrusted his property to his servants? The property entrusted to the three servants was worth 8 talents, a talent was a significant amount of money of which the master gave 5, 2, and 1 talent respectively to his servants.
The servant with one talent failed to invest his talent while the other invested theirs. At the master’s return, the servant who failed to invest was scolded, kicked out, and had his talent taken away from him and given to the servant who had invested and now has the most talents.
Likewise, when you fail to adhere to this principle and spend all you earn; there will come a time in your life where you will desperately need money but won’t have any. Consider these verses: “Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer (Proverbs 30:25).
“Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days (Ecclesiastes 11:1).
As you can see, the scriptures strongly support investment and saving, and it’s a principle that will keep you from plunging into poverty.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7
“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Use your money to help others
Proverbs 28:27 “Whoever gives to the poor will not be in need, but he who hides his eyes will receive many curses.”
Proverbs 11:24 “There is one who scatters, yet increases more, and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty.”
Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
As you can see from the scriptures; when you use your money to help others and be a blessing to the people and work God, you will receive many more in return. This is at times a controversial topic, but the bible has spoken for itself; give.
The biblical view of money; don’t love money, learn money!
Perhaps you’ve come across people who believe that focusing too much on money is a contradiction to faith.
That’s something I’ve heard a few times from people who don’t understand money or what the Bible says about it.
About LOVING MONEY, yes…the scriptures tell us that it is evil.
1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
Another verse that usually tags along with that verse is:
Matthew 6:24 “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (money).”
I completely agree with those Bible verses, and I believe that loving and serving money is a bad and unbiblical idea. Money is an excellent servant but a terrible master. (Which is why you should learn how to effectively manage your finances.)
However, the Bible instructs us to be prudent with our money and good stewards of our property.
How can we do that if we don’t learn why and how money works and become financially savvy?
Therefore, we can’t ignore verses like this:
Luke 16:9–11 “And I say unto you, make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?”
Romans 13:8 “Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.”
Proverbs 22:7 “The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.”
Final Thoughts
In a world where many things will vie for your devotion, money, however, will be the most significant idol you will face. However, if you follow the five bible verses about how to use money and that highlights five principles of managing your finance; you’ll become financially free fast than you think. Moreover, you are not alone in your choices. In Christ, you can find the strength to make the changes you need to make today. You will even find forgiveness for poor financial decisions and hope to overcome your financial difficulties.
