We Can Yield Much (Proverbs 13:23)

The fallow ground of the poor would yield much food, but it is swept away through injustice.

Proverbs 13:23

Excessive taxation in the late Roman Empire forced many poor farmers to abandon their lands. Many people died from starvation as farms returned to forest. The Book of Proverbs has a passage that is relevant: “The fallow ground of the poor would yield much food, but it is swept away through injustice” (Proverbs 13: 23).

Followers of God are sometimes referred to as “the poor” in the Bible (e.g., Matthew 5:3). Even though we might have sufficient (or even abundant) material resources, our feelings of poverty come from recognizing our spiritual need, a need which the Lord Jesus Christ fills.

Even though we have need, we can still produce for our Lord Jesus. But sometimes injustice stops that from happening. The injustice can come from our own minds.

—How would we feel if we saw a person go up to another and say that she was not good enough?
—What would we think if we heard of someone texting another and reminding him of all his past wrongs just as he was trying to get his day started?
—What would our reaction be if we saw a person tell another that a debt she had been forgiven was, in fact, still owed?

We would be shocked to see behavior like that in others. We would call it unjust. But how often do we do such things to ourselves?

We are in need. That makes us poor. But we have gifts that can nourish us and others. We can yield much with what God has provided. When negative thoughts arise, let reflection on the love of the Lord Jesus Christ sweep them away. Let us not allow them to unjustly rob us of what we could produce.