Proverbs 11:24
There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty. There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.
There is a paradox at the heart of generosity: the one who freely scatters what is given will increase, while the one who selfishly withholds more than is right moves toward poverty. Faithful giving does not in the end make a person poor or bring real loss, but like seed cast by a sower it multiplies and returns a generous harvest for continued good. All that is possessed is not truly one's own but is lent by God in trust to be used for others and for His work. To those who honor Him with their substance and care for the poor and afflicted, He promises enrichment with new physical, mental, and spiritual power and with heaven's unfailing supply. To withhold tithes and offerings that belong to Him, or to hoard wealth and keep back what is owed to God and to workers, is unfaithful stewardship that invites His blessing to be withdrawn and what was held back to be scattered and lost.
Meaning of Scattering Withholding
The saying sets forth a paradox that runs against appearance: one who scatters abroad in generous giving yet grows in increase, while one who holds back more than is right tends toward poverty. Generous giving does not in the end diminish the giver, make the giver poor, or bring true loss. Like a sower who multiplies seed by casting it away, faithful sharing of entrusted gifts brings increase of blessing. Generous sowing brings a generous harvest that supplies sufficiency for continued good works.
The withholder is like a pool that receives heaven's showers but has no outlet, abiding in stagnant selfishness that blesses no one and poisons the air around. The giver is like a mountain stream flowing down to refresh the thirsty land, and in giving liberally does not exhaust its resources. By ever receiving and ever giving, day by day and year by year, the stream that gives never lacks. This is part of God's great plan and a law running through all nature and heaven: nothing except the selfish heart of man lives to itself, but bird and animal, leaf of the forest and blade of grass, tree and shrub, flower and ocean all minister to some other life and receive in order to give, while angels of glory find their joy in giving love and tireless watchcare to fallen and unholy souls.
The next saying explains the first: the generous soul is enriched and made to prosper, and the one who refreshes others is himself refreshed in return. Possessions are not truly one's own but are lent by God and entrusted to stewards to be used for His glory. Faithful use to benefit others fulfills obligation to God and to people, advances His work and cause, contributes to the welfare of others and to one's own, and is met with more received in turn. Selfishly holding back what should be devoted to that work invites scattering by God's own hand, so that what is withheld is taken away and tends to poverty.
Giving is a test revealing whether love of truth or love of the world governs the heart. Acceptable giving springs from unselfish motives to help others and glorify God, not from desire for public display, size of donation, or human praise. Secret acts of kindness done for one in need express the true spirit of sacrifice and are acceptable to God, bearing good fruit for others and for His work.
Practice of Faithful Giving
The verse stands as a promise to those who honor God with their substance and minister to His afflicted ones, fulfilled when His directions are faithfully obeyed in caring for the poor, relieving need, and serving others. What is given for Christ enriches the giver, and generosity toward the poor and toward the Lord's work is met with God's provision and blessing. The next saying explains it: the generous person is enriched and made to prosper, and the one who refreshes others is refreshed in return. Those who consecrate body, soul, and spirit to God's service constantly receive a new endowment of physical, mental, and spiritual power, with heaven's inexhaustible supplies at their command through Christ's own Spirit and life and the highest energies of the Holy Spirit working in heart and mind, bringing reward even in this life.
Giving to people in need and to advance God's work blesses others and cultivates self-denial and benevolence in the giver, making people more like Christ and gaining true riches while contributing to others' welfare and one's own. God supplies resources so people can advance His work through gifts and offerings, especially by supporting workers in the gospel harvest. When people become channels through which heaven's blessing flows to others, the Lord keeps the channel supplied so they continue to receive. Returning to the Lord His own does not make men poor, but withholding tends to poverty.
In systematic benevolence possessions are to be honestly valued, for giving tests whether love of truth or love of the world governs the heart. Selfish or covetous people who deliberately list them far below worth, or deceitfully understate them, are withholding what should be given, and their increase may be brought down to the figures they reported and meet divine judgment. Selfishly withholding tithes and offerings due to God, appropriating to personal use the portion He has reserved, and disregarding His plain claims is unfaithful stewardship and robbing God. It leaves people to follow their own way and reap the fruit of their doings, causing loss not only of what was withheld from God but also of what was committed as one's own. Giving willingly is an act of obedience and gratitude for His blessings, since He lends people their goods.
Withholding what should be devoted to God's work does not preserve wealth, for God may withdraw His blessing and by His own hand scatter what is held back so it is lost both to its possessor and to His cause. Such scattering can come through entrusting it to a reckless son who squanders it, the death of a prized horse in the stable or of a cow, and failures of fruit or other crops, which remind of remissness in duty. Having none of such losses does not mean safety but can mean a more hopeless case. The verse warns against hoarding wealth, withholding what is owed to God, and unfairly keeping back workers' earned wages, and money gained by withholding wages will be scattered through adversity and affliction.
The same principle applies to caring unselfishly for and training people entrusted to the church instead of excusing oneself and leaving them uncared for, with God providing increase in return for generosity. It calls for noble benevolence instead of unjust, tightfisted treatment of a poor person who has shown care and faithfulness. It applies to feeding and providing for hungry travelers with assurance that God will supply what is needed. It applies to using ability and influence for God's work instead of burying them in business and money-making, lest even the ability itself be lost. Excessive withholding brings loss in concrete affairs, as when excessive economizing kept needed support from a sick man and left him bearing cares that weakened him, when his strength was worth more than the money saved. So too in the publishing house proposals that should have been favorably accepted were opposed, when increase rather than loss would have followed receiving them. Sharing what God entrusts applies to temporal as well as spiritual blessings, for sharing truth does not diminish what one possesses but brings richer understanding, as the effort to explain it reveals further treasures, while withholding what could be shared leads toward loss.