Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.
Whoever deliberately closes the ears against the cry and need of the poor will in turn cry out for help and will not be heard. The shutting of the ear is not mere inattention but a refusal to respond to suffering that is known, and the retribution is measured in kind, unanswered crying for unheeded crying. The warning reaches beyond the individual to the church as a body, which is held accountable by God for what its members do to the unfortunate. That accountability includes both neglect and exploitation of widows and orphans, of persons with disabilities, and of the sick.
So long as these sufferers remain uncared for, the prayers of the church will not be heard. The refusal of heaven to listen continues while the neglect continues, making care for the poor inseparable from acceptable worship. The duty laid upon the church is to do what it can to remedy the wrong done to them.
Whoever deliberately closes the ears against the cry and need of the poor will in turn cry out for help and will not be heard. The shutting of the ear is not mere inattention but a refusal to respond to suffering that is known, and the retribution is measured in kind, unanswered crying for unheeded crying. The warning reaches beyond the individual to the church as a body, which is held accountable by God for what its members do to the unfortunate. That accountability includes both neglect and exploitation of widows and orphans, of persons with disabilities, and of the sick.
So long as these sufferers remain uncared for, the prayers of the church will not be heard. The refusal of heaven to listen continues while the neglect continues, making care for the poor inseparable from acceptable worship. The duty laid upon the church is to do what it can to remedy the wrong done to them.