Uh-oh… a money verse
Leave the Corners
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When you gather in the harvest of your land, you must not completely harvest the corner of your field, and you must not gather up the gleanings of your harvest. You must leave them for the poor and the resident foreigner. I am the Lord your God.’”
Leviticus 23:22 (NET)
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At first glance, this seems a fairly useless verse for us today.
Unless, of course, you’re a farmer who actually works to gather up your field’s harvest.
But what about the rest of us who make our living doing work outside the farm? How can we use this verse?
There’s a principle here of leaving a little margin for the poor.
Instead of squeezing every bit of profit out from the field -- that is, harvesting the whole field (including the corners) and making sure to pick up anything that’s dropped after the first harvest pass -- you can gather as best you can, trust God with it, and leave “the rest” for the poor.
Admittedly, I don’t exactly know how to do all of that with a desk job.
But I’m sure there’s some sort of percentage we could think about that might be a mathematical equivalent.
We also have social programs nowadays paid for by our modern taxes, so that’s something to think about too.
Ultimately, what you do with the money you harvest is between you and God.
You’ve got as much Holy Spirit in you as I do.
Might as well have a “conference call” with Him and see about how to run your business.
Personally, my plan this year is to collect a few tithes and give it to God through my local church, through various Gospel-supporting charities, and to missionaries I support.
What I don’t want to do is greedily squeeze every drop of profit I can from my business works.
That’s not faith, it’s selfishness.
— Ricky Ketchum
Copyright © 2026 by Ricky Ketchum. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication prohibited.
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