What Does the Bible Say About Wealth? A Christian Case for Capitalism
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There is a war on wealth and wealth creation in left-wing American politics. This is not new but seems more intense than ever. Relatively few wealthy people exist in any society. Many are high-profile, and they do not face the same issues most people face. Therefore, they have always been easy to target. And, for centuries, the wealthy and the politically powerful have, all too often, been the same people: royalty and dictators who are little more than crime bosses. This is still true in many places — but not in market economies. The wealthy may have political influence, but one does not need to go into government to get wealthy. It may be this reality, combined with, dare I say, good old-fashioned envy, that has incensed some American politicians.
The American Troika of the anti-wealth crusader leadership is Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and the Democrat mayors of New York City and Seattle, Zohran Mamdani and Katie Wilson, respectively. All three, in different ways, have attacked and repelled the well-to-do, private businesses, and potential job creators, while seeming to take pleasure in negative outcomes. Viral videos of Wilson cavalierly waving “bye” to departing Seattle millionaires and Ocasio-Cortez’s proclamation that no one can earn a billion dollars are evidence of that. The Congresswoman’s declaration that every billionaire is a policy failure provides additional proof.
These are the actions and utterances of people who are convinced they have the moral high ground. The question is, do they? We need to explore this assumption: How should Christians think about material wealth?
First, we need to recognize that God does not hate wealth. Abraham and the patriarchs were wealthy. Abraham led a mobile city with its own army. David, Solomon, and Job were all extremely wealthy. Also, in the New Testament, Jesus’ ministry was supported by wealthy women, and several of Jesus’ parables placed God the Father in the role of a wealthy landowner (The Wicked Vinedressers), father (The Prodigal Son), and merchant (The Three Stewards). The famous admonitions regarding wealth are much more about making idols out of wealth, our priorities, and where we place our confidence than about wealth itself. A war on wealth is immoral.
Second, as believers, we are commanded to be charitable. It is true we need not be wealthy to be charitable, but we do need production. In other words, we need to create some wealth before we can give it away. We cannot give away that which we do not have. We see this in numerous places in the Bible: Boaz leaving his fields for Ruth and how the Proverbs 31 woman engages in trade and production before she extends her hand to the poor. A war on wealth is a war on charity.
Third, we need to understand where wealth originates. It is an act of creation. The anti-wealth warriors are economically ignorant; they do not understand wealth. They think the wealthy extract wealth from and exploit others. Some do. Those who get wealthy from their relationship with the government certainly fit that description, and we should stand against this. Interestingly, the extractive institutions (i.e., government) are the primary places people such as Mayor Wilson and Mayor Mamdani have spent their careers. All they see is the extraction of wealth, known as taxes, political contributions, and rent seeking. But that is not how most wealthy people in a market economy get that way. Most people become wealthy by creating new goods and services for others and taking a risk to see if they can make others’ lives better. Again, it is an act of creation. A war on wealth is a war on creativity.
Fourth, the anti-wealth crusaders do not comprehend that business is about serving others. Wealthy people get wealthy by serving others. Few look at Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos and think ‘servants of the people,’ but they are. Bezos was born to poor teen parents. He did not get wealthy by connections or scamming others. He got rich by providing services people freely chose to use because it provided them with value — more value than it cost to purchase that service. How do we know it provides customers with value? Because they choose to continue using the service. No one forces them. They have options and make the choice they do because it is their best option. That choice was provided by Bezos when he created Amazon. Thus, he is entitled to be paid for taking that risk and making sacrifices to make his vision a reality.
Christians must understand that what Bezos and every other successful businessman does is steward resources to serve customers. Business is the primary way we practice stewardship and serve others. Profits are the sign that the business’ vision, creative efforts and risk-taking are right. Losses are a sign that the business is wrong and needs to adjust or quit. The reality that most don’t see is that Bezos creates trillions of dollars in value for millions of people every year; his accumulated wealth is only a small portion of the total value he has created for people. Whether anti-wealth crusaders see that value or not, it is real. A war on wealth is a war on making our lives better.
To war against the wealthy is to war against the people they serve and for whom they create value. It is as if the politicians think we can still have Amazon, Starbucks, Tesla, etc., without the entrepreneurs who created them and the executives who run them. It is a fantasy view of the economy — production without producers, businesses without entrepreneurs, wealth without the wealthy. It is unrealistic and impossible. The ludicrousness of this thinking becomes obvious if we flip the thinking: Anti-wealth is pro-poverty.
