Roanoke Rapids herald., 1921-04-22
!. Wealth In the Hands of the Few

!. Wealth In the Hands of the Few
lisa. 5:S). .
l. Join house to house" ". 81.
2. LAY field to field" ". 81.
The avarlcious greed of these men
caused them to enlarge their estates
at the expense of their neighbors. In
agricultural districts 1t took the form
OF land-grabbing and the eviction of
the small proprietor, and In the com
merclal centers the crowding out of
the small concerns by the large cor
porations. God hates the spirit Of
avarice. He hates the greed that is
creating the inequalities in the eco
nomic and social order today.
u. Methods Employed In the Ac-
QUESTION Of Wealth (Amos S:4-6).
l. Swallowed up the needy ". ~.
Swallowed up" literally means to
pant after, like beast after its prey
with eagerness to devour. Many to-
day get rich by swallowing up the
needy This is done by the money
vender who finds man in straitened
circumstances, loans him money at an
exorbitant rate Of interest, forecloses
the mortgage at the critical hour, TAX
ing possession of the mans property.
=. ITO make the poor of the land
to fail" ". ~. They were grasping
after the houses and lands of the poor,
and in order to accomplish this they
impoverished them in every way pos
sible so as to root them out of tho
land. This they doubtless did by
withholding from them their lawful
wages, an example of which we find
In james 5:4, and placing exorbltant
taxes upon them and cheating them
In the courts.
3. Begrudged the loss of holy days
". 81. They were restlessly impatient
because Of the restrictions of those
days. Though outwardly conforming
to the Sabbath they were seeking all
the while to commercialize 1t. Many
today go to church for the sake of
responsibility while impatiently wait
ing for the day to pass in order to
to pursue their business.
4. Dishonesty In business dealings
". 81. ~ They made the ephah
small. Their measures were less than
the price paid for. (2) They made
the shekel great. The shekel being
the coin used to pay bills, the mer-
chants putsinto circulation overweight
shekels thus getting higher price
for their grain. The purchaser was
thus cut on both sides. (3) Falsifed |
their balances. Even the scales by |
which the gold and silver were
weighed had been tampered with, maxi
ng them guilty of cheating In three
ways.
B. They bought the poor for silver
". g.. The poor were reduced to
'uch poverty by the above means of
that they were obliged to sell
themselves into slavery, even for a
,air Of shoes.
@ They sold the refuse of the wheat
v. 81. In time Of famine they even
old to the people that part of the
vheat which was intended for the
attic.
lll. Gods Judgment Upon Them
Amos S:7; CT. Isa. 80 10Y.
God says II will never forget" Not
ne act Of greed and oppression will
scape Gods notice.
i. Many houses shall be desolate,
hey obtained their houses by wicked
leans, and they should be removed
rom the land, thus not being able to
njoy them.
2. The land unproductive ". 10Y.
~. A Picture Of Rich Man and a
eggar Uuke 16:19-25).
/. Their lives. ~ The rich man.
Ie had much goods. He operated in
lie highest society. (2) The beggar.
Ie not only was poor, but helpless.
.e had no place In the social order.
e had no one to feed him, nor any
nc to care for his sores except as
le dogs licked them.
2. Their deaths. ~ The rich man
as taken by death. He seems to have
nd great burial. (2) The beggar.
here is nothing told as to what was
me with his body when he died. Per-
,ps the very dogs who licked his
res fed upon it.
3. Their destinies. ~ The rich
an lifted up his eyes In hell. The
ggar was carried by the angels into
Draham's bosom. t2) What deter
ined them. The future life grows
It of the present. The rich man was h
terested In the things of this life, 4
selfish that even when the poor Il
ggar was laid at his gate he gave B
N no attention. He not only lacked E
g kindness Of seeking opportunity 4
do good but refused the one op- e
rtunity that was thrust before him. q
Their fixedness. Their destinies s
re determined by their actions while
We, and after death there was no
ssibility OF a change. The rich man
ed up his eyes in hell. In addition W
the suffering Of hell he had the N
yulsh Of neglected opportunities.
AN