Written by Jacque Starr
The study of widows in the Scriptures is a very deep topic, one that we are still learning about. It seems like it would be so simple, yet there are so many different aspects and requirements and commands from God about it. We are learning and searching and studying what God said in many verses and then the few references Paul also made, and James.
The command to care for widows in Deuteronomy is one verse we chose to base Gleaning the Harvest on, and it is very implicit on leaving some of what you earn or have behind for the widows, orphans and strangers. It was interesting to me that, in verses 18 and 22, the Father made sure to tell us that he commanded these things as a reminder that Israel was set free from the bondage of Egypt, as he also commanded Passover and the Sabbath and several other commands.
Deuteronomy 24:14-22
“You are not to exploit a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether one of your brothers or a foreigner living in your land in your town. 15 You are to pay him his wages the day he earns them, before sunset; for he is poor and looks forward to being paid. Otherwise he will cry out against you to YHVH, and it will be your sin. 16 “Fathers are not to be executed for the children, nor are children to be executed for the fathers; every person will be executed for his own sin. 17 “You are not to deprive the foreigner or the orphan of the justice which is his due, and you are not to take a widow’s clothing as collateral for a loan. 18 Rather, remember that you were a slave in Egypt; and YHVH your God redeemed you from there. That is why I am ordering you to do this. 19 “When harvesting the grain in your field, if you forgot a sheaf of grain there, you are not to go back and get it; it will remain there for the foreigner, the orphan and the widow, so that YHVH your God will bless you in all the work you do. 20 When you beat your olive tree, you are not to go back over the branches again; the olives that are left will be for the foreigner, the orphan and the widow. 21 When you gather the grapes from your vineyard, you are not to return and pick grapes a second time; what is left will be for the foreigner, the orphan and the widow. 22 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt. That is why I am ordering you to do this.
1 Timothy has quite a bit to say about widows and the different classifications and circumstances in which to help them out or not. It is quite an eye-opening passage, and will be affecting our ministering here at Gleaning the Harvest. I have broken the passage up to the different points Paul made to Timothy about the different circumstances and biblical commands when caring for widows.
1 Timothy 5:3-4, 5-7, 9-10, 11-15, 16:
3 Show respect to widows who are really in need. 4 But if a widow has children or grandchildren, first let them learn to do their religious duty to their own family and thus repay some of the debt they owe their forebears, for this is what is acceptable in the sight of God.
5 Now the widow who is really in need, the one who has been left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in petitions and prayers night and day.
6 But the one who is self-indulgent is already dead, even though she lives. 7 And instruct them about this, so that they will not be open to blame. 8 Moreover, anyone who does not provide for his own people, especially for his family, has disowned the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
9 Let a widow be enrolled on the list of widows only if she is more than sixty years old, was faithful to her husband, 10 and is known for her good deeds – as one who has reared her children well, showed hospitality, washed the feet of God’s people, helped those in trouble, and engaged in all kinds of good work.
11 But refuse to enroll younger widows, for when they begin to feel natural passions that alienate them from the Messiah, they want to get married. 12 This brings them under condemnation for having set aside the trust they had at first. 13 Besides that, they learn to be idle, going around from house to house; and not only idle, but gossips and busybodies, saying things they shouldn’t. 14 Therefore, I would rather the young widows get married, have children and take charge of their homes, so as to give the opposition no occasion for slandering us. 15 For already some have turned astray to follow the Adversary.
16 If any believing woman has relatives who are widows, she should provide relief for them – the congregation shouldn’t be burdened, so that it may help the widows who are really in need.
Deuteronomy 16:11:
You are to rejoice in the presence of YHVH your God – you, your sons and daughters, your male and female slaves, the L’vi’im living in your towns, and the foreigners, orphans and widows living among you – in the place where YHVH your God will choose to have his name live.
This one in 2 Samuel was interesting to me, because there are still situations where this applies to women/mothers. I believe that they, too, are forced to live like widows with their husbands still alive, though in a lot of cases their husband is not providing for them as King David did his wives.
2 Samuel 20:3 :
When David arrived at his palace in Yerushalayim, the king took the ten women who were his concubines, whom he had left to care for the palace, and put them under guard. He provided for their needs but never slept with them again. They were kept in confinement until the day of their death, living like widows with their husband still alive.
Psalm 146:
1 HalleluYah! Praise YHVH, my soul! 2 I will praise YHVH as long as I live. I will sing praise to my God all my life. 3 Don’t put your trust in princes or in mortals, who cannot help. 4 When they breathe their last, they return to dust; on that very day all their plans are gone.
5 Happy is he whose help is Ya’akov’s God, whose hope is in YHVH his Elohim. 6 He made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; he keeps faith forever. 7 He secures justice for the oppressed, he gives food to the hungry. YHVH sets prisoners free, 8 YHVH opens the eyes of the blind, YHVH lifts up those who are bent over. YHVH loves the righteous. 9 YHVH watches over strangers, he sustains the fatherless and widows; but the way of the wicked he twists. 10 YHVH will reign forever, your God, Tziyon, through all generations. Halleluyah!
Though our Father loves the widows and orphans amongst his people and desires us to care for them, he still expects them to live for him. In Isaiah, he is passing judgment on Israel, including the widows and orphans in those he will have no compassion on, “for everyone is ungodly and does evil, every mouth speaks foolishly.” There is a lot to learn about the compassion and righteous anger of the Father, who desires and deserves the love and pure behaviour of His People.
Isaiah 8-17 :
YHVH sent a word to Ya’akov, and it has fallen on Isra’el. 9 All the people know it, Efrayim and the inhabitants of Shomron. But they say in pride, in the arrogance of their hearts, 10 “The bricks have fallen, but we will rebuild with cut stone; the sycamore-fig trees have been chopped down, but we will replace them with cedars.” 11 So YHVH has raised up Retzin’s foes against him and spurred on his enemies – 12 Aram from the east, P’lishtim from the west; and they devour Isra’el with an open mouth. Even after all this, his anger remains, his upraised hand still threatens. 13 Yet the people do not turn to the one striking them, they don’t seek YHVH-Tzva’ot. 14 Therefore YHVH will cut off Isra’el’s head and tail, [tall] palm frond and [lowly] reed in a single day. 15 The old and the honored are the head, while prophets teaching lies are the tail. 16 For those leading this people lead them astray, and those led by them are destroyed. 17 Therefore YHVH takes no joy in their young men and has no compassion on their orphans and widows; for everyone is ungodly and does evil, every mouth speaks foolishly. Even after all this, his anger remains, his upraised hand still threatens.
In the Scriptures, the Father, YHVH, also tells the people to go and to leave the orphans and widows, and He will care for them and sustain them.
Jeremiah 49:11 :
“Leave your orphans; I will keep them alive; let your widows trust in me.”
Zechariah 7:10 :
Don’t oppress widows, orphans, foreigners or poor people. Don’t plot evil against each other.
In 1 Corinthians 7 and 1 Timothy 5, Paul speaks to widows about marriage, presenting two different opinions for their understanding.
1 Corinthians 7:8-9 :
8 Now to the single people and the widows I say that it is fine if they remain unmarried like me; 9 but if they can’t exercise self-control, they should get married; because it is better to get married than to keep burning with sexual desire.
(see full passage above) 1 Timothy 5:14
Therefore, I would rather the young widows get married, have children and take charge of their homes, so as to give the opposition no occasion for slandering us.
Interestingly enough, James also instructs us about caring for widows and orphans, lining it up with keeping ourselves from being contaminated by the world.
James 1:27
The religious observance that God the Father considers pure and faultless is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being contaminated by the world.
God obviously is very concerned about his people and knows it is best for us and for the widows that His own People support them in Him. Whether it is to turn our hearts to his compassion or to open our pocketbooks up to what his heart’s desires or to keep the widows in fellowship with the Body, even if they have no husband and supporter, or just because this is his provision, these are his ways and commands, and he cared enough about us all to spell it out many times in Scriptures.
I know there is so much to learn about, and I am thankful He is leading us in His paths! Mostly, these verses show us that our Father loves us so very much and WILL care for His People. He promised to, if we will be His People and love and follow Him.
Be blessed!