Refuse Not the Small Things — A Rabbinic Warning on Poverty

Gaster, Exempla of the Rabbis No. 1 Diverse Sources (1924)

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·April 19, 2026

Do not refuse the smallest things lest you remain poor.

Themes

Charity Poverty Wisdom Ethics Humility

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Hebraic Literature (1901)Rabbinic Proverbs on Hospitality, Poverty, and HonorScattered through the old anthologies is a trove of one-line sayings, proverbs the Rabbis handed down the way other peoples pass down songs. The 1901 collection Hebraic Literature (1901)Thirteen Rabbinic Sayings on Speech, Patience, and CharityThe old rabbis were poets of the short sentence. Here is a small anthology of proverbs preserved in the Midrash — each one a stone you can carry in your p Hebraic Literature (1901)A String of Rabbinic Proverbs on Wealth, Pride, and SightSome rabbinic teaching comes as narrative. Some comes as argument. And some comes as short, edged sentences that land like stones. Here is a handful from the Pr Ben SiraNo Peace Between the Hyena and the DogBen Sira, in his wisdom, saw this dynamic playing out thousands of years ago. He uses sharp, almost brutal imagery to paint a picture of inequality. He starts w Ben SiraWhy the World Listens to the Rich ManIn his wisdom writings, preserved for us in the book we call Ben Sira, he observes the stark contrast in how society treats the rich and the poor. It's a timele 2 EnochEnoch Warns Against Harming the Poor and the HumbleEnoch stood before his children and delivered a teaching that cut through every pretension: all the ways humans measure worth, wealth, wisdom, beauty, strength,