Proverbs 13:7 Commentary: The Rich Poor and the Poor Rich

Proverbs 13:7 belongs to the wisdom tradition of ancient Israel, where wealth and poverty were often seen as signs of divine blessing or judgment. The surrounding verses (13:3, 11) address speech, diligence, honesty, and the proper use of money. Verse 7 immediately follows a chain contrasting righteousness and wickedness (vv. 5, 6) and precedes a saying about the ransom of riches (v. 8). This literary context suggests the proverb is meant to qualify easy assumptions about wealth: appearances can deceive.

The Hebrew verbs are in the Hithpael stem, which indicates reflexive or feigned action. Keil and Delitzsch note that the Hithpael “makes oneself something, without anything after it, thus to place oneself so or so.” This grammatical feature is key: the verse does not simply describe rich and poor people, but those who actively pretend or represent themselves as such. In a culture where honor and shame shaped social interaction, pretending to be wealthier than one was could bring short-term status but long-term ruin. Conversely, feigning poverty might protect one from envy or obligation, while actually possessing great wealth (hon, “substance, price, high value”).

The wisdom literature consistently warns against hypocrisy in all its forms. Proverbs 12:9 says “Better is he who is little known, and has a servant, than he who honors himself and lacks bread.” This verse similarly targets the gap between public image and private reality. The ancient hearer would recognize both characters: the person who overspends to look prosperous, and the miser who hoards while claiming destitution. Both are forms of falsehood, and both violate the integrity that wisdom commends.

This historical context enriches the moral force: the proverb does not merely comment on economic strategy, but on the character of the one who lives before God. The God of Israel sees past every mask, and wisdom calls the reader to align outward life with inward truth.

The consulted commentaries and translations note no significant textual variants for Proverbs 13:7. The Masoretic Text is stable, and the few minor differences among English versions ("pretend" vs. "make himself") reflect translation choices for the Hithpael stem, not underlying textual variation.

Proverbs 13:7 has been read across Christian history in two main streams. Early and medieval interpreters often applied it spiritually: the rich pretender represented the hypocrite who appeared righteous but lacked true grace, while the poor pretender foreshadowed Christ, who became poor for our sake (2 Cor 8:9) and the believer who embraces voluntary poverty for the kingdom. The Cambridge Bible explicitly connects the verse to Christ's self-emptying. Reformation-era commentators like Matthew Henry and John Gill developed both a literal economic reading and a spiritual one, warning against pride and encouraging humble confidence in God’s grace. In modern preaching, the verse is often used to challenge consumerism, to teach financial honesty, and to comfort those who feel spiritually impoverished but are in fact rich in faith. The verse also appears in hymns about the paradox of Christian wealth and poverty, though specific hymn titles are not recorded in the supplied sources.

Three-point outline

1. The Two Pretenders. One pretends to be rich but has nothing; another pretends to be poor but has great wealth. Both are acting a part. The verbs are reflexive, they do this to themselves. This is not about honest poverty or wealth, but about deliberate misrepresentation.
2. The Material and the Spiritual. The verse can be read as a warning about financial pretense (living above or below one’s means) and as a metaphor for spiritual condition. Matthew Henry applies it to “presuming hypocrites” who think themselves rich in grace but are empty, and “timorous trembling Christians” who are rich toward God but feel poor.
3. The Call to Honesty. Whether in money or faith, the God who sees the heart calls us to live truthfully. Self-deception and hypocrisy rob us of peace and integrity. The better way is to hold our true state before God, trusting His evaluation.

Five-point outline

1. The masquerade of wealth: why do people pretend to be rich? Pride, fear of shame, desire for influence. The result: nothing.
2. The disguise of poverty: why do people pretend to be poor? To avoid obligation, to hoard, to be seen as humble. Yet they have great wealth.
3. Both are forms of dishonesty, and both are censured by wisdom. The wise person neither boasts nor hides what God has given.
4. The spiritual parallel: Christ Himself “made himself poor” (2 Cor 8:9) though He was rich, not in pretense but in reality, for our redemption.
5. The gospel calls us away from all pretending. True riches are found in being “rich toward God” (Luke 12:21).

Illustration hooks

• A family maxes out credit cards to keep up appearances, new cars, brand-name clothes, while drowning in debt. The neighbors think they are wealthy; the banker knows they have nothing.
• A quiet neighbor lives modestly, drives an old car, never gives to charity, then dies and leaves a large estate. The community is shocked. They were “poor” by appearance, rich in reality.
• In a small group, someone always talks about their spiritual victories and knowledge, but avoids honest confession or vulnerability. Another member rarely speaks, feels empty, yet quietly serves, forgives, and prays. Which is truly rich in grace?

Questions your congregation is asking

• Is it wrong to try to appear more successful than I really am? Doesn’t everyone present a good image?
• How do I know if I am really spiritually rich or just pretending? What if I feel poor in faith?
• Does this verse mean I should not save money or should openly share everything I have?

This proverb cuts through our public personas and invites honest self-examination. The group leader should create a safe space where people can reflect without shame on the gap between their outer image and inner reality. The goal is not to produce guilt but to draw the group toward the freedom that comes from living truthfully before God.

Discussion questions

1. Read Proverbs 13:7 in several translations. What different nuances do you see in the wording? Notice especially the reflexive verbs ("makes himself rich/poor").
2. Adam Clarke says the Hithpael form often means "feigning." Why do people pretend to be richer or poorer than they are? What pressures drive these pretenses?
3. Matthew Henry applies the verse both to money and to spiritual life. Do you see the two readings as separate options, or do they belong together? Explain.
4. In what situations have you felt pressure to appear more spiritually mature than you actually are? What might it look like to be honest about your struggles?
5. The verse says the poor pretender has "great wealth." Can someone be materially rich yet spiritually poor? What does being "rich toward God" (Luke 12:21) look like in daily life?
6. Barnes and Cambridge connect this verse to Christ's self-emptying (Philippians 2). How does Jesus redefine true wealth and true poverty?
7. What is one practical step you could take this week to close the gap between your outer presentation and your inner reality, in money, faith, or relationships?