Was Jesus rich or wealthy?

In this, as in all else, the Lord Jesus expressed in Himself what He taught. There was none so poor as Jesus, yet none so rich. Of this world’s treasure, as Man on earth, He had nothing; neither home nor money, yet He was the creator of all, and when He used His divine power it was not to enrich Himself, but for the help and blessing of others.

It was not until Jesus came that men learned about treasure in heaven. Saints of God had learned to count upon Him, and to look to heaven for blessing on earth, and treasure on earth had been the evidence of divine blessing, as in the case of the patriarchs, and the nation of Israel, who had received from God a land “flowing with milk and honey.” The coming of Jesus had altered all that for His disciples. They were no longer to look upon material prosperity as a sign of divine favour, or to consider wealth on earth as a divine blessing; but they were to be followers of a rejected Christ, who had become poor, and they were to view heaven as the place for depositing their treasures.

There is no need to ask the question, When was the Lord Jesus rich? for every true believer knows that it was when He was in the form of God. In John 1:3 it is written, “All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.” The human mind cannot grasp the immensity of the wealth that belonged to the Son of God before His entry into this world. In one sense it still all belonged to Him, for He had still the right and title to all as the creator of all, but He had laid all aside, and had become Man, a real man in all that pertained to manhood, apart from sin. Born into this world in circumstances of poverty, the Lord Jesus spoke of Himself as having not where to lay His head. He was the appointed Heir of all things as Son of God, He was the heir to the throne of David, and as Son of Man He will yet be the Head and Centre of the vast universe, yet He had nothing while here, having to say, “Show me a penny,” not possessing one. All things were at His disposal, and He used them for the blessing of others, but He did not use these infinite resources to provide for Himself, or to relieve His hunger, His weariness or His thirst.

(V. 9.) To awaken this love the Apostle reminds them that in Christ we have the most transcendent example of giving. The rich may give from the abundance of their riches; others, like the Macedonian believers, may out of the abundance of their joy, give to others when they, themselves are in deep poverty; but in Christ we see One who was rich, yet for our sakes became poor in order to give to others the true riches.

The parenthesis of verse 9 is eminently instructive, not only for that which would act powerfully on the Corinthians as on all saints who appreciate the grace of our Lord, but as a sample of the way the Spirit of God turns what was in Christ to every exigency of the individual or of the church. Nor does any other motive act with equal power in holiness. And it could not be otherwise; for who or what can compare with Christ? To His grace, though it be really immeasurable, two measures are applied, the infinite glory of His person in itself, and the depth of humiliation to which He submitted for us. "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sakes he being rich became poor, in order that ye by his poverty might be made rich." Wealth consists in fulness of means and resources, and poverty in their utter lack. As a divine person our Lord had no need for Himself, and all things at command for others absolutely. He was rich indeed, yet for our sakes became poor, not in the letter only but in spirit to the uttermost. See the picture summed up in Philippians 2, and expanded or detailed in all the Gospels, the perfect pattern of One who hung in dependence on His Father and never used a single thing for Himself throughout His career. He waited on and lived on account of the Father; it was His meat to do His will and finish His work. He had no motive but the one of pleasing His Father, whatever the cost. The fast of forty days in the wilderness was doubtless a special scene of trial which ushered in His public ministry; but it was His ordinary life to count on the care of God while doing His work without an anxiety on the one hand, and on the other without independent resources. But His poverty went down into depths unfathomable in the cross when giving His life for the sheep. I do not speak merely of His garments parted among them and of their casting lots upon His vesture, image though it was of extreme and helpless destitution. Deeper elements were there than man's eye saw, when all forsook Him and fled. God forsook Him too — His God. What remained then? Nothing but the unsparing judgment of our sins. Was He not the "poor man" then as none other was, never morally so high, yet never so abject, and this not circumstantially alone but in all the unspeakable abandonment of that hour? As He said prophetically in Psalm 22, "I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men and despised of the people … I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaves to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death."

Now, each of these incidents goes to show the constant poverty of Jesus, nor can one instance be found of His having handled money that belonged, as it were, to Himself. Judas carries the bag.

Now, each of these incidents goes to show the constant poverty of Jesus, nor can one instance be found of His having handled money that belonged, as it were, to Himself. Judas carries the bag.

In 1 Corinthians 8:9 we read "of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor." It is evident that the blessed Lord was never rich in His earthly life; He had nowhere to lay His head; He asked to be shown a penny; He caused a fish to provide the tribute money. His "riches" were related to the scene of glory in which He, as God, ever dwelt, adored by myriads of holy beings. The verse of a hymn aptly expresses it:

But, "though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor." Here we need to tread very cautiously. Of what did He impoverish Himself when He came into this world? Certainly not of His deity. During His sojourn here, "all the fullness in Him was pleased to dwell" (Col. 1:19). Not a single divine attribute did He abdicate in becoming human. Omnipotence displayed itself in His command of winds and waves, and also in His supremacy over death. Omniscience was manifested in His perfect ability to read the thoughts and hearts of men. Neither, in becoming poor, did He leave "the bosom of the Father," as some have said. This is not a geographical, but a moral, expression (John 1:18), and it shows the unique place which He had in the Father's love. This He never for one moment left, neither did He forfeit it. Yet "He became poor." Let us content ourselves with noticing the actual circumstances of His pathway here. He was born in a stable, and cradled in a manger. The condescension would have been amazing had He consented to be born in the palace of the Caesars, but what shall we say of Bethlehem and the manger? Who amongst us has known such circumstances as these? Observe Him also in Matt. 17 in the matter of the tribute money. Though but a coin was required to cover both Peter and Himself, the fish of the sea had to furnish the sum. He had it not. During His progress through the land there was no demand for Him in the mansions of the rich and noble. "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has not where to lay His head" (Luke 9:58). But what were all the painful experiences of His pathway when compared with the cross of Calvary?

Again, when engaged in His public service He said to the scribe who volunteered his devotedness, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has not where to lay His head” (Matt. 8:20). Such was the whole path of Jesus here below. Could we say He was rich here? Never! When asked for tribute money He instructed Peter to catch a fish and find in its mouth the exact amount required for Himself and Peter (Matt. 17:27). That is, He had not the money in hand. Again, when pursuing what is called His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, He bade His disciples go before Him into a certain village, where they should find an ass tied. This they were to bring to Him; and, should the owner question their conduct, they were to say simply that the Lord had need of him. No bargain was to be struck, nor money offered as hire. The Creator, and such He was, though in circumstances of poverty in His own creation, had the prior claim, and the owner yielded thereto, allowing the disciples to fulfil their mission. Yet what a contradiction—the Creator in poverty!

Again, when engaged in His public service He said to the scribe who volunteered his devotedness, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head." (Matt. 8:20.) Such was the whole path of Jesus here below. Could we say He was rich here? Never! When asked for tribute money He instructed Peter to catch a fish and find in its mouth the exact amount required for Himself and Peter. (Matt. 17:27.) That is, He had not the money in hand. Again, when pursuing what is called His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, He bade His disciples go before Him into a certain village, where they should find an ass tied. This they were to bring to Him; and, should the owner question their conduct, they were to say simply that the Lord had need of him. No bargain was to be struck, nor money offered as hire. The Creator, and such He was, though in circumstances of poverty in His own creation, had the prior claim, and the owner yielded thereto, allowing the disciples to fulfil their mission. Yet what a contradiction - the Creator in poverty!