Was Jesus Wealthy?
Have you ever wondered what Jesus’ financial status was while he was on earth? I have wondered the same thing at times and wanted to know “Was Jesus rich or poor?”
The conclusion may surprise you. There is evidence throughout the New Testament that alludes to the fact that Jesus may have been wealthy for his time. How do we know this? In this article, we will look closer at some of the evidence that points to the fact that Jesus may, in fact, have been rich.
5 Clues That Jesus May Have Been Rich
1. Roman Soldiers Fought Over Jesus’ Garments.
When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.
“Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.”
This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled that said,
“They divided my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.”
So this is what the soldiers did.
(John 19:23-24)
After Jesus was crucified on the cross the Roman Soldiers cast lots for his garments, meaning that they drew sticks to see who would win them. They would not have done this if the garments were worthless. So they must have been worth something.
You might ask yourself after reading this passage, “Why did they compete over worthless clothing?” Back then it was commonplace for the soldiers to divide up clothing of other thieves and prisoners who were being crucified. In this case, they were casting lots for the clothing so it becomes apparent that Jesus’ clothing was worth something.
We also see that his undergarment was woven in one piece from top to bottom. This is a very interesting fact to point out. After doing some research, we can easily conclude that this was not common among undergarments in their day. It was rare that undergarments were in such nice shape rather than being made of many different scraps of fabric. Jesus obviously had some luxury underwear!
2. Jesus Was Supported By Wealthy People
After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.
(Luke 8:1-3)
Jesus’ ministry was supported by many wealthy people. In fact, in Luke 8, we read that Jesus and his disciples were supported by a group of women. This fact alone must say something about those women and possibly their wealth
Joanna the wife of Chuza, an important court official, would have had sufficient means needed to travel and contribute to the support of Jesus and the disciples.
Joanna’s wealth may be from her husband, however, both Mary Magdalene and Susanna did not have husbands during that time. The money they were using to support Jesus and the disciples came from their own wealth. There is no saying where they got their money and possessions from, it could have been generational wealth or they could have been businesswomen like the woman from Proverbs 31.
That verse ends with “and many others.” Who is to say how many women were supporting Jesus’ ministry and how much money each of them brought to the table.
Jesus also started his life on the wealthier side when he was gifted gold, incense, and myrrh, all expensive commodities.
3. Jesus Had a Treasurer
He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.
(John 12:6)
Did you know that Jesus had someone keeping track of their ministry’s money? That’s right, Jesus’ treasurer was Judas. However, he wasn’t a very great treasurer. Either way, Jesus had someone keeping track of the money.
Typically people would not need someone to keep track of their money if there wasn’t a ton to keep track of. I’m sure Judas had to keep track of all the donations coming into support their “non-profit” as well as the money that was being paid for a variety of things.
Related: What Does the Bible Say About Budgeting?
4. Jesus Rode a Donkey
When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it.
(Mark 11:7)
Today, many may not see a donkey as a sign of wealth, but possibly the exact opposite. In ancient times, however, donkeys were known as a wealthy person’s form of transportation. They were primarily ridden by royalty and the wealthy. The poor ate their donkeys, they did not ride them.
We are all familiar with the famous scene of of Jesus riding a donkey into Jerusalem. This was a sign of royalty.
If Jesus’ parents took a donkey back to Bethlehem, this is a sign that they had money to afford such lavish transportation. And even though they gave birth to Jesus in a stable, that wasn’t their first choice. They tried to get a room at the inn, which was full.
5. Jesus Hung Out with Wealthy People
(Luke 5:29-32, Luke 7:36-39, Luke 11:37, Luke 14:1-2)
Jesus spent time with a wide variety of people while he was here on earth. Why does it matter if he hung out with wealthy people when he also hung out with poor people?
The fact that Jesus hung out with wealthy people says more about him than it does the wealthy people. Back in ancient times (and even today), rich people only hung out with other rich people. The fact that the Pharisees, tax collectors, and other rich people were inviting Jesus to share meals with them is a sign that Jesus probably had money.
Jesus’ Richness Vs Present-Day Richness
So was Jesus rich? We really do not know for sure, but one thing is certain…
Even if Jesus was wealthy, he did not come off as one who had a lot of money. Our modern version of the wealthy is one who works in a corporate office, lives within a gated community, and has a personal assistant answer their phone and set their appointments. We practically view the wealthy as unreachable.
This is the opposite of who Jesus was. Jesus was completely reachable. He was physically and emotionally present for those around him, especially the poor. People did not have to set an appointment to speak with or see Jesus. No one had to dress up to be in his presence. He was a “come-as-you-are” kind of guy.
Not exactly how we tend to view the wealthy of our generation.
Related: Over 100 Bible Verses About Money
Jesus’ accessibility to every person, no matter their status, race, or gender is one of the most powerful messages of Christianity.
The fact that it is difficult to prove if Jesus is wealthy or not says a lot about the kind of person he was. Even if he did have monetary wealth, that was clearly not his primary concern. He was humble and did not fret over money.
This is made clear by many examples like the fact that he didn’t have a home (Matthew 8:20), and he didn’t carry money around with him (Matthew 20:24). Even though Jesus was the King of Kings when he was here on earth, he chose to live like a servant, pretty much the opposite of a king.
Can Christians Be Wealthy?
“Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
(Matthew 19:24)
If Jesus himself was possibly wealthy, why would he tell us that it is challenging to be rich and enter the kingdom of God?? He was obviously a part of the kingdom of God!
Wealth is deceitful. We feel more secure and in control when we have money than when we don’t. I myself feel this way when my budget is balanced nicely and my emergency fund is full. But wealth is not what gives us our true security. Our security comes only through Christ.
Although wealth is deceitful, this doesn’t mean that it is inherently bad. It is the instant we put our trust more in our worldly wealth than in our heavenly wealth that we run into problems.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
(1 Timothy 6:10)
In 1 Timothy 6:10 we learn that it is not money that is the root of all kinds of evil, but the love of money. Sure, you can have money and lots of it, but understand that even if it was all taken away from you, your hope must still remain in God. Loving money and relying on money is where evil starts to grow within our hearts.
A great example of how we are to treat wealth is through the story of Job. Job was extremely wealthy and God allowed the devil to take away all of Job’s wealth in order to see what he truly valued. After Job proved that his trust was not in his wealth, God gave back all of Job’s worldly wealth. Clearly, God does not see wealth as an issue if he gave back all of Job’s.
Related: 3 BIG Money Mistakes That Are Keeping You From Building Wealth
Becoming More Like Jesus with Your Wealth
Jesus may or may not have been a wealthy man, either way, he clearly didn’t live a lavish lifestyle like many would if they had money. Having money is a privilege and we must use it wisely and in a way that brings honor to the one who provided it to us.
Just because someone has a lot of money doesn’t mean that they love money. However, if someone is poor, that doesn’t mean that they do not love money.
I encourage you to examine your own heart when it comes to worldly wealth. Pray over your financial situation, and ask God to reveal your true view of your money. This is something I myself struggle with on a daily basis. Just because your hope is in Jesus today doesn’t mean that it will be tomorrow. Continue to reexamine where your trust lies, daily. Realign your trust in God as needed, and follow the example of how Jesus lived.
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The donkey that Jesus was on at Palm Sunday was not his. It was found by one of the disciples and brought to him as Jesus said it would be.
When Jesus was on trial, he was given a scarlet robe
when the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand (Matthew 27:27-29).
This may have been the garment that the soldiers were fighting over.
Either way, I don’t think it matters whether or not he was rich or if he was poor. What matters most is that He came to save all people- rich or not
People who keep all their money in a bag are usually poor. I don’t think King Solomon kept all his money in a bag. LOL
Jesus would have given his riches away if he had been wealthy. He would never be greedy and hoard his wealth when so many were/are poor and unable to have food or a roof over their head. No, Jesus was not wealthy because he helped all that had little.