REPROACHETH HIS MAKER – Proverbs 17:5
Proverbs 17:5 Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his MAKER: and he that is glad at calamities shall not be unpunished.
Do you understand that God made everyone? It does not matter if you are rich or you are poor, God is your Creator. When you laugh at a person who does not seem to have it all together, you are not just laughing at that person, you are laughing at God. There could be many reasons why a person is poor; they could be poor because God is testing them like Job. They could be poor because God is trying to guide them as he did Ruth. They could be poor because they are facing the judgment of God like the nation of Israel during the time of Gideon.
There are many reasons a person might be poor. More likely than not, the reason they are poor is because they have chosen to violate the principles of God and God is punishing them for their wickedness. However, is it really funny that God must punish his creation? When you mock the poor you show a lack of understanding of the ways of God and thus God is now displeased with you.
Boaz was a wise man who when he heard that Ruth was gleaning in his vineyard made sure that she was protected. Boaz had heard of the virtue of Ruth and what she was doing for her mother-in-law. Boaz could have done nothing extra for Ruth as he was under no obligation. However, Boaz chose to help Ruth because he understood that she was in a difficult position because she had chosen to do the right thing.
The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Any one of us at any moment can be rich or we can be poor. God is in control. There is no such thing as a self made man. God can let the wicked prosper just as HE can allow the righteous to suffer great poverty. God has HIS reasons and who are you to judge another just because they do not have what you have.
There are times where great calamities hit this earth. It could be a hurricane, an earthquake, a volcano, a tidal wave, a twister, an ice storm, a flood, or one of the many other weather related calamities that has the ability to take the lives of those around us. Just because you escape the suffering from the calamity, it does not give you the right to make fun of those who were not so fortunate, remember, that it is God who controls the weather and these weather conditions are all in the hands of God.
It is not a laughing matter when God uses his mighty power to cause great calamity upon an area. There could be many reasons why God is allowing this to happen. It might be like Sodom and Gomorra where God allowed them to suffer because of their wickedness. It might be like the famine during the time of Jacob and God used it to direct the fledgling nation of Israel to Egypt so that they could grow in a place where they were not a threat to the nation. After the death of Jesus on the cross, God sent great darkness as a symbol of the grief of God. There are many reasons why a natural calamity can occur, and none of them are reasons for you to be happy.
You can praise the Lord when he spares you from a natural calamity, but you should not rejoice in the sufferings of another. If you feel you are becoming glad at the distress of others, you need to spend more time studying the Bible so as to add knowledge of the ways of God to your life. As you learn to understand who God is, you will learn the attitude that God desires that you have as you go about your daily life.