Prov. 10:15 -- wealth vs. poverty

So, I've been reading Proverbs, off and on, as I try to make up for some reading I missed in my Bible study class (Disciple, yay Disciple, great class -- I may have mentioned it before :) ).

10:15 The wealth of the rich is their fortress; the poverty of the poor is their ruin.

I thought that was kind of challenging, the Bible putting wealth in a good light and poverty in a bad one, so I dug a bit more.

16 The wage of the righteous leads to life, the gain of the wicked to sin.

The annotation in my Bible refers to these two verses together. It says:

V. 15 is a neutral observation about the reality of wealth and poverty; v. 16 adds ethical comment on the gain of the wicked. Cf. 11.28 and 18.11, where the protection of wealth is declared to be illusory.

So...

11:28 Those who trust in their riches will wither, but the righteous will flourish like green leaves.

(the annotation for this verse and v. 30 (which I'm not quoting here) refers us to Ps. 1:3 and Ps. 92:12--14)

and

18:10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe.

11 The wealth of the rich is their strong city; in their imagination it is like a high wall.

and the annotation on 18:10--11 says:

A proverb pair: The name of the Lord is reliable (Ps 61.3; 124.8); the protection of wealth may prove to be imaginary (10.15--16 [emphasis mine -- isn't it fun how all this stuff ties together?]; 11.4).

Neet, huh?

That's just my Bible. There's also the Oxford Commentary, which says

V. 15 contrast an advantage of wealth with a disadvantage of poverty. Wealth provides protection and security against the vicissitudes of life (cf. 18:11), whereas the poor have no resources to fall back on. For this the poor may sometimes have only themselves to blame (v. 4). But not all wealth is advantageous. How it is acquired is the test of whether it is an asset or a liability (v. 2) The instruction in 1:8--19 illustrates the liability of ill-gotten gain (cf. also 20:17; 21:6; 28:20). By contrast, the wealth that accrues through 'righteousness' [note the single quotes -- British book!], i.e., honesty and integrity, is a mark of divine blessing and provides for a long, secure, and anxiety-free life (v.22; cf 11:4).

And finally, my HarperCollins Commentary has the following:

Only one clearly observational, neutral saying is found: the poor are ruined by lack of goods, but wealth is the fortified city of the rich (10:15). However, this comment is immediately contextualized by v. 16 and later by v. 22. The sages would prefer to believe that wealth is a gift of Yahweh that confirms its possessor's righteousness. Otherwise, the standard act-consequence relationship is displayed throughout the chapter.

So, we do have this sort of view that good things happen to the righteous in this world, but I guess we can't quite accuse Proverbs of glorifying wealth.

You can make up your own mind on whether you agree with the commentaries. It's entirely possible that I'm taking things out of context. Anyway, food for thought.

(I recently heard a couple of references to "the prayer of Jabez" and "the gospel of prosperity," so I was a little sensitive to this when I ran across it.)