Old and New Testament Evidence that Almsgiving Atones for Sin

The King James Version (KJV) is mostly used in these lessons. Click here to access the KJV online.

There are verses in both the old and the new testaments of the shortened 66 book canon, which point to the fact that almsgiving atones for sin. This is also clearly taught in the books of Tobit and Sirach in the so-called ‘apocrypha’ which are placed in time between the ‘old’ and ‘new’ testaments.

In Daniel Chap. 4:24, Daniel interprets king Nebuchadnezzar's dream and gives him counsel on how to atone for his greatest sin, the sin of pride. Yahuwah brought him down made him into an animal for seven years because he was haughty and he was proud.

Daniel tells this king - the way to atone for your sin is give alms to and show compassion on the poor. So whether we understand how it works or not, somehow alms giving atones for sin. But that's not the only verse in the Old Testament that teaches this.

In the Greek Septuagint, Proverbs 15:27 says - by alms and by faithful dealing, sins are purged away.

In Matthew 15 & Mark 7, the Pharisees contended with Yahushua about their ritual hand-washing before meals, etc.

In Luke 11:39-41, Yahushua said - now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish but the inside you are full of greed and evil. He never told them, don't clean the outside. He continues in verse 41 - but give to charity [give alms] and then everything will be clean for you - everything will be okay. Yahushua tells the Pharisees that if you start giving alms to the poor it will help cleanse your heart from the greed and the stinginess – it will atone.

This lesson was taken from a non-WLC video by Matthew Janzen: Atoning Almsgiving (Proverbs 15:27, LXX)