Part 2 of A Discussion of Thomas D. Simpson’s Capitalism versus Socialism Chapter 1 “Pillars of Economic Systems”
Last blog, I introduced the four pillars and the four economic systems they define.
Now, Simpson is looking to the Bible for any direction for answering the four pillars.
Pillar 1: Who Owns Property
It is clear that the Bible supports private ownership.
This is a check in the box for the market system, which says private individuals own property as opposed to socialism, which says the State owns all. (In the article above, he defines socialism this way, noting that many people today who adhere to socialism actually are meaning what he is calling the welfare state.)
Many verses could be quoted to show that owning goods was the norm.
Genesis 13:2 (ESV): Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.
We see in this first book of the Bible, as well as the ones to follow, personal possessions are offered as a sign of God’s favor. This is misrepresented by the Prosperity Gospel preached by those like Joel Osteen, Paula White and far too many others.
They reverse the meaning so that if one has enough faith, his acts will be rewarded with wealth. Wealth is the object to be gained and God is the means. Yet all the Bible teaches God is the end objective, not the means to any other end.
The only promise for the believer who puts God first is that they’ll receive a peace (shalom) that passes all understanding through a personal relationship with the Creator and will come out of suffering a stronger and more God-trusting person. (p. 10)
Shai Linne’s song, Fal$e Teacher$, captures this idea with lyrics like this.
If you come to Jesus for money, then He’s not your God, money is!
Jesus is not a means to an end
The Gospel is He came to redeem us from sin
And that is the message forever I yell
If you’re living your best life now you’re headed for hell!
Another way to see biblical support of private property ownership is its attention to inheritance. Both Deuteronomy and Numbers spell out how property should be passed on from one generation to the next, which can only happen if there is property owned to be passed down.
Then there are the 10 Commandments in Exodus, in particular the 8th — no stealing — and 10th — no coveting your neighbor’s property. Clearly, stealing means the property belongs to one person, not another. And some of that property belongs to your neighbor.
So the First Pillar is answered by the Bible that private individuals own property.
Pillar 2: Who Decides What is Produced
If private individuals decide what is produced, then they have to be capable of such decisions. Is there biblical evidence for this capacity?
First, in Genesis in the Creation story, we are told people are made in the image of God. And they are given dominion over the earth and all living things.
These verses imply that God created humans with the capacity to reason and make good decisions…Nowhere in Scripture is it mentioned that only a select few have these abilities, and thus, should be given responsibilities for making decisions for others. (p. 12)
Further, Simpson points out that in the New Testament salvation is offered to each person, and the decision to accept or reject it is left to them. It seems God is supporting the sanctity of individuals making their own decisions.
Further, examples of the State are not particularly favorable as you read through books of the Bible. You can look to 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, as well as many others.
Even the good kings do bad things, and the bad kings are the worst. Time and again the people of Israel suffer under their kings indicating the problems inherent to letting the government make all the decisions for those it rules over.
Finally, Simpson notes that the consequences of a market system letting individuals decide on their own what to produce based on their self-interest in a market economy is an expansion of output.
It is not a fixed pie where one person’s gain is another’s loss. He says he will show in the next chapter that growing the pie is a “fundamental feature” of the market economy, and it has been known for over 200 years. (p. 13–14)
Pillar 3: Who Decides How It Is Produced
Simpson notes that since individuals can be trusted to decide for themselves what is produced under Pillar 2, they can likewise be trusted to decide how it is produced.
He notes that many of Jesus’ disciples were fishermen who ran small family businesses so clearly were making their own business decisions. And some of Jesus’ parables concern farm owners making decisions about hiring and production. (p. 14)
The Bible doesn’t suggest that only a few elites have this capacity and, thus, production decisions, such as what to produce and how to produce it, should be reserved just for them…one cannot find passages in Scripture that point to a collective decision process for production of goods and services. (p. 14)
One note on production: you can find many articles, quite a few here on Medium, about how to live a life where you do not have to work. Early retirement can become the ultimate goal. Fascination with, and envy of, the independently wealthy dominates many people’s attention.
Yet, often overlooked is that we were designed to work. As said above, we are created in the image of God, and we see the creation of the world is described as work, worthy of a rest.
Genesis 2:2 (ESV): And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.
And a few verses later, before the fall, Adam is told to work.
Genesis 2:15 (ESV): The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it..
So work is good for us, though of course it is best when it is work we enjoy.
Ecclesiastes 2:24 (ESV): There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God
Pillar 4: How the Production Is Distributed
The Bible has a lot to say about how we are all responsible for caring for the poor. The wealthier you are the more you should do.
Deuteronomy 15:11 and Matthew 26:11 share the sentiment that we will always have poor people with us.
This contradicts communism’s utopian vision which would end all poverty. We have no reason to think we can fix this problem here on Earth, but we are called to do what we can for the poor.
Simpson notes verses that call on us to be cheerful givers.
2 Corinthians 9:7–9 (ESV): Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.”
Here, we see individuals are called to give, not that we are to abdicate our responsibility to a government who coerces us to contribute. (p. 16)
The only collective giving mentioned is in Paul’s letters when he calls on churches to take up collections to help the needy. (p. 16)
But again, those who are blessed with material resources are expected to cheerfully give knowing everything really belongs to God.
Thus, it is up to private individuals to decide how to distribute the goods, but they are called on by God to be cheerful givers that consider taking care of those in need.
One more note about wealth: God does not consider wealth itself bad, despite the oft misquoted, “money is the root of all evil.” In fact, it is the love of money that is the evil.
1 Timothy 6:10 (ESV): For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
Whether it is money, status, or anything else, when it is loved more than God, that is considered the problem: putting something above God.
When Jesus tells the young rich ruler in Matthew 19 to give away all his possessions, he is not meaning that to be a command to all of us. He knows that the young man values his things too much, more than he values God.
It is not the having that is the problem. It is the disorder of his priorities.
Great wealth can lead a person to be too self-reliant, too self-congratulatory, and push God to the side because he is not in need. This is what is behind many of the challenging statements in the Bible like the parable of the Sower. (p. 19)
Mark 4:18–19 (ESV): And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.
Conclusion
Simpson has addressed each pillar and found evidence the Bible supports the market system for each of them. In addition, there is no evidence that the government should be the answer to those four pillars, thus ruling out socialism as the biblically supported system.
Simpson sums up the chapter with some key points.
- Individuals are given the ability to make decisions, including what is produced and how it should be produced. (p. 24)
- The Bible shows private ownership of property and does not show examples of collective ownership under a government. (p. 24)
- There are wealthy and poor people, and the Bible does not indicate wealth inequality is a problem. (p. 24)
- People are called to take care of the poor if they are blessed with more than they need. (p. 25)
- And wealth should not become a source of security held above God (p. 25)
Reference: Simpson, Thomas. D., 2020. “Pillars of Economic Systems,” Chapter 1 of Capitalism versus Socialism, Thomas Simpson.
