Alms

Alms refers to charitable giving to the poor, a practice rooted in the covenant obligations of the Mosaic law even though the specific word does not appear in most Old Testament translations. The law commanded gleaning rights for the poor (Lev. 19:9–10), provision in the seventh year for the needy (Deut. 15:7–11), and open-handed generosity: you shall open wide your hand to your brother (Deut. 15:11). The Psalms and Proverbs associate generosity with righteousness (Ps. 41:1; 112:9; Prov. 14:31), and the prophets condemned Israel for neglecting this duty.

In the New Testament, almsgiving is assumed as a regular practice of Jewish piety. Jesus addresses it in the Sermon on the Mount, warning against performing it for public recognition (Matt. 6:1–4). Cornelius's alms are noted as having come before God as a memorial offering (Acts 10:4), and Paul's collection for the Jerusalem church was understood as a corporate act of generosity with theological weight as an expression of Gentile solidarity with Jewish believers.