Women and Finances in the Bible: Biblical Financial Principles

What do we learn about finances in the Bible? As a woman, what should my attitude toward finances be? Finances are a topic we all have to deal with, but we don’t necessarily feel comfortable discussing.

However, the Bible has much to say about it, and as believing women, we should have a responsible and wise attitude in money management.

When studying the principles of the Virtuous Woman in our “Laughing at the time to come” series, we see that she doesn’t ignore her finances but tends to them with diligence. (This series will be published soon.)

We should do the same, since finances impact many, if not all, areas of our lives. Sadly, although we may have surrendered our lives to the Lord, we often have difficulties managing money.

Today I want to share some biblical principles about finances that I’ve learned and that, as a marriage and family, we’ve been applying. I still have much to learn and improve in my money management, but I believe this is a conversation we must have with honesty before the Lord and begin to act.

Important note: I am not a financial advisor. This article has an educational purpose based on biblical principles. For specific advice, consult with a financial professional.

Wrong teachings about finances

Some people believe that the only way to manage finances is by following cultural wisdom, since the Bible has nothing to say about finances, and they even think we shouldn’t mix God with money.

However, this idea is incorrect. God, as the Creator and giver of all, is the source of wisdom for managing our lives, including our finances.

Within Christian circles, there are two wrong teachings about finances that are very common and deviate from biblical truth.

Money is evil

This is the teaching that believers shouldn’t focus on finances or prosper financially because money is an idol that prevents us from entering heaven and growing in our faith or spirituality.

While it’s true that Jesus himself warned us of the dangers of riches in Matthew 19:22-24, after the interaction with the rich young man.

The danger Jesus warns about wasn’t about having riches; the danger was and is surrendering our heart to riches and clinging to them more than to Christ’s redemptive work, which is what the rich young man demonstrated when he became sad at the idea of selling his possessions.

Money itself isn’t evil; it’s a tool that God, in His common grace, has given us to administer with wisdom.

The root of the problem is our sinful and idolatrous heart, which can turn money into an idol, leading us to think and act erroneously, believing that money can solve all our problems.

When our greatest concern and our biggest void is that our sin separates us from God. That concern could only be solved by Christ on the cross when He satisfied God’s wrath for our sins.

Instead of trusting in money, we should trust in Christ, who has given us true riches: salvation and abundant life in Him.

This abundant life includes being able to handle money in a way that honors Him, as every area of our life should do.

The prosperity gospel

The second wrong teaching about finances is the opposite of the previous one and goes to another extreme that still reflects the same inclination of our idolatrous heart.

This teaching affirms that, as children of God, we are entitled to be materially prospered. The parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30) is erroneously used to argue that if we invest in the “kingdom of God,” we’ll be rewarded with material wealth.

While we read in the Bible the stories of people who prospered while obeying the Lord—think of Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, and Solomon—what’s the problem? Didn’t God promise His people Israel a fertile and prosperous land?

Yes, the issue lies in believing that having faith or being obedient will obviously result in the Lord responding with prosperity or material goods here and now.

The Bible shows us examples of faithful believers who weren’t materially rich, like the apostle Paul, who worked to support himself and faced many difficulties (1 Thessalonians 2:9). God doesn’t guarantee us earthly riches, but His sufficient grace in every circumstance (2 Corinthians 12:9).

If this teaching were true, the apostle Paul should have had mansions, no need to work, and even been delivered from illness and prison. But it wasn’t so. Moreover, in the midst of his needs, when presenting himself to the Lord, Paul had to recognize that God’s sovereignty is more glorious and important than satisfying his needs.

And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

2 Corinthians 12:9

Again, the root of the problem is our heart, which longs for and clings to material goods, thinking they’ll give us satisfaction, well-being, or status that we can only receive by understanding the great grace we’ve received.

Let us ask the Lord to help us appreciate the greatest good we’ve received through Christ: “For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.” John 1:16

What does the Bible teach us about finances?

God is the Owner of Everything

The Bible teaches us that God is the owner of everything. In His answer to Job, the Lord said, among many things, “Who has given to Me that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is Mine.” (Job 41:11).

In his book “Managing God’s Money,” Randy Alcorn says: “God doesn’t just own the universe; he owns you and me. If we are his children, we are doubly his: first by creation, second by redemption.”

Everything we have or can have belongs first and ultimately to God, including all things, including our finances, so our role isn’t as owners, but as administrators or stewards.

Responsible Stewardship

In the gospels, we read several parables that deal with stewardship, and the exhortation is to be wise administrators, hardworking, faithful, and respectful of the owner of everything.

This implies making financial decisions with prudence and according to biblical principles to ultimately fulfill our purpose of honoring God in everything we do.

Contentment

Contrary to the wrong teachings about finances we highlighted earlier, the Bible calls us to live with contentment and with our hope in eternity. Every steward will reach the end of their administration and present themselves before God.

In Luke 12:13-21, Jesus makes a warning against greed, but it’s not focused on us not being able to have abundance. The warning is not to believe that abundance on this earth will translate into an eternity with God.

While managing our finances, we must remember that more than multiplying, saving, or refraining from having, we must care for the state of our heart when doing all activities related to finances.

We must learn to live content with what we have, regardless of the amount, because our sustenance and eternal well-being don’t depend on those goods. Our peace and security shouldn’t depend on our material possessions, but on our relationship with Christ.

Paul said it this way in his letter to the Philippians 4:12-13:

I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

Planning and discipline

Proverbs 21:5 says, “The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, but everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty.”

To be good stewards, we must be responsible in handling our money and avoid impulsive decisions. This includes making plans and budgets, however simple they may be, evaluating our expenses, and, if necessary, increasing income.

It’s not a matter of whether we like numbers or not; the issue is that we make good use of the resources God has given us and that as we do so, we can have peace and the ability to be generous.

Generosity

The last principle I want to share with you is that God calls us to be generous and to trust in His provision.

In 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 we read: 

Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

As we adjust our vision of finances to biblical principles, we’ll see that in many ways we’re called to be generous, to share what we have, to provide for others.

This area could be difficult for us if we’ve believed one of the wrong teachings or, for example, don’t have good spending discipline and never have anything to give.

Both in this passage and in Luke 12:41-44, the widow’s offering, and many more, the emphasis of generosity isn’t the amount, but the attitude of the heart.

We’re called to be generous with our local church, the needs of our brothers and sisters, the advancement of the kingdom (missions), the poor, and more. We should do all this with a grateful heart, and to have the means, we must manage our finances well.

Biblical Finances in Practice

We all have financial responsibilities and need to grow in our stewardship, both personally, in marriage, and in how we teach children to handle money.

I’ll share some practical steps you can begin taking today to improve in this area:

• Evaluate your financial situation: Identify income, expenses, and debts.
• Establish a budget: Taking the above into account, plan the use of money wisely and with discipline.
• Adjust your lifestyle: Live within your means and avoid consumerism.
• Plan with open hands: Trust in God’s provision while making responsible decisions.
• Practice generosity: Give with a cheerful heart, knowing that everything comes from God.

Bible verses that speak about finances

There are many more verses we can study to continue learning about finances in the Bible. I’ll share some more and encourage you to keep studying:

Honor the Lord from your wealth
And from the first of all your produce;
So your barns will be filled with plenty
And your vats will overflow with new wine.
Proverbs 3:9-10

He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.
Luke 16:10

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Matthew 6:19-21

For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
1 Timothy 6:10

Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest; you are to leave them for the needy and the alien. I am the Lord your God.
Leviticus 23:22

Finances in their proper place

Learning to manage our finances according to the Bible helps us live with peace, confidence in God’s provision, and with hearts focused on eternity.

May the Lord help us be faithful stewards of what He has entrusted to us.

What principle about biblical finances has been key in your life? In what area do you need to grow?