The Bible VS Socialism
I often hear claims that Christians should support Socialism. After all, Jesus taught us to care for the poor and give to charity. Ergo, a handful of ultra-rich politicians ought to be allowed to seize the property of every citizen. Others will say that Christians can have a wide range of opinions about politics and economics. But is that true?
What does the Bible actually teach about economics and the role of government? Many may be surprised to find that the Bible actually does have a lot to say on these matters, and that includes requirements for secular, gentile governments outside of the Nation of Israel.
Of course, the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts do not use modern English terminology, but changing the terminology does not change what God has commanded.
As we will see in this article, the principles of Socialism are clearly and plainly condemned in Scripture, while the basic principles of free-market Capitalism are affirmed.
“Socialism” can take on many forms. That is why in this article I will address Marxism in particular, Socialism on a broader scale, the modern “Social Justice” brand of Neo-Marxism, and any notion of a “Christianized” form of Socialism, and how these ideas compare to Scripture.
In broad terms, Socialism is the idea that the government is allowed to seize control of the economy and of private property at the discretion of the politicians, without the consent of law-abiding property owners. Under Socialism, politicians can take a man’s farm or business and place it under government ownership or government control. Hence the slogans about “seizing the means of production.”
The same also applies to “Democratic Socialism” where a man’s rights are at the mercy of the majority. This is why the Founding Fathers hated Democracy and instead created a Constitutional Republic with a representative government that had specific limited powers and no others. (See quote below.)
The Ten Commandments
As I considered passages of the Bible that run contrary to Socialism, my mind kept coming back to the principles in the 10 Commandments.
Then God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before Me.
- Exodus 20:1–3, NASB
Historically, Communism has been an atheistic belief system in which the State is elevated to the place of God and in which Christians are persecuted.
In doing background research for this article, I was shocked to find a source that claimed that Marx was not an Atheist, (i.e. someone who definitively claims that there is no God). Rather Marx himself believed that the existence of God was such an unimportant question that it was not worth considering (Wills, 2019).
Reading this passage left me in a daze, and I had to process why. I finally realized why this claim was so shocking: The existence of God and the nature of ultimate reality are the most important questions a man can ask.
The persecution of Christians under Socialist governments, such as the Communists and the Nazis, is so well documented and so well known to anyone who has any historic literacy of the 20th Century that I will not go into detail about it here.
As a Christian, I would vote for a relatively just Atheist or Pagan over an unjust man who claims to be a Christian (e.g. Barack Obama). That said, the fact that Marxist and other Socialist regimes have persecuted Christians so heavily means that Christians should take an extra effort to understand these matters before supporting anything along these lines.
To put it more bluntly, if a Christian claims to be a Marxist, he should be brought into a pastor’s office to answer a few questions. A system of government that has historically persecuted the Church ought to be questioned at the very least.
(And yes, a man who continues to affirm Marxism should be removed from the church, in the same manner as one who claims to be a Christian yet practices Voodoo, as I will show here.)
Idolatry
“You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath, or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them nor serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, inflicting the punishment of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing favor to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
- Exodus 20:4–6, NASB
In the history of Socialism, we’ve seen many cases in which images of the leaders are held in quasi-religious honor. We see that these men hate God and seek to persecute His people.
Elevation of the human leader is disturbingly reminiscent of the Caesar-worship Christians observed when living in the Roman Empire. It places governing authorities, who are supposed to be God’s servants, in the position to play the part of God.
The fact that these leaders, who are mere men, are not to be questioned or criticized raises even more concerns.
Sadly, many Christians in America have the idea that honoring the government means that we are never to criticize or question politicians, even when they are behaving in an unjust manner.
Yet God shows favor to those who love Him.
“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.
- Exodus 20:7
Again, men are to honor God. Kings are not above this requirement. They are mere men; they are not God.
Rest
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. For six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God; on it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male slave or your female slave, or your cattle, or your resident who stays with you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and everything that is in them, and He rested on the seventh day; for that reason the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
- Exodus 20:8–11
We are to recognize God as Creator. The forced atheism of Socialist philosophies prevents even those who want to worship God from being able to do so properly.
(Incidentally, the above passage is problematic for Christians who want to claim that the days in Genesis were really ages. Just as God created in six days and rested on the seventh, the Israelites too were to work for six days and rest on the seventh day.)
It has often been said that the Sabbath is a part of the Old Testament Law and not required of Christians in the New Testament. My response to this is that the Sabbath predates the Old Testament Law, and is part of God’s natural created order.
Man needs regular rest from his work. He needs work, and he needs rest. That rest may happen on different days for different individuals, but it is something that our minds and bodies need.
From my understanding of Karl Marx, the need for rest would be a point of agreement, in very broad terms. Though I would not hold my breath for agreement in the details.
Family
“Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be prolonged on the land which the Lord your God gives you.
- Exodus 20:12
Marx saw the family as the enemy and wanted to abolish the family unit. Socialist organizations such as Black Lives Matter seek to do the same today. (More about this later in the article.)
Do you believe that Christians can support organizations that say they want to abolish the nuclear family? If so, why do you believe that?
Interestingly, even the UN denounces families, as Voddie Baucham points out in “Dragons Abounding: The Great Errors Confronting the Church.”
Opposition to the family is clearly not a “political” position that any Christian can support. Support for the institutions God can given us should be baseline expectation of any faithful Christian and any Church member.
For those Christians who want to “agree to disagree” about “political matters” do you draw the line here? And would you seek church discipline for someone who supports the abolition of the family?
Murder
“You shall not murder.
- Exodus 20:13
Hundreds of millions of people have been murdered by the Socialists. This includes the Nazi brand of Socialism, along with Communism to a far greater extent. But this also includes the American Democratic party, which celebrates the murder of unborn and newborn babies.
This means that “Christian” churchgoers, especially those who support Democrats, should be required to answer some hard and direct questions about whether abortion should be legal, at the very least.
Marriage
“You shall not commit adultery.
- Exodus 20:13
Marx and Engles made no secret of wanting to abolish marriage. While God established the nuclear family with a man, a woman, and their children in the earliest parts of Genesis, Socialists have long tried to abolish marriage and family.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.
- Genesis 2:24 NASB
Frederick Engels, the main collaborator with Karl Marx, said the following in Origins of the Family, Private Property, and the State:
Thus when monogamous marriage first makes its appearance in history, it is not as the reconciliation of man and woman, still less as the highest form of such a reconciliation. Quite the contrary. Monogamous marriage comes on the scene as the subjugation of the one sex by the other; it announces a struggle between the sexes unknown throughout the whole previous prehistoric period. In an old unpublished manuscript, written by Marx and myself in 1846, [The reference here is to the German Ideology, published after Engels’ death — Ed.] I find the words: “The first division of labor is that between man and woman for the propagation of children.” And today I can add: The first class opposition that appears in history coincides with the development of the antagonism between man and woman in monogamous marriage, and the first class oppression coincides with that of the female sex by the male. Monogamous marriage was a great historical step forward; nevertheless, together with slavery and private wealth, it opens the period that has lasted until today in which every step forward is also relatively a step backward, in which prosperity and development for some is won through the misery and frustration of others. It is the cellular form of civilized society, in which the nature of the oppositions and contradictions fully active in that society can be already studied.
So, according to Engles, the invention of monogamous marriage represented the enslavement of women to men… as opposed to the liberation of a male impregnating a woman, and then walking away, with the “community” caring for each child.
Engles goes on to give evolutionary speculation on the origin of marriage as opposed to an imagined utopia of primitive free love. He contradicts the Bible’s claim that monogamous marriage was instituted at the beginning of human creation and that sex outside of marriage is sinful and destructive.
How did Engles know what life was like in the supposed free-love communities of the ancient past? From his imagination.
Caleb Maupin, an outspoken Marxist on the Internet, has a video entitled “The Actual Marxist Position on the Family.” In this video, he takes shots at Christians for advocating for the nuclear family and makes a number of claims about Ancient Israel that show incredible illiteracy on his part. These include the claim that Moses had hundreds of wives and that in ancient Israel, no one kept track of whose kid was whose.
My response: No, Moses did not have hundreds of wives. He was married, and then later remarried after his first wife passed away. As for not keeping track of whose kid was whose, the Bible contains careful genealogies. If anything, these cultures overemphasized who your father was. This level of cultural illiteracy is shocking!
Polygamy, at best, was tolerated in the Old Testament. Such marriages were not depicted in a positive light. Also, the Torah commanded kings not to multiply wives unto themselves. This means that Solomon was in sin for taking so many wives and concubines (especially those who were pagan). (Deuteronomy 17:17, Deuteronomy 7:1–4)
It is one thing to honestly disagree with someone, and it is one thing to honestly be wrong. (I’ve been wrong on my videos in the past.) But if you don’t know anything about the Bible, perhaps that is not a topic you should be commenting on.
Theft
“You shall not steal.
- Exodus 20:15
Everything in Socialism is built on theft. If we define theft, it would be taking the property of one man without his consent, when he has committed no crime to justify such an act. The Bible makes no provision for the government to take from a man without his consent when he has committed no unjust force against another, and several passages condemn this practice.
(While the Bible does allow for taxes, I do not personally know of any text that specifies that taxes are to be collected against a man’s will. That said, I also don’t know of any passages that specify that taxes should be voluntary. The question of voluntary vs involuntary taxes is an important question, but is beyond the scope of this article.)
High Taxes
In 1 Samuel chapter 8, the prophet Samuel warns of a tyrannical king, and this tyranny includes a tax rate of ten percent, along with a government that confiscates property and gives the property to the king’s friends. It’s a very close description to Socialist policies in all their forms, be it Communism or Corporatism. I find it interesting how a tax rate of ten percent is emphasized multiple times, right alongside warnings of slavery.
So Samuel spoke all the words of the Lord to the people who had asked him for a king. And he said, “This will be the practice of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and put them in his chariots for himself and among his horsemen, and they will run before his chariots. He will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to do his plowing and to gather in his harvest, and to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will also take your daughters and use them as perfumers, cooks, and bakers. He will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive groves, and give them to his servants. And he will take a tenth of your seed and your vineyards and give it to his high officials and his servants. He will also take your male servants and your female servants, and your best young men, and your donkeys, and use them for his work. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his servants. Then you will cry out on that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you on that day.”
- 1 Samuel 8:10–18 NASB
Again, it’s amazing how this tax rate of ten percent is emphasized twice in this passage, right alongside warnings of being reduced to servitude. The ESV renders it: “You shall be his slaves.” Clearly, such a high tax rate is condemned by God. How then can Christians justify any system of government that takes half of a man’s earnings or more? Or a system that gives the state such control over the lives of others?
Sadly, even most Republicans in office support a (forced) tax rate that is far higher than 10 percent. While the Democrats are clearly guilty of the greater sin here, Republicans need to rethink which policies they support.
In Socialist countries, businesses are routinely taken from one individual, and given to the friends of those who are in charge. This resembles Samuel’s warning. That warning ought to make Christians rethink supporting any government that seizes a man’s property for “the greater good.”
False Witness
“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
- Exodus 20:16
False testimony is the bread-and-butter of Socialism.
In America, the Black Lives Matter organization (and movement) intentionally spread blatantly false information about individual police officers. Without this false testimony, the entire narrative of BLM falls apart, and the money-grabbing scheme with it.
Consider also so-called “Christian” organizations, such as InterVarsity. Many were shocked in 2015 when they platformed a pro-gay Neo-Marxist who promoted Black Lives Matter, Planned Parenthood, and transgenderism during her talk. She also condemned a police officer who at that time had already been proven to be innocent. Shortly after, I personally informed InterVarsity’s leadership that this man had already been proven innocent, and as a result, I was accused by high-ranking leaders of not caring about black people. To this day, InterVarsity has not apologized for attacking the reputation of an innocent man or for platforming individuals who support sexual sin.
Envy
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male slave, or his female slave, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
- Exodus 20:17
The Tenth Commandment alone nullifies Socialism in all its forms and bans any sort of “Christian Socialism” along with it. Throughout the Bible, we see the affirmation of a man’s God-given right to private property.
There is a common Socialist slogan that “Property is theft” but the Bible stands in complete opposition to this nonsense claim and defends property rights.
In Matthew 20:1–16, we see Jesus tell a parable where He compares the Kingdom of Heaven to a capitalist endeavor. During this parable, the landowner, who presumably represents God, affirms his right to private property and also justifies payment to each man on the basis that this was the amount each party agreed to when the contract was laid out.
But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go; but I want to give to this last person the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I want with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’ So the last shall be first, and the first, last.”
- Matthew 20:13–16 NASB
The parables are obviously meant to be symbolic representations. However, a man’s right to private property is presumed and affirmed throughout. As I often point out, Jesus routinely compared the Kingdom of Heaven to a Capitalist endeavor.
Wisdom and Folly
As Dr. Voddie Baucham has noted, Social Justice assumes that an oppressed and/or poor person is automatically moral, while a rich person is automatically immoral and an oppressor.
Yet we see in the Book of Proverbs that this is not necessarily the case. Proverbs teaches us about Wisdom and Folly, personified as two women. The man who follows Wisdom is given life and great wealth, while the man who is seduced by Folly comes to ruin and death.
Wisdom
Long life is in her right hand;
In her left hand are riches and honor.
- Proverbs 3:16
Folly
But he does not know that the dead are there,
That her guests are in the depths of Sheol.
- Proverbs 9:18
Given what we see here and elsewhere in Scripture, the assumption that a rich man is automatically an oppressor (and the poor or oppressed, automatically moral) falls apart. A man can be rich or poor, righteous, or unrighteous, wise or foolish — in just about any combination.
New Testament Socialism?
Communists often try to claim that the early Christian Church practiced Socialism.
And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales and lay them at the apostles’ feet, and they would be distributed to each to the extent that any had need.
-Acts 4:32–35
But when we actually read the Book of Acts, we see that the Apostle Peter said that these were acts of voluntary charity. He affirmed the right to private property.
Shortly after the events of Acts 4, we read in Acts 5 that Ananias and Sapphira sold their property and brought the proceeds to the congregation. This couple withheld a part of their proceeds for themselves but lied about it, claiming that they had brought the whole of the proceeds to the congregation.
But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and kept back some of the proceeds for himself, with his wife’s full knowledge, and bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God.” And as he heard these words, Ananias collapsed and died; and great fear came over all who heard about it. The young men got up and covered him up, and after carrying him out, they buried him.
Now an interval of about three hours elapsed, and his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. And Peter responded to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for this price?” And she said, “Yes, for that price.” Then Peter said to her, “Why is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out as well.” And immediately she collapsed at his feet and died; and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. And great fear came over the whole church, and over all who heard about these things.
-Acts 5:5–11
Peter affirms the right to private property. He says that Ananias and Sapphira had the right to do what they wanted with what they owned, both before and after the sale. He did not condemn Ananias and Sapphira for withholding a part of the proceeds. This was their money. They had the right to do what they wanted with their own property. Instead, they were condemned for lying.
The situation in the early church ran contrary tovthe Socialist idea of banning private property.
I once had a conversation with a Communist on the Internet who insisted that Ananias and Sapphira were killed for not giving all of the money from their sale to charity. Even after showing this person what the passage says and explaining the distinction, this person either could not or would not understand, and instead gloated in victory over the argument.
Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
-2 Corinthians 9:7
New Testament Christians gave to charity voluntarily, not under compulsion. Such an arrangement is contrary to the modern Welfare State and contrary to Socialism in any form. Voluntary generosity is not Socialism.
Old Testament Gleaning Laws
In Old Testament Israel, God sets forth the practices of gleaning to provide for the poor and what has been called “right of way” to provide for travelers (Leviticus 19:9–10, Deuteronomy 23:24–25, Deuteronomy 24:19–22). There’s a lot that could be said about these laws, but the 20,000-foot view of the concept is that poor people could take the leftovers from a harvest, and travelers could take food in their hand and eat it while passing through a field. They could not, however, take a sickle to a man’s field to take a large portion.
When the Old Testament describes these practices, it says nothing about poor men going to the government to sue for gleaning rights. Moses did not prescribe specific punishments again land-owners who failed to comply.
Taking these practices at face value, what would be the application? In modern terms, farmers could allow the poor to take the leftovers after harvest, and perhaps restaurants and grocery stores could give the leftovers to those in need.
This is a far cry from anything resembling the modern Welfare State with all of its corruption, or even something as simple as food stamps.
God values generosity. That is what we see throughout the Bible.
What we don’t see is the government seizing the fields, mills, and looms to create a centralized top-down economy run by the king for the sake of the poor. The closest we see to Socialism is the tyrannical kings who seize the property of the people. We also don’t see anything remotely resembling the notion that property ownership is theft.
Christianity VS Tyrants
Many Christians believe that submission to the government should be unconditional. When Biden handed Afghanistan back to the Taliban, one Christian on Facebook told me that Christians there should submit to the Taliban, due to Romans 13. (As if such a coup a legitimate government made.)
Scripture does teach that we should honor the governing authorities and be subject to governing authorities. A full discussion of this topic is beyond the scope of this article. But in Scripture, we do often see men of God standing up to wicked rulers. Moses went to Pharaoh and demanded that he let God’s people go. Elijah stood up to the Prophets of Baal and incurred the wrath of the illegitimate government of his day. In the New Testament, John the Baptist spoke out against the unlawful behavior of the king.
Christians throughout history have had a robust theology of when a government becomes illegitimate and when it is proper to replace politicians who have abdicated their governing authority. Again, a full discussion is beyond the scope of this article. That said, honoring and submitting to the government is not the only consideration in the history of the Christian understanding of proper government.
Many Christians stood against the Socialist regime in Germany in the 1940s. Many Jews today are thankful they did.
One image that stands out in my mind is the conflict in the Narnia series. This may be a work of fiction, but it teaches major truths. Early in the series, we see Edmund decide to honor the White Witch as queen. He is soon subjected to her. The other three siblings, in contrast, followed Aslan.
That is the choice we make as Christians and as people — Do we follow the White Witch who calls herself “queen,” or are we going to be faithful and follow Aslan?
Conclusion
What can we directly observe from Scripture? The principles of Socialism; including Caesar-worship, envy, redistribution of property, forced “charity,” high taxes, the abolition of the family, the seizure of property, and the other Leftist doctrines are condemned in Scripture.
Scripture opposes Marxism, Socialism, National Socialism, Democratic Socialism, Fascism, BLM, and the American Democratic Party.
Could someone be a Christian and a Marxist?
No.
Someone who embraces this Atheistic and violent religion, even in name only, while professing to be a Christian, ought to be held suspect to the same extent as someone who embraces the Neo-National Socialist Worker’s movement or the American Democratic party. In all of these cases, one is professing allegiance to something that openly opposes God.
But even setting aside theft, genocide, envy, and all of the rest, can one embrace a baptized “Christian” version of Socialism?
This is where the core of such a philosophy is destroyed. As mentioned previously, in the Old Testament, God condemns a tax rate of ten percent right alongside condemnations of slavery. How can one have something even remotely resembling Socialism or even the modern Welfare State, even assuming a tax rate as high as ten percent?
Perhaps one could try to argue around this condemnation of high taxes. But we need to be careful trying to argue around a moral principle that God Himself set forth. Perhaps someone will want to argue that a tax rate of ten percent is hardly slavery, but then I ask: at what point does a tax rate equate to the ownership of a man’s life and property?
How can a man be offended by the evil practice of private slavery that we find in the history books, while at the same time claiming that more than 50% of a rich man’s earnings belong to the government overlords? At what point does a man have the right to say “No?” And do that man’s rights come from God or the government?
What about a reinvented form of Socialism, in which a benevolent, efficient government really does provide for every person in exchange for high taxes?
In this article, I pointed out the egregious practices that have come out of Socialist philosophy, and I placed those practices first. Churchgoing readers could easily brush those away in favor of an imagined baptized or simply “nice” form of Socialism, but the core idea of socialism must come into play.
At its core, Socialism places man as belonging to the government and the collective, while the Bible and reason place man as belonging to God and to himself, not to his neighbor. Both the Bible and General Revelation (that which God makes obvious through nature and observation) show that high taxes are oppressive and that a man’s life ought to belong to God and to himself, not to the king nor to the collective.
As a final thought, many Christians want to hold hands and “agree to disagree” on “politics,” as if calling theft and murder “politics” changes things. But the Bible knows no such distinction.
From what I am told, the idea that the Church should not speak on politics was a heresy developed in Germany and embraced by a wicked king. This is called “Quietism” or “Pietism,” and is completely contrary to everything we observe about politics in Scripture. I must have missed the Sunday School lesson about the prophet Elijah “agreeing to disagree” with the prophets of Baal so that he could love his enemies, or the one about John The Baptist ignoring the actions of a wicked king because they were not a “Gospel issue.” While we need to make the Gospel our primary focus and love our enemies, it does not mean we pretend the enemies of God are our friends, and it does not mean disregarding that which God has commanded and made clear.
Theft does not become legitimate with the mandate of a king or with the vote of a mob. A “Christian” who is a nice person, who comes to church, and yet knowingly supports the things God hates, should be removed from the church.
It breaks my heart every time I hear a Christian, especially a pastor, say that we should have love for one another despite differences of “political preference” — as if murdering babies were a non-issue. If lukewarm pastors were being dismembered at Planned Parenthood, I suspect those behind the pulpits would be preaching something other than sweet nothings about agreeing to disagree.
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References:
Wills, V. (2019, April 4). Marx — a companion to atheism and Philosophy — Wiley Online Library. onlinelibrary.wiley.com. Retrieved January 18, 2023, from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781119119302.ch3
