Proverbs 11:24 – Biblical Money Principles for Business & Life: Are You Managing Money the Right Way?
Did you know that the Bible says a ton about business and managing money?
I was reading Proverbs 11 today and verse 24 caught my eye.
"There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty." - Proverbs 11:24
This teaches an important principle in business, but also life.
Growing up I'm sure all of us were told to save our money. Why? Because in our culture (specifically in the middle class), there's only two options:
Save, save, save — hold on to as much as possible for “security.”
Spend it on what you want — enjoy life while you can.
Option one sounds like the responsible thing to do. But Proverbs says something shocking:
"There is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty."
In other words, the one who just keeps holding onto their money is actually on a path to poverty.
So what’s the alternative?
The Third Way: Scattering to Increase
The Bible gives us a third option:
"There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth"
This is radical. Instead of hoarding money or wasting it, the Bible says the path to increase comes from scattering — from putting it to work.
A lot of people think about money like it's the goal — if life is a game, money is the points, and whoever has the most points at the end, wins.
The Bible talks about money (and resources) much differently. As a tool. A seed. It's the means to an end, not the end itself.
Seeds, Fruit, and Multiplication
If you have a bunch of seeds, what's the end goal? Get more seeds and see how many you can collect?
Of course not. It's to plant something and ultimately get fruit. The end goal is not the seed, it's the fruit.
And with every piece of fruit, what do you get? More seeds.
That’s exactly how God designed resources to work. The more we sow them, the more increase we see.
Jesus reinforces this in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25) — the servant who buried his money lost everything, while the ones who invested it were rewarded. Paul says it again in 2 Corinthians 9:
“Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” - 2 Corinthians 9:6
We're talking about money and business here. But the amazing thing about this, is you can take these principles in any area of life and apply them to see growth. Want to grow spiritually? You need to sow seeds(time) on the ground of God's Word and prayer to see growth. Want to grow your relationships? You need to sow seeds (time, good things,etc.) into your relationship to see growth.
Prosperity Gospel Alert: This isn't the prosperity gospel teaching where giving money to church gets you every kind of success imaginable. This is a biblical principle of reaping what you sow. Whether it's money to build something, quality time to grow your relationships, or eating healthy for better health.
These principles apply to anything. In order to grow anything, you need to scatter the seeds you've been given on good ground.
Assets vs. Liabilities: Where Are You Planting Seeds?
So, how do we scatter wisely when it comes to money?
It comes down to understanding assets vs. liabilities.
Assets are things that grow you or grow your income. Business tools, investments, education, skills. These are seeds planted in good soil.
Liabilities are things that lose value or drain your income. Luxury items you don’t need, bad debt, constant consumption. These are seeds wasted on barren ground.
Assets produce fruit. Liabilities waste seeds.
Applying Proverbs 11:24 to Business
We've been zooming in on managing money. Let's hit home and zoom in further onto business.
This principle applies directly to building a business. If I just hold onto what I have, my business will never grow. But when I scatter — when I invest into marketing, tools, relationships, skills — that’s where multiplication happens.
That’s exactly what I’m practicing in my own small business journey. It’s not always comfortable, but comfort rarely leads to growth.
Practical Checklist
I did this with my last post. Often high level truth can be difficult to apply to our personal life.
Here's a checklist so you can apply this to yourself:
Take Away
The wisdom of Proverbs 11:24 is clear: don’t hoard, don’t waste — sow. Treat money as seed, not as the harvest itself.
And remember: fruit doesn’t come instantly. It takes time, patience, and faith. But if you’re sowing into the right things, the increase will come.
If you’re serious about building a small business from scratch, stick around — I’ll be sharing both the struggles and the strategies I'm learning while building my business from scratch.
