Psalm 37 and The Grapes of Wrath
Psalm 37 and The Grapes of Wrath
21 The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously;
32 The wicked lie in wait for the righteous, intent on putting them to death;
33 but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked or let them be condemned when brought to trial In The Grapes of Wrath, many people migrated to California in hope of finding jobs, but they discovered something else entirely. What they found was a corrupt society, and thousands of people like themselves struggling to find work and food for their families. Advances in machinery forced them to move and be subject to the cruelty of the large business owners, who were willing to do anything if it led to more wealth and power. Psalm 37:21 speaks of the wicked not repaying, but the righteous giving generously. This was proven through the businessmen and the policemen who took advantage of the migrants. The businessmen mistreated the migrants by forcing them to compete so intensely for work so that even if they found jobs, they were paid little. The police charged and arrested them for trivial things or things they provoked them to do. An example of this is the policemen coming to disperse a group of “Okies” camping out together. The Joad family is there at the time and Tom stands up to a policeman. Tom ends up injuring the policeman, but Jim Casy takes the blame for him. The policemen, instead of giving to, and helping the community, choose to damage it, while Jim Casy is willing to take full blame for hurting the cop even though Tom is the one mainly at fault. One more example of generosity is when the Joad family moves into the government camp. Tom receives help finding work from two men, Timothy and Wilkie Wallace. The two men knew that by helping Tom get a job where they worked, they were probably going to work for a shorter amount of time, but they helped him anyways. These occurrences showcase how the wicked take without giving and how the
21 The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously;
32 The wicked lie in wait for the righteous, intent on putting them to death;
33 but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked or let them be condemned when brought to trial In The Grapes of Wrath, many people migrated to California in hope of finding jobs, but they discovered something else entirely. What they found was a corrupt society, and thousands of people like themselves struggling to find work and food for their families. Advances in machinery forced them to move and be subject to the cruelty of the large business owners, who were willing to do anything if it led to more wealth and power. Psalm 37:21 speaks of the wicked not repaying, but the righteous giving generously. This was proven through the businessmen and the policemen who took advantage of the migrants. The businessmen mistreated the migrants by forcing them to compete so intensely for work so that even if they found jobs, they were paid little. The police charged and arrested them for trivial things or things they provoked them to do. An example of this is the policemen coming to disperse a group of “Okies” camping out together. The Joad family is there at the time and Tom stands up to a policeman. Tom ends up injuring the policeman, but Jim Casy takes the blame for him. The policemen, instead of giving to, and helping the community, choose to damage it, while Jim Casy is willing to take full blame for hurting the cop even though Tom is the one mainly at fault. One more example of generosity is when the Joad family moves into the government camp. Tom receives help finding work from two men, Timothy and Wilkie Wallace. The two men knew that by helping Tom get a job where they worked, they were probably going to work for a shorter amount of time, but they helped him anyways. These occurrences showcase how the wicked take without giving and how the