Avarice Enthroned Over Industry and Law

A towering figure of wealth sits heavily between the halls of Legislation and Industries, clutching papers marked “Doodle,” “Franchise,” and “Injustice” while a key dangles from his hand. Below him, workers and families are driven toward the Poor House, their raised arms and crowded path exposing the human cost of corruption, greed, and oppressive power. The composition reads as a moral indictment of avarice: law, commerce, and public life have been bent beneath a single appetite for control.

For Christian ministry use, the image serves as a strong visual companion to teaching on unjust scales, exploitation of the poor, and the spiritual danger of loving wealth more than righteousness. Its symbolism echoes biblical warnings against those who “join house to house” and those who crush the needy through dishonest authority, making it useful for sermons, study materials, and social justice reflections on greed, stewardship, and public righteousness. by S. M. Davis