Thank you for the interpretation of a saying, “Who said, “Lend money to an enemy and thou will gain him; lend money to a friend and thou will lose him”? What does it mean?”
The person who shared that piece of wisdom is Benjamin Franklin.
As I understand that saying, Benjamin Franklin is stating that an enemy does not expect kindness from his opponent. He expects that he will get nothing and perhaps something worse. By reaching out and meeting a need of his enemy that action will cause one’s enemy to reconsider his/her viewpoint of the other person. Instead of becoming adversaries, one may find him becoming a friend.
The other part of his saying is that if a person loans money to a friend, that friend may continue to ask for more loans. That friend may interpret that “loan” as a gift that he doesn’t have to repay. That friend is presuming upon the graciousness and generosity to forgive that debt. He may walk away from you or you may walk away from him. Either way, a friendship is lost due to a loan.
Overall, it is a truism that Benjamin Franklin observed or heard from others. From a Scriptural viewpoint, grace and mercy is to be extended to both friend and foe. In the Old Testament, if a person sees a foe who is struggling with something, he is to set aside his animosity and help him. The Second Commandment calls for loving one’s neighbor as oneself. If one was in that person’s place, one should even go beyond receiving a fair return for one’s money but giving him that money without interest or payback. That is grace.
Hope this helps.