Proverbs and caring for the poor

A friend of mine once told me that he didn't care for Proverbs because he has seen it used to oppress the poor and to blame them for their own problems. Maybe I'm just this crazy, idealistic hippie who sees God's mandate to us to care for the needy in everything I read in the Bible, but my own reading has been quite the opposite. Here are some examples:

Proverbs 13:23 - "An unplowed field produces food for the poor, but injustice sweeps it away."

Proverbs 14:31 - "Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God."

Proverbs 17:5 - "Whoever mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished."

Proverbs 19:17 - "Those who are kind to the poor lend to the Lord,
and he will reward them for what they have done."

Proverbs 21:13 - "Those who shut their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered."

Proverbs 22:9 - "The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor."

Proverbs 22:16 - "Those who oppress the poor to increase their wealth and those who give gifts to the rich—both come to poverty."

Proverbs 22:22-23 - "Do not exploit the poor because they are poor
and do not crush the needy in court, for the Lord will take up their case
and will exact life for life."

Proverbs 28:3 - "A ruler who oppresses the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no crops."

Proverbs 28:6 - "Better the poor whose walk is blameless than the rich whose ways are perverse."

Proverbs 28:11 - "The rich are wise in their own eyes; one who is poor and discerning sees how deluded they are."

Proverbs 28:27 - "Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses."

Proverbs 29:7 - "The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern."

Proverbs 31:9 - "Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy."

If we don't thing God desires for us to care for the needs of others, especially those with less than us, then we are broken. Our theology is broken. We are worthless. But we don't believe that. We do believe that God not only cares for the needy but desires for us to do so not just on an emotional level but physically, as well.

So what are we going to do about that?