Why were there poor Jews in Jerusalem in the Galatians 2 account?
The poor Jews in Jerusalem had sold all their property, and the common fund or kitty they shared ran out after about twenty years. Consequently, they were destitute and poor, so the Jerusalem leaders asked Paul and Barnabas to remember them.
Les explains that the Jerusalem church had a bunch of poor Jews who had sold all their property. The common fund they shared had run out after about twenty years, leaving them destitute. When Paul and Barnabas received the right hand of fellowship to go to the Gentiles, the Jerusalem leaders added one string: they should remember the poor. Les notes that God would not abandon them.
Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.
More Questions
What was the one requirement the Jerusalem leaders placed on Paul in Galatians 2?
The only condition the Jerusalem leaders attached to their agreement with Paul was that he should remember the poor, meaning the saints in Jerusalem, and Paul says he was eager to do it.