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In our translation of the Bible, it is construed sometimes as a singular, but generally as a plural noun.

“In one hour is so great riches come to nought.”—Bible.

“Riches take to themselves wings, and fly away.”—Ibid.

Modern usage, in like manner, inclines to the plural construction; there are a few authorities, however, on the other side, as,

“Was ever riches gotten by your golden mediocrities?”—Cowley.

“The envy and jealousy which great riches is always attended with.”—Moyle.

Alms was also originally a noun singular, being a contraction of the old Norman French almesse, the plural of which was almesses.

“This almesse shouldst thou do of thy proper things.”—Chaucer.

“These ben generally the almesses and workes of charity.”—Ibid.

Johnson says this word has no singular. It was, in truth, a first a noun singular, and afterwards, by contraction, receiving a plural form, it came to be considered by some as a noun plural. Johnson would have had equal, nay, perhaps, better authority for saying that this word has no plural. Our translators of the Bible seem to have considered it as singular. “To ask an alms,” “to give much alms,” and other similar phraseologies, occur in Scripture. Nay, Johnson himself has cited two authorities, in which the indefinite article is prefixed to it.