The way I see it, they're both begging, since both are holding their hands out in the same way. The man with the scales is handing out money to both of them. Of course that's an assumption, since we only see him handing money to one person. But he only has one free hand, while holding those scales, so my presumption is that he's handing money to one at a time. The red in the pocket I'm not sure about, but I would assume it's a hanky. Figuratively or symbolically, I see the color red as having to do with basic survival. The color red, and a handkerchief being something that is used more during illness than during a time of health, could indicate that he's at the edge of survival and at greater health risk due to his poverty.
But your hint at not being trustworthy brings up an interesting point. This is a person who does what he must to survive. I personally am more forgiving of little sins like stealing (food, or money for food, for instance) in a poverty-stricken person than in a wealthy person (through usury for instance) who doesn't have to do that to survive. So I would hope that wouldn't be used as a reason not to help a person in true need.
The fact that the money is being weighed out hints to me that the man with the scales is being careful not to be overgenerous, or is being careful to distribute what he gives evenly among those in need, or is doing so based on some system of measurement.
Is he being a bit stingy in that regard, or judging who should receive assistance and who shouldn't? Perhaps that's something we can only surmise based on the dignity of the card in a reading.