Proverbs 26 – 27
Verse 26:1 hits home in some ways:
Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,
so honour is not fitting for a fool.
The idea of rain in harvest is not so unusual here in Georgia, but snow in summer is definitely not going to happen.Solomon ties two unlikely meteorological events to the likely hood of honoring a fool. The reason this hits home is twofold, in how “honors” are given. First, I like to think of myself as level headed and not foolish, but have lacked any honors. At the same time I have seen fools propped up at various jobs and in the government. Unfortunately this is a Proverb we don’t see in practice much. Please note I am not fishing for an “honor” since I have done nothing worthy of one, just used me as an example.
Verse 26:11 is a Proverb I remember:
Like a dog that returns to his vomit
is a fool who repeats his folly.
Peter repeats this in 2 Peter 2:22 so I must not be the only one who liked this verse. The subject again is the fool and is illustrated by something almost no one would do. I all honesty how many of us have repeated foolish endeavors? I could spend the rest of the chapter reminiscing on stupid moves I made in life and then repeated them. Suffice it to say, we all have been fools and need to recognize it and correct. I think the gross analogy is exactly what we should think about before we drift again!
Verse 27:1 is quoted again in James, one of my favorite books of the Bible:
Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring.
I think one of the main reason I like this is I have pride issues. First, I am repulsed by people who are full of themselves and live for themselves. At the same time this “repulsion” comes for an embedded pride or jealously that I am not at that level. A comic from Mad magazine had two baseball starts together, one from the early days and one today. The early star was humble and thanked the team; the new one stole all the glory. We should not boast about past events as if they are a guarantee of what will happen tomorrow, but rather be thankful for the past and pray for the future.
Verse 27:17 is a simple verse but cutting (pun intended):
Iron sharpens iron,
and one man sharpens another.
We tend to forget this aspect in our walk, and I say this as a very guilty person. Often times I draw into this “Thought” and not talk to others. I hope that my ramblings help sharpen others but often I rarely seek the council of others. A reflected on this before about a need for a mentor in my life. I often spend weeks, sometimes years down a rabbit trail of “doctrine” I eventually figure out is wrong. The thing here is we need to sharpen each other’s knowledge so each can be ready for “battle”.
Verses 27:23 – 24 is something we often don’t do because it’s tedious:
23 Know well the condition of your flocks,
and give attention to your herds,
24 for riches do not last for ever;
and does a crown endure to all generations?
This is the accounting and making sure you are on top of things. I know it’s a mentally arduous task, but it is necessary so you can stay on top of things. Jesus talks about this in Matthew 25 in the Parable of the Talents. In essence he is saying those who can be trusted with more are given more. One of the ways you become “trusted” is demonstrate how you manage a meager amount. I think of tax time and those who get a big refund. Most make a major purchase and blow it quickly. At the same time one is gets little or no refund may be “managing” their funds better. Today it’s no big deal letting the government keep your money since most banks pay nothing either, but in a “normal” economy it would be considered foolish to let the government keep your money interest free.
In money it’s the “little things” that add up. One of the biggest we is how we save. Anyone can who is making money, they just have to decide how they spend their money. The local gas station is the perfect example of waste in one’s budget. We often times out of convenience get a drink there when we could hold off and have something that is often times better and ¼ the price when we get home. Accounting teaches us to hold off those urges and delay “gratification” to save money. As we save more the more we seem to have, often times it is not an income problem but rather a spending one and this Proverb tells us the importance on keeping on top of things.