Category: Devotions

2. The Rewarded: He that feareth the commandment shall be rewarded. The commandment reminds us of God’s authoritative word. The heart of man is right only when it fears the commandment of God above everything else. This fear brings no bondage, for it is no mere legalism. Reverent fear of God is the only path to freedom from every other fear. To deny that Word brings ruin, but, in keeping of it there is great reward (Ps. 19:9-11). Apathy or delay here is a deadly foe, for any time means no time.

There are words everywhere, some good, some bad, some profound, some simple. Words are a mirror of the soul. They act as weapons for healing or hurting, for bearing truth or fiction. The authority of words depends ultimately on the speaker. No one, therefore, should doubt the absolute authority of words spoken by God, and recorded infallibly in Holy Scripture. The word and commandment in our text show that Proverbs presupposes revealed religion. These words take us back to Moses and Sinai. They are obviously references to the Word of God even when mediated through human channels. People and nations will face judgment by how they receive or reject this Word. Do you trifle or tremble at God’s Word?

Hope is an eager, waiting desire, implying future good, and possibility of obtainment. Hope fulfilled is beautiful, but unsatisfied means bitterness and loss.

Wealth is good as testified by what it can do, and by how men strive after it. The Bible does not condemn wealth. Rather, it says, The love of money is the root of all evil (1 Tm. 6:10), but not money itself. Solomon said elsewhere money answereth all (Eccl. 10:19), but be careful you don’t miss the context. Money can provide both feast and wine; under the sun. Yet, even these are not the better things, but the poorer, as he has already shown (Eccl. 7:1-10). Only the currency of Heaven answers all things (Isa. 55).

A proud man esteems himself better than others. A humble man esteems others better than himself. Humility is simply to have a just view of yourself. So proud men abound, while the humble are hard to find!

Here is a familiar Scripture image that represents light as essential to the well-being of life. The light of the righteous is contrasted with the lamp of the wicked. Sometimes they are synonymous, but a distinction clearly is meant.

One meaning of this verse is: “A rich man, when he fears any evil, can remove it with money; the poor, when he is threatened, cannot pay, so he runs away.” The poor man cannot stand and defend himself or buy himself off. The moment he hears rebuke, having no resources, he attempts to make good his escape. A second interpretation is that it shows the relative benefits of riches and poverty.

There is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches. This is a type of the poor-rich man. Jesus says: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. No amount of riches can buy poverty of spirit! Is not Christ Himself the Highest example of this truth? He was rich; He became poor, that we might be rich (2 Cor. 8:9)!

Here is another interpretation of this verse. It doesn’t say these persons are pretending. It may have a purely spiritual meaning. “This understanding of the verse lends itself to a Christian interpretation” (Maclaren). The Bible distinguishes between outer and inner reality, between the material and the spiritual. The conditions of poverty and wealth are not moral issues, but may indicate spiritual differences. Those who are rich in goods may be poverty-stricken in soul. There is that makes himself rich, yet has nothing. This is the rich-poor man. The Lord illustrates this vital distinction. In Luke 12 we have a smug man’s plans for his future, and a Sovereign God’s determination about his failure. He’s a fool in a fog. We considered this fool before, but he’s worth another look.

There are two valid ways of understanding this proverb. It may be interpreted either literally or as having a spiritual application. What is true poverty or riches is not always evident to the eye. Augustine said, “Earthly riches are full of poverty.” Old William Secker put it thus, “While riches are they are not!”