Geoff's Miscellany

Miscellaneous Musings

Proverbs

Roast Game and Enjoying the Finer Things

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Proverbs 12:27 (ESV)  Whoever is slothful will not roast his game, but the diligent man will get precious wealth.

There are essentially two possibilities for interpreting the first part of this saying:

  1. A slothful man will have no game to roast because he’s lazy.
  2. A slothful man will not roast the game he has, because he’s lazy.

Because of the nature of the Proverbs, it is possible that both are implied, but I’m more interesting in the second. I think that this is a good heuristic for determining whether or not we’re slothful and whether or not we should buy something new. For instance, if I have a nice set of digital Bible commentaries that I never use, is it wise for me to buy new ones just because they’re on sale? The answer must be, “No.” The evidence is that I’m the type of guy who doesn’t roast his game despite having it in the freezer.

This might apply to gym memberships, exercise equipment, a laptop, a writing desk, tools, hobby equipment, and so-on. Why buy an expensive study Bible if you never read the Bible you have? Similarly, why go “church shopping” if you don’t know the names of anybody at the church you already attend?

The contrast in the Proverb is with somebody who becomes rich through diligence, but I want to entertain the opposite possibility of the first clause. What if one learns to enjoy the nice things already possessed before moving on to more things? Is it possible that the great discontentment many experience is precisely due to a lack of diligence with the sliver of the world under their care?

Two ways to store grain

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Luk 12:16-21 ESV  And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, (17)  and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ (18)  And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. (19)  And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”‘ (20)  But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ (21)  So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Pro 11:25 A generous person will prosper, and anyone who gives water will receive a flood in return.

Pro 11:26  People will curse whoever withholds grain, but blessing will come to whoever is selling.

Pro 19:17  Whoever is kind to the poor is lending to the LORD—the benefit of his gift will return to him in abundance.

Jesus, in Luke 12, tells the above parable about selfishly storing grain. There is clearly a point about the Pharisees vision of Israel in there, but the main point concerns how one manages the wealth of his household. But it can be very easy to mistake what Jesus says here for something else. Is Jesus saying that it is wrong to save or to store up grain? Or is he saying that it is wrong to store up grain without being rich toward God?

The reason I do not think that Jesus is opposing saving money is because the man is clearly portrayed storing up treasures without generosity. Elsewhere in Luke’s gospel and its sequel, fairly rich patrons and matrons are praised for their generosity or for their literal selling of everything. So it isn’t the wealth or poverty per se that Luke or even Jesus sees as virtuous or vicious. It seems to be ones use of wealth. To illustrate this I’ve quoted three Proverbs. This might provide some helpful context for Jesus remarks about the man who stores up wealth. He never lends to God by caring for the poor (being rich toward God). He builds wealth without being generous as he builds larger storehouses for himself. And, he seems to be a loner, he talks to himself about the issue, not to his family or his servants. In this respect, the conclusion of Jesus’ parable of the clever manager comes to mind: “And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings. (Luke 16:9)” Thus the man seems to not be particularly revered for his generosity amongst his countrymen.

Not coincidentally, the Old Testament has very clear laws for ancient Israelites concerning what they do with their grain:

Lev 19:9-10  “When you reap the harvest of your land, you are not to completely finish harvesting the corners of the field, that is, you are not to pick what remains after you have reaped your harvest.  (10)  You are not to gather your vineyard or pick up the fallen grapes of your vineyard. Leave something for the poor and the resident alien who lives among you. I am the LORD your God.”

So the Old Testament background here indicates is that this rich man is not being properly rich. He is not generous, he stores up so much grain that there is nothing left over, and it will go to nobody when he dies alone, cursed by the people, and without friends.

Jesus also seems to have another famous Israelite in mind when he tells this story. Joseph, during his stay in Egypt, stored up enough grain to feed the Israelites, Egyptians, and several other people groups during a brutal famine:

Gen 41:47-57  During the seven plentiful years the earth produced abundantly,  (48)  and he gathered up all the food of these seven years, which occurred in the land of Egypt, and put the food in the cities. He put in every city the food from the fields around it.  (49)  And Joseph stored up grain in great abundance, like the sand of the sea, until he ceased to measure it, for it could not be measured.  (50)  Before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph. Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore them to him.  (51)  Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father’s house.”  (52)  The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”  (53)  The seven years of plenty that occurred in the land of Egypt came to an end,  (54)  and the seven years of famine began to come, as Joseph had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.  (55)  When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph. What he says to you, do.”  (56)  So when the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe in the land of Egypt.  (57)  Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the earth.

Conclusion:

There is a right and wrong way to save up your resources. If you save up during times of plenty like the fable of the ant, then you will be able to live without anxiety and with generosity during times of famine. But the trick is to save up without being miserly. One must develop the habit of generosity even during times of plenty if one wishes to have unself-ish habits during times of want. At least, that’s my take on Jesus’ parable here.

Meditations upon Proverbs 14:4

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Pro 14:4 Where there are no oxen, the barn is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.

This particular Proverb has a pretty obvious meaning:

There might are less chores with less tools, but with well managed tools comes greater success.

I can think of several applications of this Proverb to contemporary existence:

  1. If you do not own a lawn mower, you’ll have less maintenance, but you’ll have to pay more in the long run for people to do your yard.
  2. If you do not own a tools, then you won’t have to organize them. There will be no need to put up your tools, have a sweet tool box, or to oil them. But if you have one it will be cheaper to repair your house.
  3. Any tools that improve your productivity should be cared for just like the oxen barn. A barn full of oxen, left unattended, will eventually smell like what fills it. Similarly, a computer that is not properly maintained, a car not properly tuned up, or a guitar not properly stored will all let you down more frequently than the alternative. But if you do not have these tools, then you cannot have the blessings that come with them.
  4. If less people go to your church, you’ll have less problems. But conversely, potentially less of the work of the gospel will be accomplished.
  5. Your body will eventually fall apart, but it will happen much faster without use! Put the work of taking care of it into practice and it will likely work much longer for you.

For me the takeaways from this particular Proverb have been:

  1. Keep my garage clean and organized.
  2. Stop borrowing my friend’s calculator.
  3. Keep my books in alphabetical order.

What about you?

Meditations Upon Proverbs 17:6

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New American Standard Bible  Proverbs 17:6 Grandchildren are the crown of old men, And the glory of sons is their fathers.

Jewish Publication Society  Proverbs 17:6 Grandchildren are the crown of their elders, And the glory of children is their parents.

This proverb struck me, especially because of the second part.

Grandchildren and Grandparents

One of the things I’ve heard several parents say to their parents is, “You were always more strict with us than with my kids.” I think this proverb is noting that this is the case. There is also a note of glory in living long enough to see your children raise the next generation.

Children and Parents

The Hebrew of the second clause literally translates, “the beauty of sons are their fathers.” It obviously applies to all children and parents as which is made explicit in the JPS translation.

I suspect, as with most Proverbs, this is meant to take us in several directions. It certainly applies to me as a teacher, but only indirectly. I’m no parent. So don’t see this as me telling anybody how to raise their children. It’s me trying to think about how this Proverb was meant to be read. So, here is what I think it could mean:

  1. The distinct reputation of a young man in an ancient tribe or a modern small town would be connected to the deeds of his father. So his beauty/glory would be connected to whatever people knew his daddy for. If you want to give your child a good reputation in the world, get a good reputation for yourself.
  2. The thing that a young man will consider beautiful, praiseworthy, or glorious will be what he sees in his dad. Thus, the way a father lives will be a major factor in what his children grow up to value. So, if you want to instill faithfulness to the Lord and love of neighbor in your children, that had better be your own habit. If you want your kiddos to exercise, you’d better exercise. If you want your children to study, you’d better hit the books in front of them. If you’re a Christian, especially study the Bible with them.  Don’t just read it to them, but teach them how to ask questions about its meaning, how to find answers in the text, how to use other resources to understand it, and how to apply it to life.
  3. Finally, children are often enamored of their dad and his prowess. “My dad could beat up your dad.” In this case, if you’re a father, then your job is not only to exemplify virtue to your children but live so that when they get older they won’t become disillusioned by the real stories about you. Because, if it is true that your children find their glory/beauty in you, then don’t let them find out it was purely a survival mechanism for their childhood. Instead, make sure your life matches the instinctual hype.

Again, these are apparent applications of the Proverb, not necessarily instructions for you. Certainly these applications work for me as a teacher. When I see one of my students teach somebody else how to do mathematics or how to write well, I feel a deep swell of pride. Similarly, when I do sports against my students, I try to dominate (with varying degrees of success). I cite sources in speeches and lecture handouts. People will emulate competence if it is set before them as a valuable attainment.

Sermon on Proverbs 15

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Pro 15:14-19 The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouths of fools feed on folly. (15) All the days of the afflicted are evil, but the cheerful of heart has a continual feast. (16) Better is a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and trouble with it. (17) Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it. (18) A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention. (19) The way of a sluggard is like a hedge of thorns, but the path of the upright is a level highway.

Introduction:

Today’s sermon is more like a series of many mini-sermons, but for that it is not less important. I suppose if I had to sum it up into a single thesis statement I’d say that, “The wise person accepts the world as it is and then obeys the Lord.” What I mean by that is that the wise person accepts that fact that some things are true and some are not and tries (not just learns by accident), but tries to know the difference. The wise person learns to recognize when they are in a state of internal duress and then does something about it. The wise person recognizes the great value of a proper relationship to the LORD, of loving relationships with family, of not being easily offended, and the unpleasantries of laziness.

  1. (14) The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouths of fools feed on folly.
    This particular passage of Scripture is meant to challenge you to change what you do with your mind. Do you wish to be a fool? Do wish to understand the world? You cannot, ultimately have both mindsets. Thus, the challenge is this: seek knowledge. If you spend all of your time mindlessly surfing the internet, mindlessly watching television, mindlessly listening to the radio, etc, then you will likely become a fool. Seek actual knowledge about yourself, seek knowledge about the world around you at school, with good books, or a fruitful use of the internet. Also, seek knowledge of God in the Scriptures. But you must seek it. Anybody can learn things by accident, babies do that. But only somebody with a heart of understanding seeks out knowledge. With this heart of understanding you can accept the world as it is, then obey the Lord.
  2. (15) All the days of the afflicted are evil, but the cheerful of heart has a continual feast.
    The idea here according to the commentators is that those who are in a state of internal anxiety often find the negative in every situation. Those who are in a state of internal joy can find something good and feast-like in every situation. Now, this Proverb is much more descriptive than prescriptive I would think. One type of person, the negative Ned, or the man of enduringly Eeyore-ian disposition can find something troublesome about every situation and use that to be sad, depressed, or defeated. The other type of person, the cheerful of heart/Polyanna Pam finds a continual feast upon the goodness of creation. At first this sounds good and down right mystically appropriate (see Thomas Traherne). But upon further reflection, such a person might gloss over real problems because they refuse to see that there is a famine. So, certainly the text is descriptive. But there is a prescription in Scripture for both kinds of people. If you’re a negative Ned all of the time, then it might do you and those around you some good to intentionally look for the actual, really, truly there goodness in a situation. Even better, it would do you good to remember the blessings of the gospel. Part of the fruit of the Spirit is joy and Paul says elsewhere that this joy is commanded this way, “Rejoice in the Lord.” This means to rejoice in the blessings of the gospel message: God loves you, God forgives you, the Lord will judge evil and renew the cosmos, you have a family with the church, you’re a new creation, and so on and so forth. If you’re a positive Pam who refuses to see true problems and feasts on emotional highs because you cannot think critically for even a second, then you need to see the evils that are there in your day. Jesus himself noted that each day has trouble. The truly wise person sees the world as it is and then obeys the Lord.
  3. (16) Better is a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and trouble with it. (17) Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it.
    Now, Socrates has a similar notion to this, “It is better to suffer injustice than to commit it.” So did Jesus, “Blessed are you when you suffer for righteousness’ sake.” It appears in several Bible stories. A favorite is in Dan 3:16-18, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. (17) If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. (18) But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”” It also appears in C.S. Lewis,’ ““Doubtless this signifies,” said the Prince, “that Aslan will be our good lord, whether he means us to live or die. All’s one for that.” “Courage friends,” came Prince Rillian’s voice, “whether we live or die, Aslan will be our good lord.” Christian, your very name signifies that you have committed yourself to follow Jesus. Whether you live or die and whether it turns out pleasant or not, Jesus will be your good Lord. The truly wise person sees the world as it is and obeys the Lord.
  4. (18) A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.

    This is an especially important proverb for myself. I, personally, have always had a rotten temper. That temper has occasionally led to actions that I have regretted. It has led to many that I have perhaps sinfully bragged about. Unleashing the brunt of anger always feels like it will make a positive change, but these feelings are not true. Being hot tempered can be precisely what stirs up unnecessary strife in an otherwise slightly frustrating or innocuous circumstance. It doesn’t matter if anger is justified in one circumstance out of ten (my normal justification), it is simply true that strife comes if you let your temper flare without thinking the issue through or letting it play out for a while. Those who are slow to anger, though, are able to quiet contentions. It will take a great deal of work for me, but I do indeed see this path to be the most obviously Christ-like (at least in the context of business/family/work/church endeavors). Thus, in this case too, the truly wise person sees the effects of their anger, and then obeys the Lord.

  5. Questions for Reflection
    1. Do you ever feel tempted to simply wish the world were different all day instead of actually viewing it at how it is?
    2. Do you tend towards unrealistic cheeriness when others ask for advice or toward impossible negativity? What can you do about it?

Sleep and Adam Clarke

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Pro 20:13 Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.

This passage of Scripture is important in our culture. We write more about sleep in news and science journals than pretty much any other culture and yet we seem to sleep less. I’m wondering if our love for sleep mixed with a love of not ‘missing out’ on what ever we’re staying up to do has caused us to have less sleep than the compilers and authors of Proverbs assume we need while also causing us to love sleep/idleness to the point of the average individual being unproductive.

Ecclesiastes 5:12 notes that “…sweet is the sleep of a laborer…” but perhaps there’s just not much labor going on. And earlier in Proverbs 3:24 it is noted that whoever has discretion and wisdom will have sweet sleep. So maybe we also do not show discretion with our time.

Adam Clarke noted this in his commentary on the whole Bible:

Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty – Sleep, indescribable in its nature, is an indescribable blessing; but how often is it turned into a curse! It is like food; a certain measure of it restores and invigorates exhausted nature; more than that oppresses and destroys life. A lover of sleep is a paltry, insignificant character.

Is it possible that our fascination with sleep, our love of sleeping in, and our obsession with understanding how to get enough sleep stems from:

  1.  The fact that very few of us actually do very much.
  2.  The lack of discretion used in our culture. 

I should probably do some checks on sleep studies to see if there is a noted correlation in modern research literature, but at least in the Ancient world over sleeping and poor sleeping were often associated with bad decisions and laziness.

Note: I am aware that insomnia can rob one of sleep for no apparent reason. Though I have discovered that using the same relaxing techniques I learned in karate class as a young man have helped me over come my difficulty sleeping. When I was in high school and early college I would often sit up doing nothing until it was time to go to work or school in the morning because I just couldn’t sleep. The point is that insomnia appears to have no moral correlate at all. I hope my post helps those whose sleep struggles are otherwise.