A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city: and their contentions are like the bars of a castle. Guard all your friendships and relationships carefully. Keep peace with great diligence. Avoid every disagreement and offence that you possibly can. If you cannot avoid them all, then settle them quickly. But be especially careful with those you are closest to. The proverb seems extreme. Is it this difficult to reconcile an offended brother? Is there so little hope of recovery once a close relationship is damaged? Strong cities are seldom taken, and castle bars are of the strongest sort. Solomon’s inspired wisdom teaches that once you offend a brother, you are near a hopeless situation. Lord, have mercy! What causes the rupture to be so severe? It is a rule of nature that offending those who love you may create hatred and revenge. Because they gave you their affection, loyalty, service, and trust, the offence strikes deeper in their soul and requires more repair than if done by merely an acquaintance or stranger. So be extra careful with those closest to you. Small offences can ignite family or marital feuds, though such little things could be easily ignored in other relationships. It is a disgusting fact of man’s perversity that he often shows less mercy to family and friends than to strangers. Most find it easier to forgive a stranger than forgive someone they have loved and assumed would never hurt them.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Jul 2013 06:26:36 +0000
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