Lessons from Proverbs - Lesson 122 - “Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.” Proverbs 24:32 “The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel” Proverbs 1:1 Let us glean, from the wisdom the LORD gave to Solomon, 1 Kings 4:29, whom the LORD put on the throne of David his father, how to discern God’s Word, “rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15 Solomon said, “Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.” In this verse Solomon gives four critical points to “rightly dividing the word of truth.” They are, “I saw”, I “considered it well”, I looked upon it”, and I “received instruction.” It is necessary to see, and “consider it well”. The word, “considereth” means, “Thought of with care; pondered; viewed attentively; deliberated on; examined.” 1611 King James Dictionary Solomon said, he saw and what he saw he applied this principle, think it out with care, ponder what it is, view it “attentively”, deliberate what it is, and “examine it” “well”. These were his first two steps. Then add “looked”, which is, “ 3. To direct the intellectual eye; to apply the mind or understanding; to consider; to examine”, according to the 1611 King James Dictionary, to the process of discerning, whether a thing is good or evil, to be done or not to be done. “Looked” is to carefully examine with the eyes of perception, the “mind of understanding”, whether a thing is evil of good, to be done or not to be done. After all of this deliberation, receive instruction. It should be noted that seeing evil can be a quick assessment and with all diligence one should flee from what is easily discerned as evil. In our lesson from Solomon, in addition to verse 32, examine thoroughly and receive instruction, Solomon also taught; he saw how the lazy neglected his field and the results of that neglect; after he thoroughly examined the way of the lazy man, he concluded, that to much sleep and not enough honest work, led to the demise of the lazy man, i.e., his “poverty” and “want”. Let us look at our text, Proverbs 24:30-34, and then consider it in more detail. Proverbs 24:30-34 “30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; 31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. 32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction. 33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: 34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.” In verses 30-31, Solomon said, “I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.” “Slothful” means “Inactive; sluggish; lazy; indolent; idle. He that is slothful in his work, is brother to him that is a great waster. Prov. 18.” 1611 King James Dictionary “Void” means, “5. Destitute; as void of learning; void of reason or common sense.” 1611 King James Dictionary Solomon said he “went by the field of the” “sluggish”, ‘lazy” man, and he went by his vineyard and found a man that was “destitute” of “learning”, “reason” and “common sense”. Why? It is because he saw the lack of initiative to do the necessary work to make his field and vineyard productive. In 32 , Solomon said, “Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.” Solomon speaking, concerning verses 30 and 31, he said he carefully examined the field and the vineyard of the “sluggish”, “lazy”, man and received instruction, that from what he “carefully examined”, with his eyes, the man that owned the field and the vineyard was lazy. In verses 33-34, Solomon said, “Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.” “Slumber means, “3. To be in a state of negligence, sloth, supineness or inactivity.” 1611 King James Dictionary “Want” means, “1. To be destitute; to be deficient in; not to have; a word of general application; as, to want knowledge; to want judgment; to want learning; to want food and clothing; to want money.” 1611 King James Dictionary Solomon used three phrases to refer to the laziness of the man, in verses 30-31, they are, “a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands”. All three picture a man that is given to sleep, “slumber”, i.e., his “negligence”, his “inactivity”, and you can not get anything done with folded hands, except for sleep. This man can look for “poverty” to overtake him as one who travels with no visible means of supporting himself; and his “want”, i.e., his lack of food to eat, is like an “armed man” looking to take by force, from those who have food, in order to sustain his own health. What have we learned from Solomon? 1. (30-31) In verses 30-31, Solomon said, “I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.” Solomon said he “went by the field of the” “sluggish”, ‘lazy” man, and he went by his vineyard and found a man that was “destitute” of “learning”, “reason” and “common sense”. Why? It is because he saw the lack of initiative to do the necessary work to make his field and vineyard productive. 2. (32) “Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.” Solomon speaking, concerning verses 30 and 31, he said he carefully examined the field and the vineyard of the “sluggish”, “lazy”, man and received instruction, that from what he “carefully examined”, with his eyes, the man that owned the field and the vineyard was lazy. 3. (33-34) “Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.” Solomon used three phrases to refer to the laziness of the man, in verses 30-31, they are, “a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands”. All three picture a man that is given to sleep, “slumber”, i.e., his “negligence”, his “inactivity”, and you can not get anything done with folded hands, except for sleep. This man can look for “poverty” to overtake him as one who travels with no visible means of supporting himself; and his “want”, i.e., his lack of food to eat, is like an “armed man”, looking to take by force, from those who have food, in order to sustain his own health. In conclusion, “slothfulness”, i.e., “laziness”, is a very destructive disposition to have. Solomon said being slothful”, i.e., being “lazy”, contributes to “poverty” and “want”. “Want” means, “1. To be destitute; to be deficient in; not to have; a word of general application; as, to want knowledge; to want judgment; to want learning; to want food and clothing; to want money.” 1611 King James Dictionary While Solomon referred to poverty as a lack of food, it can also mean,to want knowledge, to want judgment, to want learning, a lack of “clothing” and a lack of “money.” The “lazy” man would have needed to buy clothing and for that he would have needed a way to earn money. A “lazy” man is one who is destitute of the desire to work to provide for what he needs to sustain life. In a spiritual sense, one can be destitute of knowing the “Word of God”, by a lack of knowledge, a lack of judgment, a lack of learning, due to having a “lazy” mentality, and lacking the desire to search the Scriptures for his spiritual well being. Let us look at some Scriptures that encourage to not be “slothful”, i.e., “lazy”, but rather give all diligence to study, know, and apply the Scriptures, in our service to Jesus Christ. The Hebrew writer, ”by the inspiration of God, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, Acts 2:4, commended Christians for their ministering to the saints and he encouraged them, to not be “slothful” in ministering to the saints, but continue in ministering to the saints, in Hebrews 6:9-12. In other words, do not let up, but continue on, in serving God through Jesus Christ, in ministering to the saints.Let us read Hebrews 6:9-12, for the admonition to not be slothful, i.e., lazy, but rather be followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Hebrews 6:9-12 “9 But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. 10 For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. 11 And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: 12 That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” The writer of Hebrews said, “be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” They were to follow after those who “through faith and patience inherit the promises.” What promises was Paul referring to? Paul was referring to the promises that God made to Abraham. Let us read Hebrews 6:13-16, and comment on it in more detail. In Hebrews 6:13-16, the Hebrew writer, said God swore by Himself that He would both bless Abraham and multiply him. “13 For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, 14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.” The writer of Hebrews said, God kept His promise to Abraham that, “Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.” How did Abraham obtain the promise? The promise God made to Abraham, that He would bless him and “multiplying” He would “multiply” him, was fulfilled in Jesus Christ, as we see in Hebrews 6:16-20, and in Galatians 3:16, 22-29. In Hebrews 6:17-20, the Hebrew writer said, God confirmed the promise to Abraham ”by an oath”, and Jesus entered into veil, and secured the promise God made to Abraham. “17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: 18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: 19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; 20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.” The writer of Hebrews said, Jesus is the forerunner for us, when He entered within the veil, and was made “an high priest forever after the order of Melchisedec.” What is the “veil”? The Hebrew writer explained it in Hebrews 10:19-25. In Hebrews 10:19-25, the ”veil” is Jesus Christ‘s flesh, by which through our faith in Jesus Christ, we have boldness to enter into the ”holiest” by the blood of Jesus Christ. “19 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; 21 And having an high priest over the house of God; 22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.” In Galatians 3:16, Paul said, Christ is the fulfillment of the promises God made to Abraham. “16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.” And in Galatians 3:27-29, Paul said, “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christs, then are ye Abrahams seed, and heirs according to the promise.” The promise made to Abraham, that God would provide a way by which all the nations of the earth would be blessed, has been fulfilled in Jesus Christ, making all Christians heirs to everlasting life that Jesus Christ provides to all of His faithful followers. John 3:16-17, 1 John 2:1-3, and Jude 1:21, “Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Therefore, seeing that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the promise that God made to Abraham, “23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) 24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: 25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:23-25 References: King James Version Bible Gateway - Thank you for public access to Bible verses. By Public Domain 1611 King James Dictionary - Thank you for the definitions of “slothful, “void, “considered, “slumber, “travelleth, and “want.
Posted on: Tue, 07 Oct 2014 21:16:35 +0000