Thursday, July 02, 2009

Thoughts on Proverbs 30:21-23

Pro 30:21-23 For three things the earth doth tremble, And for four, which it cannot bear: For a servant when he is king; And a fool when he is filled with food; For an odious woman when she is married; And a handmaid that is heir to her mistress.

A while ago (maybe more than a year) I wrote a series on Proverbs 30 and the sets of four in it. This one however I never covered. I only realized that last week and so I have decided to take it up now.

These four things show us that a mere change of outward circumstances do not change character. If our character is not changed then the change in circumstances will not produce a real benefit, but only spread an evil influence further.
1. The servant who is king
This is not referring to having a servant-heart in leadership – that is a blessing. Christ , Himself, exemplified a true servant-king. Joseph is another good example of a former servant turned into a good leader. However, there is a vast difference between being a servant and being servile in disposition. A servile person works only when it is forced on them, and only when they are constantly watched. It is a great tragedy when people like that are in leadership, because thinking others are just like them (all people do), they act the part of oppressors. Also because of the change in their position they tend to be very insecure and use their authority to lord it over others.

2. A fool who is filled with food
When someone is wicked, walking in their own ways, and even actively opposing the things of God, it is a great difficulty to the earth that they prosper. God allows it at times and it made the Psalmist wonder what was going on (Psalm 73). When people see them prosper they are easily influenced to follow in their folly, God uses this to test us. If bad things never happened to the righteous then there would be no need for faith. If good things never happened to the wicked then there would be no temptation to follow in their ways. God allows the wicked to prosper for a time to see who is more interested in temporal blessings than in eternal realities – to see who is willing to sell Christ (perhaps without a full realization of it) for the things of this world.

3. An odious woman when she is married
The best adornment for a woman is a meek and quiet spirit (1 Peter 3:3-4). The natural tendency however is to trust in outward beauty, charm etc… This is not just a tendency for woman, one of God’s repeated complaints against Israel as a nation was that they trusted in their own beauty (figuratively their own resources, talents, etc…). Women might obtain husbands by using these methods, but not keep them. Our generation continues to pay a high price in pain, broken and damaged lives, through our high divorce rate, because we enter into marriage for our own selfish reasons. Marriage in and of itself will not make you a happy or fulfilled person. Having a good character and being willing to respond in a good way and even lay down your will is the key to true happiness in marriage or any other situation.

4. A handmaid that is heir to her mistress
Hagar is a prime example of this one. Sarah deserves a share of the blame for it too, because the whole situation was her idea. This verse likely refers specifically to concubinage. Whenever God’s moral law is broken there are consequences. Humans like to think that they are immune to them, but they are not. Concubinage not only made the maidservant not particularly willing to serve her mistress, but also placed her in direct competition with the wife for the husband’s affections. It creates some of the same problems as divorce and remarriage does - Step-parents who are jealous of children who aren’t their own, viewing them sometimes as a threat to their marriage. God never intended for married people to have to compete for their spouses affections, that is an aberration that we have invented.

In these four things we affect not only ourselves but even nature around us by our sin. Our dominion over earth is not totally eradicated because of sin, we still govern, the problem is we are not really fit to do it!

May God grant us character and ability to match every situation He places us in, to Him be the glory! Amen.

No comments: