Posted by Jeff Short on April 29, 2017 · Leave a Comment
The ransom of a man’s life are his riches: but the poor heareth not rebuke.
– Proverbs 13:8
The word for
ransom means a price or even a bribe. The word for
rebuke in this context likely means a threat. This proverb is obscure but it seems the contrast indicates a rich man is a target for extortion perhaps, whereas the poor man offers no such target and is not bothered with the fear of it. In this sense, the poor man is freer.
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 28, 2017 · Leave a Comment
There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.
– Proverbs 13:7
This proverb seems ambiguous. It is a wisdom observation and doesn’t immediately make a value judgment. One way to take it is as an ironic statement. Some people have great wealth but really have nothing and are poor because wealth is all they have. Some have no wealth but are truly rich because of all they do have in terms of people and relationships. The moral in this case would be that money is not everything. Another way to take it, and the way that seems most natural, is as a character observation. Men are not always what they seem to be. Some pretend to be rich and they are not. Others pretend to be poor and they are not. Wisdom then will look beyond superficial appearances.
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Posted by Jeff Short on March 16, 2017 · Leave a Comment
There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.
– Proverbs 11:24
This proverb and the next two deal with generous giving and its reward. This first proverb reveals God’s counterintuitive economy. The one who scatters is the one who gives generously with an open hand. It would seem that generous giving would diminish and reduce a person to poverty. Yet, wisdom teaches the contrary that it increases a person. He that withholds is stingy, greedy, and grasping. They cannot and will not give because they believe it will lead them to poverty. Yet, wisdom teaches that is exactly what happens to those who withhold.
The few proverbs here don’t give a full explanation of the rewards for giving, but we can fill out that picture from the rest of Scripture. Some have erred badly here by supposing they have found some secret to growing rich on this earth. Prosperity preachers grow rich by selling this erroneous notion to eager coveters. God does reward generous giving (Deuteronomy 15:10-11; Psalm 112:9; 2 Corinthians 9:6-9). The few verses referenced sufficiently show that God’s reward of giving is not to make a person wealthy on this earth. He rewards giving by the giver having sufficient for his needs and to keep on giving. Unquestionably, some of those rewards are spiritual rewards and treasure laid up in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-20).
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Posted by Jeff Short on February 2, 2017 · Leave a Comment
The rich man’s wealth is his strong city: the destruction of the poor is their poverty.
– Proverbs 10:15
There are some truths about life and reality that we simply have to face.
Wealth can be a defense and help to those who have it.
Poverty can be the vulnerability and isolation of those who suffer it. Solomon later warns we should not be hasty to decide wealth or poverty is better to have (Ecclesiastes 6:8, 12). Wisdom is discerning the world we actually live in and not the world we “imagine.” The world we live in is subject to vanity (Ecclesiastes 6:9) and there are realities about wealth and poverty we cannot escape (Proverbs 14:20; 18:23; 19:7; 22:7).
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Posted by Jeff Short on January 22, 2017 · Leave a Comment
He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.
– Proverbs 10:4
A slack hand refers to laxness or slothfulness. It is contrasted with
diligent, which refers to definite, determined action. Wisdom teaches that slothfulness tends to poverty (Proverbs 6:9-11; 19:15; 20:4). Wisdom also teaches that diligent work tends to abundance (Proverbs 13:4; 21:5).
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Posted by Jeff Short on October 5, 2016 · 1 Comment
So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.
– Proverbs 6:11
This section on the folly of sloth ends with the consequences of sloth and sleep. Solomon uses two figures to illustrate. There is variance as to the precise meaning of the two terms, but the lesson is obvious enough. The highwayman and the armed man come on suddenly and rob completely. Indulging sloth and ease causes one to awake one day to loss and waste. Solomon elsewhere warns that neglect of work leads to ruin (Ecclesiastes 10:18). From one perspective, the house doesn’t drop through at once but slowly over time. But the sluggard sleeps and loses time so that the roof cave-in seems sudden.
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Proverbs 13:8
Posted by Jeff Short on April 29, 2017 · Leave a Comment
The ransom of a man’s life are his riches: but the poor heareth not rebuke.
The word for ransom means a price or even a bribe. The word for rebuke in this context likely means a threat. This proverb is obscure but it seems the contrast indicates a rich man is a target for extortion perhaps, whereas the poor man offers no such target and is not bothered with the fear of it. In this sense, the poor man is freer.– Proverbs 13:8
Listen to the Proverbs sermon series
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