Chuck Larsen

When we think of the author of the Wisdom literature of the Bible, especially Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon, we often say, “Solomon said…” We attribute this wisdom to Solomon because he is attributed to have authored much of those works. However, we will find occasions when someone else wrote a particular passage. Proverbs Chapter 30 is one of those passages. It’s attributed to Agur. However, as the Lexham Bible Dictionary says, “Whether ‘Agur’ is intended as a proper name is not certain—…Agur may mean “gatherer”—and may therefore be meant as an epithet for Solomon, who ‘gathered’ wisdom.” Solomon was well known for collecting wise sayings as well as writing them himself.

I’ve always enjoyed the imagery in the Bible. The book of Proverbs is filled with it. Agur, or Solomon, presents us with pictures that illustrate the truths he intends to teach us. In chapter 30, there are numerous references to images that elicit more than knowledge but understanding and emotion as well.  When he talks about things that are never satisfied, he shows us the leech. It never stops draining its victims. He then mentions hell, a barren womb, a barren desert, and a fire. When he talks about things that amaze him, he sees an eagle in the sky, a serpent on a rock, a ship on the seas, and a man wooing a maiden. Then, Agur directs our attention to four members of the animal kingdom. He begins by pointing out how insignificant these small things are. Yet, they can teach us some of the more “significant” lessons in life. One writer commented, “Bigness is not necessarily the same as greatness.”

In Proverbs 30:24-28, we are introduced to “Four things on earth that are small, but they are exceedingly wise…” The Hebrew expression is literally “the wise trained in wisdom.” The idea of wisdom is repeated in the phrase. The NIV translates this as “extremely wise.” Today’s English Version says, “very, very clever.” The Greek Septuagint renders this as “wiser than wise.” Another one says, “wise beyond the wisest.” The New Jerusalem Bible says, “the wisest of the wise.” These four small animals, the ant, the rock badger, the locust, and the lizard, teach us things that are extremely important in life. Observing these four “small” things can make us “wiser than the wise.” Paul wrote to the Corinthians and told them that “God has chosen what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God has chosen what is insignificant …to bring to nothing what is viewed as something…” (1 Corinthians 1:27-28).

In Proverbs, Chapter Six, Solomon recites seven things that God hates. The last of the seven things that God hates seems to have an emphasis that the others lack. You see the emphasis in the opening phrase of Proverbs 6:16. It says, “There are six things the Lord hates…” But then the writer says, “No, wait “There are seven that he detests.” Although it’s listed as last in the list, it is positioned and addressed as the most important of the seven. Lennox says, “The conclusion of this list, number one on God’s ‘Top Seven Things I Hate,’ is the man who stirs up dissension among brothers (6:19). By repeating words from 6:14, the writer has joined these two sections into one warning: God wants people to get along with one another. For those who have become part of the family of God, such a reminder is especially important, whether we are at home or church.” It’s a family affair. Did you notice the mention of “brothers?”  I know that God loves people, even sinful people, and He hates the sin. But this verse has always given me pause. You might notice that the other six things that God hates refer to parts of a body: a tongue, heart, feet, eyes, hands, or mouths. But this seventh thing refers to the whole person. It says God hates the “one who stirs up dissension” in the family. This may be a literary device to focus attention on this last thing, giving it prominence in the list, as Lennox suggested. Yet, the focus on the “person” rather than the thing should give us all pause.

Cadmus, in mythology, slew a dragon. He then sowed the dragon’s teeth in a field which later sprouted giants. Being fearful of what those giants might do, Cadmus turned the giants against each other.  He struck one of them with a stone and pointed to another one. This giant then started a fight with the other one, and before long, they were all fighting each other. As they killed each other, Cadmus watched and laughed. Morgan rightly observes that “Our churches are full of potential spiritual giants, but Satan often sows discord among the members, and they end up as spiritual pygmies, fighting one another.”

When Jesus develops this negative into a positive, he blesses those who stop dissension and strife and pronounces a blessing on the “peacemakers” In Matthew 5:9. The blessing consists of a new classification. Jesus says, “They shall be called sons of God.” The Greek word order makes this title emphatic. It literally reads, “for they, sons of God, shall be called.” Regarding this structure, Hughes says, “The idea is that they, and no others, shall be called God’s sons. Moreover, the passive voice indicates that it is God, not man, who assigns the title ‘sons.’ The sublimity of this promise comes from the fact that the title “sons of God” refers to character. The peacemaker partakes of the character of God. He is like God in the way he lives. No wonder God says, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers.’” The Psalmist gives us a blessing similar to Jesus’ blessing on peacemakers.  In Psalm 133:1, we read, “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!”

In Proverbs, Chapter 6 tells us of the six things that God hates. The fourth and fifth items might be seen as a pair. They are “the heart that schemes evil” and “the feet that race to do wrong” (Proverbs 6:16-19). The natural person is motivated and driven by selfish motives. We think of ways to get what we want when we want it, often at the expense of others and God’s will. We have hard hearts in this respect. Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it?” It was the nature of man’s heart that broke God’s heart. In Genesis 6:5, we read, “Then the Lord saw that wickedness was great on the earth and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Kitchen says, “The ‘heart’ describes the totality of the inner man, including his rational powers, emotions, and volition. The ‘feet’ are what engage a man in what his heart has devised. Together, they describe the inner man and his outward activities. The Lord hates the one whose nature is bent toward, and quick to pursue, that which is contrary to His (God’s) nature.”

Solomon discovered and recorded for us all that pleasures, wealth, power, or possessions will never satisfy the longings of man’s heart. Regarding the pursuits of the hearts of man, J. M. Boice writes, “They fill for a time. But they are rather like a Chinese dinner, and the person is soon left empty again. Consequently, those who pursue them are doomed to a constant and relentless search for that which will never satisfy the true hunger and desire of their soul.” Our hearts push our feet to run after the selfish pleasures of life. These frantic pursuits serve to distract our attention from God’s truth. The truth is, as C. H. Benson puts it, “Sin is the undertaker that digs every grave and officiates at every funeral. Sin is the occasion of all want and wretchedness, all pain and privation. There are some men who say there is no heaven. They wish to know nothing better than this earth. If this is heaven, it is a very strange one—this world of sickness, sorrow, and sin. The man who has that idea is to be pitied. This world, which some think is heaven, has nothing in it to satisfy the soul.”

Paul thus urged his young disciple, Timothy, to “…flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness” (1 Timothy 6:11).  Again, in his 2^nd Letter to Timothy (2 Timothy 2:22), he says, “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” In Matthew 5, Jesus develops these two negatives into positives and blesses “the pure in heart” and those “who hunger and thirst for righteousness.”  What will be the result of the pure heart that drives our feet to run after righteousness? Jesus says that those who long for righteousness will be satisfied. He says that those with pure hearts “will see God.” While all the world’s wealth and pleasures will never satisfy our souls, seeing and knowing Christ, the true wisdom of God, will!

In the third Chapter of James, he uses three illustrations to explain the power of the tongue. It’s like a bit in the horse’s mouth, able to control the entire animal. It’s like a rudder on the stern of the ship, capable of changing the direction of the entire vessel. The third illustration pictures the destructive nature of the tongue comparing it to a small spark or flame capable of burning down an entire forest.  One cannot help but notice that the bit and the rudder speak to us of the positive potential use of one of the smallest parts of our bodies, the tongue. The third speaks to us of the potential danger, yet we shouldn’t miss the idea that fire in the fireplace is also a power for good. When it comes to the use of our tongues, it can be used for good or for evil. Proverbs 15:4 says, “Kind words bring life, but cruel words crush your spirit.”

What a great opportunity we have to do so much good with such a small thing as our words. As a grandparent, I often think my parenting days are over. But the truth is, they never end. At long last, I’m learning some of the more important lessons regarding raising healthy and happy families.  Addressing grandparents and great-grandparents, Dennis Rainey, the founder of the Family Life Seminars, says, “With kind acts and encouraging words, older people can influence the course of their family’s future. The opposite is true as well: A bitter, cynical old person can sow a legacy of low self-esteem, despair, and pessimism.”

Solomon, the man recognized by many as the wisest man in the world, said in Proverbs 25:11, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.” Think about that! Just as an artist labors over his craft, so too does a wise person delicately choose his words. Apples of gold possibly refer to a love gift: broach, bracelet, necklace, or pendant, finely fashioned of the two most precious metals known to man.  David Jeremiah writes, “It is a blessing beyond description to see the spirits of a person rise, the life restored to their eyes, as a result of a healing word from your own lips. Such words are as sweet and healthful as honey (16:24) and as beautiful as apples of gold in a setting of silver (25:11). The next time you marvel at a beautiful and costly display of precious jewels and artwork, remember that is how God sees a powerful word spoken at just the right time.”