15 A
continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike. 16 Whosoever
hideth her hideth the wind, and the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth
itself. 17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of
his friend.
18 Whoso keepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof: so
he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured. 19 As in water face
answereth to face, so the heart of man to man. 20 Hell and destruction are
never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied. 21 As the fining pot
for silver, and the furnace for gold; so is a man to his praise. 22 Though
thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar among wheat with a pestle, yet will not
his foolishness depart from him. 23 Be thou diligent to know the state of
thy flocks, and look well to thy herds. 24 For riches are not for ever:
and doth the crown endure to every generation? 25 The hay appeareth, and
the tender grass sheweth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered. 26 The
lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field. 27 And
thou shalt have goats' milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household,
and for the maintenance for thy maidens.
(Proverbs 27:15-27)
In reading the repeated warnings of Solomon against the nagging and
contentiousness of women, I am forced to believe that his experiences emerge
from an unnatural desire for more than one of them. Naturally, no woman is
going to keep her peace with a husband who is carousing with one thousand
mistresses. God intended one wife for one man, and one man for one woman.
Solomon learned God was wise above all others in such a natural state of
matrimony. 15 “A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a
contentious woman are alike.” The old southern proverb – “Ain’t
nobody happy if mama ain’t happy” – holds true to form and is consistent with
that which Solomon expresses. Just as on a stormy day, one stands in the house
and hears the drip, drip, dripping of many leaks in the roof, so is the
troubling nagging of a wife; especially a wife who has been slighted. It is
miserable to remain in such a house, but the immoderate rains preclude one from
travelling outside. 16 “Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind, and
the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth itself.” Trying to
calm such a woman is like trying to hold the wind back – impossible; or else
the devotion of the man for his perfumed spouse may overcome him if the
restrained winds fail.
17. “Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his
friend.” Social intercourse sharpens the wit of man. Without social
intercourse, there is no mental growth or social grace. Man was never intended
to be alone: “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make
him an help meet for him.” (Gen 2:18) To dispute on points of law,
science, and religion sharpens our ability to defend our positions. It takes
the hardness of iron to sharpen other iron just as it takes a like nature of
man to sharpen the wits of another. If you wish to improve your tennis game, do
not play with a partner of less talent than yourself else your skills will
suffer; pick one who is better so that you may grow better. Copper is too soft
to sharpen iron, and an effeminate and wimpy soldier will never inspire the
war-making skills of a fellow soldier.
18 “Whoso keepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof: so he
that waiteth on his master shall be honoured.” Our social
graces are honed by loyalty and service. Just as the profits of the fig orchard
depend upon the attentiveness and care of the servant who tends the orchard, so
does the attentive servant who obeys his superior and diligently applies
himself to every task shall be honored by that supervisor. In a larger sense,
this proverb applies to the Child of God and his Master in Heaven. If we are
faithful in all, we will at last hear: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast
been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many
things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord” (Matthew 25:21).
Do we see ourselves in others? We must if we are to have compassion on others.
When we see in the pain of others our own pain and suffering, we will be moved
with ‘com” (together) passion (feeling). Compassion means to feel the pain of
others. So much so that we act upon it to relieve the suffering. 19 “As
in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man.” When
we gaze into a still brook, we can see our own face looking back. When we look
into the face of a poor and hungry orphan, we must see our own face looking
back at us. The old Anglican priest, John Donne, got it right:
No man is an island,
Entire of itself,
Every man is a piece
of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe
is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thy
friend's
Or of thine own were:
Any man's death diminishes me,
Because I am
involved in mankind,
And therefore send not to know for whom the bell tolls;
Behold,
It tolls for thee.
20 “Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are
never satisfied.” On March 1st of
2007, a devastating tornado struck my home town and destroyed the high school.
Eight souls were taken from the land of the living at that time. It was the
worst catastrophe this little town had ever witnessed. Standing in line at Winn
Dixie a few days later, there was a lady paying for her groceries conversing
with the cashier. She said, “This storm was the Judgment of God.” A
distinguished black minister, who was standing in line behind her said, “Honey
child, you ain’t seen NOTHING yet.” How right he was. The dimensions of
destruction can always be exceeded and added to – there is no set limit to
suffering. May I add as well that Hell shall always be large enough to
accommodate the billions who will find themselves confined there at the moment
of God’s own choosing. Just because you are not as bad as some of your
neighbors is no guarantee that you will not “bust Hell wide open” one day.
There is ALWAYS room for ONE MORE. I pray that ONE MORE is not you or me.
21 “As the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so is a
man to his praise.” A refining pot for silver and a
furnace for gold will bring out the true quality of the precious metals. So
does the public reputation of a man bear record of his quality of character and
philanthropy. The weak man, believe it or not, cannot stand praise. It will go
to the head of the proud and vain so that it will ruin whatever man once
occupied the body.
22 “Though thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar among wheat
with a pestle, yet will not his foolishness depart from him.”
Merciless beatings will not erase the fool’s foolish ways. In ancient times,
incorrigible men were often placed in a mortar among the grains of wheat and
beaten with a stone pestle. Even if they died of their wounds, they died
fools. Foolishness is a part of the nature and character of a fool. He only can
appreciate the presence of a whip to discourage his present foolish behavior.
Perhaps as a child he was allowed to grow among the thorns and thistles so that
when grown to adulthood, his branches and fruit are stunted. That is why a
child must be raised up in the way that he should go. When he is old, that
restraining nature will be his guide and defender.
23 “Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look
well to thy herds. 24 For riches are not for ever: and doth the
crown endure to every generation? 25 The hay appeareth, and the
tender grass sheweth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered. 26 The
lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field. 27 And
thou shalt have goats' milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household,
and for the maintenance for thy maidens.” These last five verses
are an appeal to the beauty and solitude of simplicity in life – the
pasturelands, the cultivated fields, and the barns of plenty as opposed to the
false lights of the city. There is no graft or corruption in the shepherd’s
work of watching the flock as there is on city streets abundant with venders,
black-marketers, and street-walkers. The luxuries of the city are a mirage that
dissipates with age. There is no kingdom, save ONE, whose crown has endured the
years of eternity. We find ample medicine in the mountain herbs, and plenty of
warm clothing from the little lambs. All of our household will have healthy
food and drink that comes from the gift of God’s Nature – this, the city cannot
offer. The city can only afford pollution and poisons to the weary soul. Better
to view the night sky from the pristine atmosphere of the desert than the
glimmering and unsteady lights of the city.
