Prosperity of the Worker vs. Poverty of the Talker

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Heavenly Father,

we acknowledge this morning as we come,

as we come to worship you,

that there is no wisdom that is sufficient for us,

for our time,

than your wisdom.

And so, Father, we do not come

to a roundtable discussion.

We do not come to a panel of experts.

God, we come to the reading and preaching of your word.

We look to you, Father.

Teach us.

Humble us.

We are waiting to hear from you,

to be guided by your word,

to be changed by your word.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

Please turn with me to Proverbs chapter 10.

Proverbs 10 · chapter mention

We are now entering the main body of the book of Proverbs.

This is what the,

this is the proverbial feast that the woman of wisdom,

the woman, lady wisdom,

has been inviting us to in chapters 8 to 9.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Proverbs chapter 10,

Proverbs 10:1–22

verses 1 to 22.

The Proverbs of Solomon.

A wise son makes a glad father,

but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.

Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,

but righteousness delivers from death.

The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry,

but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.

A slack hand causes poverty,

but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

He who gathers in summer is a prudent son,

but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.

Blessings are on the head of the righteous,

but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

The memory of the righteous is a blessing,

but the name of the wicked will rot.

The wise of heart will receive commandments,

but a babbling fool will come to ruin.

Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,

but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.

Whoever winks the eye causes trouble,

and a babbling fool will come to ruin.

The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,

but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

Hatred stirs up strife,

but love covers all offenses.

On the lips of him who has understanding,

wisdom is found,

but a rod is for the back of him who lacks sense.

The wise lay up knowledge,

but the mouth of a fool brings ruin near.

A rich man's wealth is his strong city.

The poverty of the poor is their ruin.

The wage of the righteous leads to life.

The gain of the wicked to sin.

Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life,

but he who rejects reproof leads others astray.

The one who conceals hatred has lying lips,

and whoever utters slander is a fool.

When words are many,

transgression is not lacking,

but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.

The tongue of the righteous is choice silver.

The heart of the wicked is of little worth.

The lips of the righteous feed many,

but fools die for lack of sense.

The blessing of the Lord makes rich,

and he adds no sorrow with it.

This is God's holy and authoritative word.

The first verse of this chapter begins by saying that these are the Proverbs of Solomon.

Solomon, as I mentioned in my first sermon in the book of Proverbs,

to introduce the book,

is a compilation of wisdom collections from various authors.

Solomon is the principal author,

and this is a section that's dedicated to him.

In this first section of the Solomonic Proverbs,

Proverbs 10:1

chapter 10, verse 1, to chapter 22, verse 16,

there's a total of 375 verses,

and the Jews practiced kind of numerology in a way,

like they would put a numerical value on each Hebrew letters of the alphabet.

And if you add up the numerical value of the name Solomon,

it's 375.

So this is his mark on this collection,

saying this is my wisdom he's trying to impart to us.

And the whole collection is dedicated to helping us to live with the fear of the Lord.

And the first collection can be divided into two general subsections.

Chapter 10, verse 1, to chapter 15, verse 29,

speaks of living righteously before the just Lord,

before the justice of the Lord.

And then chapter 15, verse 30, to chapter 22, verse 16,

is about living humbly before the sovereign Lord.

It's about humility before the sovereignty of God.

And so this first section,

which is broadly about living righteously before the just Lord,

is made up of a series of contrasts between the righteous and the wicked.

And it seeks to motivate us to live righteously

by keeping the justice of God in view.

And considering this common overarching theme,

these five chapters really should be preached together.

But that would make for a very long sermon,

which I hear is not advisable, especially over Zoom.

So for many days, I debated in my mind how to preach this.

And we could preach it topically,

meaning just pulling all these,

lifting various verses from different contexts

and then compiling them together to fit a topic.

Or we could preach it just kind of chronologically

as we've been doing, chapter by chapter,

in which case you get the benefit of the context of each verse.

And what we're going to try to do is to attempt a hybrid

where we will cover it chapter by chapter,

but we'll bring in other verses that are related to it

so that it gets both its immediate context

and the nuances of the entire book of Proverbs

on a given topic.

So today we're looking at chapter 10, verses 1 to 22,

which contrasts the prosperity of the worker

versus the poverty of the talker.

Next week, we'll look at chapter 10, verse 23,

to chapter 12, 28,

which contrasts the permanence of the upright

versus the impermanence of the crooked,

particularly salient topic.

And keep in mind that chapter 10 to 15,

all of it is a series of contrasts

between the righteous and the wicked.

And what we're supposed to take from it

is that even though the wicked prosper

and injustices prevail in this world,

this is a painfully relevant reality in our present world,

but we ought to live nonetheless righteously

knowing that the Lord is just.

He will ultimately repay everyone

according to their word and deed.

And the main theme of today's passage

is that those who wish to see the prosperity of the Lord

should work diligently and speak sparingly.

And so first, it tells us that the diligent

will get rich in verses 1 to 5.

And then it tells us that the babbler will meet ruin

in verses 6 to 14.

And then it tells us in verses 15 to 22

to store up wealth and words.

So let's look at verses 1 to 5 first,

which tells us that the diligent will get rich.

Though not in a naive, unrealistic way.

So let's look at what it actually says.

Subunit begins in verse 1,

ends in verse 5.

And then verse 2 to 3

speak of the connection between wealth and ethics

in a complementary way.

Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,

but righteousness delivers from death.

The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry,

but He thwarts the craving of the wicked.

So on the one hand,

some people do gain treasures by wickedness.

Verse 2 concedes that much.

However, Solomon insists that such treasures

do not profit.

Obviously, treasures are by definition profitable.

So he's not speaking here of material, temporal profit,

but of eternal, spiritual profit.

You might prosper by wickedness

during your short life here on earth,

but treasures so gained will be useless

on the day of judgment.

But righteousness delivers from death.

This is paralleled by Proverbs chapter 11, verse 4,

Proverbs 11:4

which is,

Do not profit in the day of wrath,

but righteousness delivers from death.

Only righteousness will deliver

from the wrath of God on the day of judgment.

It doesn't matter how much money you have,

how much power you have.

In the end,

you will die like the rest of humanity,

and the currency of this world will have no value.

Only the righteous will be granted eternal life.

On the other hand,

while it is true that the wicked

do sometimes prosper in this life,

verse 3 says,

The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry,

but He thwarts the craving of the wicked.

This is the general principle

by which God has ordered the universe to work.

God satisfied the hunger of the righteous,

but thwarts the craving of the wicked.

So verses 2 and 3,

they complement each other

to paint a fuller picture,

more nuanced picture.

The Lord opposes the cravings of the wicked in this world,

but there are exceptions where the wicked prosper.

Nonetheless,

they will not avoid God's justice forever.

They will meet their due on the day of judgment,

and the righteous will prosper forever.

Now, turn with me.

I'm going to rely primarily on chapter 10 and chapter 13

throughout this passage,

so keep your finger on chapter 10,

but turn with me to chapter 13 for a moment.

Verses 21 to 25.

We'll linger here for a little while.

We see here clearly that

Proverbs does not teach that the righteous

will never in any circumstances go hungry,

and it explains why.

Because verse 2,

as verse 2 of chapter 10 conceded,

the wicked do prosper sometimes,

even at the expense of the righteous.

But chapter 13 fills out the picture some more.

21 to 25.

It says,

Disaster pursues sinners,

but the righteous are rewarded with good.

A good man leaves an inheritance

to his children's children,

but the sinner's wealth is laid up for the righteous.

The fallow ground of the poor

would yield much food,

but it is swept away through injustice.

Whoever spares the rod hates his son,

but he who loves him

is diligent to discipline him.

The righteous has enough

to satisfy his appetite,

but the belly of the wicked suffers want.

First, there is the general assurance

that the righteous will be rewarded

and the sinners will be thwarted.

Disaster pursues sinners.

That's a hunting metaphor.

Sinners might run free for a little while,

but disaster hounds them,

and eventually it will catch up with them

no matter how long it takes.

And the evil that they inflicted on others

will boomerang back to them.

In contrast,

the righteous are rewarded with good.

The good deeds of the righteous

will return to them

and do good to them in the end.

And that's why verse 22 says,

A good man leaves an inheritance

to his children's children,

but the sinner's wealth

is laid up for the righteous.

The good man is rewarded with good.

In this case,

the ability to pass on one's inheritance

to his children and grandchildren.

In contrast,

the sinner,

though he may have accumulated

much wealth during his life,

will be caught by the disaster

that pursues sinners.

There are, however,

two things that stand in the way

of passing on righteous wealth.

First, verse 23 qualifies verse 21.

The fallow ground of the poor

would yield much food,

but it is swept away through injustice.

In Exodus chapter 23,

Exodus 23:10–11

verses 10 to 11,

the Israelites are commanded,

For six years you shall sow your land

and gather in its yield,

but the seventh year you shall let it rest

and lie fallow,

that the poor of your people may eat,

and what they leave,

the beasts of the field may eat.

You shall do likewise with your vineyard

and with your olive orchard.

So they were supposed to let the land rest fallow,

fallow, uncultivated,

on the seventh year,

so that,

and then they were not to harvest that year,

so that the natural produce of the land

in that seventh year

would all go to the poor of that land,

and they would have to eat to their fill

and even save some for the future.

And Proverbs 13, 23 says

that the fallow ground of the poor

would otherwise yield much food,

but unfortunately,

it is swept away through injustice.

People don't leave the land fallow.

As we see in Israel's history

throughout the Old Testament,

they don't follow this command well,

and so the poor are not fed,

and they go hungry,

even the righteous poor

who deserve to eat.

Second, verse 24 qualifies verse 22.

So verse 23 qualifies 21,

verse 24 qualifies 22.

Whoever spares the rod hates his son,

but he who loves him

is diligent to discipline him.

This is where we get the expression

spare the rod and spoil the child.

The Bible,

in contrast to the prevailing wisdom

of our culture,

does not believe

that children are

kind of innocent angels

that society then subsequently

corrupts and ruins.

Proverbs 22, 15 says

that folly is bound up

in the heart of a child,

but the rod of discipline

drives it far from him.

We'll address parenting

and corporal punishment

at greater length

when we get to chapter 22,

but for now,

it suffices to say

that some form of discipline

for our children is necessary.

Children are not born innocent angels.

Children are born misguided,

and therefore,

they need course correction.

That's what the Bible teaches us.

Not disciplining our children

is in fact unloving,

and the failure of discipline

is what threatens

the promise of verse 22

that a good man

leaves an inheritance

to his children's children.

An undisciplined child

will grow up

to squander all of his inheritance.

Nevertheless,

the general truth still holds,

and it says in chapter 13,

verse 25,

the righteous has enough

to satisfy his appetite,

but the belly of the wicked

suffers want.

Now, that brings us back

to chapter 10.

The fact that the Lord

does not let the righteous

go hungry,

as it says in verse 3.

But that doesn't mean

that the righteous

don't have to do any work,

or that they could just

wait passively for God

to put food on their tables.

God's provision

does not make man's work

unnecessary.

Verses 4 to 5

make that clear.

It says,

A slack hand

causes poverty,

but the hand of the diligent

makes rich.

He who gathers in summer

is a prudent son,

but he who sleeps in harvest

is a son who brings shame.

The reason why

the righteous prosper

is because the righteous

are diligent.

God has ordained

that the righteous

will prosper

by their hard work.

Notice the contrast

between the slack hand

and the diligent hand

and between gathering

and sleeping.

Divine provision

usually comes

through human work.

This is why

it's appropriate for us

to thank God

for the jobs we work

and the income we earn

because it's ultimately

all from Him.

And turn with me

one more time

back to chapter 13.

I'm going to do that

two more times.

This is the second time.

I'm covering most

of chapter 13

and chapter 10

this morning.

Chapter 13

this time to verses

7 to 11.

This also emphasizes

the value of hard work

and frugal living.

And note well

that frugal living

is not the same thing

as stingy living

as the other proverbs

later in this series

will make clear.

First,

verses 7 to 8

give us insight

to the behavior

of the rich and poor people.

It says,

One pretends to be rich

yet has nothing.

Another pretends

to be poor

yet has great wealth.

The ransom

of a man's life

is his wealth

but a poor man

hears no threat.

I remember hearing

the story

of a prominent

Christian speaker

who was traveling

and he was getting

picked up at the airport.

The person

that was supposed

to pick him up

was the son

of this really,

really,

really wealthy

Christian businessman

who had donated

millions of dollars

to various

Christian charities

that this man,

the speaker,

serves on the board of.

And so his son

is picking him up

and he's waiting

at the airport

and to his surprise,

this son pulls up

in this junk of a car.

And he couldn't

suppress his curiosity

so on his ride back

he asked him,

So hey,

I mean,

I know

how well off

you guys are

so I'm just wondering

why you guys are

driving a car like this.

And the son told him,

so I actually complained

about that to my father

one time

and he told me,

Son,

we have enough money

to line up

our entire driveway

with dozens of Humvees

but we don't

because we don't need

to flaunt our wealth

just because we are wealthy

and our money

ultimately belongs

to the Lord

and we want to use it

for His glory

and not our vanity.

Plus our car

still drives smoothly

and we don't need

to replace it.

Now this story

captures the spirit

of verse 7.

One pretends to be rich

yet has nothing.

Another pretends

to be poor

yet has great wealth.

The rich may live

frugally

well below his means

but the poor

may live lavishly

well beyond his means

perhaps out of a desire

to be perceived

as wealthy

and important

and powerful.

But appearances,

this proverb teaches us,

ultimately,

doesn't matter.

Appearance doesn't matter.

In a crisis

when one's life

is threatened,

the rich may use

his wealth

as the ransom

to save himself

but a poor man

hears no threat

says in verse 9.

The poor man

has nothing to lose

and will take his life

into his own hands.

He will be unable

to save himself.

And as a result,

it says,

the light of the righteous

rejoices

but the lamp

of the wicked

will be put out.

Putting out

someone's light

refers to

killing them,

to taking the light

out of somebody.

And the righteous

rich will rejoice

which literally means

to shine

or beam.

The righteous rich

will beam with life

but the wicked poor

will be extinguished.

This refers

to their ultimate doom.

And how can you

avoid this fate?

Verses 10 to 11

of chapter 13

tell us,

By insolence

comes nothing

but strife

but with those

who take advice

is wisdom.

Wealth gained

hastily

will dwindle

but whoever

gathers little

by little

will increase it.

You avoid

the fate

of the wicked

poor

by humbling

yourself

and heeding

the wisdom

of Proverbs.

And according

to Proverbs,

those who wish

to see the prosperity

of the Lord

should work

diligently.

Wealth gained

hastily

will dwindle

but whoever

gathers little

by little

will increase it.

The word hastily

literally means

by vapor

or by air.

It refers to

all empty

and fanciful

and insubstantial

means

of gaining wealth.

So that means

don't get fooled

by the

get rich

quick schemes.

That means

don't be lured

into gambling.

It means

don't throw away

your money

trying to win

the lottery.

It means

don't try

to scam

people

and to get

rich quickly.

Don't buy

into the

promise

of easy

money.

Gaining

wealth

hastily

involves

the idolization

of wealth

and the

love of money.

Wealth

at all

costs

and it

will bring

your ruin.

It will be

your undoing.

The biblical

way to gain

wealth,

the wise

way to gain

wealth

is little

by little.

That literally

means by

hand.

Something that

you do

by hand

takes time.

You're

supposed to

gain wealth

gradually

and diligently.

Lasting wealth

is gained

incrementally

through diligent

work,

not explosively

through a

stroke of

luck

or crime.

And now

returning to

chapter 10

verse 4.

A slack

hand

causes

poverty

but the

hand

of the

diligent

makes

rich.

Now

having

taught us

that the

diligent

will get

rich

in verses

1-5,

Solomon

now

contrasts

this

with

verses

6-14

where he

tells us

that the

babbler

will meet

ruin.

Now

verses

6-14

are stitched

together

by various

repeated

themes

and phrases.

There's a lot

of reference

to the

body parts

which is

an imagery

that's used

to contrast

the righteous

and the

wicked.

Verses

6-7

say this

that blessings

are on the

head of the

righteous

but the

mouth of

the wicked

conceals

violence.

The memory

of the

righteous

is a

blessing

but the

name of

the wicked

will rot.

Our actions

in this

life

though you

might escape

punishment

in this

life

our actions

have

consequences.

It's

idiomatic in

Hebrew to

say that

blessing

comes upon

someone's

head.

That's

why when

a person

blesses

someone

in the

Bible

they lay

their

hands

on

their

head.

And

the

righteous

during

their

lives

was

blessed

and

was

a

blessing

to

others.

And

so in

their

death

it says

their

memory

in

people's

heads

will be

a

blessing.

In

contrast

the

wicked

during

their

lives

concealed

violence

wreaking

havoc

with

their

deceptive

mouth.

So in

their

death

their

name

will

never

be

invoked

on

people's

mouths.

Rather

they will

be

forgotten

and their

names

will rot

like

their

bodies

in the

grave.

It's

typical

in

Hebrew

culture

to

invoke

the

name

of

a

godly

person

in

a

blessed

individual

in

order

to

bless

others.

So for

example

in

Ruth

Ruth 4:11

chapter

4

verse

11

when

Boaz

makes

a

pledge

to

marry

Ruth

the

elders

say

this

we

are

witnesses

may

the

Lord

make

the

woman

who

is

coming

into

your

house

like

Rachel

and

Leah

who

together

built

up

the

house

of

Israel

they're

blessing

Ruth

Now

verse

8

says

that

wise

of

heart

will

come

to

ruin

and

the

second

half

of

this

verse

is

matched

by

verse

10

whoever

wings

the

eye

causes

trouble

and

a

babbling

fool

will

come

to

ruin

now

there's

the

contrast

between

the

wise

of

heart

and

the

fool

who

is

wise

in

their

own

eyes

in

chapter

3

verse

7

so

the

wise

of

heart

are

humble

and

receptive

to

instruction

and

teaching

and

correction

they

will

receive

commandments

in

contrast

the

fool

who

is

wise

in

his

own

eyes

he

wings

the

eye

causes

trouble

they

are

wise

in

their

own

eyes

so

they

use

their

wings

with

their

knowing

wings

in

order

to

deceive

and

but

in

the

end

the

result

is

the

same

a

babbling

fool

will

come

to

ruin

babbling

fool

is

literally

foolish

of

lip

a

folly

is

often

discovered

first

on a

person's

lips

he

is

quick

to

speak

he

airs

his

opinions

widely

because

he

thinks

very

highly

of

his

own

opinions

and

believes

that

everyone

should

benefit

by

hearing

from

him

verse

11

once

again

returns

to

the

image

of

the

mouth

of

the

righteous

is

a

fountain

of

life

but

the

mouth

of

the

wicked

conceals

violence

now

everyone

needs

water

to

live

right

but

this

need

was

especially

felt

keenly

felt

in

the

arid

lands

of

the

ancient

near

east

where

there

wasn't

much

water

and

so

communities

literally

formed

out of

places

where

there

were

wells

fountains

of

water

which

were

literally

fountains

of

life

and

in

similar

to

that

the

words

of

the

wise

the

mouth

of

the

righteous

bring

people

together

by

his

teaching

and

infuse

the

community

with

spiritual

and

moral

vitality

in

contrast

the

mouth

of

the

wicked

conceals

violence

their

words

are

deceptive

divisive

and

destructive

they

bring

death

to

their

communities

compare

this

to

verse

12

which

is

a

succinct

summary

of

what

we

covered

so far

hatred

stirs

up

strife

but

love

covers

all

offenses

the

word

cover

here

is

the

same

Hebrew

word

that's

translated

as

conceal

in

verses

6

and

11

to

say

that

the

wicked

conceals

violence

and

it's

also

the

same

word

that's

translated

in

verse

18

as

the

one

who

conceals

hatred

has

lying

lips

the

wicked

conceal

the

wicked

cover

up

their

malicious

intent

through

deceit

but

the

righteous

cover

the

offenses

of

others

in

love

the

wicked

cover

their

own

offense

the

righteous

cover

the

others

offense

while

the

hatred

of

the

wicked

stirs

up

strife

the

love

of

the

righteous

brings

forgiveness

reconciliation

and

harmony

this

does

not

mean

that

the

righteous

turn

a

blind

eye

to

evil

nor

that

they

never

rebuke

wrongdoers

but

their

lives

exemplify

1st

Peter

chapter

4

verse

8

keep

loving

one

another

earnestly

sins

love

covers

a

multitude

of

sins

if

you

love

someone

you

overlook

minor

offenses

if

you

love

someone

you

give

them

the

best

possible

construction

and

form

charitable

judgments

about

them

if

you

love

someone

you

are

inclined

toward

forgiveness

and

reconciliation

not

condemnation

and

separation

if

you

love

someone

you

confront

and

correct

in a

gentle

and

patient

way

to

be

honest

stirring

up

strife

is a

lot

more

cathartic

at

times

isn't

it

but

God's

people

are

called

to

a

different

ethic

we

are

to

be

animated

by

love

not

by

desire

to

get

even

and

our

goal

should

be

reconciliation

not

retaliation

to

build

up

and

not

to

tear

down

and

so

verses

13

to

14

conclude

this

subsection

with

more

emphasis

on

the

importance

of

speech

he

says

on

the

lips

of

him

who

has

understanding

wisdom

is

found

but

a

rod

is

for

the

back

of

him

who

lacks

sense

the

wise

lay

up

knowledge

but

the

mouth

of

a

fool

brings

ruin

near

on

the

lips

of

the

understanding

you

can

find

wisdom

but

the

senseless

invite

notice

how

many

times

the

words

like

mouth

and

lip

are

repeated

in

this

subsection

word

mouth

occurs

four

times

verse

6

11

14

the

word

lip

counting

the

word

babbling

fool

which

means

foolish

of

lip

it

occurs

three

times

in

verse

8

10

and

13

there's

many

body

parts

imagery

used

but

mouth

the

image

of

the

mouth

predominates

and

there's

a

reason

for

that

and

that

brings

us

to

the

third

point

having

taught

us

that

the

diligent

will

get

rich

and

that

the

babbler

will

meet

ruin

Solomon

now

returns

again

to

the

topic

of

wealth

on

the

surface

level

it's

easy

to

think

that

these

sections

are

discrete

and

unrelated

but

this

is

why

Solomon

tells

us

that

wealth

and

words

are

intimately

related

and

that

we

should

store

up

both

rather

than

playing

fast

and

loose

with

them

verse

14

serves

as

a

transition

and

has

many

instructive

parallels

with

verse

15

the

wise

lay

up

knowledge

but

the

mouth

of

a

fool

brings

ruin

near

a

rich

man's

wealth

is

his

strong

city

the

poverty

of

the

poor

is

their

ruin

the

word

ruin

is

the

poverty

of

the

poor

the

word

poor

is

used

in

the

bible

primarily

to

refer

to

those

who

are

poor

because

of

circumstances

that

are

outside

of

their

control

they

are

usually

described

as

the

object

of

God's

special

care

and

compassion

but

when

it's

used

with

the

word

poverty

it

has

a

negative

connotation

the

word

poverty

and

want

in

wisdom

literature

are

a

result

of

divine

judgment

for

sins

such

love

of

luxury

and

carelessness

and

idle

talk

so

the

poor

in

view

here

are

the

guilty

poor

the

mouth

of

a

fool

parallels

the

poverty

of

the

poor

they

both

bring

ruin

now

there's

an

implicit

parallel

between

the

wise

who

lay

up

or

store

up

knowledge

and

the

rich

man

who

stores

up

wealth

as

a

safeguard

the

stored

up

knowledge

of the

wise

protect

them

both

wealth

and

words

Solomon

is

teaching

us

through

this

connection

are

something

that

the

wise

save

and

store

up

the

wise

save

up

their

money

and

spare

their

words

now

lest

one

value

the

security

afforded

by

money

too

highly

verse

16

qualifies

verse

15

the

wage

of

the

righteous

leads

to

life