Proverbs 21:5 ¶ The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness; but of every one that is hasty only to want.
Notice how diligent is contrasted as an
antonym, a word having the opposite meaning of another, with hasty.
Diligent is thorough in the following verses, as well;
Deuteronomy 19:18 And the judges shall make
diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath
testified falsely against his brother;
Psalm 64:6 They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search: both
the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is deep.
So, if you want to do something diligently you
won’t be hasty. There is an old saying, “haste makes waste”. This is a
practical Proverb for everyday life on the literal level. We say, “if something
is worth doing then it’s worth doing right.” We also say, “we don’t have time
to do it right but we will have time to do it over.” Take your time, do
something thoroughly and do it right.
The way to have plenty is to be diligent,
careful, and thorough. One of the many ways to poverty is to make rash
decisions; to be hasty and thoughtless in business. Making decisions from the
“gut” as they used to say is a good way to keep that gut empty. People who act
impulsively may be fun to be around for about a minute but they are horrible
examples to follow.
Proverbs 21:6 ¶ The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is
a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death.
Proverbs 10:2 has already told us;
Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but
righteousness delivereth from death.
Proverbs 13:11 has said;
Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished:
but he that gathereth by labour shall increase.
In fact, in this age of Christ’s Church we
Christians are warned of something even more explanatory of the time in which
we live;
1 Timothy 6:6 ¶ But godliness with
contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is
certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and raiment let us be
therewith content. 9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a
snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction
and perdition. 10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while
some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves
through with many sorrows.
This Proverb specifically talks about obtaining
wealth by lies, deception, and fraud which, alas, appears to be one of the
common ways in which such treasures are obtained. Investment bankers and
traders use other people’s hard-earned money which they naively placed at their
disposal to engage in trades that relieve the investor of his cash and benefit
the bankers and traders with great commissions on every transaction. It seems
amazing to me that people still trust a system that appears to seek to
impoverish them by playing and gambling with their hard-earned money. In the
end, though, such “success” on the part of the person doing the lying is simply
the road to death. The person who finds such treasures in dishonesty and
deception will think himself a success and very clever and neither in need of a
Saviour nor feeling the need to repent of his wickedness. With each commission
check the weeks and months tick off closer to the time of his death and the
eventual facing of God in a fiery judgment for an eternity that knows no end to
pain and humiliation. The road to his destruction is paved with the ruined
finances of the people he deceived and the lives that had the potential to not
suffer want that were led to poverty by his actions. Of course, we hope this
represents a small minority of bankers and traders, don’t we?
This would apply to anyone who gains wealth,
blind to his or her own need for repentance and salvation, dishonestly, by
lying and fraud.
But there is a deeper meaning to this Proverb,
perhaps. There are preachers and teachers who gain the treasures of souls won
for Christ by lies and fraud. It is a common thing and has been since the days
of the Bible’s writing, as Paul warns.
2Timothy 3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and
worse, deceiving, and being deceived.
Romans 16:18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their
own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the
simple.
Many of them would even be using what I would
call the right Bible and still be engaged in lies, fraud, and deception.
These lying so called men of God, like the old
prophet in 1 Kings 13 who lied to the man of God resulting in the younger man’s
death, are deceivers and speak “great swelling words of vanity”. They will tell
people that you get saved by trusting Christ and believing in and on and just
believing Him, as the Bible says very clearly in Romans 10, and then add a
laundry list of other things you must do, in their opinion, which they have
heard from other liars they admire, in order to “make it stick”.
And yes, new converts to Christ are likened to treasures. As Jesus warns His disciples about false teachers;
Matthew 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs (false male teachers; read 2 Peter chapter 2, Philippians 3:2; and Revelation 22:16) , neither cast ye your pearls (for believers and the people of God as precious stones see Exodus 28 with 1 Peter 4:5,6) before swine (false female teachers; again see 2 Peter, chapter 2 and pay close attention to verse 22), lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
These people will tell the new Christian that the most important thing once saved is that he or she come to church and go “soul winning” when, as Pastor David Peacock so aptly points out in his sermon “The Meaning of Revival” that is a lie. The most important thing is their relationship with Christ.
These lying so called men of God do not warn the new Christian that as soon as he received Christ as his Saviour he would be attacked by Satan and that the very first thing he or she must do is to start reading God’s word and praying for help and understanding. No, they’ll tell them at the end of a service to just be sure to be at church the next time the doors are open because if they’re in church they won’t be at the bars or in the street. Oft times, what happens is they never see the convert again unless they start banging on his door and shaming him into coming to church. The poor soul has been beaten, bruised, and battered by Satan and his own flesh and is more confused now than he was before he prayed for salvation.
These liars will tell the struggling convert to come to church, witness to the lost, and tithe in order to get close to Christ, a sort of religious “fake it to make it” process. But, you don’t do those things to get close to Christ. You do those things because you ARE close to Christ.
They’ll tell the convert that what he does and doesn’t do, his works and his separation from the world, will set him apart for God’s purpose. But, Christ says that God’s word sets us apart for Him.
John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
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