“A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.” Proverbs 28:20
Devotional Thought For The Day
First, a clarification about the translation. All translators are agreed on the first part of the proverb, and also the first part of the second clause in regard to “hastening to be rich.” However, the last word of this proverb [naqah = nawkaw] can be translated as “clean, blameless, innocent, guiltless, and unpunished.” Obviously, the negative particle precedes this word. In that the first clause contains promise of action – blessings, it is reasonable to choose “unpunished” for the second – which also contains an active threat. The “faithful man” is one who is “true, trustworthy, steady, sturdy, faithful,” in regard to God’s law and genuine love for others.
So the contrast is not between those who “abound with blessings,” some of which blessings might include wealth, privilege, and prerogative, and those who are poor. Rather, what is warned against is the desire to get rich quickly – which is always accompanied by a variety of other temptations and sinful actions against the good and welfare of others. What is at stake is the inner life and being of a person, what he/she is focused on – riches or duty, personal wealth or the good and welfare of others, selfishness or selflessness. It is contrary to conventional wisdom and advice, but when we take care to love others, to carry on our business and affairs with the good of others as our first priority, when we are generous in our compassion and giving, God promises that we will “abound with blessings.” Conventional wisdom tells us to take care of ourselves first, and after we are rich we can let a few crumbs fall to the dogs at our feet. But the proverb promises punishment for those who love and serve money, and have little or no concern for those who are trampled in the process.
Now our sinful nature is such that we may look at the proverb and decide to be “faithful” for the sake of gaining the abounding blessings and avoiding punishment. This would be better as far as the good of other people is concerned, but it leaves our hearts in the same condition as the one who hastens to be rich; that is, we are still being moved, motivated, and compelled not by love for God and others, but rather a selfish desire to enrich and benefit ourselves. Obviously, God is more concerned about us – who we are, the condition of our heart, our inner life of repentance, faith, and the desire to do what is genuinely good and right, than He is about our actions. He knows that so long as our hearts are selfish and set on gaining blessings rather than being faithful we are vulnerable to all manner of temptations, and we will end up doing many evil things while deluding ourselves into thinking that we are being faithful. So the wisdom of this proverb warns us, each of us, as to what we should set our hearts on as our priority, and what we must not allow to be at the core of our ambitions. Unfortunately, this means that we are called to be different, to live contrary to the common shared wisdom and values of our culture.
We must also consider the factor of time in our judgments. Some people who hasten to be rich, and others who seek wealth gradually by selfish and immoral means, do in fact get rich; so wealth is not a clear indicator of faithfulness. In time – or in the end – these people will be denuded of their wealth and will receive their punishment. [1 Tim. 6:6-10] It will be same for those who hasten to be rich, or have their hearts set on wealth, even if they do not succeed but remain poor. We cannot serve both God and money, and those who love and serve money hate God and despise Him [Matt. 6:24]. They too will suffer the same eternal punishment. So we are all called to repentance, regardless of our financial circumstances, to rejoice in His gracious mercy, forgiveness, and love, and to allow God to reset our priorities to faithfully serving Him by our loving actions toward those around us. Obviously, the acquisition of wealth can be a deadly impediment to this [Matt. 19:22], so all must beware in this matter. The proverb is a gracious and wise instruction from God in regard to spiritual life and death. It calls us to repentance, to live in God’s gracious love, and to be transformed by His love so that our hearts and lives are truly faithful. May He grant it to us all!
Prayer For The Day
Dear Lord Jesus, preserve us from all selfish desires and ambitions that lead away from You and into great evils and punishment. Keep us firm and faithful in repentance, in the joyful assurance of Your gracious forgiveness and salvation, and steadfastly focused on the things that reflect love and newness of life, the good and welfare of others. Make us faithful children of God. Give us contentment and willingness to receive our abundant blessings chiefly in Your coming kingdom of glory. Amen.