THE SLUGGARD AND THE DILIGENT
The Bible has a lot to say about “sluggards” (and it’s not pretty)!
Have you ever thought about why God wants us to be hard workers and not give in to laziness? Proverbs 13:4 says, “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the soul of the diligent is made fat”. NASB. What is it that makes that “soul” different in our life and leads us to enjoying a full life - the kind of life God intended for us. As we look briefly into this verse today we see a great comparison between being lazy and just desiring stuff, and working hard to achieve something and have something. I like the way the NKJV version and the ESV versions of the Bible bring this verse to life.
NKJV says… 4The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.
ESV says… 4The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent xis richly supplied.
On page 39 of the Tyndale Bible Commentary he brings out that … “13:4. A lazy person (on sluggard see [Vol. 1, p. 933] has desires (craves refers to a deep-seated physical drive or appetite; cf. “craving” in 13:2), but his desires are not satisfied because he is not willing to work. However, diligence enables a person to be satisfied”
Proverbs (13:4; 21:25, 26) bring out that the sluggard is restless and lives with unsatisfied desire. Proverbs 21:25-26 give us more insight onto the plight of the sluggard and the heart of the hard worker. It says, “The desire of the sluggard puts him to death, for his hands refuse to work; All day long he is craving, while the righteous gives and does not hold back”. Don’t miss that the righteous give and do not hold back. Let’s use our diligence to give to others and be a blessing to everyone we meet.
I think the challenge for us today when we are tempted to sit back and do nothing is to remember that it just breeds trouble for us. It puts us in a spiral of discontentment, frustration, and robs us of being happy and living a life full of purpose, meaning and seeing God bless the work of our hands. “Who really wants to be sluggard? The flip side is working hard and enjoying a rich soul, and seeing God bless the work of your hands. Let’s go for that real soul food that drives our life. Let’s choose the life of being hard workers in God’s kingdom and in everything we do. Proverbs 12:27 “...the precious possession of a man is diligence.”
Have you ever thought about why God wants us to be hard workers and not give in to laziness? Proverbs 13:4 says, “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the soul of the diligent is made fat”. NASB. What is it that makes that “soul” different in our life and leads us to enjoying a full life - the kind of life God intended for us. As we look briefly into this verse today we see a great comparison between being lazy and just desiring stuff, and working hard to achieve something and have something. I like the way the NKJV version and the ESV versions of the Bible bring this verse to life.
NKJV says… 4The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.
ESV says… 4The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent xis richly supplied.
On page 39 of the Tyndale Bible Commentary he brings out that … “13:4. A lazy person (on sluggard see [Vol. 1, p. 933] has desires (craves refers to a deep-seated physical drive or appetite; cf. “craving” in 13:2), but his desires are not satisfied because he is not willing to work. However, diligence enables a person to be satisfied”
Proverbs (13:4; 21:25, 26) bring out that the sluggard is restless and lives with unsatisfied desire. Proverbs 21:25-26 give us more insight onto the plight of the sluggard and the heart of the hard worker. It says, “The desire of the sluggard puts him to death, for his hands refuse to work; All day long he is craving, while the righteous gives and does not hold back”. Don’t miss that the righteous give and do not hold back. Let’s use our diligence to give to others and be a blessing to everyone we meet.
I think the challenge for us today when we are tempted to sit back and do nothing is to remember that it just breeds trouble for us. It puts us in a spiral of discontentment, frustration, and robs us of being happy and living a life full of purpose, meaning and seeing God bless the work of our hands. “Who really wants to be sluggard? The flip side is working hard and enjoying a rich soul, and seeing God bless the work of your hands. Let’s go for that real soul food that drives our life. Let’s choose the life of being hard workers in God’s kingdom and in everything we do. Proverbs 12:27 “...the precious possession of a man is diligence.”
by Jerry Hull
Posted in Read Through the Bible
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