Proverbs 6:6-11 the Sluggard

4/16/10

Time Spent: 18 min

Main Idea: There is no room for slothful behavior when it comes to being wise in the Lord.

What I learn about God: Diligence first found in the Lord is to be exercised in worship and reverence towards Him.

Summary: The sluggard is a fun character found throughout the Proverbs. He has animal-like laziness (26:14), preposterous excuses (26:13; 22:13), and his final helpless estate. Some of the other things that define him are; not beginning things (6:9), not finish things (12:27), and not face things (22:13). Because of these things, the sluggard finds that his life is restless (13:4). A man of non-diligence is a man that does not enjoy anything, yet is too lazy to make something out of his life. One can learn from the ant, who prepares their food and gathers in harvest without any sort of chief (6:6-8). These contrasts the laziness of the sluggard, who will feel the restlessness of life because of his inability to achieve anything.

Application: Jesus said "come and I will give you rest...my yoke is unburdensome". Now, this seems to contrasts the restlessness from the sluggard. Does not working and trust=>rest? Obviously this is a nuance that needs to be dealt with. Pharisees were not sluggards, they meticulously obeyed every law, yet were restless. They did not enter God's rest because they trusted in their own works to obtain the rest of God. However, it is only through Jesus that they would achieve it. The sluggard cannot achieve rest because of the exact opposite motive of the Pharisee; it is because they are apathetic and lazy. Not finishing things is a huge problem for me; whether it be books or assignments. It is hard to find time to finish my pleasure reading, which I seriously need to keep my sanity in reading my other books. Although I don't feel like a sluggard with all the work I'm doing, one must remember that busyness does not always lead to further godliness. I must remember that things that I start must be finished. Thus, I will try and finish Spiritual Depression by Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones by the end of the month. Soli deo gloria.