We Must Not Just Let It Be.

[Proverbs 29:12-21]

What would you do if a family member whom you love is doing something wrong? Wouldn’t you, at the very least, say something to correct them with love? But what if that loved one refuses to listen and continues to do wrong? What would you do then?

Personally, the lesson I gained from meditating on Romans 1 is that when God "gives them over" to their desires, it is truly a frightening punishment. The reason I think this way is because, in Romans 1:24, 26, and 28, the Bible mentions three times that God "gave them over":
(1) “Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves” (v. 24),
(2) “For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature” (v. 26),
(3) “And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting” (v. 28).

Now, if God were to let us live according to the sinful instincts of our hearts, what do you think would happen to us? Listen to these three Bible verses:
(Matthew 15:19) "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies,"
(Galatians 5:19-21) "Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God,"
(2 Timothy 3:2) "For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy..."

Just by looking at these three Bible verses, if God were to leave us to live according to our sinful nature, we would inevitably commit such dreadful sins against God. Therefore, we must pray that God does not let us live according to our sinful instincts, but rather holds us and keeps us from sinning against Him.

In today’s passage, Proverbs 29:15, the modern translation says: “The rod and rebuke give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.” I want to meditate on five lessons under the title, “We Must Not Just Let It Be,” based on this verse.

First, we must not just let our ears hear lies.

Let’s look at Proverbs 29:12: “If a ruler listens to lies, all his servants become wicked” [Modern translation: “If a ruler’s ear is turned to lies, the people under him will become wicked”].

If you speak the truth from your heart, but the other person refuses to listen and instead hears exaggerated lies from someone else, how would you feel? Wouldn’t you feel very frustrated and wronged? Another question is, what would you do if you discovered that someone you trusted and believed in was telling you little lies? Especially if that person showed no sincerity and spoke lies as though they were the truth, what would you do? Personally, I believe that such a person should no longer be associated with and should be kept at a distance. The reason is that not only would I no longer be able to trust that person, but also their lies could have a bad influence on me.

Of course, I also believe that God sometimes uses people who lie around us to refine our hearts. He refines us through them, removing the impurities of lies from our hearts and making us more sincere.

In today’s passage, Proverbs 29:12, the Bible says, "If a ruler listens to lies, all his servants become wicked." The modern translation renders it as: "If a ruler’s ear is turned to lies, the people under him will become wicked." What do you think of this? Do you think that if the leader of a nation listens to lies, those under him will also become wicked? I think there is a very high possibility that this would happen. The reason is that when a leader of a nation with power listens to lies, he will act deceitfully, and those under him will likely join in those deceitful actions.

Think about it. When a powerful leader listens to lies and acts deceitfully, those under him will not be able to resist the power of that authority and, in the end, will also act deceitfully. A perfect example of this can be found in the story of Jezebel, the evil wife of King Ahab, in 1 Kings 21. She wrote letters in Ahab’s name to take the vineyard of Naboth and give it to him (v. 6). She sealed the letters and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city (v. 8).

How did the elders and nobles in Naboth’s city act when they received the letters from Queen Jezebel? Did they follow the evil, deceitful orders in the letter, or did they reject them? In 1 Kings 21:11, the Bible says they acted according to Jezebel’s instructions. They were surely wicked, following the evil example of their queen. How could they have told such blatant lies? Jezebel, in her evil plans, sent two worthless men to accuse Naboth falsely in front of the people, saying that "Naboth has cursed God and the king" (v. 13). This is how the evil Queen Jezebel incited lying, and the elders and nobles under her command also became part of her deceit by putting forth these false witnesses.

Everyone, we must not listen to the lies of leaders who are more powerful and influential than we are.
No matter how powerful that leader may be, we must rely on the Lord who rules over us, and we must not listen to the lies of that leader. Instead, we must listen to the truth of the Lord's Word and continue to listen to it. The reason we disobey the Lord's Word is because we listen to the lies of Satan, which we should not listen to. We should not only avoid listening to Satan's lies but also avoid conversing with Satan. If we are already mixing Satan's lies with our thoughts, it is evidence that we are ignoring the Lord's voice, and as a result, we disobey the Lord's Word and end up obeying Satan's lies. Therefore, we must listen attentively to the truth of the Lord's Word and quickly give ear to it. Furthermore, we must strive to live according to the truth we have heard. We must become sincere people who embody the Word. Therefore, we must influence the people around us in a positive way, so that they, too, will obey the Word of truth and become sincere people.

Secondly, we must not allow our children to act according to their own will.

Raising children is undoubtedly a challenge. We cannot help but think about how we should raise our children according to God's will. I once read an online article titled "Child Education in the Era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution?" It discusses how parents should educate and raise their children in a world where artificial intelligence and humans coexist. One example in the article is of a daughter in a family who, despite her best efforts, becomes inferior to artificial intelligence and loses the motivation to study. When asked by her parents why her grades have dropped, she tearfully responds, "There is no value in doing my best. Why study when artificial intelligence is better at everything?" I found the title of this article interesting, so I read through it. While reading, I came across a part that caught my attention, and I want to share it with you: "The concern of 'What more should I teach my child to be competitive?' may no longer be relevant. What is more important in this generation is not what to learn, but how to look at things, how to think, and how to speak. A shift in perspective is necessary." "In the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the real key to ensuring that our children are respected as humans is not their 'competence,' but their 'humanness.'"

How should we educate and raise our children? In a letter that a deacon once sent me, it was mentioned that in 2006, the number of international students (undergraduate and graduate) in the United States was around 60,000. This figure placed them third after India and China and accounted for more than 10% of the total number of international students. But there are even more successful people than us: the Jewish people. Their family education and child-rearing methods are truly special, and one could easily say they are the best in the world. However, in the Bible, Judges 2:10 shows the Israelites failing in educating their children and how future generations did not know God: "That whole generation was gathered to their ancestors, and another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord or the work He had done for Israel." This was the spiritual state of the Israelites after the conquest of Canaan and before the time of the judges.

In Deuteronomy 6:7, God commands the Israelites to diligently teach their children: "You shall teach them diligently to your children, and talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up..." Clearly, the Israelites taught their children about the miracles such as the Red Sea crossing, the manna, and the victory at Jericho. So why did their children not know God? What was the cause? The cause was disobedience to God's Word (Judges 2:2). They were afraid of the environment (because of the chariots of iron) and compromised with unrighteousness (by making them serve), leading to disobedience. They did not completely drive out the foreign nations as God had commanded, and as a result, those nations became a thorn in their side and a snare to them.

It is often said that children learn by "looking at their parents' backs." This means they learn by seeing their parents always doing their best and setting an example without deceit. However, what is even more important is showing a life of obedience to God's Word while meditating on it. Are we, as parents, showing our children a life of obedience to God's Word?

In today's passage, Proverbs 29:15, the Modern Translation says: "The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother." [In the Revised Version: "The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child who is allowed to do as he pleases brings shame to his mother."] This teaches us that we should not let our children do whatever they want. In other words, we, as parents, should not be passive observers when raising our children. We need to be actively involved in their lives to educate them, but we must not interfere excessively or try to control their lives. Drawing that line is not easy. We should not be controlling parents, but neither should we be negligent parents. It is difficult to know where to draw the line, and that is where God's wisdom is desperately needed. I remember my wife once said that I tend to be more neglectful when it comes to our children, while she tends to be more controlling. In a way, my wife and I need each other to complement each other in raising our three children, whom God has blessed us with, helping each other cover our weaknesses and strengths.

Today’s passage from Proverbs 29:15 teaches us that if we allow our children to do as they please, they will dishonor their mothers. It also tells us that in the education of children, “the rod and reproof” are necessary.
Although in the United States, if a father disciplines his child with a rod out of love, and the child sues the father, the father could be arrested, I believe, as Proverbs teaches, that disciplining children is absolutely necessary. We have already reflected on what Proverbs 13:24 says: "He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him." [(Modern Translation) "He who spares the rod hates his child. The true parent who loves their child disciplines them sincerely"]. The Bible says that if parents withhold discipline from their children, it is as if they hate them. The Bible tells us that if we truly love our children, we must discipline them sincerely. Do we truly love our children in the way that God sees it? I believe this is a question we need to ask ourselves and reflect on. Proverbs 23:13 tells us this: "Do not withhold correction from a child, for if you strike him with the rod, he will not die." [(Modern Translation) "Do not hesitate to discipline your child. Though you strike him with a rod, he will not die"]. Perhaps no parent would strike a child intending for them to die. No matter how angry a father might be with his child, he would never strike them to the point of death. However, on the other hand, if we do not discipline our children at all, and hesitate even to admonish them, what will become of those children? If we let them continue down a crooked path, they will surely go astray, and ultimately, they will bring shame upon us as parents. That is why today’s passage from Proverbs 29:17 says: "Discipline your child, and he will give you peace; he will bring delight to your soul." [(Modern Translation) "Discipline your child, and he will bring you joy and peace of mind."]

Friends, there are two options. Either we let our children do as they please and suffer the shame, or we discipline them, and through that discipline, we find peace and joy in our hearts. I believe it is one of these two options.

When we discipline our children, we must do so with love. It is not just for the sake of avoiding criticism and gaining peace and joy, but because we want our children to grow up well in the eyes of God. Of course, in raising children, as Pastor Tripp says, both "conversation and the rod" are necessary. Think about it: if all we had was the rod in raising our children, what would happen? We must make an effort to have conversations with our children, and I believe we all know how important this is. However, there are times when words alone are no longer enough. It is then that we must resort to the rod, but in love. Look at what Proverbs 29:19-21 says: "The servant will not be corrected with words; for though he understands, he will not respond. ... If you raise a servant from his youth to be obedient, he will later become a son." [(Modern Translation) "You cannot correct a servant with words alone. This is because even though he knows, he will not listen... If you let a servant live without discipline from a young age, he will later act as if he is your son."].

Though this passage refers to servants in the time of the Proverbs writer, when applied to raising children, we can learn two things: first, we cannot raise our children by simply giving them everything they want and being overly lenient with them. Otherwise, our children will grow up spoiled and undisciplined. Second, when our children need correction, we must first attempt to have a conversation with them as parents. We should not immediately reach for the rod. However, if through conversation we see that our children are aware of their mistakes but choose to continue in their wrong behavior, then we must discipline them with love.

This principle applies to us as well. When we know that we should obey God’s word but continue to disobey, doesn’t God, our Heavenly Father, discipline us out of love? As it says in Hebrews 12:6 and the second part of verse 10: "For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastises every son whom he receives... God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness." [(Modern Translation) "The Lord disciplines the ones he loves and rebukes everyone he accepts as a son... God disciplines us for our good, so that we may share in his holiness."] Although our earthly fathers may discipline us according to their own will (based on what they think is best), our Heavenly Father disciplines us for our benefit, so that we can share in his holiness (v.10). Therefore, God's discipline is a blessing. The reason is that through His discipline, we not only confess our sins and repent, but we also come to understand more deeply, more abundantly, and more greatly the love of our Heavenly Father. A good example of this is King David. After committing adultery with Bathsheba and trying to cover up his sin by having Uriah killed, he did evil in the sight of God. One of the disciplines he received was when he had to flee from his son Absalom to the wilderness of Judah. In that time of discipline, he confessed: "Because your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise you" (Psalm 63:3).

We should not let our children do as they please. That would be an act that dishonors us as parents. We must rebuke and discipline our children with love to teach them wisdom (Proverbs 29:15, Modern Translation). I pray that God the Father will raise your children and mine as wise children of God.

Thirdly, we should not allow the wicked to increase without intervening.

Do you think there are many evil people in this world? If so, do you think there are more poor evil people or more rich evil people? I believe there are many evil people in this world, especially rich evil people, like the "false rich" mentioned in Proverbs 28:6. The "false rich" here refers to those who "deceive by two ways," who outwardly pretend to walk the righteous path but in reality are walking down an evil path (Park Yun-Seon). One of the evil actions of such wealthy people who walk by two paths is "oppressing the poor" (v. 3). A more specific example of this oppression is found in James 2:6, where it says, "But you have dishonored the poor. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you and drag you into court?" (Modern Translation). The rich who deceive by two paths not only despise the poor but also torment them and drag them into court, causing harm. In this way, these rich people, who deceive with their inconsistent actions in front of others and behind their backs, are gathering wealth. And they appear to be accumulating wealth successfully. Therefore, the suffering poor righteous people may wonder how such double-faced evil rich people can "always be at ease and grow in wealth" (Psalm 73:12), to the point where they think it is futile to purify their hearts and avoid sin (v. 13). However, what we must not forget is that these double-faced rich people who deceive by two paths are accumulating evil along with their wealth. And these rich people will "soon fall" [they will suddenly perish (Modern Translation)], as the Bible says (28:18). Their time to fall will surely come (Park Yun-Seon).

Look at Proverbs 10:16: "... the income of the wicked leads to sin." It seems that the more wealth a wicked person gains, the more sin they commit. Therefore, the increasing wealth of the wicked is not a material blessing, but a curse.

Now look at today's text, Proverbs 29:16: "When the wicked increase, transgression increases, but the righteous will see their downfall" [(Modern Translation) "When the wicked increase, sin increases, but the righteous will see their downfall"]. What does this mean? It is natural that when there are more wicked people, sin increases. Especially if these increasing wicked people are those with worldly power and authority, as we already meditated on in verse 12, the people under them will also become wicked, causing the number of wicked people to grow even more. As a result, the wicked people’s sins will naturally increase as well. For example, in a communist country like North Korea, when the dictator who holds the highest power commits evil, the people under that dictator also become wicked (v. 12), and they too will commit sin according to the dictator’s commands. The problem is that, as the wicked increase, sin also increases in this world, and the righteous, who have been justified by believing in Jesus, live in this world. The reason for this is that as the wicked grow in number and sin increases, the righteous, seeing the wickedness of the wicked every day in this sinful world, will be deeply troubled in their righteous hearts. A good example of this is the righteous Lot, who lived in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot, who lived in the sinful cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, suffered greatly from the immoral behavior (debauchery) of the lawless people, and he was deeply distressed (2 Peter 2:6-8, Modern Translation).

At that time, how did God deal with the wicked in Sodom and Gomorrah, and how did He deal with Lot, the righteous one? Look at 2 Peter 2:7-9: "and rescued righteous Lot, who was distressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked... for the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority" [(Modern Translation) "But God rescued righteous Lot, who was suffering greatly from the immorality of the wicked. God knows how to rescue the godly from trials, while the wicked remain under punishment until the day of judgment. Especially those who live according to the flesh, in lustful desires, and despise authority, will be punished even more severely"].

God judged the wicked and gave them punishment, while rescuing the righteous. Isn't this the work of a righteous God? The God who judges the wicked not only judged the wicked in Sodom and Gomorrah, but also judged the unrighteous during Noah's time by sending the flood to punish the wicked (2 Peter 2:5). However, the gracious and merciful God rescued righteous Lot from the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and although everyone else perished in the flood, God saved Noah and his seven family members (v. 5). During the Exodus, God also judged the Egyptian soldiers who were pursuing the Israelites, destroying them in the Red Sea, and rescued His people from their hands (Exodus 15).

Therefore, we must live with the confidence that the righteous God will certainly judge the wicked. Even though we see the wicked increasing and sin multiplying, we must not just sit back and watch. What should we do? As Romans 12:21 says, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Also, as Ephesians 2:10 tells us, we must know that God created us in Christ Jesus for good works, and therefore, we must strive to do good in this sinful world. In this way, we must be the light of this dark world, so that when others see our good works, they will praise (glorify) our Father who is in heaven (Matthew 5:16). And above all, we must preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to them and strive to lead each soul to Jesus.

Fourth, we must not allow people to live in disorder.

Everyone, you probably know that order is important in any organization. The reason is that if the order of an organization collapses, chaos will follow. However, when order is maintained, the organization experiences harmony and peace.

Let's consider the order within a family. If the husband, wife, and children in a family obey God's word and faithfully fulfill their respective roles, the family will establish proper order and experience peace. But if each person neglects their biblical responsibilities and breaks the order in the family, there will be no peace because of conflict and strife.

For example, when Sarah, the wife, did not honor her husband Abraham by obeying him and instead had Abraham sleep with her Egyptian maidservant Hagar (Genesis 16:1-4), peace was lost in the family due to the ensuing discord. Hagar, who became pregnant with Ishmael, despised her mistress Sarah, and Sarah mistreated Hagar (verse 6).

Our God is a God of order. The problem, however, is that we are people of disorder. I once read an article by an elder in the internet newspaper "Christian Today" titled "God of Order, Disorderly People." In the article, the elder discussed the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis and said, "Because of the temptation of Satan, human beings became arrogant and doubted God, desiring to be like God. As a result, they disrupted the order of creation." The elder then asked the following question: "Are we changing the created order of God to a new order because of our own desires and our sweet, selfish greed?"

How would you answer this question? "Because of my own will," "because of my sweet, selfish greed," are we altering the new order that God has established for our families and the Church, and replacing it with worldly order? For example, the order that God created is not "endless competition," and forcing the vulnerable into brutal competition for our own greed is not God's order, but the unjust order of mankind. Yet, are we not pursuing such unjust human order, even within the church?

Now, let’s look at Proverbs 29:18 in the Contemporary Bible: "Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction." (NIV) "Without a vision, the people perish; but he who keeps the law, happy is he." (NKJV). What does this mean? It means that without God’s revelation or guidance, people will act without restraint and disorderly.

The word "acting without restraint" appears twice in Exodus 32:25: "Moses saw that the people were out of control, for Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies." During the time of the Exodus, the Israelites were also out of control (Exodus 32:25). When they saw that Moses was delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered and told Aaron to make them gods who would go before them (verse 1), and eventually, they made the golden calf and worshiped it, sinning against God (verse 8). Moses saw that the Israelites were out of control (verse 25). The reason for this was that Aaron had allowed them to act out of control (verse 25), and thus they became a laughingstock to their enemies (verse 25). Truly, the Israelites were a people acting without restraint (verse 25). They were a corrupt people (verse 7), quickly abandoning the path that God had commanded (verse 8), and sinning against God. Moreover, they were a stubborn people in the eyes of God (verse 9).

Do we, as Christians today, not act out of control like the Israelites did at the time of the Exodus? Not only the Israelites at the time of the Exodus but also the Israelites during the time of the prophet Ezekiel acted out of control in the eyes of God. Ezekiel 16:30 describes their actions as "the actions of a dissolute woman." The Israelites, trusting in the beauty and splendor that God had given them, committed adultery for their own fame and acted in a lascivious manner (verses 14-15). They built lustful shrines for themselves and committed adultery there (verse 16). They used the material blessings God gave them to make idols and committed adultery with them (verse 17). Furthermore, the Israelites offered their children to idols (verse 20). Yet, they regarded their sexual immorality as something trivial (verse 20). Their desires were not satisfied, so they "even went after the Assyrians and committed adultery with them, and even when they were not satisfied, they went further, to the land of the Chaldeans" (verses 28-29). This was, in the eyes of God, "the actions of a dissolute woman" (verse 30). Their hearts were weak, and so the Israelites performed these dissolute acts (verse 30).

Are we, as Christians, not engaging in these dissolute acts like the Israelites did during the time of the prophet Ezekiel?

So why does the Bible say we act without restraint? Proverbs 29:18 states that the reason is because there is no vision or revelation, or because we lack God’s guidance. In other words, the word of God is lacking (1 Samuel 3:1), and the hearing of the word is insufficient (Exodus 32:25, Leviticus 13:45, Numbers 5:18). We are breaking God’s laws and rebelling against His will because we are acting out of control and disorder. Indeed, we are currently facing a famine of hearing God’s word, just as predicted in Amos 8:11. Through the internet and media, sermons flood our ears, but we still fail to hear them. As a result, we do not know God’s will and teachings, so we do things as we wish and according to our desires, acting without restraint.

What should we do, then? Let's look at the second half of Proverbs 29:18: "...but whoever keeps the law is blessed." We must keep the law. We must obey God's word. To do so, we must open our ears to God's word and diligently listen to it. We must also seek the illumination and understanding of the Holy Spirit. We should pray that the Holy Spirit will help us understand God’s word and teach us. And when we receive understanding, we must obey that word. We must keep it and live by it. When we do so, there will be order in our lives, our homes, and our churches. We will no longer act without restraint. Instead, we will receive the blessings that God gives us by obeying His word.

Finally, fifthly, we should not let ourselves speak hastily or impatiently without thinking.

What happens when we become impatient? It’s easy to make mistakes. But the problem is that after making mistakes due to impatience, we often fail to avoid being impatient again and fail to act with caution. When I look back at myself, I realize that although I have an impatient side in my character, I tend to think too hastily and lack patience when doing the work of the Lord. And when we think hastily, it’s inevitable that we make many mistakes in our words and actions. The even greater risk is that we could ruin God’s work. How can we ruin it? By going ahead of God. My impatience causes me to rush ahead of God’s will and prevents me from waiting for His timing.

Furthermore, my impatience leads me to come up with wrong plans and methods, which causes me to sin against God and brings painful results. In the end, when I examine myself and think about why I am impatient, I believe the cause is a "proud heart" (verse 8). A proud heart does not have patience. Instead, a proud heart is full of impatience. Therefore, not only in our words and actions but also in our thoughts, we rush ahead of the Lord with impatience.

A good biblical example of this is Sarah, the wife of Abraham, from the book of Genesis. She could not believe the promise that God gave to her husband Abraham: "Your descendants will be like this" (Romans 4:18, Genesis 15:5). The reason she doubted was that she believed more in her visible reality than in the invisible future. The visible reality was that her womb seemed dead (and Abraham’s body seemed dead too) (Romans 4:19), while the invisible future was the promise of God that, in His timing, their descendants would become as numerous as the stars in the sky.

Therefore, Sarah, not being able to endure with faith, acted out of impatience. Instead of waiting 25 years for God’s timing when Abraham would be 100 years old, she made Abraham sleep with her maidservant Hagar when he was 85 years old (Genesis 16:3). As a result, when Abraham was 86 years old, Ishmael was born (verse 16). Sarah was not patient with faith. She could not wait. She became impatient. And in her impatience, she tried to fulfill God’s promise with her own strength.

Because of this, I wrote a note to myself that says, "Let me guard against impatience in my heart." I wrote: "Let us believe that God's will will be fulfilled in God’s time and in God’s way. Even if unexpected difficult situations cause us to become anxious and impatient, let us not make hasty, wrong choices. Let us guard our hearts from impatience and pray, hope, and wait with faith. Surely God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will will be fulfilled. Not by my means or methods, but by God’s way, and in God’s time..."

Now, let’s look at Proverbs 29:20 in the Contemporary Bible: “There is more hope for a fool than for someone who speaks without thinking.” [(Korean Revised Version) “Do you see someone who speaks hastily? There is more hope for a fool than for them.”]. What do you think of someone who speaks hastily, without thinking? Have you ever spoken hastily? Especially, have you ever said something hastily to someone without thinking and then regretted it? I remember Proverbs 10:19: "In the multitude of words, sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise."

In July 2013, I meditated on Proverbs 14, reflecting on "the foolish woman who destroys her house." I thought about it again today in relation to our text and came to the following conclusion: the foolish person who destroys their home is impatient (Prov 14:29), insolent (verse 16), easily angered (verse 17), lacks knowledge in their lips (verse 7), and speaks harsh words (15:1), yet trivializes the sin they have committed (14:9). Don't we have this foolishness in us too? Dr. Park Yun-Sun mentioned that those who speak hastily tend to be hasty in their actions as well, which leads to various misfortunes. He listed four outcomes: (1) being insulted (18:13), (2) becoming poor (21:5), (3) showing foolishness (14:29), and (4) sinning (19:2). So those who speak hastily will bring these results and have no hope (29:20).

We must not be impatient (Prov 29:20, 2 Tim 3:4), but rather be thirsty (Psalm 42:1). Look at Psalm 42:1: "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, O God." Instead of becoming discouraged or anxious because we feel that God’s answers to our prayers are slow, we must place our hope in God (verses 5, 11) and yearn for His unchanging love (verse 8, Contemporary Bible) with all our hearts. We must continue to pray to God (verse 8), and with a thirsty heart (verses 1, 2), we must seek the Lord, our rock (verse 9).