Wisdom in living for today

Much of the collection of Proverbs we have in Scripture are one sentence, with two phrases, containing statements about life and living. Most of the chapters from chapter 10 to the end contain proverbs from various collections. 

Chapters 10 through the middle of chapter 22 contain a collection known as “The Proverbs of Solomon”. The middle of chapter 22 to the middle of chapter 24 contain “Thirty Saying of the Wise” (some Bible versions have these divided into the thirty sayings). The rest of that chapter contains “Further Sayings of the Wise”.

In chapter 25 we find a new collection of proverbs which were completed when Hezekiah was king by some of his men: “More Proverbs of Solomon”. These go through the end of chapter 29.

The last two chapters seem to be wisdom that Solomon collected, although some would put forward the case that Solomon wrote them using another name. Chapter 30 is “The Sayings of Agur, Son of Jakeh” and Chapter 31 contains “The Sayings of King Lemuel”, which contains a warning against strong drink and a description of what we might call the perfect wife.

Let’s look at a wise saying from “More Proverbs of Solomon”.

“Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.” (Proverbs 27:1 NIV)

When I hear this proverb it reminds me of the film “It’s a Wonderful Life” – one of my favourites and a required viewing each year on Christmas Eve for my family. In the story, a young George Bailey is about to leave Bedford Falls to see the world. He had his whole life planned out: “I know what I’m gonna do tomorrow and the next day and the next year and the year after that. I’m shaking the dust of this crummy little town off my feet and I’m gonna see the world. Italy, Greece, the Parthenon…the Coliseum. Then I’m coming back here and go to college and see what they know and then I’m going to build things. I’m gonna build air fields. I’m gonna build skyscrapers a hundred stories high. I’m gonna build bridges a mile long.” 

He so desperately wanted to leave the small town he had lived in all his life and to see the world. Sadly, that was not what his life turned out to be. He ended up staying in that small town but having an even greater impact on people (which is another lesson in itself). But he well illustrated this proverb of Solomon not to boast about the future because we don’t know what is going to happen. James referred to this in his letter in the New Testament.

“Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’ As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” (James 4:13-17)

Sometimes we can get so involved in plans for the future that we forget to live for today. This was the point that James made: if we know good that we should be doing, but ignore it because of our dreams for the future, then we are sinning.

Have we ever thought (or even said), “If I had more, then I could do something” – more money, more time, more influence, or whatever it might be? The question is not what we would do if we had more, but what are we doing now with what we have.

The lesson of this proverb: live for today and take advantage of the opportunities to do good that we have now.

Image created by Apple’s ImagePlayground by Jon Galloway.

Readings for next week: Proverbs 22-28