Archie D Melville
Proverbs 30: 21-33
I am just impressed by these verses to say a few words as to the characteristics of the people of God. Solomon was one of the wisest men that ever lived and probably one of the richest as well. He had the power, the capacity and the ability to investigate, and to do and examine whatever he felt he needed to do. There is no doubt he had wisdom; he asked for wisdom as a young man coming to the throne. He asked for wisdom, not power, or position, or place, or anything; he asked for wisdom. In verse 21, he summarises what is going on upon the earth: “Under three things the earth is disquieted, and under four it cannot bear up”. These are negative things, not to dwell upon them, but to say that this world is largely governed by these principles, and it cannot bear up; it will not bear up.
We begin with “a servant when he reigneth”. The servant is rightly in a position of subjection; so the principle of subjection is set aside, because the servant should obey. Then we have “a churl when he is filled with meat”; he is a person who is described as a fool, or a vile person. I think that we might say that indulgence marks him; he is full of indulgence. Then there is “an odious woman when she is married”; we look in the Scriptures and find persons such as Jezebel in a place of insubjection, and in a place of dominance, which is wrong. And finally, “a handmaid when she is heir to her mistress”; she is to be the person who would inherit, so she would be ambitious.
Now none of these principles has a place in the assembly of God; they have no place among the children of God. The wise writer of this book brings them before us to give us a warning. Then he goes on to matters that do mark the children of God: “four things little upon the earth”. The Lord described those who came to Him as a “little flock” (Luke 12: 32), intentionally, I think, because they were not supposed to be in places of greatness, honour or influence in the world. It speaks here about these ants, “a people not strong”, yet what we do understand about the ants is that they are a community; they work together, and “they provide their food in the summertime”. Well, there is no better time than the present to be called the summertime, because God’s disposition towards us is one of abundant provision. The ants provide their food in the summertime, and they are full of energy; if you watch them, they are never sluggish. They are always in movement, and they are always working in a community. How like the assembly of God that is. They work to provide their food. Food is what sustains us, and we are always in need of food. “The rock badgers are but a feeble folk”. Those who are feeble are dependent for what they need, and they are not ambitious, nor are they persons who have great outward strength. “Yet, they make their house in the cliff”; the cliff is a high place; it is an elevated place. In this setting, it would mean a place of safety; they were where the enemies could not get them; they could not reach up to them in a place in the cliff. We have been taken into favour in the Beloved; we are in that position of safety in the cliff. “The locusts have no king, yet they go forth all of them by bands”; there is no king for the locusts, but they also work together. How true that is of the saints here; there is no public king. There is a King in heaven - we have reference to the King that is in heaven - but there is no king here. When men look at the feeble folk who meet together, they say, ‘Who is in charge of this company? Who is in charge of this meeting?’. Well, we have no king, but we do recognise authority. And we do recognise the authority of Christ. “Yet they go forth all of them by bands”; there is the idea of going forth in the thought of the bundle that we have had recently. A band is not the thought of opposition; it is a band of community, of working together in local assemblies. Then, “thou takest hold of the lizard with the hands”. How often the saints of God have been persecuted; they have been taken by the hands and discarded; “yet is she in king’s palaces”. That is where this lizard belongs, in the highest place of privilege in the land, in the king’s palace.
In the next section it speaks about things that have a stately step; we can be feeble, but we can move in dignity. “Four are comely in going: The lion, mighty among beasts”. We know that the Lord Himself is called “the lion which is of the tribe of Juda”, Rev 5: 5. It adds, “mighty among beasts”, and “turneth not away for any”. You might ask, how that is compatible with being feeble folk. The point is, that he “turneth not away for any” - that is, any evil adversary that would rise up against him. The lion would not turn away; that is, there would be no fear; Timothy was encouraged to be courageous; he was, perhaps, lacking in the lion feature, like many of us are. But, the lion is “mighty among beasts”, and “turneth not away for any”. When a question of principle is at stake, then this lion goes forward and deals with what is evil. Indeed, the Lord Himself in the day to come, will go forward against Satan and cast him out in a final and full way. The “horse is girt in the loins”: it is full of energy; it is to be occupied in divine things. We know the horse can have a different application, but it is put along with the lion here, in order that the battle might be accomplished. “A horse girt in the loins; or the he-goat”: the he-goat seems to be a lonely animal; our path, in one sense, is a lonely path. It is a path that does not get involved with the goings-on of this world; it is a path of separation. And then, “a king, against whom none can rise up”. The whole section concludes with that, with the dignity and regal character of the king, against whom no one can rise up. Well, that is true; we do not need to be in fear of Satan; we know that He who is for us is greater than he who is against us. So, we are able to rise up, as a king, against whom no one can rise up.
But then, I think, we would all have to consider these last two verses. “If thou hast done foolishly”: who has not done foolishly, lifting himself up in pride or ambition, or some other way? “Or if thou hast thought evil, lay thy hand upon thy mouth”. This is what Job had to do (Job 40: 4), finally, when God came down and spoke to him, and showed him the glory of His creatorial power, and the greatness of His person; he repented in dust and ashes. He laid his hand upon his mouth; he had no more to say. That is a great point to arrive at - when we have no more to say, and no evil thoughts! But, then, we might want to insist on our own ideas and views. “The pressing of milk bringeth forth butter”; you might say that is a good thing but “the pressing of the nose bringeth forth blood; and the pressing of anger bringeth forth strife”. Let us be careful in what we are pressing, that the result might be for good, and not for blood. May the Lord help us.
Word in a meeting for ministry, Grangemouth
17th October 2017