Proverbs 23:4-5 –Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.
Solomon mocks lazy people and warns them to expect poverty and family shame. But there is a contrary error, working too much to get rich. Work drudges make three errors: overwork itself, their goal of wealth, and ignoring the reality that riches can disappear with a snap of God’s fingers.
Overwork! Rest is one of God’s blessings. “It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep (Psalm 127:2).” Sleep is wonderful, a gift of God. Tired bodies revive, dreams integrate the day’s events into our minds, and sleep puts us in the hands of God, Who never sleeps. What do those who toil to acquire wealth get in the way of sleep? Not enough! They become strangers to their families, sorely tempted to work even on God’s day of rest, turning themselves into slaves. (See Deuteronomy 5:15, where God reminds Israel that they were once slaves in Egypt, so now they should give their servants rest on the Sabbath.)
Getting rich is a stupid life goal! Sometimes, of course, circ*mstances require people to work without rest, as when caring for a sick family member, or at harvest time, but to choose to do so year round in order to get rich? Stupid! Why? Riches are not what life is about: “one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions (Luke 12:15).” The love of riches is a snare, tempting people to all sorts of sin (I Timothy 6:9). You can’t take it with you. We came naked into the world, and so we will leave (Job 1:21, Ecclesiastes 5:15, I Timothy 6:7). And we can’t even be confident about how our wealth will be handled after we die (Ecclesiastes 2:19). Getting rich may be the American Dream, but it is not the Christian hope.
Remember how many people lost their savings in the Great Depression? Only the naïve think it cannot happen again. So Solomon advises us to have the sense to say, “Enough already.” Wealth disappears, often suddenly! Riches can fly away, like an eagle to the sky. As Jesus put it, “Do not lay up treasure on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and thieves break in and steal (Matthew 6:19).” Do your work, and if you have food, clothes, and a place to live, be contented (I Timothy 6:8). The slave to a 24/7 job, first to arrive and last to leave, may get promoted, but he is more foolish than wise. Just when he thinks he is set, he may lose his job, get cancer, or watch the stock market and housing prices crash. Then again, war may take it all. So “be discerning enough to desist” and just go to bed.
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Dr. Bill Edgar, former chair of the Geneva College Board of Trustees, former Geneva College President and longtime pastor in the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA)
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Solomon mocks lazy people and warns them to expect poverty and family shame. But there is a contrary error, working too much to get rich. Work drudges make three errors: overwork itself, their goal of wealth, and ignoring the reality that riches can disappear with a snap of God's fingers.
What does "do not toil to acquire wealth" mean? ›
Specifically, Solomon is speaking against the work-without-discernment attitude as it applies to seeking wealth. We should resist the urge to work solely to get rich. We should not sacrifice other needs so we can take on additional money-making opportunities.
What does Proverbs say about wealth without toil? ›
Proverbs 10:22 New International Version (NIV)
The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, without painful toil for it.
Do not toil to acquire wealth be discerning enough to desist when your eyes light on it it is gone for suddenly it sprouts wings flying like an eagle toward heaven? ›
Proverbs 23:4-18 New Living Translation (NLT)
Don't wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit. In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle. Don't eat with people who are stingy; don't desire their delicacies.
What does proverb 23 teach us? ›
The passage warns about being associated with people who lack self-control. Not only will their immorality influence others, but they can also cause collateral damage with their poor choices (Proverbs 23:12–25). In the same way, sexual sins should be taken seriously and avoided.
How do you obtain wealth in the Bible? ›
PROVERBS 10:14, 12:11, 13:11, 14:23. Biblical Wealth rarely just falls into one's lap. God's blessing of wealth is usually obtained by great wisdom and responsibility and through discipline, hard work, saving, investing, and seeking God's will.
What does the Bible say about obtaining wealth? ›
Philippians 4:19: And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. Proverbs 10:22: The blessing of the Lord makes a person rich, and he adds no sorrow with it. 2 Corinthians 9:8: And God will generously provide all you need.
What does Proverbs 23:5 mean? ›
This completes Solomon's warning about overworking, especially for the sake of wealth. This verse uses a turn of phrase in Hebrew which is lost in translation. The literal wording refers to both the eyes and the eagle "flying." If one's eyes "fly" to wealth, that wealth will just as quickly "fly" away.
What is Proverbs 23 4 and 5? ›
Don't wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit. In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle.
What does Proverbs teach about wealth? ›
Proverbs 15:6 says, “In the house of the righteous there is much treasure, but trouble befalls the income of the wicked,” and Proverbs 22:16 notes that, “One who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and one who gives gifts to the rich—both come to poverty.”
We know the heart is the life giving and life sustaining organ in our body. So we use the word “heart” metaphorically for the essence of something; the “heart” of the matter. In this verse we are taught to keep our spiritual “heart.” It reads, “Keep your heart with all vigilance for from it flow the springs of life.”
What does Proverbs say about getting rich quick? ›
Proverbs 13:11-16 NLT
Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time. Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. People who despise advice are asking for trouble; those who respect a command will succeed.
How does the Bible say to make money? ›
Proverbs 14:23: “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.” Proverbs 12:24, “The hand of the diligent will rule, while the slothful will be put to forced labor.” So, we must work heartily wherever we feel God calling us and He will provide the rest.
What is the prayer for Proverbs 23? ›
Read Proverbs 23
I pray that you would be our peace. Lord, I pray for those that have less, and those that are fatherless, YOU are their REDEEMER, YOU are MIGHTY, I plead their cause before you.
What is the object lesson of Proverbs 4 23? ›
Guard Your Heart is an object lesson game that can be used for Valentine's Day or any teaching situation that features Proverbs 4:23 - "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." The object of this game is to guard your own paper heart while trying to capture others.
What is Proverbs trying to teach us? ›
Proverbs performs all the functions of Scripture mentioned in 2 Timothy 3:16—”It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.” In Proverbs, God teaches us principles that will bring us peace and contentment, chides us for the things we have done in sin, shows us how to correct our way of life, and ...
What does the blessing of the Lord brings wealth without painful toil for it mean? ›
The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, without painful toil for it. ( Proverbs 10:22 NIV) I like the NIV translation, “without painful toil for it.” In other words, God's prosperity, the prosperity that God brings, isn't based on your efforts.
What does consider the lilies they don't toil nor spin mean? ›
"Toil," of course, means to work hard. "Spin" refers to spinning wool into yarn to knit or weave clothing. The flowers do not work hard to decorate the grass; God does all the work. Context Summary. Luke 12:22–34 records Jesus telling His disciples to lay down anxiety and trust God for physical needs.
Do not wear yourself out to get rich bible? ›
Proverbs 23:4-5 The Message (MSG)
Don't wear yourself out trying to get rich; restrain yourself! Riches disappear in the blink of an eye; wealth sprouts wings and flies off into the wild blue yonder.
What does a man gain by all the toil? ›
What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises, and the sun goes down, and hastens to the place where it rises.
