Proverbs 14:1-5
In this text, we have principles to be obeyed in six areas of our life. All of them can be summed up as one: to love God and your neighbor. The most important of them we find in verse 2: the fear of the Lord. One’s good behavior begins in their relationship with God. A person lives in sin when he/she despises God. To acknowledge God but to live in sin destroys our personality. In the same verse, we see the relationship with our own “self.” Those that are conscientious of their erroneous living but refuse to repent are deceiving themselves.
In verse 1, we see an example of a family relationship. It is ungrateful and foolish to despise family. Those that do not care for their family relationship are putting their future in jeopardy. Who will take care of us when sorrows or misfortunes strike? If the family will not take care, then who will?
In verse 3, we can see our relationship with others in the way we speak. It is inevitable for the tongue to not infiltrate in the issue. In life, we regret many times of occasions where we opened our mouth with foolishness! On the other hand, many times we avoid getting in trouble when we keep our mouth shut. In verse 4, it seems incredible, but not even relationship with animals was forgotten in the passage we read. Without them, humanity would have died of hunger a long time ago.
At last, we see our social responsibility. It is wrong to falsely accuse someone of something they did or did not do. The way we conduct ourselves determines blessings or sufferings in the environment in which we live in. There is much suffering promoting perverted behavior like drug trafficking, theft, and sex crimes. Life in real harmony with God translates into healthy relationships, which promotes peace and well-being.
Recommendation of Jesus: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you (Matthew 7:12). Did that sound familiar? Ah, yes, the “Golden Rule” as said by Jesus Christ, over 2000 years ago. He also said, “…love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27), summarizing all the commandments into one principle.
