Fear of the Lord – The Beginning of Financial Wisdom & Blessing – Proverbs Part 1
To embark upon a financial study of Proverbs, I think it best to first say a couple words about the book itself. A quick reading seems to give a sense of numerous disjointed maxims for daily living. However, a thorough study of Proverbs seems to unify the many topics under one central idea…wisdom that results from the fear of the Lord. It is important to note that wise sayings or maxims are not necessarily intended to be the final word on any given subject that they cover. Exceptions can be found for any rule. A correct understanding of the sayings in Proverbs takes into account the fact that the truth presented is almost always true, but not necessarily true to a fault. For example, Proverbs will say a number of times that eating and drinking too much will result in poverty. For the grand majority of us consuming too much of anything will likely result in poverty. For Bill Gates or Donald Trump, they could eat to the death and still not end up in poverty! Another example says that the friends of the wealthy will disappear when the money disappears. This is generally true, however there is an occasional true friend even for the rich. Keeping this concept in mind will greatly aide our understanding of the book of Proverbs in general.
Of course there are statements in Proverbs that are always true. Very early in the book (1:7) we find one of those sayings. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” When all of Proverbs is filtered through the lens of this verse, it makes every statement much more clear. This is particularly easy to see with regard to money. Wisdom is essential for handling money. Without wisdom poor choices will be made that will almost always result in eventual poverty…or in our culture, extreme debt.
There are two kinds of wisdom: worldly wisdom and wisdom from God. Really, there is only one kind of wisdom. The wisdom of the world is actually foolishness. Wisdom from above is true wisdom. One cannot claim wisdom in any arena of life without first fearing the Lord. It’s the beginning or foundation of true wisdom. You cannot handle your money wisely if you don’t believe there is a God who is in control of all things. You won’t use your finances wisely if you don’t believe there is an eternal life after this temporary one where we will be given or denied true riches based on what we do with what the Lord gives us in this life.
Proverbs says a number of things specifically about the fear (or trust) of the Lord as it relates to wealth. In 3:5-10 we find the familiar verses (3:5-6) that tell us to trust in the Lord with all our heart, acknowledge him in everything and he’ll make the path of our lives straight. Few realize that within the flow of thought in this passage that Solomon relates the concept of trusting and acknowledging the Lord to our wealth. The Lord will provide beyond our needs when we treat our wealth as though it is His. When we use it for his purposes before our own, he will bless us. For the Old Testament believer this meant tithing (much more than 10%). For the New Testament believer it means using our money to obey Christ’s commands to care for the poor and needy, the orphans and widows, and to share with our brothers and sisters in Christ (among other things). When we do this, we are promised that our needs will always be met (see also Matt 6:25-34). Not to mention that such obedience is viewed by Christ as performing the act of kindness directly to him. Such obedience comes with the promise of an eternal reward. (Matt. 25:31-46).
Long life, being satisfied with what one has and not being affected when calamity strikes (19:23) are characteristic of those who fear God. Often the financial situation of those who fear the Lord, and therefore follow his pattern of handling worldly wealth, typically find themselves in good financial standing by the world’s standard. This is not what this passage promises, however. Though this verse does imply that God will provide for the needs of those who trust him, it is clearly stating that those who fear Him characteristically are satisfied with what they have no matter how wealthy they are. Therefore, when calamity does strike, they know they are just as okay as during times of plenty, because their trust is in the Lord and not their possessions.
“The reward for humility and fearing the Lord is riches and honor and life.” (22:4) One might be tempted to develop some sort of prosperity theology out of this verse, but I think it is impossible to do so without ignoring the rest of Scripture. This proverb assures God fearers that humble and fearful obedience to God in this life means they have their focus set on the promised life to come. Obviously, this verse does not come right out and say that in as many words, but it is an assumption we can make when we take the entire counsel of God’s Word into consideration. There was a sense that the people of Israel were promised prosperity in this life, as God’s chosen people, for fearing and obeying God. Under the new covenant we are promised that our needs will be met and we are promised reward in the life to come.
If we are to handle our finances in a God honoring way, then it starts with a correct view of God. He is a God to be feared (as in tremble in fear while lying face down on the ground for lack of strength to stand kind of fear). Though he is a merciful God his glory is too awesome to behold. Those who have seen even the reflection of his glory were either maimed, blinded, scared to death…or in fact died. We will all stand before him one day, either covered in his grace or wishing we could flee from his presence. One evidence that we are covered in his grace is that we fear him enough to obey his counsel concerning our finances.
