Plenty of Bread or Plenty of Poverty (Proverbs 28:19)
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Proverbs 28:19
Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread,
but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.
This verse, like a familiar melody played in a different key, echoes Proverbs 12:11. Proverbs 12:11 informed us that he who follows worthless pursuits ‘lacks sense,’ but today’s verse shifts from the character to the consequence, saying ‘he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.’
Look no further than the prodigal son as a perfect image of the one who follows worthless pursuits. In his father’s house, amidst a land that no doubt had been faithfully worked, producing plenty of bread, the prodigal son wanted out. He traded the feast of his father for the famine of his folly – and found that pleasure without purpose starves the soul, saying in Luke 15:17, “I perish with hunger.”
This verse gives the divine echo of Eden’s soil – till faithfully, and feast fully; wander vainly, and want deeply. Work the land, and you’ll break bread. Chase the wind, like the prodigal, and you’ll dine on dust. Now it’s not saying that hard work will make you rich – but it does say something deeper: faithfulness to the task God has given you leads to life.
I love the repetition of plenty here as well. Plenty of bread or plenty of poverty.
The question isn’t whether you’ll have plenty, but of what.
And of course, it’s not hard to apply this to our day to day in terms of one’s business. But like we talked about yesterday, the Lord has given us all different fields to work, in terms of relationships and the like.
And the field we all share as Christians is the one for eternity. We all share the field where the planting and watering of the gospel take place.
And if we are rising early for profits that perish – should we not labor harder for fruit that never fades? The manna that comes from heaven?
This verse is an encouragement to me not only to work hard and work my field in the horizontal aspects of my life, but it’s also a reminder to do that vertically as well. To work hard to plant the seeds of the gospel in those around me. Jesus explained the gospel to be a seed meant to be scattered – but how often do we keep it in the barn?
We need this reminder, because it’s so easy to let the field of gospel sowing grow dormant. To stop planting and watering seeds. Be it with our mouths in public conversation, or just in private prayer.
So let’s reflect explicitly on that today.
How hard are you working your field of gospel sowing? If at all?
Jesus says in John 6:27, ‘Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you.’
Let’s pray that the Lord would help us work unto Him in all things, and that He would specifically give us the opportunity to plant gospel seeds today in every area of our lives.
Prayer:
‘That’s not just his story; it’s ours. We all chase things that look like freedom but end in famine. But Jesus – the true elder brother – came not just to call us home, but to become the Bread of Life himself, broken so we could be filled.’
