Proverbs 27:1-4 – Factors that contribute to harmonious living

The fallen man is at ought with God, with others, with himself and with nature. Now that we are redeemed we need to know the principles God has given in His Word to keep us on track with Him and live life harmoniously. The book of Proverbs has much to offer us. It tells us that when we walk righteously with God, we will be richly rewarded. When we walk contrary to His Word, we find ourselves at the opposite end of blessing because we are not living in accordance to His will. Wisdom demands that we seek out God’s ways and walk in them. Proverbs 27:1-4 leave us with four good factors to harmonious living. Verse 1 urges us to trust God daily. Verse 2 tells us not to praise ourselves but to let others do it. Verse 3 reminds us not to be needlessly provoked; and verse 4 warns us against arousing others to jealousy.  

God has ordained that everything in the world operates in an orderly fashion. He alone knows the end from the beginning. For us man, our revelation is progressive. We know only as we come to an event and experience it. What we do know is that God has ordained an orderly world. While it is orderly, it is not predictable. Hence, no one knows what the future holds, much less controls it. So, it is foolish to boast about tomorrow. We don’t even know what tomorrow may present to us. Wisdom tells us to live one day at a time, trusting God. Plan by all means but be sure to factor the Holy Spirit and the Word of God in the plan. Besides, we must also do so with much prayers while being open to God’s prompting. Despite our plan, be open to changes as the Spirit guides us. What’s important is to trust God each day of our existence! That’s the essence of the first verse of Proverbs 27.

Not only are we advised us not to boast about our future, the next verse reminds us not to boast about ourselves. Verse 2 clearly tells us not to praise ourselves. Clearly, self-praise is equivalent to boasting. It is an activity of a self-centred person. In all our accomplishment, it is better for others to say how good it is than for us to praise ourselves. One receives more credit when others notice the work we have done than for we ourselves us to highlight it. When another person does the praising, our achievement is authenticated and the praise is more genuine.     

Proverbs 27:3 urges us not to be easily provoked especially by senseless people. To do so is like carrying a needless burden that’s heavier than a stone. A foolish person will say anything mindlessly. When we entertain all his thoughtless words and are provoked, we will be needlessly bearing an unnecessary burden. Don’t be unduly provoked and suffer the needless hurt. A senseless person always blames others for the problems he had created. It is unwise to try and bear the burden he had created by his own hand.   

We all have experienced the wrath of another person. It is like a heavy weight laden on one’s shoulder. It hurts and inflicts pain on one’s emotion. A rage, which is an anger out of control, is hard to bear. But what is worst than an uncontrollable rage is jealousy.  The purpose of Proverbs 27:4 is to warn us against provoking someone to jealousy. If we do, we will be creating a situation that we cannot handle. Let’s take to heart the principles of these four verses so that we can live with God and others harmoniously.