When pride comes, then comes disgrace,
but with the humble is wisdom.
3 The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.
4 Riches do not profit in the day of wrath,
but righteousness delivers from death.
The Proverbs are unique in that they are two-line sentences that stand alone as instructional sayings. Occasionally, one can find two consecutive proverbs that go together but it is rare to find three. That is what we have here. There is a correlation between the pride in verse 2, the crookedness in verse 3, and the avarice in verse 4. They all point back to the love of self. Solomon may have been an expert on this. He was granted wisdom but his poor decisions exposed a pride that led to treachery against God in the worship of idols. His riches also may have adversely affected the humility that comes with wisdom. The result in the end was disgrace.
These lessons are for all of us, particularly for those in America who would be rich and famous, or powerful and victorious over enemies. The key component for modern man, as well as Solomon, is love of self. If we are proud and not humble, our pride will lead to haughty decisions that are self-destructive. If we are treacherous to God, we will do things that benefit us short term whether God approves or not. When we are rich, we no longer need God. In all three scenarios, the end is the same. Verse 4 ends with it. The word is “death”.
Dear Lord, thank you for the life-giving wisdom of Jesus and his life-saving death on the cross. May we be humble, upright, and poor in spirit toward you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church