Proverbs - Lack of Satisfaction

Proverbs 30:15-17

The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough: The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough. The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.

Here are things that the Lord says will never be satisfied.  They just keep feeling like they need more.  The grave continues to consume the next life, every day and every minute.  The barren womb, though the mother may be settled, will yet sense a lack of experience she may always have anticipated.  The earth continues to need water over and over and fires can burn forever given the right fuel sources and conditions.  When someone mocks their father or does not obey their mother, they will start a pattern that demands greater defiance and disrespect.  We can learn a few things from this section of scripture.

Every death leaves people with a sense of needing closure and we should let them thirst and cry out for the comfort they need.  We should be sensitive to those who are unable to bear children realizing the sense of loss they appropriately feel.  We shouldn’t be lazy in taking care of our gardens and yards, knowing they need consistent watering.  We should handle fire cautiously knowing it can consume anything in its path and we should nip any mocking or disobedience we find in our children.  

Knowing God - God Receives Us in Death

Ps 49:15

 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.

Grave has a power – the power of death, but God will redeem our souls from the power of the grave.  Death is an enemy that comes and tries to conquer.  It looms over every human in an intimidating and threatening way.  Our God is not intimidated by death.  He, Himself, went through death and conquered it on our behalf to show us that even death, is no match for our God.  How does God redeem us from the power of the grave?  He does this by receiving us.  He awaits us on the other side of the door which has a sign over it that says ‘death’.  The door itself is quite unattractive.  It stands as an unknown path to all of us, but the Lord stands on the other side ready to receive us.  If someone you love is facing death, if God is their God, if they are in Christ, they will be received. They will be redeemed from the power of the grave, for God will receive them.

Knowing God - The Lord Shows Us Our Fragility

Ps 39:4

 Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.

Fragile – Handle With Care

The Lord is able to make us see things about ourselves.  He is a judge who judges accurately.  He is able to remind us how short our lives really are.  He can show us how vulnerable we are and how much we need His protection, promises and power.  He can show us the potential of our fallen nature left unguarded and uninstructed.  He can remind us of the lives we used to live apart from Him and His restraining power.  We need Him to do this.  If we don’t know a box contains fragile items we will treat it in a careless manner often resulting in damage and loss.  We need Him to remind us how fragile we are apart from His help and strength.  This will keep us in a place of abiding in Him, depending on Him and hiding in Him.  We are fragile and He can remind us of that avoiding unnecessary loss and damage.