Today’s devotion is from Proverbs 25:16, 27 and draws upon honey as an illustration of one given to excess.
Proverbs 25:16 – “Hast thou found [get; attain; find] honey? eat [devour; consume] so much as is sufficient [enough; required] for thee, lest thou be filled [excess; overindulged; plenty] therewith, and vomit it.”
Proverbs 25:16 is a common sense proverb that is not a pretty picture, especially for some given to “All You Can Eat” buffet bars!
Harvesting honey is foreign to citizens of the 21st century; however, generations past not only kept honey beehives, they enjoyed the sweet nectar they produced. I remember my dad and grandfather harvesting honey in my youth and looking back, I failed to appreciate the luxury of fresh, pure honey.
Solomon warned his son that giving oneself to excess, in this instance the sweet taste of honey, invariably leads one to an inglorious moment—heaving, gagging, puking, barfing, spewing and expelling—Got the picture?
The conclusion Solomon draws is a good reminder for us all—too much of a good thing and you will be sick—out of balance! How many of our lives are out of balance because we have too much? Too much free time and we waste hours, days and years of life that are irretrievable. Too much labor and we sacrifice our health and family. Too much money and we devalue our responsibility as good stewards of God’s trust.
In Proverbs 25:27, Solomon continues his illustration of the excessive consumption of honey by drawing a parallel with men who pursue glory and honors.
Proverbs 25:27 – “It is not good [better; well; pleasing] to eat [devour; consume] much [abundance; increase; more] honey: so for men to search [seek; search out; enumerate] their own glory [honor; reputation] is not glory [honor; reputation].”
I doubt there has been a day when men were more self-consumed than our day. Our society is addicted to image and obsessive in pursuit of making a name. Hollywood stars have their paparazzi and average “nobodies” have their Facebook and YouTube postings. Like honey consumed in excess makes one sick, pursuit of one’s vainglory brings one to the same ignoble end—sick…heartsick, disappointed and left wanting. Indeed, too much self-consumption and we make others want to vomit!
Copyright 2014 – Travis D. Smith