The verse before us this morning is about one’s prospects in life. Everyone wants to be flourish and be successful. The aim of every person is to enjoy a good life. Whether it be in terms of their relationships, their health, their career—everyone wants to thrive.
However, not everyone really achieves that. For some people it seems that their lives are nothing but a long string of disappointments and turmoil. And the reason for that is really summed up here in this passage.
However, not everyone really achieves that. For some people it seems that their lives are nothing but a long string of disappointments and turmoil. And the reason for that is really summed up here in this passage.
It doesn’t even have to do with the kind of family that you come from or environment in which you are raise. A nice heritage can be a blessing, no doubt. But our passage wants to make clear that your life—and the quality of life that you possess —does not depend on your personal background or even the financial standing of your parents and grandparents.
The degree to which you thrive in life or experience hardship is not dependent upon the conditions you live as much as it depends directly upon your character. Your belief system is the balance of power when it comes to how well your life goes.
Look at the contrast that is set up in our passage. We have on the one hand a sluggard. That’s a slothful man. And notice the kind of person he is contrasted with. The second half of the verse talks about the upright. So the sluggard is pitted as the opposite of a righteous man. So when you think about this, what you have is a contrast between a believer and an unbeliever; a Christian and a person who chooses not to follow Christ.
And this morning I want us to think about the antithesis that is set up here and consider how one’s belief system will impact the course of their life.
Now, I want to begin with the first half of this verse. It is important for us to understand that the path of unbelief is one that is fraught with difficulty. It says…
The way of a sluggard is like a hedge of thorns
What does it mean by a “way.” In Scripture one’s life is sometimes compared to a pathway. We still use this kind of language. We sometimes talk about life as a journey. People will talk about their life’s journey.
So this is talking about the sluggard’s life. His life is, you notice, not a good one. It is like a hedge of thorns. This is imagery that indicates that his life is one that is really difficult.
Now, you’ve all probably had the experience of getting tangled in a briar patch or snagged in some thorn bushes. That’s a real pain, isn’t it? Perhaps you were taking a hike through some woods or maybe you were like us and you had some raspberry bushes. I remember when I was young getting ensnared in those bushes we had in the back yard. We’d be playing whiffle ball and inevitably someone would hit it into the raspberry bushes and one of us would have to fetch it out. And that would be tough goings. You’d reach in and try to be very careful, but there’s no way to avoid it. No matter how hard you tried you’d get pricked. Your clothes would get snagged and it was like the thing was an octopus that was trying to devour you.
That’s what the imagery is here. But you’ll notice that it’s not just a momentary thing. The sluggard isn’t just jumping in to get a whiffle ball and then hopping out. Solomon is describing the whole of the unbeliever’s life. He’s saying that his whole life’s experience is like this. When you step back and look at the grand overview of his life, what you find is that it’s just one misery after another.
Maybe today we’d use the imagery of razor wire or a barbed wire fence. One of the guards who serves as our escort at the prison related a story about an inmate who tried to escape. He didn’t have much of a plan. He just tried to climb the fence and bull doze his way through the razor wire at the top. Needless to say, it didn’t end up going that well for him. He said it wasn’t pretty trying to get the guy out of there. At the very least it was a good lesson for the other inmates who might have been having similar plans.
That’s what it is like for the sluggard. His life is filled with trouble, pain, sorrow, agony. His life is just one misery after another. At one moment he’s got financial problems, an then he’s got some physical problems. He goes to the doctor, but that only adds to his financial problems. And that creates some mental problems. His emotions are becoming unstable. And then there are his relational problems. He’s always getting into it with his family. His friends are like thorns that continually antagonize him give him nothing but grief.
And it is not like it is just that he’s down on his luck or that people are out to get him. What is important to understand here is that it is all his own fault. It is the lifestyle that he has chosen that creates the problems. In using the word sluggard, the passage is indicating that his hardships are the direct result of his sloth.
His laziness creates numerous hardships that make life much more difficult than God ever intended.
I’m going to illustrate this point in just a second, but it is important to understand who (or what) a sluggard is. When we talk about someone being lazy, we often associate it with someone who just doesn’t do much. He’s someone who just lays around or lacks motivation. And that can be true. That can definitely be one dimension of what it means to be a sluggard. But there’s more to it than that.
When we think of the sluggard we should think of him more as someone who fails to do what God calls him to do. That’s the real description of a sluggard. And that’s why he is equated with an unbeliever. An unbeliever is the sluggard in that he has pushed God out of the picture and gives no regard to what God requires of him. Instead of doing what God obligates him to do, he’s a guy who is only going to seek to do his own will and what feels good to him.
So this paints a different view of the sluggard for us. It is true that a sluggard can be someone who is lethargic and doesn’t have a lot of motivation. However, he can also be someone who is very active. Biblically speaking, the lazy guy is someone who is too active doing other things (i.e. his own things, pleasurable things) that he doesn’t have any interest or time to do what God wants him to do.
So, for instance, a fellow may be a sluggard in that he can’t get out of bed in the morning to get to work or get to church. But the reason is because he was up until 3 in the morning playing video games or binge watching 3 seasons of Netflix. The real problem is not so much lethargy or motivation. His problem is that he’s addicted to pleasure and doesn’t demonstrate the discipline to get to bed and get the amount of rest that God requires. When God’s calling is for him to sleep, he’s out filling his carnal delights.
That’s what a sluggard is. A sluggard is one who fails to do what God calls him to do.
And now you can understand a little better why his life is filled with all kinds of grief. That’s why it is like trying to tromp through a hedge of thorns. His love of pleasure, his lack of discipline, his failure to heed God’s calling in life, ends up making life much more difficult than God intends it to be.
Let’s continue with that illustration. What happens to the guy who binge watches some TV show through the wee hours of the night. We already stated that he’s not going to be able to get to work on time. Or at least his work is going to be severely hindered due to his fatigue. He’s not going to be as productive. He’s probably going to be pretty crabby and not all that fun to have as a coworker.
This is not to mention the fact that he defies what God says about being a loving and gracious person. So no one really enjoys being around him anyway.
So what’s going to happen? His finances are going to suffer. And that’s going to present all kinds of other problems, isn’t it? He’s not going to be able to make his car payment. If he can’t pay for the car he’s going to lose it. And if he doesn’t have a car, his girlfriend will probably end up dumping him.
It is just one thorn after another. His life is like somebody trying to hoola hoop with razor wire.
This proverb is telling you that when you do not live your life according to God’s word—when you defy God by turning your back on what he calls you to do, then you are going to end up facing all kinds of trials. You are going to become the architect of your own pains and misery.
But if that’s what it is like for the sluggard, what is life like for the righteous man? Our text goes on to say that the “path of the upright is a level highway.”
The path of the upright is a level highway
Literally translated, it is a road that is “raised.” You can understand why the ESV translates it as a highway. A highway is a just that: it is a high way. It is a road that is raised up and made smooth.
Years ago I worked for the Ohio Department of Transportation (and besides catching up on a lot of missed sleep) one of the things we did was fix roads. For part of that summer one of our assignments was to work on a certain section of the road. We were to create a few more lanes for this stretch of highway. And you know what we had to do? Before we laid the asphalt we had to raise up the part of earth where we were creating the extra lanes.
But this raised highway is a metaphor. It is a metaphor that describes the kind of life that a God fearing person experiences. Instead of having a hard time and experiencing all kinds of pains and turmoil in life, his life goes a lot easier. His life is raised up in that he passes over the hedge of thorns. His obedience causes him to avoid all the troubles that the sluggard experiences. What he experiences is a life that is, for the most part, successful and free from a great deal of troubles. It’s a thriving, joy filled life.
Now, don’t think that the God fearing person doesn’t have any adversity. Of course he does. This is not a verse that you can use to endorse some kind of prosperity gospel. I’m not going to say that if you come to Christ and follow God’s commands that you will never have any troubles ever again. That’s not what this means at all.
Of course you are going to have challenges to face. You’re a sinner and it should be obvious that you’re going to experience some bumps in the road. You live in the midst of a sinful world. So there are going to be some potholes that you’ll have to navigate. And in God’s providence, you will most certainly going to meet with trials and encounter some situations that are going to test your faith. But overall, this verse is telling you that despite all this, you will find that your life is greatly blessed.
The challenges that you face are going to be faced with faith. And, if you face them in obedience to God, you will find that you’ll be blessed. Life will be a raised highway in that God’s going to pour out his favor upon you. He will reward you and keep you from experiencing a life of pain and misery.
Kevin Swanson gives a good example in his commentary. He gives the example of a family that adopts a special needs child. There are obviously a lot of challenges to adopting a special needs child. There are going to be some times that are rough. It is going to have a financial impact on the family, not to mention take a toll on their stress level. There are going to be sleepless nights and certain things that they may have to give up in order to tend to this child. But what’s going to happen? This family is most likely going to find it all exceedingly rewarding. They are going to find that their investment, despite the challenge, is going to have a very high payoff.
You can also use the illustration of the Apostle Paul’s life. I have been reading through some of the NT epistles lately and you get a lot of background on the apostle Paul. Paul sought to live for God. Paul sought to be obedient in all that he did. And that often got him in trouble. He was beaten several times. 5 times he received the 40 lashes minus one. That means he was flogged almost 200 times. He was shipwrecked, starved, mocked, ridiculed and treated with all kinds of contempt. But he could say, “I have learned to be content in every situation.” He could say that God’s “grace was sufficient.”
At the end of his life, what did he say? Did he say, “This was the worst decision I have ever made. Following Christ was a huge mistake and I should never have been so fanatical about religion.” Of course not. When his years on earth were almost up he said, “I have fought the fight, I have run the race, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown.” Those are words of triumph. He was confessing that he had lived a victorious life and he had even greater things ahead of him after this earthly life was over.
Paul’s life was a testimony to the kind of thing that is being spoken of in this verse. Despite the challenges that he met with in life, his life was regarded as a raised highway.
When someone obeys the commandments of God and seeks to live in obedience, God will cause them to thrive in life. You will not be caught in the hedge of thorns. You will find that God’s grace and peace make your path nice and smooth.
Think back to the book of Deuteronomy. What is found in this passage is basically a summary of what Deuteronomy teaches. Throughout that book Moses reiterates the fact that if the people obey, they will be blessed. For instance, in chapter 11 he says, “If you obey the commandments I command you today, to love the Lord your God and serve him with all your heart and all your soul, he will give you rain for your land in its season. And you will be able to gather in all your grain and your wine and your oil.”
Then in chapter 12 he reiterates some of the same concepts. At the end of the chapter he summarizes what he has just laid out by saying, “Be careful to to obey all these words that I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you forever.” What is he talking about there? It’s the highway life.
Fast forward to Deut. 28 and what do you find. God lays out all the blessings and the curses that will come upon the people. If they obey the voice of the Lord, their lives will be smooth: God will make them the head and not the tail, they will be blessed in the city and in the field. When they go to war, one man will chase a thousand. The Lord will make them to abound and prosper in livestock, children, and crops.
But if they disobey, it will be a hedge of thorns. They will be the tail and not the head. When they go to war, they will be sorely defeated. They’ll find financial hardship, relational hardship, and physical hardship. They will experience confusion and frustration in all that they do.
Now, I’ve sought to outline for you the general teaching of this proverb. I want to take a few seconds and speak to a few specific areas where this proverb can be applied.
LESSONS
1. Reconciliation
Think of the passage in the New Testament that talks about settling matters with your brother. In Matthew 5 Jesus says that if you have sinned against your brother, you need to be reconciled to him. And he says you need to do it quickly, lest your adversary hand you over to the judge. The judge then is liable to throw you in prison where you will not get out until you’ve paid the last penny.
Now I want you to think about how this Proverb highlights that passage and shows you the need for speedy repentance and diligence to be reconciled to those you’ve offended. What happens if you play the sluggard and do not do what God calls you to do in that kind of situation? What happens if you are not as diligent as you should be in repenting? Jesus says you end up in a hedge of thorns called prison.
Now that could be literal if you’ve committed a crime. But even if you sinned in such a way that isn’t to that level, there’s still a lesson. If you don’t work out your problems, God’s wrath and curse will fall upon you. Your problems will only linger a little longer, but most likely they will metastasize and cause you a lot more trouble. It can come in the form of gossip or rumors that spread. There can be anxiety and sleep deprivation, among other things.
One thing that I always tell my young people is that sin is never stagnate. It never stays in a static state. It always snowballs. And the same can be true for relationships. If you don’t follow what God says about being quick to reconcile there will be ramifications. The other person will likely retaliate and do something to make your life that much more miserable.
But all that can be prevented if you would get off your duff and go get things straightened out. If you fear God and do what he says when it comes to being reconciled, then it will go well with you. God will bless that.
2. Adolescence
Adolescence is that time, typically known as the teenage years, where one is no longer a child but is not quite considered to be an adult. But what I want you to understand is that adolescence is an American invention. The term adolescent is, for the most part, relatively new thing. The term was developed during the 20th century. Prior to that you were either a child or an adult. A teenager was typically regarded to be an adult, who bore responsibility and who was a part of the household income.
Think of Almanzo Wilder from the Little House books. Almanzo was 8-12 years old and carrying a lot of the responsibilities on the family farm. He was plowing, planting, tending the animals, hauling logs, and training oxen.
But what do we have now? Kids are not expected to grow up until they are 20-25 years old. Studies are even saying that adolescence can now be stretched until one is 30 years old! And these years are characterized by play and little to no responsibility. Sure there is some education going on there, but mainly it is a slothful time. God is calling you young people to be adults. He’s calling you to grow up, to work, to contribute your gifts and graces to the benefit of society. The Bible doesn’t give us any period of adolescence.
But recognize that that if you prolong your childhood, you are likely going to be entangled in a hedge of thorns. If you are shirking responsibility, you are not creating good work habits that will have ramifications. You are certainly not giving yourself a reputation and creating for yourself a future that has good prospects.
What we are finding today is that these sluggards are becoming a financial burden on society. Living in their parent’s basements and playing video games rather than starting to build wealth and create a name for themselves.
They say that the puritans thought of their kids as “little adults.” I remember one book I read in one of my education classes that basically mocked the puritans for thinking that their 5 year olds should have responsibilities in the household chores. But what was the puritan mindset? It was that their children were called to fulfill their calling to live before God as productive citizens of His kingdom. They were to trust and obey and get a start on life from the very earliest time. And if you do that, young people—if you put aside this silly notion of adolescence and start acting like a adult, then you will find that you’ll be blessed. Your life will be raised up and free from a lot of trials that a lot of millennials will be having.
3. Fear God
The last thing I want to mention in terms of specific application is the need to heed the calling to be converted. If you have not put your faith in Christ, what in the world are you waiting for? God says in his word, “Today is the day of salvation.” Now is the hour. Jesus Christ stands ready to receive sinners. He offers you eternal life if you would but turn to him and begin to follow him.
But if you don’t do that, if you play the sluggard and ignore his call to faith, what’s going to happen? Life is going to be a hedge of thorns. You’ll say, “But my life is just fine. Things are rolling quite smoothly for me. I’m living the American Dream. This may be true, but there will come a time when you will stand before God and be judged. And if you have failed to obey the gospel, then for all eternity it will be misery upon misery. Hell is an eternal hedge of thorns, one that you will not be able to escape.
But if you trust in Christ, there is a raised highway, one that leads straight to heaven. It is the way of life. It is the road of eternal blessing.
Conclusion
Let me conclude with this: If you remember back to the beginning of the world, you will remember that Adam plunged us all into a world of sin. And one of the curses of the fall was that the earth would produce thorns and thistles. Ever since Adam’s fall we have had to live with the curse. The world has been plagued with pain and turmoil, and we have had to endure them.
But the good news is that Christ, in his humiliation has broken the curse. And in his last hours of life you will remember that a crown of thorns was placed on his head. The hedge of thorns was placed upon his skull, and it was for us an indication that Jesus takes away the burdens of trouble that is due to sin. And he bore that crown of thorns so that we may ride the straight path of life and grace. It is a promise that your life can be raised up out of the miseries that you have fallen into. Christ is able to redeem you and set you on the highway of life and peace.
The degree to which you thrive in life or experience hardship is not dependent upon the conditions you live as much as it depends directly upon your character. Your belief system is the balance of power when it comes to how well your life goes.
Look at the contrast that is set up in our passage. We have on the one hand a sluggard. That’s a slothful man. And notice the kind of person he is contrasted with. The second half of the verse talks about the upright. So the sluggard is pitted as the opposite of a righteous man. So when you think about this, what you have is a contrast between a believer and an unbeliever; a Christian and a person who chooses not to follow Christ.
And this morning I want us to think about the antithesis that is set up here and consider how one’s belief system will impact the course of their life.
Now, I want to begin with the first half of this verse. It is important for us to understand that the path of unbelief is one that is fraught with difficulty. It says…
The way of a sluggard is like a hedge of thorns
What does it mean by a “way.” In Scripture one’s life is sometimes compared to a pathway. We still use this kind of language. We sometimes talk about life as a journey. People will talk about their life’s journey.
So this is talking about the sluggard’s life. His life is, you notice, not a good one. It is like a hedge of thorns. This is imagery that indicates that his life is one that is really difficult.
Now, you’ve all probably had the experience of getting tangled in a briar patch or snagged in some thorn bushes. That’s a real pain, isn’t it? Perhaps you were taking a hike through some woods or maybe you were like us and you had some raspberry bushes. I remember when I was young getting ensnared in those bushes we had in the back yard. We’d be playing whiffle ball and inevitably someone would hit it into the raspberry bushes and one of us would have to fetch it out. And that would be tough goings. You’d reach in and try to be very careful, but there’s no way to avoid it. No matter how hard you tried you’d get pricked. Your clothes would get snagged and it was like the thing was an octopus that was trying to devour you.
That’s what the imagery is here. But you’ll notice that it’s not just a momentary thing. The sluggard isn’t just jumping in to get a whiffle ball and then hopping out. Solomon is describing the whole of the unbeliever’s life. He’s saying that his whole life’s experience is like this. When you step back and look at the grand overview of his life, what you find is that it’s just one misery after another.
Maybe today we’d use the imagery of razor wire or a barbed wire fence. One of the guards who serves as our escort at the prison related a story about an inmate who tried to escape. He didn’t have much of a plan. He just tried to climb the fence and bull doze his way through the razor wire at the top. Needless to say, it didn’t end up going that well for him. He said it wasn’t pretty trying to get the guy out of there. At the very least it was a good lesson for the other inmates who might have been having similar plans.
That’s what it is like for the sluggard. His life is filled with trouble, pain, sorrow, agony. His life is just one misery after another. At one moment he’s got financial problems, an then he’s got some physical problems. He goes to the doctor, but that only adds to his financial problems. And that creates some mental problems. His emotions are becoming unstable. And then there are his relational problems. He’s always getting into it with his family. His friends are like thorns that continually antagonize him give him nothing but grief.
And it is not like it is just that he’s down on his luck or that people are out to get him. What is important to understand here is that it is all his own fault. It is the lifestyle that he has chosen that creates the problems. In using the word sluggard, the passage is indicating that his hardships are the direct result of his sloth.
His laziness creates numerous hardships that make life much more difficult than God ever intended.
I’m going to illustrate this point in just a second, but it is important to understand who (or what) a sluggard is. When we talk about someone being lazy, we often associate it with someone who just doesn’t do much. He’s someone who just lays around or lacks motivation. And that can be true. That can definitely be one dimension of what it means to be a sluggard. But there’s more to it than that.
When we think of the sluggard we should think of him more as someone who fails to do what God calls him to do. That’s the real description of a sluggard. And that’s why he is equated with an unbeliever. An unbeliever is the sluggard in that he has pushed God out of the picture and gives no regard to what God requires of him. Instead of doing what God obligates him to do, he’s a guy who is only going to seek to do his own will and what feels good to him.
So this paints a different view of the sluggard for us. It is true that a sluggard can be someone who is lethargic and doesn’t have a lot of motivation. However, he can also be someone who is very active. Biblically speaking, the lazy guy is someone who is too active doing other things (i.e. his own things, pleasurable things) that he doesn’t have any interest or time to do what God wants him to do.
So, for instance, a fellow may be a sluggard in that he can’t get out of bed in the morning to get to work or get to church. But the reason is because he was up until 3 in the morning playing video games or binge watching 3 seasons of Netflix. The real problem is not so much lethargy or motivation. His problem is that he’s addicted to pleasure and doesn’t demonstrate the discipline to get to bed and get the amount of rest that God requires. When God’s calling is for him to sleep, he’s out filling his carnal delights.
That’s what a sluggard is. A sluggard is one who fails to do what God calls him to do.
And now you can understand a little better why his life is filled with all kinds of grief. That’s why it is like trying to tromp through a hedge of thorns. His love of pleasure, his lack of discipline, his failure to heed God’s calling in life, ends up making life much more difficult than God intends it to be.
Let’s continue with that illustration. What happens to the guy who binge watches some TV show through the wee hours of the night. We already stated that he’s not going to be able to get to work on time. Or at least his work is going to be severely hindered due to his fatigue. He’s not going to be as productive. He’s probably going to be pretty crabby and not all that fun to have as a coworker.
This is not to mention the fact that he defies what God says about being a loving and gracious person. So no one really enjoys being around him anyway.
So what’s going to happen? His finances are going to suffer. And that’s going to present all kinds of other problems, isn’t it? He’s not going to be able to make his car payment. If he can’t pay for the car he’s going to lose it. And if he doesn’t have a car, his girlfriend will probably end up dumping him.
It is just one thorn after another. His life is like somebody trying to hoola hoop with razor wire.
This proverb is telling you that when you do not live your life according to God’s word—when you defy God by turning your back on what he calls you to do, then you are going to end up facing all kinds of trials. You are going to become the architect of your own pains and misery.
But if that’s what it is like for the sluggard, what is life like for the righteous man? Our text goes on to say that the “path of the upright is a level highway.”
The path of the upright is a level highway
Literally translated, it is a road that is “raised.” You can understand why the ESV translates it as a highway. A highway is a just that: it is a high way. It is a road that is raised up and made smooth.
Years ago I worked for the Ohio Department of Transportation (and besides catching up on a lot of missed sleep) one of the things we did was fix roads. For part of that summer one of our assignments was to work on a certain section of the road. We were to create a few more lanes for this stretch of highway. And you know what we had to do? Before we laid the asphalt we had to raise up the part of earth where we were creating the extra lanes.
But this raised highway is a metaphor. It is a metaphor that describes the kind of life that a God fearing person experiences. Instead of having a hard time and experiencing all kinds of pains and turmoil in life, his life goes a lot easier. His life is raised up in that he passes over the hedge of thorns. His obedience causes him to avoid all the troubles that the sluggard experiences. What he experiences is a life that is, for the most part, successful and free from a great deal of troubles. It’s a thriving, joy filled life.
Now, don’t think that the God fearing person doesn’t have any adversity. Of course he does. This is not a verse that you can use to endorse some kind of prosperity gospel. I’m not going to say that if you come to Christ and follow God’s commands that you will never have any troubles ever again. That’s not what this means at all.
Of course you are going to have challenges to face. You’re a sinner and it should be obvious that you’re going to experience some bumps in the road. You live in the midst of a sinful world. So there are going to be some potholes that you’ll have to navigate. And in God’s providence, you will most certainly going to meet with trials and encounter some situations that are going to test your faith. But overall, this verse is telling you that despite all this, you will find that your life is greatly blessed.
The challenges that you face are going to be faced with faith. And, if you face them in obedience to God, you will find that you’ll be blessed. Life will be a raised highway in that God’s going to pour out his favor upon you. He will reward you and keep you from experiencing a life of pain and misery.
Kevin Swanson gives a good example in his commentary. He gives the example of a family that adopts a special needs child. There are obviously a lot of challenges to adopting a special needs child. There are going to be some times that are rough. It is going to have a financial impact on the family, not to mention take a toll on their stress level. There are going to be sleepless nights and certain things that they may have to give up in order to tend to this child. But what’s going to happen? This family is most likely going to find it all exceedingly rewarding. They are going to find that their investment, despite the challenge, is going to have a very high payoff.
You can also use the illustration of the Apostle Paul’s life. I have been reading through some of the NT epistles lately and you get a lot of background on the apostle Paul. Paul sought to live for God. Paul sought to be obedient in all that he did. And that often got him in trouble. He was beaten several times. 5 times he received the 40 lashes minus one. That means he was flogged almost 200 times. He was shipwrecked, starved, mocked, ridiculed and treated with all kinds of contempt. But he could say, “I have learned to be content in every situation.” He could say that God’s “grace was sufficient.”
At the end of his life, what did he say? Did he say, “This was the worst decision I have ever made. Following Christ was a huge mistake and I should never have been so fanatical about religion.” Of course not. When his years on earth were almost up he said, “I have fought the fight, I have run the race, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown.” Those are words of triumph. He was confessing that he had lived a victorious life and he had even greater things ahead of him after this earthly life was over.
Paul’s life was a testimony to the kind of thing that is being spoken of in this verse. Despite the challenges that he met with in life, his life was regarded as a raised highway.
When someone obeys the commandments of God and seeks to live in obedience, God will cause them to thrive in life. You will not be caught in the hedge of thorns. You will find that God’s grace and peace make your path nice and smooth.
Think back to the book of Deuteronomy. What is found in this passage is basically a summary of what Deuteronomy teaches. Throughout that book Moses reiterates the fact that if the people obey, they will be blessed. For instance, in chapter 11 he says, “If you obey the commandments I command you today, to love the Lord your God and serve him with all your heart and all your soul, he will give you rain for your land in its season. And you will be able to gather in all your grain and your wine and your oil.”
Then in chapter 12 he reiterates some of the same concepts. At the end of the chapter he summarizes what he has just laid out by saying, “Be careful to to obey all these words that I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you forever.” What is he talking about there? It’s the highway life.
Fast forward to Deut. 28 and what do you find. God lays out all the blessings and the curses that will come upon the people. If they obey the voice of the Lord, their lives will be smooth: God will make them the head and not the tail, they will be blessed in the city and in the field. When they go to war, one man will chase a thousand. The Lord will make them to abound and prosper in livestock, children, and crops.
But if they disobey, it will be a hedge of thorns. They will be the tail and not the head. When they go to war, they will be sorely defeated. They’ll find financial hardship, relational hardship, and physical hardship. They will experience confusion and frustration in all that they do.
Now, I’ve sought to outline for you the general teaching of this proverb. I want to take a few seconds and speak to a few specific areas where this proverb can be applied.
LESSONS
1. Reconciliation
Think of the passage in the New Testament that talks about settling matters with your brother. In Matthew 5 Jesus says that if you have sinned against your brother, you need to be reconciled to him. And he says you need to do it quickly, lest your adversary hand you over to the judge. The judge then is liable to throw you in prison where you will not get out until you’ve paid the last penny.
Now I want you to think about how this Proverb highlights that passage and shows you the need for speedy repentance and diligence to be reconciled to those you’ve offended. What happens if you play the sluggard and do not do what God calls you to do in that kind of situation? What happens if you are not as diligent as you should be in repenting? Jesus says you end up in a hedge of thorns called prison.
Now that could be literal if you’ve committed a crime. But even if you sinned in such a way that isn’t to that level, there’s still a lesson. If you don’t work out your problems, God’s wrath and curse will fall upon you. Your problems will only linger a little longer, but most likely they will metastasize and cause you a lot more trouble. It can come in the form of gossip or rumors that spread. There can be anxiety and sleep deprivation, among other things.
One thing that I always tell my young people is that sin is never stagnate. It never stays in a static state. It always snowballs. And the same can be true for relationships. If you don’t follow what God says about being quick to reconcile there will be ramifications. The other person will likely retaliate and do something to make your life that much more miserable.
But all that can be prevented if you would get off your duff and go get things straightened out. If you fear God and do what he says when it comes to being reconciled, then it will go well with you. God will bless that.
2. Adolescence
Adolescence is that time, typically known as the teenage years, where one is no longer a child but is not quite considered to be an adult. But what I want you to understand is that adolescence is an American invention. The term adolescent is, for the most part, relatively new thing. The term was developed during the 20th century. Prior to that you were either a child or an adult. A teenager was typically regarded to be an adult, who bore responsibility and who was a part of the household income.
Think of Almanzo Wilder from the Little House books. Almanzo was 8-12 years old and carrying a lot of the responsibilities on the family farm. He was plowing, planting, tending the animals, hauling logs, and training oxen.
But what do we have now? Kids are not expected to grow up until they are 20-25 years old. Studies are even saying that adolescence can now be stretched until one is 30 years old! And these years are characterized by play and little to no responsibility. Sure there is some education going on there, but mainly it is a slothful time. God is calling you young people to be adults. He’s calling you to grow up, to work, to contribute your gifts and graces to the benefit of society. The Bible doesn’t give us any period of adolescence.
But recognize that that if you prolong your childhood, you are likely going to be entangled in a hedge of thorns. If you are shirking responsibility, you are not creating good work habits that will have ramifications. You are certainly not giving yourself a reputation and creating for yourself a future that has good prospects.
What we are finding today is that these sluggards are becoming a financial burden on society. Living in their parent’s basements and playing video games rather than starting to build wealth and create a name for themselves.
They say that the puritans thought of their kids as “little adults.” I remember one book I read in one of my education classes that basically mocked the puritans for thinking that their 5 year olds should have responsibilities in the household chores. But what was the puritan mindset? It was that their children were called to fulfill their calling to live before God as productive citizens of His kingdom. They were to trust and obey and get a start on life from the very earliest time. And if you do that, young people—if you put aside this silly notion of adolescence and start acting like a adult, then you will find that you’ll be blessed. Your life will be raised up and free from a lot of trials that a lot of millennials will be having.
3. Fear God
The last thing I want to mention in terms of specific application is the need to heed the calling to be converted. If you have not put your faith in Christ, what in the world are you waiting for? God says in his word, “Today is the day of salvation.” Now is the hour. Jesus Christ stands ready to receive sinners. He offers you eternal life if you would but turn to him and begin to follow him.
But if you don’t do that, if you play the sluggard and ignore his call to faith, what’s going to happen? Life is going to be a hedge of thorns. You’ll say, “But my life is just fine. Things are rolling quite smoothly for me. I’m living the American Dream. This may be true, but there will come a time when you will stand before God and be judged. And if you have failed to obey the gospel, then for all eternity it will be misery upon misery. Hell is an eternal hedge of thorns, one that you will not be able to escape.
But if you trust in Christ, there is a raised highway, one that leads straight to heaven. It is the way of life. It is the road of eternal blessing.
Conclusion
Let me conclude with this: If you remember back to the beginning of the world, you will remember that Adam plunged us all into a world of sin. And one of the curses of the fall was that the earth would produce thorns and thistles. Ever since Adam’s fall we have had to live with the curse. The world has been plagued with pain and turmoil, and we have had to endure them.
But the good news is that Christ, in his humiliation has broken the curse. And in his last hours of life you will remember that a crown of thorns was placed on his head. The hedge of thorns was placed upon his skull, and it was for us an indication that Jesus takes away the burdens of trouble that is due to sin. And he bore that crown of thorns so that we may ride the straight path of life and grace. It is a promise that your life can be raised up out of the miseries that you have fallen into. Christ is able to redeem you and set you on the highway of life and peace.