Proverbs 13:14, God’s Good Law!

July 10, Proverbs 13:14

Psalm 19:7-14 “Let thy heart retain my words; keep my commandments and live” (Pr. 4:4).

God’s Good Law!

In the previous verse the great word commandment confronted us. In this verse there is the word Law, the Torah. Both words remind us of Moses and Sinai. Ours is a lawless society, where “doing your own thing” is the standard for many, but we ignore law at our peril. David Thomas defines Law as “rule in motion. The material universe is in motion, and there is the law that regulates it. The spiritual universe is in motion, and law presides over it.” The law of the wise is the law that rules them, the law that “has her seat in the bosom of God” (Hooker).

1. It Benefits: It is a fountain of life that delivers from the snares of death. Paul speaks of the snares of the devil (2 Tm. 2:26). This law is a well of life (10:11) warning of approaching dangers. How vitally necessary this is for the pilgrim passing through “the wilderness of this world” to draw with joy from those wells of salvation (Isa. 12:3). The snares of death refer, not merely to the separation of the body from the soul, but to the divorce of soul from God, that awful, eternal death. Believers are redeemed from the curse of the law, but not from its control. By grace we are saved from the displeasure of God, but not from His dominion. When we do the will of God from the heart the benefits will follow (Eph. 6:6, 8). “Let the young take heed to their feet, where every step is a snare of death” (Bridges). May the law of the wise be my law, as it was George Matheson’s.

Make me a captive, Lord,
And then I shall be free.
Force me to render up my sword,
And I shall conqueror be.

2. It Blesses: Not only does this law benefit by delivering from Satan’s death-grip; it also bestows rich blessings. Solomon calls it the law of the wise. It may refer to those who obey the voice of instruction from trusted teachers, or those who learn from spiritual experience that life lived in harmony with the Law of God is best. Thus David taught Solomon to keep the charge of the Lord thy God and live (4:4; 1 Kg. 2:3, 4), and Solomon now teaches us. When we come to the NT it is designated the Royal Law (Jas. 2:8) because it is the Law of Christ (Matt. 22:38, Jn. 13:34). It is the perfect law of liberty (Jas. 1:25) because it frees from the yoke of Jewish bondage (Gal. 5:1). It is also the law of the Spirit of life, delivering from the law of sin and death (Rom. 8:2). It is a fountain that not only warns of dangers; it is a great preservative. It is a fountain of life, a constant source of refreshing. It secures abundance of life, a perennial blessing; a fount of activity producing true happiness. No wonder Scripture calls it the law of the wise. Many ignore that blessed fountain still. The explorer, Coulthard, who perished of thirst in the Australian desert, left behind the feebly scrawled lines: “Lost, lost, for want of water.”

Thought: “The needle of the law must precede the thread of the gospel” (CHS).

Prayer: That I might ever do the will of God from my heart.