19 He who loves transgression loves strife;
He who raises his door seeks destruction.
20 He who has a crooked [h]mind finds no good,
And he who is perverted in his language falls into evil.
21 He who sires a fool does so to his sorrow,
And the father of a fool has no joy.
22 A joyful heart [i]is good medicine,
But a broken spirit dries up the bones.
23 A wicked man receives a bribe from the bosom
To pervert the ways of justice.
24 Wisdom is in the presence of the one who has understanding,
But the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
25 A foolish son is a grief to his father
And bitterness to her who bore him.
26 It is also not good to fine the righteous,
Nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.
27 He who restrains his words [j]has knowledge,
And he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
28 Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise;
When he closes his lips, he is considered prudent.
Wow, are there a lot of good nuggets in this passage! Before we get too far though, what in the world does it mean to “raise your door”? What? You can open your door, push it, pull it, but raise it? Here’s a case where we can lose a bit in translation. Door can also be gate, and rather than just “raised”, it can be built high, or exalted. So, someone who builds a tall and/or fancy gate seeks (or invites) destruction.
Why build a tall and extravagant gate? Look around our world, who builds such things? The wealthy do, some for protection, but also because it looks impressive. It says, look at me, I have way more money than you lowly commoners. Maybe they’d never say that out loud, and maybe it isn’t even true. What good does it really do, other than to paint a target on your back?
You might fool some, but you won’t ever fool the One who really matters. Ultimately, it ties in with some of the other advice from Solomon, all pointing to one tragically difficult ideal: contentment. Or maybe it isn’t difficult, but we all have this itch to be more, do more, look better. Skipping ahead to Ecclesiastes, Solomon also wrote, “I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind.”
In v. 24 the wise is compared with the fool whose eyes are “on the ends of the earth.” He isn’t satisfied with where he lives, and constantly wants to find some place new, even though he won’t be content there either. Finally, in verse 28, “Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise…” Why are we compelled to fill every silence with words. Why can’t we be content with a bit of quiet, why are we so restless?
Instead, a joyful heart is good medicine, which can only come from being content with what God has given us–which is plenty, and more than we deserve. Certainly, there is value in being driven, in having ambition to do better, and be better. But for what do we strive? Is it selfish ambition, or Christ who lives in us? If the former, we’ll grasp nothing more than the wind, and all our accumulation will be as dust for the peace it fails to bring.
But God, He has given us everything we need. We must find joy and contentment where we are, and prove faithful with that. That’s a tall order, but do we trust that He is good? If so, we must still our racing hearts, and be in the moment. Be thankful for where God has put you right now, and use it for His glory.