24 “Proud,” “Haughty,” “Scoffer,” are his names,
Who acts with insolent pride.
25 The desire of the sluggard puts him to death,
For his hands refuse to work;
26 All day long he [f]is craving,
While the righteous gives and does not hold back.
27 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination,
How much more when he brings it with evil intent!
28 A false witness will perish,
But the man who listens to the truth will speak forever.
29 A wicked man [g]displays a bold face,
But as for the upright, he makes his way sure.
30 There is no wisdom and no understanding
And no counsel against the Lord.
31 The horse is prepared for the day of battle,
But victory belongs to the Lord.
At first, it doesn’t seem like verses 24 & 25 go together, but they are both things we ought to avoid. And if we want to gain wisdom, we should learn from the example of those Solomon speaks of in this passage. We can always learn the hard way, and some will boast of that, but what if we didn’t?
Solomon has a funny way of putting things in v. 25, “The desire of the sluggard puts him to death…” In other words, he desires pleasure more than hard work, and that will be his undoing, even unto death. The sluggards cravings never cease, while the righteous is quite the opposite. God’s way is giving, and not holding back.
In contrast, our sluggard, when he gives (or sacrifices), Solomon calls it an abomination. Why? Keep reading and we see part of the answer, that it is done with evil intent. The wicked don’t give to serve others, or to please God, they are hoping to get something out of it. Not the least of it is shown in v. 29, and which ties back to v. 24.
We’ve come full circle, and the wicked only gives to “display a bold face”, or as we might say, to put on a good show. It’s only for the accolades, which they hope will cover up their despicable deeds. But you can’t give your way out of a hole, not with an unrepentant heart. Only God can rescue that heart, which means recognizing v. 30.
There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against God. Because, if it is against God, it is none of those things at all. It’s just showing off and selfishness, seeking pleasure until it robs us of our very lives. God already won the victory, and He did it for us too. He gave with the purest of motives, to rescue us from that hole.
God wants us to have the same heart, to be transformed from the world’s way of thinking, and to give without thinking of what we get, or of what we lose. To give because it is needed, and for the pure joy of it. That is no abomination, but a life destined for eternity, built on a sure Rock and walking a sure path, hand in hand with our Maker.