Proverbs 30:24-28
24 “Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise: 25 Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer; 26 hyraxes are creatures of little power, yet they make their home in the crags; 27 locusts have no king, yet they advance together in ranks; 28 a lizard can be caught with the hand, yet it is found in kings’ palaces. (Proverbs 30:24-28)
This group of proverbs is part of “the sayings of Agur son of Jakeh (Agur Ben Jakeh), the king of Massa.” They speak of four creatures that live on the earth. What unites these creatures is that they are all “small, yet extremely wise.” The fact that these creatures are tiny and yet wise reminds us not to judge a person by outward appearance, but by their deeds and character. We should not despise the weak things of the world. In spite of its limitations, each one of them has its own virtue. These are virtues that we too should develop if we want to be “wise.” What are these virtues?
DILIGENCE
First, the ants are mentioned here. Ants may not be strong compared to a human being, but they are diligent — they prepare their food during the summer. And in other passages of God’s word as well, we see that God commends ants for their diligence. For example, in Proverbs 6:6-11 it says:
6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! 7 It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, 8 yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. 9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? 10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest— 11 and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man. (Proverbs 6:6-11)
Here we see that the lazy man is sent off to school, to God’s creatures. There, among nature, he becomes a witness of an open, vivid lesson. After he has seen the works of the ant, the lazy man must reflect on what he has seen. Two things about the ant are remarkable. First, it has no need of anyone standing over its head to make it work. Its diligence is not by compulsion but voluntary.
Besides this, the ant is provident. It does not think only about now; it thinks about later. The ant teaches us that in the time of harvest we should not gather only what we need in order to feed ourselves, but should labor more, in order to lay up sufficient supplies for the hard times when we would not be able to work. Winter is a symbol of difficulty, want, and old age. The ants teach us to think not only of our present but also of our future.
Perhaps you know Aesop’s fable of the ant and the grasshopper. On a summer day in the field, the grasshopper hopped about here and there, chirping and singing for his own pleasure. An ant passed by him, carrying a huge load of grain that she was bringing to her anthill. “Why not come and have a chat with me, instead of toiling and wearing yourself out like that?” asked the grasshopper. “I am storing up food for the winter,” answered the ant, “and I recommend that you do the same.” “Why should I worry about the winter?” said the grasshopper. “There is so much food right now!” But the ant went on her way and kept on laboring. When winter came, the grasshopper found himself without food and began to starve, while he watched the ants distributing among themselves the grains of wheat and corn from the storehouses they had filled during the summer. Then the grasshopper understood (and this is the moral of the fable):
It is best to prepare in advance for days of need.
In a more modern form, I still remember the little rhyme about the grasshopper and the ant that we learned in kindergarten:
Grandma Ant, where are you off to?
I’m going, Grasshopper, to fetch food — and where are you going with that fiddle?
Today the ladybug is getting married, so I’m invited to the music-making.
And when the snow begins to sprinkle, what will you do in the wintertime?
Well, shame or no shame, I’ll ask a little grain of you.
And I won’t give you any, you old lazybones!
Of course, today it is not very fashionable to be hardworking. In fact, it almost seems as though the lazy ones earn more money. While preparing for this sermon, I found on the internet the following little poem by Zhelyazko Shopov, in which the grasshopper is to some degree rehabilitated at the ant’s expense:
The Ant and the Grasshopper
An ant, hardworking and tidy,
gathered food up all summer long.
For electricity, for heating, for water,
the clever thing was getting ready.
But the Grasshopper just idled about
and sang his cheap and trashy songs.
He even went off to the seaside
to soothe and comfort his heart.
And then the dreadful winter came,
with frost and hunger and the dark.
So then the ant went and asked him:
— How am I to get through this winter?
And then the Grasshopper answered her:
— While you were gathering up your grains,
I was tearing hearts apart on stage.
And now, you see, I am already rich.
For me there is no frost or hunger.
The moral of this fable is this
/though for it I may get a beating/:
He who praises vulgar ways grows himself a fat neck.
But he who bends his back with toil shrinks his own budget.
Yet one day the reward will be handed out — to each as he deserves.
In any case, in the New Testament we are charged to be provident and diligent. In Ephesians 4:28 it says:
28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need. (Ephesians 4:28)
And in 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12 the apostle Paul says to the Thessalonians:
10 For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” 11 We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. 12 Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat. (2 Thessalonians 3:10-12)
The diligence and providence of the ant ought to be seen in our preparation for heaven as well — training ourselves spiritually in God’s Word, and working out within ourselves the fruit of the Spirit.
SECURITY
The next wise creatures after the ants are the hyraxes. We do not have such an animal in Bulgaria. It is found in Africa and in the Middle East. The hyrax (Hyrax, Procavia capensis) is a mammal resembling a large hamster. It has a chubby body, a pointed little snout, small ears, no tail, and its fur is brown. Its feet are bare underneath, its claws flat and rounded, except for those on the inner toe of its hind feet, which are long and curved. It is precisely this feature of its feet that makes it able to climb over the rocks. Adult hyraxes are 30 to 50 cm long and weigh 4-5 kg. Hyraxes cannot dig in the ground; they feed on plants and live in holes among the rocks. They are meek and quiet, and so timid that they are startled even by the shadow of a passing bird. Agur son of Jakeh calls them “weak.”
26 hyraxes are creatures of little power, yet they make their home in the crags; (Proverbs 30:26)
The hyraxes may be weak, but they make their home in the crags. They are exceedingly resourceful at finding for themselves a place of safety, where they will be secure. We human beings are weak. This is why we must abide in God. He is to be our rock. In Isaiah 28:16 it says:
16 So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic. (Isaiah 28:16)
Jesus is the rock on which to set our home. In Proverbs 10:25 it says:
25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever. (Proverbs 10:25)
But our eternal foundation lies not only in our faith, but also in our obedience to Christ’s teaching. Remember how the Lord concluded his “Sermon on the Mount.” In Matthew 7:24-27 he said:
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. (Matthew 7:24-25)
26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7:26-27)
There is wisdom in not only hearing the words of God’s word, but also putting them into practice. In obedience to the word and in abiding in the Lord there is security.
UNITY
The next mini creatures with mega wisdom are the locusts. Even though they have no one to compel them to stay together, they never separate. Their wisdom is unity.
27 locusts have no king, yet they advance together in ranks; (Proverbs 30:27)
You see, there is wisdom in being united. Remember the testament of Khan Kubrat, of whom it is said that he told his sons to take a single arrow and break it. There was no difficulty in that; but then he told them to take a bundle of arrows and try to break them. They could not. The lesson is inscribed on the facade of the Bulgarian parliament: “Union makes strength.”
On its own a single locust is harmless, but a swarm of locusts is like an army. In Joel 2:1-11 the prophet uses them as a picture to portray the attack of the Assyrian army upon Israel:
1 Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming. It is close at hand— 2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come. 3 Before them fire devours, behind them a flame blazes. Before them the land is like the garden of Eden, behind them, a desert waste— nothing escapes them. 4 They have the appearance of horses; they gallop along like cavalry. 5 With a noise like that of chariots they leap over the mountaintops, like a crackling fire consuming stubble, like a mighty army drawn up for battle. 6 At the sight of them, nations are in anguish; every face turns pale. 7 They charge like warriors; they scale walls like soldiers. They all march in line, not swerving from their course. 8 They do not jostle each other; each marches straight ahead. They plunge through defenses without breaking ranks. 9 They rush upon the city; they run along the wall. They climb into the houses; like thieves they enter through the windows. 10 Before them the earth shakes, the heavens tremble, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars no longer shine. 11 The Lord thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty is the army that obeys his command. The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it? (Joel 2:1-11)
On our own we too are weak, but together we are invincible. In Psalm 133:1 it says:
1 How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)
It is precisely for the unity of believers that Christ prays in his high-priestly prayer. After he has prayed for the apostles, he prays for the unity of those who would believe through their teaching — that is, for us:
20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. (John 17:20-21)
In unity there is strength. This is why there is wisdom in striving to preserve it. This is also what the apostle Paul says in Ephesians 4:1-3:
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:1-3)
HUMILITY
The lizard may look repulsive to us, but it too has at least two virtues — inconspicuousness and humility. It is so small that it can be caught with the hand. And yet it is not afraid to climb the walls and enter people’s houses. And since it enters people’s houses, it can even be found in kings’ palaces.
28 a lizard can be caught with the hand, yet it is found in kings’ palaces. (Proverbs 30:28)
“Kings’ palaces” lead my thoughts to the kingdom of God. And indeed, one enters there only with humility. In Matthew 18:1-4 we read about how the apostles argued over “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”:
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:1-4)
In fact, all four of these mini creatures with mega wisdom show us how to enter the kingdom of God. It must happen in good time, as the ants teach us, who prepare for the hard times in advance. To enter the kingdom we must make ourselves secure, building our house on the rock, like the hyraxes. For the advance of the kingdom we must maintain our unity. And if we want to be great in the kingdom, then we must humble ourselves and become small and inconspicuous, like little lizards.
In Proverbs 11:2 it says:
2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. (Proverbs 11:2)