Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl Proverbs 30:11-14 Agur’s List Proverbs, Part 1
Friday, October 27, 2023
Proverbs 30:11–14
[11] There are those who curse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers.
[12] There are those who are clean in their own eyes
but are not washed of their filth.
[13] There are those—how lofty are their eyes,
how high their eyelids lift!
[14] There are those whose teeth are swords,
whose fangs are knives,
to devour the poor from off the earth,
the needy from among mankind. (ESV)
Agur’s List Proverbs, Part 1
With this section of the proverbs of Agur, he speaks of life in this world under God's established order through family and government. These are both gifts of God given to us to maintain society in this life and are to be respected and honored. He teaches that family is the basic unit of society upon which all human civilization is based, including government. These are estates established by God. Every government has the duty to preserve and protect the family. God's people cannot endure if we are in open rebellion against God (Genesis 11:9 & Chapters 18-19). Redefining the family as originally defined by God, redefining male and female, and murdering the unborn and the elderly is a rebellion against God and will ultimately destroy society.
v.11-14: These verses list four kinds of people whose attitudes are opposed to Wisdom. They lack Wisdom because they are opposed to God.
In verse 11, we see the fool who curses his father and mother. Opposition to parents is a rejection of God’s Wisdom throughout the book of Proverbs, going all the way back to Proverbs 1:8.
Verse 12 shows us a person who thinks of himself as "clean" and presentable to God, though he is not washed because he has not repented of his sins. Jesus tells us that it is necessary that we be washed by Him (John 13:8-10), and the clean water (Ezekiel 36:25) that God promises to pour out on the repentant in order to give them a new heart and the Holy Spirit (Ezekiel 36:25-27). This is accomplished for us in our Baptisms. In this Sacrament, God works salvation, moves us to repentance, and creates saving faith (Acts 2:38-39; 13:24; 19:4; Romans 6:1-4; Titus 3:4-7; 1 Peter 3:18-22).
Verse 13 shows us a person related to the person in verse 12 because he has an arrogant attitude. His "eyes are lofty" indicates a haughty attitude toward God and is a disgusting thing to God (see Proverbs 6:17). One with this attitude, like the one who curses his parents, will find his lamp darkened (Proverbs 21:4).
Finally, in verse 14 shows us a truly evil person. Not only does he not help the poor, he actively seeks their extermination. He, therefore, insults God, who made both him and the poor and oppressed he persecutes.