Postings on Proverbs...12:27

"Whoever is slothful will not roast his game, but the diligent man will get precious wealth" (ESV)

"A lazy man does not roast his prey, but the precious possession of a man is diligence" (NASB)

I love this Proverb. How do you hunt down an animal, kill it, but refuse to cook it, especially when there were no refrigerators? That animal is lost; the hunt was a complete waste of time. This illustrates what is, in fact, a very common occurrence for lazy people.

Who? A lazy man vs. A diligent man
What? Will not roast his game vs. will get precious wealth
Where? Anywhere
When? Anytime
Why? Because he's a fool vs. Because he's wise?
How? ???

Did you see that the ESV and NASB translate these verses differently? That's because "the syntax and meaning of key words is uncertain" (Waltke I:542) and because it is "hard to place the second [line] in a smooth grammatical form" (Longman 280).

The ESV balances not roasting game with getting precious wealth; the NASB balances getting prey with being diligent. Usually, you understand both lines by comparing them to each other, but here, the
second line is hard to translate into English. So, the proverb both discourages laziness and encourages diligence, but how exactly it does that second part, I'm not sure.

The first line shows how lazy people are notorious for not finishing what they start. Half read books, partially completed projects, aspirations without action litter their lives.

As a result, the lazy person cannot be trusted. Their inability to finish things robs them, not only of the satisfaction that comes from finishing things, but of people's respect. Their sloth becomes a stain on their character.

The people who suffer most are those closest to the lazy person, who live in frustration as their anticipation is consistently dashed upon the rocks of the lazy person's own sloth.

Can you imagine being the family of the guy who leaves for a day of hunting, comes home with a kill, but everyone goes hungry because he's too lazy cook it?

Ridiculous, right! And yet, how many wives are frustrated with husbands who have left their house a mess with incomplete home improvement projects?

Or, how many hate doing group projects with that one student who never finishes his or her work so everyone has to pick up their slack?

Or, how many people cover for that co-worker who cannot be trusted because they don't deliver on their promises?

Is this you? Your laziness is destroying your reputation and chaining you to unfulfilled expectations for yourself and those around you. Blessings come to those who finish what they start.

I hope that helps! TII!!!