Eat honey... for it is good;
honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. Proverbs 24:13
I once dropped a slice of toast and honey on the floor - and you'll never guessed what happened. It landed honey side up. Wahay! I thought, this really is my lucky day.
Well, I don't know if you like honey. But I hope you do, because the Bible says you should eat it! Mind you, I can't quite believe that on the judgement day God is going to look disapprovingly at anyone and say, "Well, I'm very sorry, but as I scrutinise your life on earth I can't help noticing that you haven't been eating honey regularly. Would you care to explain this failure of obedience?" I think God may be a little more interested in issues such as pride, honesty, holiness, greed, anger, moral purity of every kind, don't you?
I love the Book of Proverbs. It's great for dipping into. There are some very profound and thought-provoking verses - and some others which, if I am to be completely honest, seem odd, even a bit, well, loopy. And this is one: why would God tell people to eat honey, of all things?
One thing is certain: this isn't a text which is intended to be taken literally - though I suspect that somewhere in the world there is a "Universal Church of the Faithful Honey-Eaters" or some such thing. (Round our part of London there are a number of rather wacky-sounding churches; which shows what absurdities can arise if we insist on interpreting every verse of the Bible in a strictly literal way.) No: this is a verse intended to spark off a train of thoughts. Let me tell you some of mine.
First, does it speak to us about our diet in general? Honey is a health-giving food. Perhaps we are to use this verse to help us reflect on our dietary habits. Are we healthy eaters? We live in a world where junk food is everywhere available, and obesity is reaching epidemic proportions. How many of us are guilty of damaging our bodies through bad eating habits? The New Testament tells us that if we are Christians our bodies are "temples of the Holy Spirit". Shouldn't we take care then to look after them well?
Second, does it speak to us about enjoying the good things of life? Honey is sweet and energising (see 1 Samuel 14!). It is, if you like, a luxury food. So perhaps God is telling us that there is nothing wrong with the occasional treat. Life is pretty grey if we never have special things to look forward to. In the last few years a fashion for "pampering" has arisen - encouraging people (mainly women, but I don't see why it shouldn't also apply to men) to take a break from the grind of life and indulge in a little healthy indulgence.
I once dropped a slice of toast and honey on the floor - and you'll never guessed what happened. It landed honey side up. Wahay! I thought, this really is my lucky day.
Well, I don't know if you like honey. But I hope you do, because the Bible says you should eat it! Mind you, I can't quite believe that on the judgement day God is going to look disapprovingly at anyone and say, "Well, I'm very sorry, but as I scrutinise your life on earth I can't help noticing that you haven't been eating honey regularly. Would you care to explain this failure of obedience?" I think God may be a little more interested in issues such as pride, honesty, holiness, greed, anger, moral purity of every kind, don't you?
I love the Book of Proverbs. It's great for dipping into. There are some very profound and thought-provoking verses - and some others which, if I am to be completely honest, seem odd, even a bit, well, loopy. And this is one: why would God tell people to eat honey, of all things?
One thing is certain: this isn't a text which is intended to be taken literally - though I suspect that somewhere in the world there is a "Universal Church of the Faithful Honey-Eaters" or some such thing. (Round our part of London there are a number of rather wacky-sounding churches; which shows what absurdities can arise if we insist on interpreting every verse of the Bible in a strictly literal way.) No: this is a verse intended to spark off a train of thoughts. Let me tell you some of mine.
First, does it speak to us about our diet in general? Honey is a health-giving food. Perhaps we are to use this verse to help us reflect on our dietary habits. Are we healthy eaters? We live in a world where junk food is everywhere available, and obesity is reaching epidemic proportions. How many of us are guilty of damaging our bodies through bad eating habits? The New Testament tells us that if we are Christians our bodies are "temples of the Holy Spirit". Shouldn't we take care then to look after them well?
Second, does it speak to us about enjoying the good things of life? Honey is sweet and energising (see 1 Samuel 14!). It is, if you like, a luxury food. So perhaps God is telling us that there is nothing wrong with the occasional treat. Life is pretty grey if we never have special things to look forward to. In the last few years a fashion for "pampering" has arisen - encouraging people (mainly women, but I don't see why it shouldn't also apply to men) to take a break from the grind of life and indulge in a little healthy indulgence.
Does anyone reading this need to take a break and
have a bit of "me time"? Jesus wasn't ashamed to go to dinner
parties; indeed, he was even accused (falsely, of course) of over-indulging in
alcohol: Mathew 11:19. God doesn't require of his people that we should be sour and
stone-faced. (Mind you, we need to remember this verse's twin in Proverbs
25:16...)
Third, and this is surely the main point, is this verse speaking about wisdom? I quoted Proverbs 24:13 - but what about the very next verse? "Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul..." Ah! It seems that the writer is using honey as a metaphor for wisdom. Just as honey is good for your body and your spirits, so wisdom is good for your soul.
Third, and this is surely the main point, is this verse speaking about wisdom? I quoted Proverbs 24:13 - but what about the very next verse? "Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul..." Ah! It seems that the writer is using honey as a metaphor for wisdom. Just as honey is good for your body and your spirits, so wisdom is good for your soul.
As I look at the church today I see lots
of wonderful people - loving, enthusiastic, committed. But I sometimes think that
wise people - people with the ability to work through situations and bring God’s
perspective to bear on them - are in rather short supply. And not only in the church, of course, but in this troubled and restless world as a whole, wise people are desperately needed.
But how do we get wisdom? In essence, by prayer and
serious reflection on God's word. Do you take seriously the command to become
wise?
Perhaps you can come up with some other applications of this funny little verse. Please let me know if you do. But whatever, if one day I have the chance of meeting you, I'll hope to shake a rather sticky hand...
Lord God, thank you for filling this beautiful world with good and enjoyable things. Help me to make use of them in a Christ-like way - and, most of all, may I grow in wisdom day by day. Amen.
Perhaps you can come up with some other applications of this funny little verse. Please let me know if you do. But whatever, if one day I have the chance of meeting you, I'll hope to shake a rather sticky hand...
Lord God, thank you for filling this beautiful world with good and enjoyable things. Help me to make use of them in a Christ-like way - and, most of all, may I grow in wisdom day by day. Amen.
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