Walking with the Wise #509: Danger Ahead!

“A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions.

The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.”

—Proverbs 27:12 (NLT)

In the military, the infantry is most often made up of young men because they have a tendency to believe in their immortality and think they are indestructible. Older soldiers, while brave, are not so naïve as their young counterparts. Experience has taught them that there is much to lose and that life can easily be taken away.

Part of the Christian life involves learning about the precious nature of life, and that death awaits us all: “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment”—Hebrews 9:27. Knowing that life is short and “the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8) and is busy laying out snares of sin to trap believers (1 Timothy 3:7; 2 Timothy 2:26), we must learn to navigate through life, being careful of what lies ahead.

The prudent person is one who has learned from personal experience or the experience of others and has conducted himself or herself in such a way as to navigate safely through the minefields of life, careful to avoid them at all costs. But the simpleton, or one who refuses to heed the counsel of the wise and the aged, is the one who goes on blindly and suffers the consequences for it.

One of the greatest examples of this can be seen in the story of Solomon’s son and heir, Rehoboam, in 1 Kings 12:1-24. Rehoboam had just assumed his father’s throne when Jeroboam, one of his father’s disenfranchised and rebellious workers who had been living in exile in Egypt, returned, hoping to curry favor with the new king. Leading a group of workers, Jeroboam asked the king what type of leader he would be—one that worked the people hard like Solomon had, or who would lighten the workload? Rehoboam told them to come back in three days and he would give them an answer. During that time, he sought counsel from his father’s counselors—men of experience who had been around for some time. They suggested listening to the voice of the people—lighten their load and they would serve him faithfully. Then he turned to his friends, the guys he grew up with; they suggested that he lay down the law and show them who was boss—if the people thought that Solomon was bad, then they hadn’t seen anything yet! He was going to make it even worse!

After three days the people came back and Rehoboam was ready with his reply. With arrogant bravado, he lays down the gauntlet:  

“My father laid heavy burdens on you, but I’m going to make them even heavier! My father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions!”—1 Kings 12:14 (NLT).

Unable to take the insult, the workers rebelled, creating an alternative kingdom of their own, making Jeroboam king, and thus rending in two God’s chosen people.

What is most indicting in this interchange are the words God gives us before Rehoboam’s response to the people. The Bible says, 

“But Rehoboam spoke harshly to the people, for he rejected the advice of the older counselors and followed the counsel of his younger advisers”—1 Kings 12:13-14 (NLT).

God wanted us to understand that Rehoboam had rejected the older and wiser advice for the advice those who were younger, inexperienced, and foolish. And then had to suffer the consequences of it.

Learning from Rehoboam’s folly, we look cautiously into the future, knowing that there are dangers and traps ahead. Younger and newer is not always better. Learning from our mistakes and the mistakes of others helps us to avoid the potholes and pitfalls of life, helping us to have safety, security, and great success.

What decision are you facing right now? Have you gone to God and His Word? Have you gone to Him in prayer? Have you sought the counsel of those who are wiser and more experienced? Seek the Lord, follow His Word, and listen to those who are older and godlier than yourself so that you might make the right choice for what God has for you. Amen.