Found Out

For Monday, January 14, 2008
Proverbs 28:11

A rich man is wise in his own eyes,
but a poor man who has understanding will find him out.

Wealth can deceive the one who possesses it. Because he has money, he thinks he is wise, especially if he earned his wealth. His success with money gives him the illusion that he is wise in general. Thus, he may very well lose a case brought against him by a poor man. It does not occur to him that one who is poor could be clever enough to win.

It also does not occur to him that one who is poor could understand him. He thinks his wealth defines. He thinks his wealth conveys that he is wise and happy. As Proverbs 14:24 says, "The wealth of the wise is their crown." Therefore, he must be wise. Wealth can bestowed upon the wise, but wealth can also come to the fool who then is ruined by his very wealth. Wealth can be earned by the wicked who likewise will come to destruction.

It is not wealth itself that measures a person's wisdom nor his happiness. It is the fruit of his life - the blessing that he is to others - that provides a more accurate measurement. It is the joy in that fruit that measures his wisdom and his happiness.