Proverbs 28:20
A Faithful Man Abounds
1. The contrast in this proverb is between a man who is faithful in his work and a man who seeks to get rich quick.
2. The proverb reminds us of the outcome for each one – in the end.
A. The faithful man
1. Faithful: Firm; steadfast; trustworthy, dependable, reliable, honest, a man of integrity, truthful, etc.
2. The exact KIND of faithfulness Solomon had in mind in this passage needs to be understood by observing the contrast he is making.
a. The contrast is not between a faithful man and a man who is unfaithful; but between a faithful man and one who seeks to get rich quick.
b. Thus, Solomon is comparing two different attitudes towards work and the rewards of work.
3. The faithful man is faithful with respect to his work – his means of supporting himself and his family.
a. He is faithful in doing his work. He doesn’t procrastinate; He doesn’t slack off; he gets the job done. (Prov. 6:10)
b. He is faithful in the sense of being reliable, dependable, responsible.
c. He is faithful when no one is looking at work. (Col. 3:22)
d. He is faithful at the little things as well as at the big things. (Luke 16:10)
e. He is faithful at doing his fair share of the work.
f. He is faithful at doing his best. He is concerned about the quality of his work… not just checking out at 4:00 p.m.
g. Faithful implies that he is consistent; diligent; he does all the little chores that others might skip over; he is careful, conscientious, thoughtful; slow and steady.
h. The faithful man keeps his word; he keeps his appointments.
i. The faithful man is a GOOD worker… and they are hard to find. (Prov. 20:6)
4. The faithful man is a desirable worker because of his character: he is faithful! Character makes a good worker.
B. He Shall Abound With Blessings
1. The man who is faithful with respect to his work-life will abound with blessings. There are rewards awaiting this kind of man.
a. Hard work pays off. (Prov.10:4 – the hand of the diligent maketh rich.)
b. Faithfulness and consistency pay off. (Matt. 24:45-47) A servant who is faithful is promoted; the same principle holds true for believers today too.
c. Character is prized and rewarded.
d. The faithful man is often promoted, honored, and remunerated for his faithfulness to his job and to the company.
2. Of course the proper MOTIVE of a faithful man is not the reward, but a heart desire to honor God and obey His Word.
a. The reward is a fringe benefit of faithfulness.
b. As Christians, we should be faithful not just for an earthly reward, but for our heavenly reward.
c. The goal of being faithful at our job should be to glorify God, not self-promotion.
d. Our goal is to be a good testimony for His name’s sake.
A. He That Maketh Haste to Be Rich
1. “He that maketh haste” speaks of a man who is eager, energetic, in a hurry.
a. Brown-Driver-Briggs: To be pressed; confined; but to make haste; (pressed for time).
b. Dictionary of Biblical Languages defines the term as “behaving or reacting to circumstance in a way that is senseless because you are hurrying or running without purpose.”
2. The faithful man is contrasted NOT to the rich man. It is possible for a man to be rich because of hard work and the blessing of God. Some men are rich and faithful.
a. The faithful man in this proverb is being compared to the man who HASTES to be rich.
b. This is a covetous man. He desires to have money and material goods and wants them right now.
3. This is the person who doesn’t want to wait for things…
a. Like the man who starts a new business and doesn’t want to put in the blood, sweat, and tears and years of sacrifice that it takes to build up a business and a good reputation. Instead, he wants it all – now!
b. Or like the young couple that get married and expect to have a nice house, two new cars, and brand new furniture instantly. They don’t want to wait until they can pay for it piece by piece. They want it now!
c. This is like the student who doesn’t want to take all the time and expense to go to school. He thinks he can go out into the world and make it on his own – without an education. He wants to start making money now!
d. This proverb could be applied to countless situations.
4. The man who makes haste to be rich sees himself as being pressed for time.
a. He wants instant gratification. He wants his porridge and he wants it NOW.
b. When one is pressed for time to gain wealth, the tendency is to use devious means to accomplish that goal. When your goal in life is to become rich, one soon discovers that that goal will eventually be at cross-purposes with God.
c. He is only interested in the end goal: to be rich. Therefore, he is not so concerned about the means to that end.
d. There will be a tendency to cut corners… to cheat…
B. This Man Shall Not Be Innocent
1. Innocent: Free of guilt and thus unpunished.
a. This speaks of a moral connotation associated with “hasting to be rich.”
b. The haste to become rich leads to less than honest behavior – which leads to some sort of punishment.
c. His wrong focus in life will lead to fraudulent schemes which will eventually lead to trouble and punishment.
d. This man will not be innocent – meaning he WILL be punished.
e. Count on it: the inner drive to get rich quick… or to obtain material goods quickly comes with a price tag… there are built in consequences to that.
2. Prov. 13:11 – Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished.
a. The man who wins a lottery and then gets hooked on gambling discovers this truth. He got rich quick… but in the end it was diminished.
b. The man who bets on horses or at the casino might win a few… and assume that he can keep it up – that he can beat the system – discovers that over time, his wealth is diminished.
c. And think of how many young kids become millionaires overnight because they know how to throw a ball. Sadly for many of them, their wealth is diminished – through loose living and bloodsuckers who take advantage of them.
d. Prov. 21:5 – “The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness; but of every one that is hasty only to want.”
• The one who continually “hopes and dreams” to get rich quick is ultimately disappointed.
• He keeps waiting for his ship to come in – which never seems to come.
• He keeps waiting for someone to discover oil on his property… and they never do.
• Instead of working and being faithful at his place of employment, he dreams, hopes, and waits… and his riches never arrive.
3. Prov. 28:22 – The man who hastes to become rich:
a. The one who hastens to be rich has an evil eye –
• He is envious of others. He sees their riches and wants them… now!
• He doesn’t seem to consider that the other person has accumulated his material goods through years of hard work and toil.
b. He is also unaware (considers not) that poverty shall come upon him.
• He is genuinely deceived.
• He thinks he has beat the system, but discovers when it is too late that he was a fool.
5. We could almost connect the message of this proverb with the story of the tortoise and the hare.
a. Slow and steady wins the race – as in the tortoise and the hare.
b. But the hare (who makes haste to win but isn’t consistent) loses in the end.
c. The tortoise, who may seem much slower is consistent… steady… reliable… and eventually wins the race – or to use Solomon’s image – will abound with blessings.