Don’t Be a Lazy Fool – Prov 19:15
Proverbs 19:15 – “Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep;And an idle soul shall suffer hunger.”
Proverbs 19:24 – “A slothful man hideth his hand in his bosom,And will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.”
Two animals are used to describe lazy people – the sloth and the slug. Sloths are notoriously slow-movers as are slugs. Slothful and sluggardly people are talked about quite a bit in the book of Proverbs. Of course, they are in the class of those who are living foolishly, and God warns us all against slothful tendencies.
Description of slothful (lazy) people:
- Need to go learn from the ant (6:6).
- Love to sleep and can never seem to get enough sleep (6:9-11). They turn on their bed like a door creaking on it’s hinges (26:14).
- Are a nuisance to those who rely upon them (10:26).
- Desire but never achieve because they don’t have the diligence to work for what they desire (13:4).
- So lazy that they won’t even bring their hand to their mouth again (19:24; 26:15). Everything is ‘too hard’.
- Always find a reason to not work – ‘It’s too cold!’ (20:4) ‘It’s too dangerous – there might be a lion out there!’ (22:13; 26:13).
- Never listen; they have more reasons and excuses than seven men (26:16).
Results of slothfulness (laziness):
- Poverty (6:10-11; 24:30-34)
- Annoying others (10:26)
- Under tribute – have to serve others (debtors, rulers, etc.) (12:24)
- Waste – does not have the strength to roast what he takes in hunting (12:27; 18:9)
- Hunger and need (13:4; 19:15; 20:4)
- Difficulty in life – his way is a hedge of thorns (15:19)
- Frustration (21:25) – It kills him that he cannot have what he wants because he won’t work for it.
- Fear (22:13; 26:13) – Because he won’t try anything, the obstacles also seem much bigger than they really are.
I am sure that none of us would consider ourselves to be lazy or slothful. But we must be wise enough to realise that there are lazy desires and tendencies in all of us. Slothfulness and laziness don’t come upon us suddenly. They come little bit by little bit. A little more sleep, a little slumber, just a few more minutes of rest, just one more TV series, just one more day, I will do that tomorrow, and soon the curse of laziness has crept up on us!
May God help us to do the hard things, to make the difficult choices, to keep our bodies in subjection, to wake up, to work and to live our lives for God before we end up with a life full of regret.