“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11)
Growing Dominion, Part 74
“He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding” (Prov. 12:11).
If you want food, then you have to walk behind the plow for a bit. One of the best things about clichés and truisms is that they are true. The problem with them is that repetition has made us come to ignore the truth of them, but they remain true for all that. Stern lectures your father gave you about diligence when you were tempted to goof off instead of paying attention to your paper route are stern lectures that remain as true today as they were when they were spoken. This is because the early bird gets the worm. Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
“Oh, dad, I’ve heard that before,” with a roll of the eyes, does not make the laws of bread production change. The one who tills the land is the one who is satisfied with bread. I think I read a book as a kid involving one Henny Penny that addressed this principle. Vain persons are those who want to set aside the laws of economics in order to suit themselves, promising you that you can make ten million dollars in three weeks if you just answer this ad right now. In short, while goody goody types can be really annoying, the Bible is solidly in the corner of those who will be seen by some (vain persons) as goody goody types. “Oh, look at him! Ten minutes early to work again!”