Proverbs 30

Neither Poverty Nor Riches

Proverbs 30:8b&9 “Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, Lest I be full and deny Thee and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or lest I be in want and steal, And profane the name of my God.”
The book of Proverbs contains a great deal of wisdom for choosing the “better” thing. However, it is interesting that there is only one prayer of request in the entire book of Proverbs. This is the prayer of Agur found in Proverbs 30. In his prayer Agur asks for a simple life, unencumbered by financial extremes. The wisdom of simplicity appears in the New Testament, as well. For example, Jesus taught us to pray for simple sustenance – “Give us today our daily bread.” Some scholars have even gone on to note that Agur’s prayer is structured similar to the Lord’s Prayer. Both request salvation from temptation (Proverbs 30:9 and Matt. 6:13). Both request provision for daily needs and no more (Proverbs 30:8 and Matt. 6:11). Both are motivated by concern for the honor of God’s name (Proverbs 30:9 and Matt. 6:9). The apostle Paul echoes this theme of simplicity and moderation when he warns against the desire to get rich, saying, “But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.” (I Tim. 6:8) A danger of acquiring wealth is that we may come to trust in it, rather than in God, and that amounts to idolatry.

May we be reminded from this prayer that money is the dominant value of a world that is passing away. Honoring Christ is the dominant value of the world that is coming. May I challenge us to come to the point of surrender where we pray for neither poverty nor riches?

Question to ask: Am I secure enough in Christ to pray the prayer of Agur?

--Rob Taylor