MAIN HOMILETICS OF Proverbs 15:29
GOD NEAR AND FAR OFF
I. God is not far from the wicked in a local sense. The most wicked man upon the face of the earth lives and moves and has his being by reason of his relation to that God whom he practically ignores. The power of life that he possesses is not self-originated, and although we do not know exactly how he lives in God, we know that in this sense he is near to Him, for “He is not far from everyone of us” (Acts 17:27). But—
II. God is far from the wicked in a moral sense. There is often a wide moral distance between those who are locally near each other. The father who lives and toils for his children, and eats with them at the same table may be as far from them morally as he is near to them locally. Judas lived for three years with the Son of God—often shared the same hospitality and partook of the same meal. There was a local nearness to Christ but a wide moral gulf between the Master and the professed disciple. This moral distance between God and the wicked is the subject of the first clause of this verse. Notice—
1. The cause of this distance. The ungodly man cherishes purposes and desires which are directly opposed to the will and purpose of God. God has one view of life and the ungodly man has another. That which God esteems of the highest moment is lightly esteemed by a wicked man. This being so, there can be no sympathy between the creature and his Creator—a great gulf is fixed between them.
2. The wicked man is to blame for remaining at this distance from God. God invites him to bridge the chasm. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him: and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:7). He rolls upon him the responsibility of the separation. “Say unto them, As I live,” saith the Lord God, “I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way, and live” (Ezekiel 33:11).
3. This distance, if not annihilated, will increase with time and continue through eternity. Sinful habits and desires, if yielded to, grow harder to overcome—a man never stands still in the way of transgression. And no local change from one world to another can have any effect upon the moral distance. It is not to be bridged by change of place but by change of character. Either the man must turn to God or be ever getting farther from Him. But—
III. There is a sympathy between God and the righteous man which keeps the Divine ear open to his prayer. As we have before noticed, the foundation of sympathy is likeness of character, and those who have sympathy with each other have open ears for the reception of each other’s thoughts and desires. The godly man has an open ear for the commands and promises of his God, and God, in return, “heareth the prayer of the righteous.” There is a like-mindedness between the righteous God and a righteous man—a oneness of desire and purpose—that makes the words of each acceptable to the other.
1. God’s ear is the first that is open to the prayer of the righteous. The sentinel watching on the height for the first streaks of dawning day has a view of the objects around him before those in the valley are able to perceive them. They are unable to see what he sees, because they are still shut in by the darkness. But if this sentinel had power to pierce the darkness of night, he would not even have to wait for day in order to discern all that lies around him. God is such a sentinel over the children of men. Others are dependent upon the light that comes from words before they discern the desires of others, but God can see into the darkest corner of the human soul—can discern the unuttered desire of the heart long before it shapes itself into words. God’s ear is open to hear before the man’s mouth is open to pray. He “understandeth his thought afar off,” knows it before it has even shaped itself into a petition, or even into a desire in the man’s own heart, and consequently long before it is known to any other creature.
2. No power outside the righteous man can come between his prayer and God’s ear. When we present a prayer or express a desire to any human benefactor, it is possible that some opposing influence may prevent our suit from being favourably received. A third person may come between, and by misrepresentation or by other means, may hinder our request from receiving impartial consideration. But God’s first-hand knowledge of all His children makes it a blessed certainty that all their requests will enter His ear and receive impartial treatment at His hands. (For other thoughts on this subject see Homiletics on Proverbs 15:8, page 407).
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
We may perhaps trace a reference to this maxim, a proof how deeply it had taken root in men’s heart’s, in the reasoning of the blind man in John 9:31.—Plumptre.
The Lord is far from the wicked. He was so from the proud Pharisee who yet got as near God as he could, pressing up to the highest part of the temple. The poor publican, not daring to do so, stood aloof, yet was God far from the Pharisee, near to the Publican. “Behold a great miracle,” saith Augustine, “God is on high, thou liftest up thyself and He flies from thee; thou bowest thyself downward and he descends to thee. Low things He respects, that He may raise them; proud things He knoweth afar off, that He may depress them.” But He heareth the prayer of the righteous. Yea, He can feel breath when no voice can be heard for faintness (Lamentations 3:56). When the flesh makes such a din that it is hard to hear the Spirit’s sighs, He knows the meaning of the Spirit (Romans 8:26-27), and can pick English out of our broken requests; yea, He hears our “afflictions” (Genesis 16:11), our “tears” (Psalms 39:12), our “chatterings” (Isaiah 38:14), though we cry to Him by implication only, as “the young ravens” do (Psalms 147:9).—Trapp.
The second clause of this verse becomes exegetical of the first. God is not far from anybody (Psalms 139:8). But He is far from many people’s “prayer.”—Miller.
Faith is the soul, and repentance is the life of prayer; and a prayer without them hath neither life nor soul. If we believe not, we are yet in our sins; if we repent not, our sins are yet in us … But first “will I wash my hands in innocency, and then will I compass thine altar” (Psalms 26:6). “Then shall my prayer be set before thee as incense, and the lifting up of my hands like the evening sacrifice” (Psalms 141:2). When, with the sword of severe and impartial repentance, we have cut the throat of our sins and done execution upon our lusts, then let us solicit heaven with our prayers; then pray, and speed; then come, and welcome. Then the courtiers about the King in heaven shall make room for prayers. Then the Prince Himself shall take our prayer into His own hand, and with a gracious mediation present it to the Father. Then is that court of audience ready to receive our ambassadors, which be our prayers and our tears. Then St. John sees twelve gates in heaven, all open, and all day open, to entertain such suitors.—Adams.
Learn to distinguish betwixt God’s hearing and His answering the saint’s prayer. Every faithful prayer is heard and makes an acceptable report in God’s ear as soon as it is shot; but God doth not always thus speedily answer it. The father, at the reading of his son’s letter (which comes haply upon some begging errand) likes the motion, his heart closes with it, and a grant is there passed; but he takes his own time to send his dispatch and let his son know this. Princes have their books of remembrance, wherein they write the names of their favourites whom they intend to prefer, haply some years before their gracious purpose opens itself to them. Mordecai’s name stood some while in Ahasuerus’ book before his honour was conferred. Thus God records the name of His saints and their prayers. “The Lord hearkened and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him, of them that feared the Lord and thought upon His name.” But they hear not of God in His providential answer, haply a long time after.… There comes oft a long and sharp winter between the sowing time of prayer, and the reaping. He hears us indeed as soon as we pray, but we oft do not hear of Him so soon. Prayers are not long on their journey to heaven, but long a-coming thence in a full answer. Christ hath not at this day a full answer to some of the prayers He put up on earth; therefore He is said to expect till His enemies be made His footstool.—Gurnall.
When the season has been cold and backward, when rains fell and prices rose, and farmers desponded and the poor despaired, I have heard old people, whose hopes, resting upon God’s promise, did not rise and fall with the barometer, nor shifting winds, say, We shall have harvest after all; and this you may safely say of the labours and fruits of prayer. The answer may be long in coming—years may elapse before the bread we have cast upon the waters comes back; but if the vision tarry, wait for it! Why not? We know that some seeds spring as soon almost as they are committed to the ground; but others lie buried for months, nor, in some cases, is it till years elapse that they germinate and rise, to teach us that what is dormant is not dead. Such it may be with our prayers. Ere that immortal seed has sprung the hand that planted it may be mouldering in the dust—the seal of death on the lips that prayed. But though you are not spared to reap the harvest, our prayers are not lost. They bide their time, God’s “set time.” For in one form or another, in this world or in the next, who sows in tears shall reap in joy. The God who puts his people’s tears into His bottle will certainly never forget their prayers.—Guthrie.