The Family Legacy and Mortality

Proverbs 27:
1. Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

An insightful variation of this verse goes like this.

“It is better to boast when you are taking your armor off, than when you are putting it on.”

The insight is not that in some circumstances it is okay to boast but rather that boasting always has the future in view. Even when one boasts about past exploits, it is always with the intent of, "Watch what I'll do next." "Has beens" don't boast in this sense, they reminisce - "those were the days."

James quotes this verse in his letter and provides a helpful application and commentary.

“Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.” (James 4:13-14)

There are three important points to be discussed here. The first one is boasting. This is a person who is full of himself. He feels invincible, in total control and that nothing can go wrong or stop with his plans. His thinking makes him arrogant and this attitude is at the root of all boasting.

The second important point is the future. This is what he boasts about, what he will do in the future. Many people, to caution themselves about boasting about their knowledge of the future will, add this phrase to what they say, “If the Lord will, I will do this or that . . .” They seem to think that they will be doing something tomorrow. They plan A, but if that is not in God’s will then they will do something else - whatever God plans. But the real emphasis in this verse is a little different. It is, “If the Lord will, I will live . . .” The emphasis is on whether there will be a tomorrow for them at all, not on what they will be doing. The person speaking assumes he will be alive. God says he assumes too much.

The third point is that we are mortal and life is uncertain and brief. The older you get the shorter 70 to 80 years seems to be. We will all die and we do not know when. It is important for us to always be aware of this.

“It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart.” (Ecclesiastes 7:2)

This is especially important for young people who tend to be blissfully unaware of their own mortality and therefore do foolish things.

“Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.” (Ecclesiastes 11:9)

“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” (Hebrews 9:27)

Now the point of this proverb is not to be morbid, but to be realistic. This realism should produce thankfulness and rejoicing in every day and all the gifts that God gives us.

“This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” (James 1:17)

This proverb becomes a wake-up call for building a Family Legacy. We will not live forever, in fact our lives are very short. Therefore we need to be diligent in raising our children to carry on a Family Legacy whose priority is the building the kingdom of God.

“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15-16)