Proverbs 14 Devotional

A Way That Only Seems Right

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.”Proverbs 14:12 (BSB)

Some roads look right from the start. Proverbs 14 warns that a path can seem straight to a person and still end in death (14:12), and the saying appears again in 16:25, as though once were not enough. Feeling sure is not the same as being safe.

The chapter does not leave the reader guessing about which path is safe. The one who fears the LORD has strong confidence, and even his children will have a refuge (14:26). That fear is a spring of life that keeps people out of death's traps (14:27). The same reverence reaches the poor. Oppressing them insults their Maker, while kindness to the needy honors him (14:31). The way that only seems right is, at bottom, trusting our own sense of things. Jesus offers another way. He said that he himself is the way, and that no one comes to the Father except through him (John 14:6). Our instincts are not the final guide. He is.

To think about: What decision are you making mostly on instinct, and how could you bring it before the LORD before you settle it?