September 13

Sep 13 - Today from Proverbs 13 we look at verse 23
"A poor man's field may produce abundant food, but injustice sweeps it away." (NIV)
"Much food is in the fallow ground of the poor, but there is he that is destroyed for the lack of justice." (KJV)

When I can't quite get my mind around a verse or passage of scripture, I often go to the KJV version. The translation is usually more accurate, which happens to be true in this case. According to the original Hebrew, the 'field' in this proverb is indeed 'fallow ground'. Fallow ground is a field that has been plowed but left unseeded during the growing season. To simply translate the text to say 'field' is correct to a point, but it leaves out some pretty critical information. By understanding that our teacher meant fallow ground, we now have a clear picture to begin with.
The other term that needs to be clarified in this verse is 'justice'. The original language indicates this is a pronounced verdict that affects rights and privileges. This helps us to understand 'the rest of the story'.
The farmer lived in an area where farms were small and the soil was depleted through too many years of use. Like his neighbors, he was tilling the same little plot his father and grandfather scratched out their livings on. The field barely produced enough to put food on the table - and sometimes not even that. There were never discretionary funds in the budget, and never any extra to invest back into the farm for fertilizer or new equipment. He was a bad risk, and the local bank wouldn't even consider a loan. Last year was very dry and the crop very lean. So lean that the family had just eaten the last of the 'seed' saved for sowing this spring. He did what he always did in the spring, he went out and plowed his little plot of land. He went back to the house and sat at the kitchen table and looked out the window. Tears filled his eyes as he looked at the fresh plowed ground. There would be no planting this spring.
How does the community look at the poor farmer?

"What a lazy man. He plows his field and then sits in the house all day. No wonder he is stuck on that tiny little farm."
"If he can't take the initiative to go and plant his field, he deserves to starve next winter!"
"Poor soul, it looks like he'll be stuck on that place 'til he dies - just like his pappy and grandpappy."
"Oh my. It looks like a lean year for them. I will bake them a pie tomorrow to lift their spirits."

The tired mother turned the key in the lock of the tiny apartment and opened the door. Her oldest was fixing a 'meal' for the two younger. Another dinner of bread soaked in a little milk with sugar sprinkled on. It would have to do until she gets her paycheck on Friday. It was getting hard to stretch groceries from Friday to Friday. Everyone had their coats on - the heat was off again. She would like to help her older daughter get some private tutoring so she could learn to read. The little thirteen year-old was literally raising the family while mom worked cleaning offices. Her studies suffered terribly. Mom was very worried about her ten year-old son. The gangs were enticing him to carry drugs for them. So far he has resisted, but the lure of more money than he had ever seen was a huge temptation. And then there was the little three year-old - her little jewel. What would become of her? She sat under the bare bulb at the kitchen table and looked at her three children. Tears filled her eyes.
How does the community look at the poor mother?
How do you look at her?
The church is to be God's instrument of justice. What are we doing for those like the farmer or the mother?
I challenge you today to join me in seeking our Lord to change our hearts and to be more mindful of our 'mission' as the church. If we begin to understand His mission to the cross, then we will find the passion for our mission to the disenfranchised. We have to do something. . . and we have to do more than bake them a pie.