When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
observe carefully what is before you,
and put a knife to your throat
if you are given to appetite.
Do not desire his delicacies,
for they are deceptive food.
This is one of the “thirty sayings of counsel and knowledge” (Prov. 22:20) that were given to help us understand how to respond and act in different situations. The specific situation here is being invited to dine with a ruler. You would expect the surroundings to be luxurious, the food to be tasty, and the service to be excellent. Quite a step up from what you might normally experience. How should you respond should that happen?
What follows is a warning. Observe carefully what is before you. Be discerning. And if you find that this meal appeals to you, be careful. Rhetorically, he tells us to put a knife to our throats if we are given to appetite—to wanting this life. The ruler’s delicacies are deceptive—your life would not be better if you had all this.
Be Content With What You Have
On the surface, this proverb may not seem very applicable to most of us. How often is a ruler going to invite me to dinner? But, the application goes beyond the specific situation described here. My wife and I splurged for our 40th wedding anniversary and went on a cruise. The food was great, and the service was terrific. The ship’s staff went all out to pamper us.
And I enjoyed it. Maybe too much. What would it be like to live that way all the time? That is the scenario that the author of this passage is warning against—the desire for more than you have. And the danger of trying to attain that level of lifestyle.
I might work myself to death to earn the money for it. Or I might go into debt to pay for it. But, even if I managed to get there, would I be happier? Probably not. The appeal of a high-end lifestyle is deceptive. Will it ever satisfy? Or will you want even more? It is better to be content with what you have than to get caught up in the deceptive nature of chasing wealth that will never satisfy.
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