RICHES HAVE WINGS

Proverbs 23.4-5
RICHES HAVE WINGS
"Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle."

THE WORDS HERE BELONG TO "THE sayings of the wise" which begin at 22.17 and continue till 24.34. The wise or wisemen issue two solemn warnings about riches. Firstly, in the desire to get rich, we may destroy ourselves. Secondly, the riches gotten may not last long. In other words, the rich and their riches may both have short life-spans.

"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint" (23.4). The Bible does not say it is wrong to get rich. Neither does it say that money in itself is evil, though some have misquoted the apostle Paul's words in I Timothy 6.10 to mean that. What he actually says is: "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." Against the danger of obssession, we are to practise restraint.

Both Paul and Proverbs warn against the love or worship of money. Such is materialism, a philosophy of life in which money and what it can buy, is the over-riding factor in all decisions. But as Henry Fielding cautions, "Make money your god, it will plague you like the devil." We see this in the devilish drive of those whose ambition is to make money, more money, and more money. They may succeed, but they pay the price for it — as they watch their health deteriorate, their marriage and family fall apart, their friends dwindle to none. No wonder it is said that the loneliest spot on earth is at the pinnacle of success!

Thus, those who seek, by all means, to be rich, destroy themselves. Not only that, their riches also self-destruct. Solomon uses a word-play here. "If you cause your eyes to fly after wealth, wealth will fly away." We don't have to have a lot of money to appreciate the truth of the saying, "Money have wings." How many of us have not at one time or another ask ourselves (or our spouses) where our money has gone to?

The Japanese have a proverb that sums it up. "Getting money is like digging with a needle; spending it is like water soaking into the sand." One is so difficult, the other is so easy. Let us then be careful that we practise restraint in our desire for more money, that we do not work ourselves to death. Similarly, let us observe restraint in spending money that we do not worry ourselves to death over cash flow (or flight).

Do I work myself to death for money which does not last?