January 1, 2026 Morning Devotional

Morning Devotion: Read Proverbs - Be Diligent

Proverbs 10:1  The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother. 2  Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death. 3  The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked. 4  He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich. 5  He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.

Proverbs chapter 10 begins a new section in that it begins to give basic instructions for life. We often call the B.I.B.L.E Basic Instructions Before

Leaving Earth. Meaning basic instructions for living here on earth before the Lord takes us home to be with Him.

Our text begins with another admonition for the son. What father is not happy and glad when their children do right and live right? But, it is the foolish son that brings heaviness to the mother, and to the father as well.

It is easier to train up a child in the way he should go rather than having a prison system change them. Start now, train your children to do what is right and to know why they are doing what is right. That is what this section of proverbs does. It tell what is right and gives reasons why it is right to do right.

Proverbs 10:2  Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death. 3  The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked. 4  He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich. 5  He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.

We see first of all that righteousness delivers one from death; riches do not deliver one from death. Death in the bible means separation.

When a person dies, they are separated from family, they are separated from the living. In many places death means separation from God.

Romans 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

James 1:15  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Further, the father instructs the son that there is a better way to get wealth.

Proverbs 10:3  The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked. 4  He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich. 5  He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.

The soul of the righteous is sustained by the Lord, but the wicked, the unsaved, the non-believer will eventually have their substance cast aways and left for others. Do you see the difference? One is the soul the other is the substance.

Then the LORD brings the subject back to the here and now when He says: don’t be like the poor, like the sluggard or the laggard. Be diligent. In other words, get to work. Take the opportunity when it presents itself.

Be like the ants in chapter 6. Proverbs 6:6  Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: 7  Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, 8  Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.

I personally have offered boys and young men the opportunity to start a business in yard work to give them something to do and give them opportunity to make money and provide for themselves. I have even bought lawnmowers and gas cans and rakes and such to get them started. One young man ended up selling the lawnmower and eventually went to prison. He did not want to work and became heaviness to this parents. Others let the lawnmowers sit in their yards and waste away. While another took the challenge and began a wonderful little business for himself. His business expanded to raking leaves and shovelling snow. He always has money in his pocket. He does not live off the others, he’s busy and happy.

God never intended man to lazy nor to be a sluggard. He gives instruction on diligence and the when and where to be diligent.

There is one choice that every person can make when it comes to their relationship with God. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Be very diligent in making that one very important decision.

The choice is still yours,

Pastor Cook