Wisdom to the Lazy

Proverbs 10:26 (ESV) … “Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to those who send him.”

As vinegar irritates the teeth and smoke irritates the eyes, a sluggard irritates the soul. It causes much irritation to a boss who tells his employee to do a task, only to find the task unfinished. It is also a hard thing to work with a lazy person, because you have to help carry the load that he puts off on others.

Illustration—In the early 1980’s, while working a summer job with FloriBay Sanitation Company. The owner of this company hired a high school dropout and sent him on an errand. The young man used a company truck to drive into town and back. But this young man could not resist the temptation to drive to his high school campus and show off his vehicle to his schoolmates. Everything appeared to be going well until foolishness broke out at this gathering in the school parking lot and someone dented the company vehicle. Needless to say, this young man drove back to work with a fearful heart and was immediately fired after explaining what he had done, all to the grief of the company owner.[1]

[1] Everett, G. H. (2011). The Book of Proverbs (p. 222). Gary Everett.