OT Promise 370: Abide Satisfied

Proverbs 19:23 The fear of the Lord tendeth to life; and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.

”The fear of the Lord” is “faith in Jesus.” Faith tends to life. In fact, he who believes in Christ has eternal life. But “tending” to life is a little different: it means that the things we do and say that come from faith (fear) tend to be life-giving for ourselves and those around us. This is a promise that would incentivize us to speak and act from faith. The opposite is also true: what comes from the sinful flesh tends to deliver death.

For this reason, we pray, “Deliver us from evil.” We pray, “Deliver us from the evil of a thing,” which may be either good or bad in itself from our point of view. But it’s the death-dealing nature of the thing that is evil. Death is separation from God; life is connection with God. One is good (life, God) the other evil (death, no God).

Then the promise goes on: “He who has it will abide satisfied.” Faith and life (they go together) is the “it” that a believer has that makes him satisfied and keeps him happy, without wants and worries. Living without worry is impossible for human flesh, but it is possible, yea, even easy, for the spiritual man. The closer one is to God and life the closer he can come to living satisfied. This life is a goal fulfilled, a dream come true, and a promise realized.