Good Effects of Honest and Earnest Toil
Proverbs 20:4
The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing.


I. PLENTY. We must not think that diligence is only manual; it is also mental. It implies thought, forethought, planning, arranging. The general rule is that they who work obtain the things needful for this life, at least in sufficiency.

II. POWER. It is industry, rather than genius, which commends us to our fellow-men, and leads us to positions of influence and power.

III. PERSONAL WORTH. It is diligence, the capacity of taking pains, that gives to a man his actual worth, making him compact and strong and serviceable. The greatest gifts are of little worth, unless there is this guarantee of the conscientious and intelligent employment of them.

(R. F. Horton, D. D.)



Parallel Verses
KJV: The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing.

WEB: The sluggard will not plow by reason of the winter; therefore he shall beg in harvest, and have nothing.




Duty Sacrificed to Convenience
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