Proverbs 26:6 Commentary and Bible Study

When a man desired to send a message in ancient times because he could not make the journey himself, his concern was his message would be delivered without being changed along the way. What was of great value to him therefore was a messenger he could trust. He wanted someone who did not have some secret agenda of his own that would induce him to change the message to his own advantage, to betray the interests of his master. Nor did he want a messenger who was not capable of understanding the message. It might be something complex. The messenger might have to negotiate with an enemy. He might be an ambassador sent by his king and he must express exactly the terms that his king wanted to offer. When he arrived, he could be questioned in detail about what his king had said. Did he understand what his master had said well enough to explain the terms and conditions on offer? It would be a disaster if he returned and reported back that he had been outwitted and had given away far too much to a skilful opponent. The same could also occur if he forgot part of a message intended to convey vital information to a friend.The Lord God has vital information to convey to the human race. It is the message of the gospel about a free salvation through Jesus Christ, the only Saviour of the world. Paul says of ministers that ‘it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful’ (1 Corinthians 4:2), and the same is true of messengers. God does not normally send his message by those who cannot understand it, or who are inclined to change it. He wants the wonderful good news to reach our souls just as he has stated it in heaven, for what we receive is a message that originates in heaven. However, there is inevitably another messenger that stands between us and God, a messenger who may well alter the message to our eternal harm. That messenger is ourselves. Before the gospel can reach our hearts and do us good as we trust in the cross of Christ and respond in repentance and faith, it must be processed by our understanding. It must reach our ears and our ears must receive it and not setup a barrier between God and our needy souls. Our prejudices must not dismiss the message as something worth little. Our pride must not refuse to obey the command to humble ourselves before God. Our natural hatred of God must not refuse to hear that we are sinners under his condemnation. Our own foolishness can be the obstacle to our hearing the kindest message in the world. Foolishness can make us misrepresent the message to ourselves so that we become suspicious of the gospel and twist it to our own destruction.