Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord
(Prov. 18:22).
COMMON GRACE
ARGUMENT:
“The elect are
not the only ones throughout history who find wives (or husbands), but also the
reprobate. Does not this text tell us that even the reprobate ‘obtaineth favour
(i.e. grace) of the Lord’ when they, likewise, ‘findeth a wife’? Or that
marriage is a blessing in itself?”
(I)
Prof.
David J. Engelsma
Proverbs is a book of instruction by a godly father
to his covenant child. The meaning of the proverb in chapter 18 is that a
covenant young man finds a good thing when he finds a wife, who also fears God.
Elsewhere, Proverbs warns that a godly young man can also find himself married
to a woman, marriage with whom is so miserable that he could better dwell alone
on the roof of his house. In general, the proverb teaches that marriage is a
good thing for the covenant young people. Marriage is a good institution of
God. The proverb condemns the popular attitude that marriage has so many
responsibilities and burdens that it is better to live a single life. (DJE, 22/05/2018)
(II)
Anon.
So, maybe Proverbs 18:22 also teaches salvation by
marrying?—some unbeliever marries a wife and then “obtaineth favour” from God …
So much for faith alone! Maybe Henry VIII was incredibly blessed then? Or some
of the Muslim leaders with their harems?
But what if the unbeliever’s wife is a Jezebel? Or
what if she is a nagger and the Scripture says that he’d be better living on
the roof of his house to get away from her constant dripping? Or what if a man
marries a woman who turns out to be a whore (e.g., Prov. 7)?
Proverbs 18:22 occurs in a book addressed to
believers, especially referred to as God’s “sons.” This is the context. The book
deals with wisdom which is found in Christ alone (Prov. 8). God’s sons, the
wise, are blessed when they find a wife (Prov. 31). The reprobate wicked are
cursed in their “houses,” even if they have wealthy wives with nice clothes who
have won 27 beauty competitions (Prov. 3:33).
What about children too? The unbeliever has
children and this is their “reward” and “heritage” from the Lord for the
parents are blessed (Ps. 127:3, 5). Who cannot understand that Psalm 127 is a
song of the Lord, sung by God's children and referring to the community of
faith?
(III)
Rev. Angus Stewart
[Source: Covenant Reformed News,
vol. 18, no. 8 (Dec. 2020)]
… [To] those who are in Adam and, therefore,
“dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1), marriage, though a good thing and a
privilege, is not a blessing. Potiphar’s wife, Maacah, Jezebel, Athaliah and
Herodias were not signs or bearers of God’s love to their ungodly husbands!
… The truth is that all of Jehovah’s blessings
are found alone in Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:3)
… As those who receive Christ’s imputed
righteousness and not Adam’s sin (Rom. 5:16-19), and so will be gloriously
resurrected (I Cor. 15:21-22), marriage and children (Ps. 128), and whatever
land and possessions we may have (Deut. 28:1-14), are to us a blessing through
faith and in the way of thankful obedience. This clear Christian doctrine is
opposed to the anti-biblical philosophy that things are or convey God’s
blessing to those who are in unbelief in Adam and outside of the Lord Jesus
(cf. Ps. 73; Mal. 3:15).
… [The] theory of common grace—a temporal,
changeable (and unrighteous) divine love for the ungodly reprobate apart from
the Saviour and His cross—leads to a side-lining and corrupting of the biblical
and confessional truth regarding the federal headship of Adam (and, therefore,
also of Christ), original sin and the creation ordinances. False principles
work through! Using ingenious (but fallacious) arguments, common grace claims
that the reprobate wicked are cursed and blessed in Adam, and so
are blessed in all their activities—despite their being enemies of God and
Christ (Gen. 3:15)!
(IV)
More to come! (DV)
NOTE:
Check
out the following sermons on this particular text:
“Finding a Godly Wife” (Prov. 18:22) (Rev. Wilbur Bruinsma)
“The Blessedness of Finding
a Wife” (Prov.
31; 18:22) (Rev. Rodney Kleyn)
No comments:
Post a Comment