Beware of flattery

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

BEWARE OF FLATTERY

Prov 29:5

5 Whoever flatters his neighbor is spreading a net for his feet.

NIV

Who does not like to be flattered from time to time? Certainly it is considered polite to tell a woman she looks nice, or to flatter her for her garment. At least that used to be the polite thing in most historic times. Perhaps today it would be regarded inappropriate to flatter a woman, being considered something else. Yet it seems many would enjoy being told something good about themselves. How well we look, how smart we are, how spiritual we are, how important we are to the church, how much we are needed and the list of flattering goes on. This proverb is as much as a warning as it is an admonishment. We are warned to be on guard against such flattery. The greatest among us who uses flattery to his own advantage is the devil. We can see a picture of this type of flattery in the story of Daniel. It was when all the kings advisors, who hated Daniel, flattered the king as being so great, so powerful and his degrees were could not be repealed. Satan uses flattery to distract us from trusting in God, from having our confidence in God. He flatters us with how great we are, how we have such wonderful abilities and we should use our talents to increase our position in life, or even better to help others. The whole of humanism is rooted in the deception of Satan. Jesus has told us that apart from him we can do nothing.

John 15:5-6

5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

NIV

So why would be pay any attention to flattery? All that we are, all that we say, all that we do is because we are in Christ. We cannot have any confidence in our own abilities of which we are being flattered. So let be warned. On the other hand this is also an admonishment not to get caught up in flattering others. This is not to say we should not encourage one another for we are told to do that exact thing.

1 Thess 5:11

11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

NIV

However it is interesting the Greek word translated encourage in many of the translations is actually parakaleo, a variation of the word used of the comforter the Holy Spirit. So it might be better read as we are to comfort one another and build each other up. Comfort is as far from flattery as it can get. Let us not flatter one another for it makes us appear we desire something in return, perhaps nothing more then to be thought how gracious we are to give such praise for a job well done. Maybe the flatterer would want the other to think he who gives the praise is so humble as to praise someone. It is a trap, not matter how we look at it. Are we not told not to look for the praise of men, but rather the praise from God?

John 12:42-43

42 Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.

NIV

Living for the praise, the flattery of men, is but a trap of the devil. Let us live for the praise from God, beware of flattery.