Left or Right

DEVOTION

ECCLESIASTES

LEFT OR RIGHT

Eccl 10:1-4

10:1 As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. 2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left. 3 Even as he walks along the road, the fool lacks sense and shows everyone how stupid he is. 4 If a ruler's anger rises against you, do not leave your post; calmness can lay great errors to rest.

NIV

Life is not a grey area, it is either black or white. There is no fudging in this. We are either in or out, right or left, no middle of the road walking permitted. Things just cannot be both, they are either one or the other. Just a little folly outweights wisdom and honor. To think oneself wise and worthy of honor is rather prideful because who can abstain from folly one hundred percent at all times. It would seem folly is in our nature as humans. But there is a difference in messing up once and a while than living a life of folly. But still that once still makes the perfume smell bad. However, Solomon does make the case regarding the main direction of the heart. Which way is our heart bent, to the right or the left? Because we do desire to live for God, which is the wise course, or to the right, we are not headed to the left thus being foolish. The course to the left is full of people who show everyone their stupidity. This is the way of the fool. They think they can control that which is only under the control of God. Although it is true we can make our own choice in life, which direction we travel, either to the right or the left, once we head out in one of those directions the rest of our life determined by that choice. Even when a storm comes up, if we decided to walk to the right we do not leave that post. The angry ruler can represent many things, moments in life that are difficult, persecution in any form should not persuade us to turn from the course, the right, toward wisdom. So we failed, we forget to control of tongue, we said something wrong, or we did something that we should not have, or even thought something which is not good, or Christ like. The accuser is not far to rise up against us charging us, trying his best to make us feel guilty and headed to the left. But,  we stay calm, stay the course, and keep on the right path. We know God forgives us, if we seek him. So we stay the course, we walk rightly, seeking wisdom. We put our trust in the Lord, for he brings us safely through life. The fool may think himself wise, but he lacks the common sense to trust God. At least we can say we have enough sense to see the error of walking left, and so we walk to the right.