"Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble with it. Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is than a fatted ox and hatred with it" (vs. 16-17).
When I was a student at Bowling Green State University (Go Falcons!), I majored in business. I will always remember that, in several of my classes, the professor instructed us to "assume the profit motive." This meant that, for the purposes of our studies, it would be presumed that the sole function of the enterprise was to make as much money as possible. All of our calculations were thus designed to generate as large a profit as possible, to the neglect of any other consideration.
I always had a gut feeling that the profit motive shouldn't be assumed.
I think Solomon would agree. Several of his proverbs point out that the ultimate goal in life isn't really riches or wealth. Prosperity has its limits. In the above proverbs, Solomon argues that having a little can be preferable to great treasure - if you also have the fear of the Lord rather than trouble. Salad is better than steak - as long as it is served with love rather than hate.
How many people have fallen victim to the automatic assumption of the "profit motive"? They made their goal in life getting wealthy regardless of its affect on any other sphere - their health, their happiness, their loved ones, etc. The only thing that truly mattered to them was the bottom line, that salary figure or that yearly gross income. At the end, however, they realized that there were other considerations that outweighed a big payday. They ended up rich, but miserable. Wealthy, but unsatisfied.
The proverbs remind us that we should be careful with the goals we set in life. If we actually get what we aim for, will it be enough for us to find true contentment?
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