The Lord Is Sweeter than Honey

"A person who is full tramples on a honeycomb, but to a hungry person, any bitter thing is sweet" (Prov. 27:7, HCSB).

It is no wonder that the words of the wise are often referred to as dark sayings. There is a certain level of obscurity in most of the proverbs. More often than not, the reader is left asking what does that mean? Even the ones that are more easily understood leave the reader wondering if their is more than meets the eye.

Proverbs 27:7 is no different. Reading it leads one to conclude that it is only an observation. It is as if Solomon was saying, "Fact: when people are full, they don't want more food. Fact: hungry people would by glad to eat anything." But is that all Solomon is saying. If so, then the proverb takes on a meaning similar to the modern expression, "Never go grocery shopping when your hungry."

What if Solomon is using this observation of human behavior to point us to more startling truths? What if he is using the hunger imagery to symbolize something else? Jesus spoke of hungering and thirsting for righteousness (Matt. 5:6). The Lord says through Isaiah:

Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and you labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in rich food. Incline you ear, and come to me; hear, that you soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David (Isa. 55:1-3, ESV).

These two examples help us to see that the imagery of hunger/eating points to a deeper spiritual reality. These images draw an analogy for the reader. Just as a person is hungry (craves, yearns, or longs) for food, their soul also longs for "food." The food for our soul can be purchased, but not with money. It can only be obtained by listening (hearing combined with obedience). What is this bread? Jesus is the bread (see John 6:35-37).Thus, the hungry soul can only truly be satisfied in Christ.

Solomon uses the sweetness of the honeycomb to complete the analogy. Honey is sweet, and for that reason it is alluring. It offers a reward for merely tasting it, but it can be dangerous. Solomon warns, "If you have found honey, eat only enough for you, lest you have your fill of it and vomit it" (Prov. 25:16). Yet even honey is more than honey. It is said the lips of the adulterous drip honey (see Prov. 5:3).  Solomon isn't saying she is a sloppy eater, but that her words are sweet and alluring.

Now that we see it is an analogy, let's return to Proverbs 27:7. Solomon says, "A person who is full tramples on a honeycomb." Within his culture, the idea of trampling on a honeycomb would most likely seem ludicrous. We could paraphrase it as, "A person who has just eaten a good meal will skip dessert." I know what you're thinking, "Dessert is part of a good meal," but try and follow the analogy. It isn't really about dessert. Let me put it another way, "A person who has what they want doesn't want anything else." David (Ps. 23:1), Jesus (John 4:31-34), and Paul (Phil. 4:11-13) were full in God. Therefore, they refused to chase after other sources of pleasure. They had all they needed.

The second part of the proverb states, "But to the hungry person, any bitter thing is sweet." Eddie Murphy once joked that if you give a starving person a cracker they will ask, "Is this a Ritz?". He humorous observation captures the same reality that Solomon is explaining. An empty belly doesn't always discriminate between yummy and yucky. Genuine hunger overrules the palate. King Tongue may have the say when the cupboards are full, but taste doesn't rule when it's eat or die.

The analogy holds if we apply it to the soul. The empty soul, that is, a soul that is hungering for God (even if it doesn't realize it), will look for fulfillment in all the wrong places. Richard Trench once said, "None but God can satisfy the longings of the immortal soul; as the heart was made for him, he only can fill it." Augustine stated, "Thou hast created us for Thyself, and our heart is not quiet until it rests in Thee."

It is this nagging sense that something is missing deep within the human heart, that propels us to search. However, apart from God, we cannot find what we are looking for. We are so hungry that the bitter seems sweet. I believe this is the reason many people are overtaken by sin. They get caught in addiction because they are trying to fill the void. Even believers who fail to apply the gospel to all of their lives struggle with this as well. Many who believe the gospel are never trained to understand the full implications of the message. It changes everything about us.

If we are full of the message of Christ, so that it touches every part of our lives, temptation will lose some of it's power. Why taste the honeycomb when we are full? Or will we keep cramming the bitter things of this world down our throats while telling ourselves, "It's a Ritz"? Don't forget, the Lord is sweeter than honey.


Image Credit