Proverbs 11:29
Whoever troubles his own household will inherit the wind, and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart.
[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=proverbs+11%3A29&version=ESV]
‘Inheriting the wind’ seems a little bit excessive for such a minor offense as ‘troubling your household’. This word for ‘trouble’ however, is another form of the word used for Achan in Joshua 7. Achan hoarded plunder from Jericho instead of destroying it as God commanded; as a result, he was stoned in order to rid his curse from Israel. As we can see from this example, ‘trouble’ in this verse does not merely indicate mischief, levity, or ill- considered pranks. To trouble the household here means to defile it with an immoral and Godless action, like Amnon or Absalom (2 Samuel 13, 15).
God does not bless vice; instead, he curses it. Therefore, the man who troubles his house with such actions will not inherit the riches which his father might have given him. He will inherit the wind- an uncommonly insubstantial means to feed oneself.
The second part of this proverb points to the results of the first part, as well as a general principle it falls under. The man who is foolish, which in the Biblical sense, refers not to mere stupidity but to a lack of moral character and wisdom, will not inherit much, and what he does inherit he will squander, as a rule, at the first opportunity. When this event happens, he will turn to the wiseman and become his servant in exchange for bread, because the wise man has exercised stewardship over that which he has been given and enjoys the blessing of God.
God bless.
Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
