Proverbs 16:19 ESV
It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor than to divide the spoil with the proud.
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To be of a lowly spirit is a hard saying and, if some thought is given to it, an obscure one too. What does it mean to be of a ‘lowly’ spirit? Humility comes to mind, but the word is an insufficient definition, being itself possessed of multiple definitions. A lowly spirit might be an attitude which thinks little of itself, or it might be flat-out depression, if we take this out of context. The connection with poverty too is suggestive to our modern minds, and deserving of comment. Above all this inquiry, though, rests the quandary: what makes defeat and squalor with a ‘lowly spirit’ preferable to victory and luxury amidst those who think well of themselves?
Simple context, in conjunction with two others verses, will give us a clear sight of what a ‘lowly spirit’ is. The first verse is Proverbs 29:23, reading, “One’s pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.” The second verse is Isaiah 57:15, reading, “For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.” The first lesson to take from the two verses in Proverbs is the contrast between pride and a lowly spirit; truly we can assert that they are opposites, pride the vice corresponding to a virtue. Humility, therefore, is indeed a synonym of ‘a lowly spirit’, but we must define humility too.
Second, and this is the key to understanding both ‘humility’ and ‘a lowly spirit’, Isaiah lays the quality of contrition in parallel with that of a lowly spirit. To have a lowly spirit, then, in light of this parallelism, includes a clear recognition of sin, a recognition ground deep into the soul and expressed throughout its whole, brought forth into the repentance worked in the contrite in the latter half of Isaiah 57:15. A lowly spirit, then, is a spirit which perceives the utter wretchedness of the human estate, which speaks with Edwards the following: “What are we, that we should think to stand before Him, at Whose rebuke the earth trembles, and before Whom the rocks are thrown down?” (2).
The lowly spirit, then, recognizes the deep spiritual poverty of humanity and lives upon it; the lowly spirit therefore depends entirely upon the good grace of God for persistence and salvation (__). To this estate, material poverty is not integrally relevant. It may be helpful to the human soul not to be burdened by the distraction of overmuch wealth, so as to find greater humility, but conversely the pressure of survival can easily foster unjust cupidity, covetousness, and envy. Poverty is no virtue here, nor a vice, and instead its role is to frame the question highlighted in the first paragraph, above: why is a lowly spirit greater than all the wealth and plaudits of the world?
In this life, least importantly, humility and a lowly spirit have a definite effect. The man who does not set himself as the highest priority of existence, who finds in every small beauty and pleasure God’s love, in every suffering a sign of mercy and a place to return that love, this man will be happy in a way no amount of bodily pleasure or monetary security could bring. Contentment rests on humility, not achievement. Moreover, the simple fact is this: the prideful and powerful man who knows not God is “always exposed to sudden unexpected destruction. As he that walks in slippery places is every moment liable to fall, he cannot foresee one moment whether he shall stand or fall the next; and when he does fall, he falls at once without warning” (Edwards, 2). No amount of worldly greatness is anything before the least edict of God’s mouth.
The joy of humility does not truly find its center here, in this world, however effective it may be and however lovely (for it is indeed lovely). The joy of a lowly spirit, the joy of the contrite, it is an eternal thing and eternally founded, on the covenant of God which was before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4). Isaiah 57:15, quoted above, declared its essence: “I dwell… with him who is of a lowly and contrite spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the upright.” The saving hand of God is a joy without compare, even if we blind ourselves too it so often, and before this eternality all the pallor of the world is made ridiculous, so that He alone, who made Himself lowly and was therefore given the name which is above every name (Phil. 2:8-9), He is our joy.
God bless.
Written by Colson Potter
References
Edwards, J. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. <http://www.jonathan-edwards.org/Sinners.pdf>.
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.
