On The Way Up The Mountain

If you have ever done any mountain climbing, you know how important it is to pay attention to the trail markers. Those trail markers are there for an important reason. They aren’t there to arbitrarily constrain us, they are there so that we can continue to make progress on our way up the mountain without losing our way. The consequences of disregarding the trail markers can be treacherous.

Periodically, we will hear tragic stories of individuals who have lost the trail during a hike or a mountain climbing expedition. Search parties are dispatched. Communities wait with baited breathe to hear of the news of their whereabouts. Hours pass into days and news commentators begin to report the presumption of the worst-case scenarios.

The lesson is clear, stay on the trail, pay attention to the trail markers. The Proverbs give us a comparison that is very pertinent to the illustration above.

“Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint but blessed is he who keeps the law.” (Proverbs 29:18 ESV)

There are a few things that need to be defined in this Proverb.

First, the notion of “prophetic vision” needs some definition. The temptation is to view this phrase as a neo-charismatic call for “words of knowledge.” However, the context of the passage is clear. The “prophetic vision” that is being spoken of in the passage is what God has already revealed, not some new form of revelation to the nation of Israel. The prophetic vision to which Proverbs 29 refers is the law of God.

Second, the word “law” is a translation of the Hebrew word “Torah” which does not just refer to the do’s and don’ts of the law of Moses, it also refers to the entire Old Testament Canon (at least the Canon written at the time). In one sense, the law of God refers to the commands, in another sense, it refers to the entirety of the Old Covenant scriptures, in still another sense, the law of God refers to the entirety of the Bible. The very important point is that the prophetic vision to which this Proverb is speaking is the revealed word of God. Consequently, the idea being presented is that the people cast off restraint where there is no scripture, or where scripture is ignored, the people simply cast off restraint,

This leads to a third term that needs a little defining. Restraint is a word that has a negative connotation in our culture. It is often thought of as a way to curtail freedom. But, let’s keep the mountain climbing metaphor alive, shall we? I took a rock climbing class during college. I took it for easy credit. Rumor had it that if you took both Geology and rock climbing the professors who taught both would play favorites and give you an easy A in both courses. However, I ended up really liking rock climbing and began saving up for equipment. The first thing you need to buy for rock climbing is a harness, sometimes referred to as a restraint. The restraint isn’t there to arbitrarily curtail freedom it is there to keep us from having the freedom of falling to our demise.

The trail markers on a trail are similar, they aren’t there to curtail our freedom, they are there so that we can enjoy the freedom of hiking or climbing without getting lost.

Proverbs 29 says that without the prophetic vision of God’s law, the revealed word of God, the people cast off restraint in much the same way that a foolish rock climber unhooks from his harness or a foolish hiker veers from the trail markers. Spiritually speaking, we cast off restraint, unhook from our climbing harnesses, and veer from the trail markers on our way up the mountain when we disregard God’s word or when we look to other sources of wisdom to live our lives.

I’m afraid this happens far too often, and it is very likely because the world around us mischaracterizes God’s laws, standards, and teachings as arbitrary rules designed to accomplish two things.

First, the world sees the law of God as a power grab.

“Who are you to tell me what to do?”

This is the common refrain from those mountain climbers who have veered off of the path and are making their way into the woods on their way to being terminally lost.

Second, the world sees the law of God as a set of arbitrary rules designed to curtail freedom.

“You aren’t the boss of me!”

This is the rallying cry of rock climbers, 200 feet up, who have unhooked from their safety harness. It looks fun, until your foot slips and then the results aren’t pretty.

God has given us a prophetic vision fully contained between two leather covers that have the ability to guide us up the mountain and can keep us from falling when we slip, provided that we pay attention to it.

Keep safe, be well, and stay encouraged.

Brian