Don't Wear Yourself Out
For surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off. Proverbs 23:18 · Berean Standard Bible
There is genuinely a future, a real hope, and if you stay faithful to God your life won't end in despair—your expectations won't be cut short.
The teacher is reassuring the one who might be tempted to envy sinners: if you stick with wisdom and the fear of the Lord, your life actually works out better in the end. There's a real payoff.
A father or wise teacher speaking to a young person
This connects to the entire biblical promise that God rewards those who trust Him. From Abraham forward, Scripture shows that faithfulness to God is never wasted, even when it doesn't look rewarding immediately.
There exists a future in which righteousness will be vindicated and rewarded; your hope in God's ultimate justice will not be disappointed or nullified.
The assertion of 'a future' (אחרית, aharit) and the guarantee that 'your hope will not be cut off' directly counter the despair generated by observing the wicked's apparent advantages. This represents an eschatological claim—that despite present inequities, history moves toward a final reckoning where justice prevails and righteousness receives due vindication.
The wisdom teacher, transitioning from warning to affirmation, grounding continued righteousness in confidence in God's eventual justice.
This eschatological hope threads through Israelite literature from the prophets' visions of ultimate restoration to the New Testament's assertion of resurrection and final judgment—establishing that faith in God's justice ultimately triumphs over visible injustice in the present order.
16My inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak what is right.
17Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always continue in the fear of the LORD.
18For surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off.
19Listen, my son, and be wise, and guide your heart on the right course.
20Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat.
Read all of Proverbs 23 — Do not wear yourself out to get rich. Have the wisdom to show restraint. Riches sprout wings and fly away like an eagle.
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