First, let's establish the context of this verse. This verse comes from the section of Proverbs 3:1-12, which is an exhortation from Solomon to his son, as he is urging him to listen to his teaching to trust wholeheartedly in the Lord (also giving some valuable results of obedience and trust). Further, in this section, Solomon is building on the counsel that he provided in Proverbs 2.
John Piper puts it like this, “So, at every turn, every new choice you have to make, every new conversation you are in, you are sending up a message: God, I acknowledge you here. I know you here. I am drawing you in here. You are decisive here. I need you here.”
This specific verse is referenced directly by Jesus in Matthew 6:33: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
This citation in Matthew of Proverbs 3:6 by Jesus is one of the key verses in all of His teaching. We see it used in quotes, artwork, and Bible memorization from an early age. Yet, like with all scripture, it must be understood in the context of the verses surrounding it. Far too often these words have been ripped out of the context of Jesus’ teaching and applied to the false teaching known as the “prosperity gospel.” If you’re not aware of what the prosperity gospel is, I’ll explain it very briefly here, but look for an upcoming article in the future as we’ll cover it in depth.
Prosperity gospel preachers and televangelists teach that those who practice and exercise true faith in Christ will subsequently attain physical, material, and financial prosperity in this life. And it sounds great, and it appeals to people. The problem? That’s not promised anywhere in the Bible. What this practice is doing, is redefining our “wants” (money, health, material things) as “needs”, and then saying that if we have true faith we’ll get those things. Do you see what’s happening here? This practice is defining the will of God as this: “God wants you to be rich, healthy, and have a lot of material possessions.” When we look at the context of what Jesus says we “need” in this verse, it’s the opposite. It’s the other way around. What we “need” is the will of God. And that may look very different from what we “want” or prefer (Matthew 5:3-12).
So back to the context of Matthew 6:33. Let’s look at two specific words: “these things”.
Jesus is referring to the basic needs of life: food and clothing. We know this because of the verses immediately preceding this by Jesus’ reference to God feeding the birds and clothing the lilies beautifully, and that His children are far more valuable.
Jesus wants us to trust the heavenly Father instead of living in constant and fruitless worry. And He gives us a different outlet for our energy: pursue God’s kingdom, trust His righteousness, and leave it to Him to take care of the basic needs of our life.
Look at your values and your priorities. What is truly important to you? There may be areas of your life that you already acknowledge God, but in those areas where you attempt to either knowingly or unknowingly restrict or ignore His influence, that will cause you grief.
This verse is pretty self-explanatory, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t powerful
