I wonder how many people born after the year 1984 know the meaning of the verb “to fret?” I picked 1984 because that is the year which begins the age group sometimes called the “Millennials.” Those are people who began growing up about the turn of the century – the millennium. I wonder how many Millennials know the verb “fret”? They might use the noun when speaking of the frets on the neck of a guitar, but what about the verb? Our English word is usually given one of three definitions. To fret is “to continually worry – to be anxious. “To cause others to worry.” And it sometimes refers to “gradually wearing something away through rubbing or gnawing.” The English word in the second half of verse 3 says, “The heart of the foolish man worries or wears away against the Lord.”
Worry, of course, is a common subject in the Word of God. The sin of worry is so common even among God’s people, it should be preached against more often than it is. Worry is the antithesis of faith. It is a cancer which destroys the lives and effectiveness of millions. We saw a Biblical example of it in Elijah when he fled to Horeb after the victory at Mount Carmel. In foolishness the great prophet of God fretted against the Lord.
Even though our theme this evening is “worry” or “anxiety,” I’d like us to focus on the verb “to fret.” There are things about that word as it is used in the Bible which surprised me. For example it is found twelve times in the Old Testament, which isn’t surprising in itself. But those twelve occasions come from seven different Hebrew words. In Ezekiel 16 the Lord says that Israel had made Him angry or wore Him down so to speak – “You have forgotten the blessings wherewith I have blessed you – you have fretted me.” Leviticus 13 uses a different word speaking about inner corruption – spiritual decay. Isaiah 8 again speaks of anger. And Leviticus 13 uses the word several times when talking about the decaying effect of leprosy.
Another surprise to me was that the Hebrew word in our verse is translated in several ways. In Genesis 40, Pharaoh’s baker and butler had been thrown into prison because of a possible assassination attempt. One night they each were given a disturbing dream. Verse 6 says, “And Joseph came in unto them in the morning, and looked upon them, and, behold, they were SAD.” The word “fret” here in Proverbs is translated “sad,” because they were filled with anxiety – robbing them of any potential happiness. The same word is translated very differently in II Chronicles 26:19 – When wicked King Uzziah was confronted by the prophet of God and the word of God…. “Uzziah was WROTH, and had a censer in his hand to burn incense: and while he was WROTH with the priests, the leprosy even rose up in his forehead before the priests in the house of the LORD, from beside the incense altar.” Here the word which had been translated “sad” is rendered “wroth.” Uzziah was furious with the sovereign will of the Lord.
In addition to our text, the word is rendered very differently in Daniel 1:10. Daniel told his handlers that he preferred the simple food he grew up with rather than the rich fare of the Babylonian palace. “And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse LIKING than the children which are of your sort? then shall ye make me endanger my head to the king.” In this case, I guess that Ashpenaz was “worried” about the way Daniel and his friends might appear after a few days of organic dieting. They might appear “worried” or malnourished or perhaps cadaverous.
Despite the wide variety of translations and the opportunity to use other Hebrew words… I think Solomon is saying the fool may easily become angry with the Lord’s sovereignty. Sinners can become morose and even wroth with the will and actions of God.
But why do people fret against the Lord? Why do even Christians fret?
One simple answer is that we haven’t yet grown up. We lack maturity. Children often think they know much more than they really know. They see that the January sun is shining brightly, so they don’t need their coats. But it’s 25 degrees out there in the sunshine. They need their coats. Children sometimes think that the rules of their parents are unnecessary. They have not yet learned that those rules were born out of necessity. They are important whether the child knows it or not. Human beings are all born fools and therefore we behave foolishly; it is a part of our nature. “The foolishness of man perverteth his way: and his heart fretteth against the LORD.” Or to paraphrase slightly, “The fool perverteth his way: and therefore his heart fretteth against the LORD.”
Children fret against authority – their parent’s authority, the Lord’s sovereignty, often anyone’s authority. But as we grow – mature – we learn about authority and sometimes even earn a little for ourselves. Spiritually, as we grow in faith, we leave our foolish childishness behind. But herein is the problem, so very often our faith doesn’t progress as it should. Of course, the unbeliever can NEVER grow in faith – he was born a fool and will remain a fool. But sadly, some Christians mature and progress in faith very slowly themselves. Faith is the ability to trust the Lord to oversee our lives – both the general direction and the details.
Elijah lost his ability to trust God to put Jezebel in her place. He couldn’t see how the Almighty might protect him in the midst of the hatred and persecution of the idolaters and unbelievers. And as a result, he lost his ability – or perhaps his willingness – to follow the Lord’s will. I Kings 19 is an example of a saint who “fretteth against the LORD.”
Pride is another of the causes of this kind of fretfulness. The humble soul admits to its helplessness and recognizes its need for God’s blessing and direction. The proud man believes that he knows as much about any given situation as the Lord does. Elijah may have professed humility as he fled from the scene of battle, but his definition of humility was faulty. “And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” How many times during that little rant did he use pronouns about himself?
Solomon reminds us that the fountain of fretfulness is the heart. Earlier the Holy Spirit had warned us – “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” Later He will say, “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool.” “The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked; who can know it.” “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me.” Pride finds its home in the heart. It is in the heart that we begin to fret against the Lord.
And what a dangerous thing it is to fret against the Lord.
It is dangerous because God is God. “Elijah what doest thou here? Come out of that cave and stand before me.” Then the rocks began to fly around the man’s head as the breath of God tore the mountain apart. The ground shook and fire flashed around the fretful man.
Jehovah knows what is best for each of us. He knows if we need a little pain or if a miraculous blessing is in order. The Lord knows how much of either one we can handle. He not only knows, but He has the ability to bring good things out of what appears to be bad things in our perception. David exhorts us – “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against eh workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and whither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good, so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.”
Solomon reminds us here that it is the fool who frets against the Lord.