Proverbs 3:23-24 Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble. (24) When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.
The promises pronounced in this text are entirely conditional. We cannot claim them on their own. They are not some magic chant we can use as safety and comfort affirmations.
These promises are fulfilled today in each and every person who, as was mentioned in the previous verses, keeps sound wisdom and discretion. These promises are solely for those who don’t allow wisdom, knowledge and understanding to depart form their eyes.
We have, in the life of our Messiah, a perfect example of the fulfillment of these promises. Our Savior could affirm today that these promises rang true for Him in their entirety. But did He walk safely? Did His foot never stumble? Was he never afraid when He lied down to sleep? Was His sleep always sweet?
To the contrary, Jesus’ life seems to have been one rife with problems, fears and troubles. He was a man of so much sorrow that we thought God Himself afflicted him. He ended up even dying the death of a criminal and yet . . . yet . . . He can claim that these above promises were fulfilled in His life. Why? Because even though trouble drowned Him; even though the world killed Him; even though the devil pulled every trick in the book to defeat Him, Jesus came out victorious and the everlasting conqueror of, even death.
These promises do not portray an image of idyllic utopian peace and comfort. They rather portray the image of one who conquers all in the name of God, by the sole power of keeping locked on His eyes.
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