Today’s Blog: Keep those “Card” Close to the Chest

TODAY’S PROVERB: Should your springs flow in the streets, your streams of water in public squares? Proverbs 5:16, TLV

If you are a card player, you’ve probably heard the term: “He plays his cards close to his chest.” Imagine a group of cowboys playing poker at a saloon in the Wild West. These experienced players hold their cards as close to the chest as possible so that no one can peek at their hand.

Now, imagine old farmer Jones coming into town and gets invited to the game. His hand is dealt and he holds up his cards to check what he has. The cards are away from his chest enough that anyone with peripheral vision can see them. The poor old guy wonders why he keeps losing. And, eventually, he loses the farm.

This is the image I see when I read this proverb. The verse represents what happens when a man doesn’t keep what’s valuable protected. Whether through ignorance or neglect, he gives to strangers what is sacred.

It happens more than we think

In 2 Kings 20:13-19, King Hezekiah was so excited that the king of Babylon had sent him a gift, that Hezekiah foolishly let the Babylonia emissaries have a tour of the kingdom’s treasures.

“Now Hezekiah listened to them, and showed them his entire treasure house—the silver and the gold, the spices and the precious oil—and his armory, and everything that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.”

2 KINGS 20:13, TLV

When the prophet Isaiah learned of this, he was not pleased. He corrected the king and prophesied that all the treasures Hezekiah showed to the Babylonians would one day be stolen by them. (2 Kings 20:16-18). Hezekiah’s response was bizarre (vs. 19), but that’s for another time.

Hezekiah had revealed “his cards” and the other players took advantage of him. And not just the king, but the whole nation of Israel.

Do we reveal our cards to strangers?

Unfortunately, I was a card-revealer. Mostly because I tend to be a people-pleaser and I like sharing any number of things with others. Some not so trustworthy.

Card-revealers can reveal valuable things through gossip, by sharing intimate details about their own life — or their family. Or, as the passage indicates, share what is sacred and valuable through infidelity.

By being more careful to protect what is sacred, we show wisdom. Yeshua/Jesus spoke of using discernment with what we share. If we don’t, what we value can be trampled and our lives ripped to shreds.

“Do not give what is holy to dogs or throw your pearls before pigs; otherwise they will trample them under their feet, then turn and rip you to shreds.”

YESHUA, MATTHEW 7:6, TLV

Today’s verse is so easy to simply skip over. But, this is what I love about the repetitive way of reading Proverbs. And in this case, this was a powerful lesson. That the importance of cherishing what is sacred and valuable shouldn’t be overlooked. As Jesus teaches, discernment can empower us in what to hold close to our chest — our heart.

Let the Holy Spirit show us any areas where we might be revealing sacred things that don’t belong to others/strangers. Then protect those areas — hold them tight to the chest.

May we hold what’s sacred close to the chest, my friends.

Proverbs 5:16 Tree of Life Version – TLV, #tlvbible, #tlvproverbs

HAVE YOU INADVERTENTLY SHOWN YOUR HAND TO STRANGERS? IF THIS BLOG IS A BLESSINGS, PLEASE SHARE. THANK YOU!