”A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth: And the recompence of a man’s hands shall be rendered unto him.“
Proverbs 12:14
With all of the emphasis in the book of Proverbs on keeping our mouth closed it seems unusual to consider the fruit of our mouth is where we will find good satisfaction. It is not surprising to find our hands will earn us payment.
Let us look at the fruit of our mouth. Fruit is often associated with growth and life which comes from reproduction of the host. An apple tree bears apples, so what we and our mouth are multiply themselves; be aware of this principle and prune your heart, mind and mouth accordingly.
We will also receive what we earn with our hands. If you have hands which can work you should work with them. They are one of the most useful tools ever invented. You should learn to be a craftsman of sorts in something. It is soul enriching and adds value to you and the world. In essence, we build value in ourselves and eventually receive the benefit as it reproduces.
On another level. In Norval A. Hawkins book “Certain Success” he goes to great lengths to convince the reader to become a Salesman. He believed everyone needed to be skilled at selling to be successful in life. This Proverb appears to agree. If we can sell (the fruit of our mouth) we can have our needs met in an agreeable fashion.
The proverb continues by expressing we should not only sell but we should produce by labor. It is unfortunate our society believes being a producer and being a salesman are two separate personalities. It appears this passage is recommending we learn to craft a sale and learn to craft a good or service.
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