Proverbs 30:29-31 says,...

The verses today are Proverbs 30:29-31, which read,

There are three things which are stately in their march, even four which are stately when they walk:  the lion which is mighty among beasts and does not retreat before any, the strutting rooster, the male goat also, and a king when his army is with him.

Agur keeps up with this "three and then four" for one more time.  He has given us negative examples and then positive examples and then back and forth again.  This is a positive which are those creatures which are stately in their march.  When you march, you keep time with the drum beat or with the shout of the leader.  You are usually in a formation that has rows and evenly spaced spaces between those who are marching and this shows order.  

Usually those who are marching have their heads up and are focused on what is ahead of them.  Agur equates all of this with following the wisdom of God.  We march to a different drummer as they say and that drum beat comes from God and His Word.  We have confidence in our step because it is landing on the sound given by our Leader, the Lord Jesus Christ.  We start to see the order which He gives and we gladly join the ranks of His family who are also marching to this beat.  Agur now goes onto the four word pictures to show this.

The first is the lion, the king of the beasts as the common description goes.  His roar makes him sound ferocious but he also has fangs to back up the sound.  He has a tremendous appearance of power with a mane that makes his broad shoulders look even broader.  He is not there to retreat but rather to charge.  We, in our formation of the church, are not here to retreat.  Even the gates of hell will not prevail against the church.  The church, those who are following the wisdom of God, walks stately not because of who we are but because of who we are marching to.  We have confidence in each step forward because of the confidence we have in God.

The second is the strutting rooster or some versions interpret the running greyhound or a war horse.  If you have been on a farm you have seen that strutting rooster and usually he is something to stay away from.  He looks fearless maybe even evil at times.  He is protecting the domain of the chicken pen.  He fluffs out his feathers and lets out a sound bigger than himself.  He seems to fear no one.  The greyhound interpretation of this phrase gives us this graceful animal that has the ability to outrun danger.  His strength is the ability to avoid danger by putting some distance between himself and it and outlasting the danger with a consistent and fast get away.  The war horse is trained for battle.  The war horse is a presence all in itself.  It is sturdy to stand and not phased by what is happening around it.

Each of these interpretations show us again a confidence of the animal in the realm of its existence.  It knows what to do and responds accordingly.  It reacts and Agur wants us to relate that to one following after God, being confident in our reactions.

The third is the goat or the "he-goat" which is the head goat of the herd.  This is the leader of the other goats.  This is the goat which like the strutting rooster you usually avoid because he is in all out protection mode of his herd.  His defense is to ram you if needed.  His horns are hard and sharp and can do a lot of damage.  His bravery is that when the others are retreating from the danger he is charging at it.  There is such a confidence in this animal to protect those under his care.  We usually call this goat "mean" or even say it has an "evil eye" about it but Agur wants us again to see the confidence it has.  The "he-goat" stands his ground and even charges ahead if needed.

The fourth and last is the king when his army is with him.  We go from animal examples to a human one.  The king has assembled his army that has been trained for battle.  They are in formation behind him.  He gives some type of inspiration speech about even dying for the cause.  He might be on a white stallion and dressed in his royal robes.  He is no doubt in charge and ready to charge with many following behind.  With such a loyal following and well trained army what tends to come is a land of peace.  There are no up risings because anyone can see that the king does not stand alone.  He has a force to use at his disposal and so he stands or sits on his throne in confidence.  To topple the king would mean to change the hearts and minds of his army.

Four examples of confidence that we have seen.  The lion and his charge, the rooster and his strut or the greyhound and his speed or the war horse and his stand, the goat ready to ram, and the king mounted before his ready army.  We are to have such confidence in our walk as we march to God's wisdom.  His word is infallible - it cannot fail.  His word is inerrant - it is without error.  His word is immutable - it cannot be changed.  God's Word is our sole source of authority for all faith and practice.  We walk in confidence and stately because what we walk in and to is truth given to us by God.  Let us pray.

"Lord, help us to question ourselves of where our confidence lies.  Do we truly march to Your beat?  Do we charge ahead and defend based on what You have said?  May we walk in such a way that brings glory to You with our heads up and focused forward on our King who is coming again.  Amen."

Pastor Adam