At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore (Ps. 16: 11)
“He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind: And the fool shall be servant to the wise of heart” (Proverbs 11:29).
One of the ironies of life in this sinful world of ours is that our homes are the places where we receive most of our blessings, and is also the place where we do most of our complaining. This, as the biblical writer puts it, ought not so to be.
One of the effects that such complaining has is that of troubling your own house. This is to foul your own nest. It is to make the place of your habitation a more difficult place to be. The upshot given by this proverb is that the end result is that of inheriting the wind. This indicates that whatever a person does to trouble his own house has the effect of dissipating whatever inheritance he was going to receive there. At the end of all his complaining, he discovers that the only thing left to complain about is the nature of his inheritance . . . which would be represented by that faint breeze.
The other half of the proverb indicates where such a foolish person will wind up. He is going to end his days as a slave to the one who is wise in heart. The contrast is sharp. The wise in heart is the one who does not vaporize his inheritance by means of troubling his own house. And the one who does finds himself plunged into a condition of servitude.
Of course I don’t mean to indicate that complaining is the only way to trouble your own house. It is one way, certainly, but not the only way. There is sexual immorality, which causes homes to blow up in messy divorces. There is financial irresponsibility that causes creditors to start coming around. There is shiftless laziness which fails to provide income, and which neglects to take care of the upkeep. In short, for those who want to inherit the wind, the paths are plentiful.
