Dog Ears

(Pro 1:33 KJV) But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.

We like God’s promises.  We ignore His conditions.  It is part of the human condition.  It is what you might call having dog ears.  If you have ever had a dog you know how they can often not hear you when you say “come” but they are right there when you open a bag of cookies.  Children are the same and we shake our heads about it.  God probably does more than shake His head.  Here we have the promise that we can “live” (7931) “securely” (983).  We like that and we can even go along with listening as long as no one takes it too seriously.  

To get the conditions necessary for the promise you need to look at the previous verse where we are told that we need to avoid “waywardness” (4878) and “complacency” (7962).  Both of these go beyond the promises of grace and trust in Providence.  The first requires decisions to walk in righteousness and the second requires us to be alert.

So?  Trust the promises.  Apply righteousness.  Expect the reward.