Desire without knowledge is not good— how much more will hasty feet miss the way!
Ever heard the phrase “haste makes waste?” Well, if you haven’t, now you have. And if you have, you might know it because you learned it after realizing that it’s true. Two things can ruin your future success – ignorance and haste. You need to understand what you are doing before you do it, which means you must slow down for research first. You must know what is happening and what could happen before you take any action. Ignorance is not bliss; it is not good. Ignorance is only helpful in matters of Christian liberty and in matters of sin and error. Only in these areas can ignorance be useful. In all other areas, you should be knowledgeable and prudent. Speed is not a virtue, except to obey God, hear others, or finish a job correctly. Only in such things should you hurry. Otherwise, caution and wisdom require you to slow down lest you make an error in judgment or in execution. Rushing things can lead to costly mistakes! Both ignorance and haste are condemned by this proverb, which marks them as traits of the fool, connected to the previous proverb by “also.” Before decisions are made and actions started, Solomon required careful study and knowledge. Haste does make waste! If others criticize or tease you for being cautious and wanting to know more, ignore the impulsive fools. There is no honor or virtue in rushing decisions without adequate research. Do not be intimidated or pressured to make decisions or start actions quickly. Being excited about something isn’t enough if you have no idea what you’re doing. Ignorance and haste are two things that can ruin someone’s future success. Many people ruin their lives making hasty decisions. They didn’t slow down enough to understand what they were doing; they didn’t think about what was happening or what could happen before they acted. Then who gets the blame? Not themselves…but God. He didn’t tell you to rush and this verse is proof of that. Fools have no heart to learn; they are impulsive by nature. They rush decisions and actions without knowing the facts, and life punishes them. Wise men question everything; they do not rush decisions. They look ahead to see potential trouble and avoid it, but fools rush into pain. Many men might have been saved, if they had slowed down to consider the consequences of a seductress. Being slow to wrath is far superior to haste of spirit. It is folly and shame to answer a matter before fully grasping the issues. Haste in financial things will bring poverty. Entering a conflict hastily will often bring shame in the end, when your ignorance is exposed. There are more means today to gain knowledge quickly on any subject than ever before. By Google searches or Bible software, answers for natural or spiritual questions can be found easily, yet many are more foolish than their parents. How can this be? They did not take the time to prove things, and Internet clutter is assumed as truth without any basis. There are also more means to be hasty today than ever before. Instead of the days or weeks it would take to make an investment in the past, you can do so in less than a second via the Internet. Many join churches without examining them by Scripture out of laziness or to please friends or family. Pastors preach things they have not thoroughly studied. But when the Lord sees such ignorant haste in His worship, He blinds to the truth and sends judgment. Ignorant haste in religion is a horrible compound sin! God has revealed religious truth in the Bible, where knowledge can be obtained easily and freely, for those who will search its pages and submit to its teachings. All doctrine and practice should be searched and proven from the scriptures. There is no reason to be without knowledge or to act hastily, except in obedience! Your success in life depends on following the wisdom of this proverb. Will you study and prove all things, retaining only what can be fully established as truth? Will you slow down in a faster-faster-faster generation to soberly consider what is right before acting? I repeat, ignorance is not bliss; and haste is not a virtue. Your success in life comes from following the Word of God. It takes knowledge to follow it. And knowledge takes time, not haste. Slow down. And with the help of God, think about what is right…then take action.
Spiritual Steve 