Saturday, September 26, 2026 · Chapter 26
The Lion Isn't Real, You're Just Not Getting Up
Four verses in a row about one guy: the sluggard. He’s not evil, he’s not stupid — he’s just never getting off the bed, and he’s got a reason ready every single time.
The slothful man saith, There is a lion in the way; a lion is in the streets.
Proverbs 26:13
As the door turneth upon his hinges, so doth the slothful upon his bed.
Proverbs 26:14
The slothful hideth his hand in his bosom; it grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth.
Proverbs 26:15
The sluggard is wiser in his own conceit than seven men that can render a reason.
Proverbs 26:16
IThe Hebrew, opened up
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sluggish, lazy — not tired, not busy elsewhere, just unwilling to move
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a door — literally “the swinging thing,” built to move back and forth on its hinge
It’s the same Hebrew word every time — Solomon isn’t describing four different guys, he’s describing one guy from four angles: his excuse, his bed, his hand, and his own high opinion of himself. Atsel doesn’t mean “resting.” It means a settled unwillingness to act, dressed up as something reasonable. A door swings all day and never goes anywhere — it’s motion with zero progress. That’s the picture: the sluggard rolls over in bed, turns, resettles, maybe even feels busy doing it — but he’s still exactly where he started. Movement isn’t the same as moving forward.
IIWhat this actually means
The lion in verse 13 isn’t real. There’s no lion in the street — it’s a made-up reason that sounds responsible (“it’s not safe,” “not the right time,” “I need more info”) so nobody, including him, has to call it what it is: he just doesn’t want to go. Verse 15 is the killer detail — he won’t even finish feeding himself. And verse 16 is the trap that keeps the whole thing running: he’s more confident in his own logic than seven wise men combined. That’s why the sluggard never fixes it — you can’t argue a man out of a position he’s already sure is smart.
IIIObey it today
Name your own “lion” out loud before noon — the one task you’ve been dodging with an excuse that sounds smart (too busy, not the right time, need more info). Say the real reason to yourself, then go do the task anyway.
Pick the one thing at work or home you’ve been “rolling over on” like the door on its hinge — busy-looking but going nowhere — and push it one real step forward today, not just touch it again.
Next time you’re dead sure you’re right and everyone else is wrong about something you don’t want to do, stop and ask one person you trust what they think, on purpose, before you decide.
PrayerGod, show me the excuses I’ve dressed up as wisdom, and give me the guts to get up and do the thing anyway.
Keep this in your chest
“The sluggard is wiser in his own conceit than seven men that can render a reason.”
Proverbs 26:13-16