“Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family, and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you— better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.”
There is an important context to this verse. When Solomon was young, polygamy was widely practiced and a person could have many brothers. We know Solomon was not close with his brothers. We also know that his father David was much closer to his friend Jonathan than to any of his brothers as well. So it was natural that he would promote the relationship of a close friend over a blood relative. It is not a reflection that we do not love and have a good relationship with family. It is more a recognition that friends become friends for a reason. It is usually a shared interest or experience. These become bonding experiences. He also recognized the invaluable presence of his fathers close friends, allies and advisers in his reign. Finally he refers to the distance of the close ally. There is an old saying keep your friends close and your enemies closer. That might be a good strategy for a corrupt or untrustworthy person but a follower of Christ does not operate with that level of paranoia or deceit. We live free of that kind of fear and walk in open vulnerability. I’m not promoting stupidity. Solomon encourages true friends and generational bonds as key players in our lives. Today be that friend and cultivate them in your life as well. #BeTheEdge
“If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.” Ecclesiastes 4:10 NIV
