Got Oxen? – Part 01
This is the first in a series of posts containing excerpts from my latest book, Oxen, which releases on Tuesday, October 30, 2012! Pre-order your copy today and receive 20% off!
Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest. Proverbs 14:4 (NIV:1984)
I will never forget the day I first read Proverbs 14:4 in my Bible. My family had embarked on a journey to become financially free, and I was reading the entire book of Proverbs to find verses providing wisdom about money and money management. Many verses in Proverbs were already well-known to me and had made a profound impact upon my life. Proverbs 22:7 (The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender) motivated me to pursue debt freedom. Proverbs 13:22 (A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children …) challenged me to think generationally, ensuring I leave a financial legacy, so I could position my descendants to prosper.
Proverbs 14:4 never registered on my radar until that day. Its wisdom gripped me and stopped me in my tracks. Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest. I read several Bible translations for this verse to ensure I fully understood its message.
- Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest. (NIV:1984)
- Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox come abundant harvests. (NIV:2010)
- Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox. (KJV)
- Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, but much revenue comes by the strength of the ox. (NKJV)
- Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. (ESV)
- Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, but much revenue comes by the strength of the ox. (NASB)
I grew up on a small farm. We raised or grew just about anything and everything. We had pigs, cows, ducks, and chickens. Our crops included corn, soybeans, wheat, and hay. I loved growing up on a farm. It is where I learned the value of hard work, about sowing and reaping, the cycle of life, and how everything in God’s creation is interconnected and dependent upon each other.
Maybe Proverbs 14:4 connected with me so strongly because it was talking about a life I knew that included farm animals, farm equipment, and a harvest, but I think the real reason it connected with me is because it described my financial situation – my manger was empty.
QUESTION: Do YOU have an empty manger financially?
Read the entire series (available after October 30, 2012)