He who pampers his servant from childhood will have him as a son in the end. Proverbs 29:21 NKJV

At first glance, I hear “don’t be too easy” when it comes to those who work for you. If you give them an inch of leniency, they will take a mile. I see truth in that, but at second glance, I see more.

A servant will not be corrected by words alone; for though he understands, he will not answer [the master who mistreats him]. Proverbs 29:21AMP

This translation of the original text suggests that being too harsh stirs defiance in the heart of someone who helps or works for you. First look: be tough; Second look: be kind and considerate. So, which is it?

For me the “third point of view” is the key to seeing contextually what I should be, who I should be, or what I should say. And that view is prayerfully derived. I don’t run with what I think when I read…most of the time, anymore.

I invite God, who is my Father, to translate according to His view and vantage point concerning me, the matter at hand, and the message before my eyes.

Therefore, if we read the same passage and see it differently, neither of us is wrong. We may just be between “looks!”

Lorenzo