Proverbs 27:26
The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field.
Original Language Analysis
Historical Context
In ancient agrarian economies, livestock served multiple functions: food (milk, meat), clothing (wool, leather), capital (breeding stock), and currency (trade, dowry, tribute). A well-managed flock provided sustainable income without depleting the principal—precisely the economic wisdom this passage teaches. Biblical stewardship emphasizes multiplication through faithful management.
Questions for Reflection
- How are you managing God's resources to create sustainable provision rather than short-term consumption?
- What 'assets' has God given you that, properly tended, could multiply provision for others?
- Where might you be consuming 'seed corn' that should be invested for future harvest?
Analysis & Commentary
The lambs are for thy clothing (כְּבָשִׂים לִלְבוּשֶׁךָ, kevasim livushekha)—כֶּבֶשׂ (keves, 'lamb, sheep') provides לְבוּשׁ (levush, 'clothing, garment') through wool. The plural suggests sustainable yield: proper management allows shearing without slaughtering the flock.
And the goats are the price of the field (וּמְחִיר שָׂדֶה עַתּוּדִים, umechir sadeh attudim)—עַתּוּד (attud, 'male goat, he-goat') serves as מְחִיר (mechir, 'price, payment') for acquiring or maintaining the שָׂדֶה (sadeh, 'field, cultivated land'). The economic principle: faithful stewardship creates a self-sustaining cycle where assets generate resources for acquiring more productive capacity. This is biblical prosperity—not getting rich quick, but patient multiplication of God's entrustments (compare the parable of the minas, Luke 19:11-27).