“It is not good to eat much honey: so for men to search their own glory is not glory.”
My Notes
What Does Proverbs 25:27 Mean?
"It is not good to eat much honey: so for men to search their own glory is not glory." Two things that seem good but become harmful in excess: honey (sweet, desirable, natural) and self-promotion (affirming, validating, ego-satisfying). Honey is wonderful — in moderation. Eating too much makes you sick (verse 16). Similarly, glory is wonderful — when received from others. Searching for your own glory produces the opposite of glory.
The phrase "eat much honey" (akhol devash harboth — to eat honey abundantly) uses honey as the archetype of something good that becomes bad in excess: honey is one of the finest foods in the ancient world. It's not sinful. It's delicious. But too much produces nausea. The excess of a good thing becomes a bad thing. The sweetness that delights in small amounts sickens in large ones.
The "search their own glory" (chaqor kevodam — to investigate/seek their own honor) is the self-promotional equivalent of eating too much honey: seeking your own honor seems like a good idea. But the seeking itself undermines the honor. Glory that you search for isn't glory. It's self-promotion disguised as significance. The searching disqualifies the finding.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Are you receiving glory or manufacturing it — and can you tell the difference?
- 2.What 'honey' in your life is good in moderation but destructive in excess?
- 3.How does searching for your own glory undermine the very glory you're seeking?
- 4.What good thing in your life needs limits before it makes you sick?
Devotional
Too much honey makes you sick. Searching for your own glory isn't glory at all. Two things that seem good but destroy themselves through excess or self-pursuit. Honey — wonderful in moderation, nauseating in abundance. Glory — wonderful when received, hollow when chased.
The honey comparison is precise: honey isn't bad. It's one of the best things you can eat. The problem isn't the honey. It's the MUCH. The excess transforms the sweetness into sickness. The thing that delighted your taste buds in small amounts overwhelms your stomach in large ones. The lesson: good things have limits. Even blessings become burdens when consumed without restraint.
The 'search their own glory' is the glory equivalent of gorging on honey: glory isn't bad. Recognition, honor, significance — these are genuinely good things. But SEARCHING for your own glory — pursuing it, hunting for it, manufacturing it — is 'not glory.' The searching disqualifies the finding. The self-promotion undermines the significance. The glory you chase isn't glory. It's performance.
The proverb's wisdom is that some good things can only be received, never pursued: you can't chase your own glory the way you chase a goal. Glory that arrives unbidden is genuine. Glory that you searched for is counterfeit. The pursuit of self-glory is like eating honey by the jar — it starts sweet and ends in nausea.
What are you searching for — glory that comes to you, or glory you're trying to manufacture?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
He that hath no rule over his own spirit,.... His affections and passions, puts no restraint, unto them, as the word…
So for men ... - A difficult sentence, the text of which is probably defective. The words are not in the original. Many…
I. Two things we must be graciously dead to: - 1. To the pleasures of sense, for it is not good to eat much honey;…
is not glory The words is notare not in the Heb., but are supplied both in A.V. and R.V. text. The R.V. marg. has,…
Cross References
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