“The lazy man says, ‘There is a lion outside! I shall be slain in the streets!’” (Proverbs 22:13).
Years ago, Benjamin Franklin observed, “A man that is good at making excuses is good for nothing else.” Solomon notes three common parts of excuse makers and their pathetic excuses.
- An excuse is used to cloak the truth. In this proverb the real reason for inaction was laziness. Rather than being honest with himself and everyone else, the lazy man concocts this flimsy rationalization. When teaching school, I often would ask a student who had failed to complete and/or turn in an assignment with this simple question: “Were you too ignorant or too lazy to get this done?” Every time a student gave an answer, it was the admission of laziness.
- An excuse usually has exaggeration in it. Few people choose to go the route of the excuse maker in this proverb; they tend to use a more subtle lie, with less obvious hyperbole. In all my years of Bible study and related reading, I never have had the impression that there was a huge lion population in Palestine. Having a lion in the streets was—at most—a once or a twice in a lifetime experience for most. Imagine using something so rare and unusual as the “rational” basis for your inaction!
- An excuse has a “worst case scenario” that is often unrealistic. This happened far too often during 2020. Remember how many people claimed they were afraid to attend worship services because they might contract the Asia Corona Virus but could be out and about Monday through Saturday? They had no fear of the “lion” of Covid-19 in the streets at the grocery store or gas station but were terrified of it on the Lord’s Day, assembling with the saints.
An excuse is a lie wrapped in fancy paper. The wrapping paper cannot successfully camouflage these pathetic parts of an excuse.
