Don’t Love Quarrel Else You’ll Keep Speaking Unwholesome Words

[19] “Whoever loves a quarrel loves sin; whoever builds a high gate invites destruction.” – Proverbs 17:19 (NIV)

What’s a quarrel? It simply means a heated argument or disagreement, typically about a trivial issue and between people who are usually on good terms. However, the word “quarrel” used in Proverbs 17:19 actually refers to revolt or rebellion, generally stemming from disagreement among parties. It happens everywhere— in churches, workplaces, marriages and everywhere people get involved.

The Bible says that whoever loves to quarrel (revolt) loves sin. That means that any rebellious person in any organisational setting will create confusion and affect the health of many meaningful relationships. Because of this reality, some ministries permanently sack some employees when they cause strife. Yes, it is that serious.

One thing I have realised after leading our ministry for several years is that many people begin to have many unaddressed grievances as the ministry grows. One cause of this is the lack of a properly designed administrative system with faithful people on every side. Another primary cause is a lack of adequate finance in running the ministry. Even though I may be speaking about ministry today, I’m sure this is an ongoing issue in many companies as well.

Why did Absalom win the hearts of many Israelites who had their cases ruled against them by King David (see 2 Samuel 15:6)? It’s because King David didn’t always please people when they brought their issues with them. It is so in ministries and any organisational setting where the leader gets to a point where he cannot do everything right.

If you are a pastor reading this, be careful to build a good administrative system that genuinely attends to the welfare of individual congregants. Every single human being is important, so don’t treat people as if they are numbers. But as a person, don’t love quarrel else you’ll keep speaking unwholesome words to people and can even affect their healthy relationship with you.

You are a blessing.