Loving Wound, Hateful Kiss

We are all familiar with “… there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother” and “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”  Funny that we are not as familiar with Proverbs 27:6 which says “Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.”

Not that we like it much when we receive wounds from a friend.  Wounds in the form of correction, confrontation, judgment are really not high on the list of favorite friendly interactions.  However, as Solomon points out, they are a vital part of the friend relationship and furthermore warrant our trust.

You can trust the wounds received from a friend because a true friend seeks not to inflict pain but to keep from furthering pain already inflicted.  Whether self-inflicted or received from another, a friend who sees a loved one in danger of greater pain will correct and even judge to keep that loved one from incurring more pain.  

An enemy cares not what danger you are in or what level of pain is coming your way.  They will go on kissing and kissing until the proverbial chickens come to roost.

So if you are wrestling with a wound inflicted from a friend consider this:  that wound is far more precious than the kiss received from your enemy. Receive the love in the wound and reject the hatred in the kiss.

Proverbs 27:6