One who has little understanding of chastening might suggest that God’s chastening is an act born of hatred, but it actually represents an overflowing love from the heart of God. God expresses His motives for chastening His children in Hebrews 12:6 when He says, “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth.” Again in Revelation 3:19 the Lord says, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten.” This again displays a distinction between punishment and chastening. The source of punishment could be construed as anger, justice, or wrath, but the motive of true biblical chastening involves the purest form of love. This means that chastening does not merely benefit the one implementing the chastening, but takes place for the good of the one chastened.
Chastening is best associated to a parent-child relationship (Deuteronomy 8:5; 2 Samuel 7:14; Proverbs 13:24; Proverbs 19:18; Hebrews 12:6-8). As such, God’s chastening, at least within the New Testament, is only intended for those He calls His sons (1 John 3:2). God chastens His children, not to administer justice, but to strengthen and correct them. The believer does not receive some type of punishment from the Lord resulting from the believer’s sins because these sins have been completely atoned through the shed blood of Christ. However, the saint’s continued practice of sin requires the chastening hand of the Lord in order to conform him into the image of Christ. While chastening is reserved exclusively for sons, a lost man receives only punishment or salvation.
People base decisions on different things: some make choices based on their feelings, others by chance or counsel, and some by knowledge. A prudent man does not trust his feelings for making the right choices lest he be led astray. He does not believe in chance and verifies counsel before choosing his direction. When he decides, he only trusts one foundation; and that is knowledge that comes from God. His certainty for decisions only comes from facts that he can verify. Proverbs has much to say about the association of knowledge and prudence. “A prudent man concealeth knowledge”(Proverbs 12:23); “the prudent are crowned with knowledge” (Proverbs 14:18); “The heart of the prudent getteth knowledge” (Proverbs 18:15). A prudent man demands knowledge and seeks after it with his whole heart. By doing so, he avoids the terrible fate of the fools and the simple.
