learning from the birds

So I'm reading in Proverbs this morning and I come across this verse I don't remember ever reading (or at least understanding) before. (Which is part of the reason I like reading out of my NLT sometimes. It's different and fresh to me wording makes me stop and think about even familiar passages in a new way.)

"When a bird sees a trap being set, it stays away." -Proverbs 1:17 (NLT)

Makes sense. I'm not sure if I knew that birds were this smart or not, but I like the simple concept. The birds sees you setting a trap. The bird knows it's a trap. The bird stays away from the trap. The bird doesn't flirt with the trap, trying to see how close it can get without getting caught in the trap.

Solomon is comparing this to our foolishness as people. In our folly we lay traps for ourselves with poor decisions. We set ourselves up to fail, or at least to experience some really icky consequences.

Let's learn from the birds on this one, and follow wisdom.