Lessons from the Hive

Sugar gets a “bad rap” in many circles, but there is a nutritiously sweet substance that seems to get universally good press and approval. It comes from an unusual source and in a wide variety of colors and flavors. Health-conscious folks use it regularly in coffee or tea, since this sticky liquid is considered a valuable food source. You have probably surmised that I am referring to honey.

Honey is known for its food value, and also for its shelf life since it does not spoil. Produced in the life cycle of the honeybee, honey occurs in the wild but is most often cultivated by beekeepers, who use specialized apparel and equipment to tend individual swarms of bees or larger groupings of hives called apiaries. Honeybees are vital to agricultural production because of their role in pollinating crops as they busily gather pollen and flower nectar, the latter of which they use to make honey.

While this information is widely known, what is not known by most people is the prominent mention of honey in the Holy Bible. Because of its useful, pleasant, healthful characteristics, it is often used as a metaphor for the blessings or benefits that God bestows on those who put His ways into practice.

As God began to work with the nation of Israel, He made a covenant with them, described several times in Scripture. One succinct passage states, “Therefore you shall keep every commandment which I command you today, that you may be strong, and go in and possess the land… and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord swore to give your fathers, to them and their descendants, ‘a land flowing with milk and honey’” (Deuteronomy 11:8–9). This phrase represented the physical blessings that the Israelites had not known for centuries as slaves in Egypt.

King David, known as the “sweet psalmist of Israel” (2 Samuel 23:1), often used honey in describing biblical truth and blessings. Psalm 19:9–10 states, “The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” In Psalm 119:103, he expressed it this way: “How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.”

David’s son Solomon, endowed with wisdom from God as he began his reign over Israel, used honey to represent wisdom, saying, “My son, eat honey because it is good, and the honeycomb which is sweet to your taste; so shall the knowledge of wisdom be to you soul; if you have found it, there is a prospect, and your hope will not be cut off” (Proverbs 24:13–14). He also gave this gem on the value of keeping our words sweet: “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones” (Proverbs 16:24). This seems particularly relevant in today’s environment of so much harsh and acrimonious discourse.

These analogies are timeless. In the book of Revelation, which describes the end of this age, we read of the Apostle John being given a “little book” by an angel and told to eat it. “Then I took the little book out of the angel’s hand and ate it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth. But when I had eaten, my stomach became bitter. And he said to me, ‘You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, tongues and kings’” (Revelation 10:10–11). God’s word was sweet to the prophet, but the message he was to deliver was bitter.

The Living Church of God, sponsor of the Tomorrow’s World telecast and magazine, proclaims a message of hope and deliverance based on the prophecies of the Bible. That message also contains a stern warning about the time of great trouble that lies ahead for this sinful world. The Bible makes plain that those who repent—those who change their sinful ways and “seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33)—will have divine protection (Revelation 3:10).

Now that is a message as sweet as honey.

For more information about the Bible’s message of hope for a world in chaos, we offer free study guides such as Fourteen Signs Announcing Christ’s Return and The World Ahead: What Will It Be Like? You may also want to consider the Tomorrow’s World Presentation series “The Prophesied Millennium: Beyond the Chaos,” sponsored by the Living Church of God.