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Are You “Kicking Against the Goads”?

IN BIBLE times, an oxgoad—a long rod, usually tipped with a sharp metal spike—was used for driving and guiding draft animals. If the animal stubbornly resisted the prickings of the goad by pushing against it, what was the result? Rather than gaining relief, it only inflicted pain on itself.

The resurrected Jesus Christ spoke of goads when he appeared to a man named Saul, who was on his way to arrest some of Jesus’ disciples. Out of the midst of a blinding light, Saul heard Jesus say: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? To keep kicking against the goads makes it hard for you.” By maltreating Christians, Saul was actually fighting against God, pursuing a course that could only harm himself.—Acts 26:14.

Could we also unintentionally be “kicking against the goads”? The Bible likens “the words of the wise ones” to oxgoads that prod us to move forward in the right direction. (Ecclesiastes 12:11) The inspired counsel in God’s Word can motivate and guide us correctly—if we let it. (2 Timothy 3:16) Resisting its proddings can only harm us.

Saul took Jesus’ words to heart, changed his course, and came to be the beloved Christian apostle Paul. Our heeding divine counsel will likewise bring us eternal blessings.—Proverbs 3:1-6.

[Picture Credit Line on page 32]

L. Chapons/Illustrirte Familien-Bibel nach der deutschen Uebersetzung Dr. Martin Luthers