'Let another praise you'

“Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips” (Proverbs 27:2, ESV).

I walked into the church kitchen on a Sunday morning, and there were three people quietly working on the coffee setup, slicing cakes into individual servings, and halving Danish pastry. I said, “Wow, this is lovely. Have you always put out such a spread between church services?” One of the two men quickly answered, “No. We used to serve only coffee until 10 years ago. That’s when Jimmy Jones introduced this idea.” The man speaking was Jimmy Jones (not his real name).

I noticed that neither the other man nor the woman said a peep. I suspect they were feeling like me—slightly embarrassed for the speaker. If Jimmy had not so swiftly responded to my query with this information about himself, one of his co-workers may have saved him the trouble and boasted for him, and then all present would have had a high regard for Jimmy. Or perhaps it is true that no one at church remembers the origins of a practice 10 years old. Nevertheless, it would still have been better for Jimmy if he had not volunteered it. These are moments that stick in the mind and color our perceptions of people, rightly or wrongly.

Proverbs, God’s book of wisdom in dealing with other people, gives us a heads up that it is a bad idea to praise yourself. It leaves a bad taste. I know a woman who is quick to mention her accomplishments in the first moments of most conversations. The accomplishments are real, but the eager telling of them diminishes her somewhat in my eyes. It’s just human nature. God created human nature, so He gave us a warning.

The Apostle Paul must have struggled with this Proverbs 27 principle when writing 2 Corinthians. He surely was aware of Proverbs 27 and knew that it is generally unwise to boast of one’s accomplishments. But on this particular occasion, when dealing with a church enamored of highfalutin false apostles, Paul decided that the Proverbs 27 principle would have to be set aside for the sake of other principles, for the good of the obtuse Corinthians.

These people should have praised Paul themselves, for he was excellent in both credentials and godly living. (Notice that in a backhanded way, we learn from this Corinthians passage the importance of encouraging and praising others for their good.) But since they did not, and since ersatz godliness and credentials beguiled them, he was finally forced to lay out the facts for them: He had more accomplishments, more sufferings, and more revelations than they.

“I have been a fool! You forced me to it, for I ought to have been commended by you. For I was not at all inferior to these super-apostles, even though I am nothing” (2 Corinthians 12:11, ESV).

There is no theological conflict in Paul’s actions. Different principles must come to the fore at different times in life, as suit the occasion. Paul was not ignoring the rule of “let another praise you” but obeying the principle of putting the interests of others above his own (Philippians 2:4).

Nevertheless, as is evident from the text, the voice of Proverbs was sufficiently present in Paul’s mind while he was boasting that he had to hold his nose to do it.