Where there is no vision, the people perish.

Where there is no vision, the people perish. Proverbs 29:18

In the midst of a dream in the night, this verse came to me. I had forgotten where it had come from, and even thought it was a mistaken variant in my memory of the famous verse in Hosea which says “My people perish for lack of knowledge”. Researching a little further into this verse, I realized that vision here does not refer to just any vision but prophetic vision, or a vision inspired and based upon the Word of God. Where the KJV writes “the people perish”, the literal translation is “the people cast off restraint”, with the idea of “being in chaos socially, like what happened when the Israelites worshipped the golden calf and became a laughing stock to its enemies”.  

Most of us in the world today live with no vision. We go through the drudgery of life every day, nine to five or six, breakfast, lunch, dinner, TV or Internet, and then sleep. We find pleasure for a little while in the comfort of food. We find ways to make time go by more quickly through idle entertainment. We just go through the motions of life – childhood, school, working life, marriage, children, retirement, just like everybody else.  Without vision, without purpose, all these quickly become meaningless in themselves.

Some chase visions of climbing the corporate ladder, of bringing their business to dizzying heights, of finding the perfect mate for marriage, of helping their children be the best academically. Visions such as these may not be wrong in itself, but apart from God’s vision, they bring no lasting fulfillment.

What then is the vision, the prophetic vision that we need? It is found in God’s Word. From Genesis to Revelation, God has unfolded His vision for the human race, helping us understand our need for God, our need for a Savior in our fallen selves and how God has prepared the way through the sacrifice of His Son, to bring redemption and salvation to all who would believe in Him. On a broad scale, this is the vision every Believer needs to have, the big picture of past, present and future from God’s perspective.

Then comes, the day to day vision that God comforts us with, even from His Word. When we are worried and troubled, God’s Word gives us the vision of Jesus inviting us to come to him and lay our burdens aside. When we are sad, God’s Word gives us the vision of Jesus as our Comforter and Shepherd, wiping away our tears. When we have lost everything and without hope, God’s Word gives us the vision of God the Father welcoming us back with open arms, even like the prodigal son, extending complete grace and love to us. When we are poor, God’s Word gives us the vision of a God who has plans to prosper us and not to harm us. When Joseph was down in the dungeon, God’s Word still promised him the vision of restoration and success which eventually came to pass.

Individually too, God gives us specific, purposeful visions that are His callings to those who love Him and want to please Him. To Hudson Taylor he gave the vision of China. To David Livingstone, he gave the vision of Africa. To Susanna Wesley, mother of John Wesley, it was to raise up godly children. To some it may be to start an orphanage. To some it may be in drug rehabilitation ministry or prison ministry or bringing education to the poor. Whatever vision it is, it is then for us to persevere, and hold on to that vision until it comes to pass according to God’s Word.

Some of us once received such a vision from God, but have since forgotten it, or let it simmer and die down like a flame on a candle losing its wicker. For those without vision, let us ask God to show us His precious vision, and for those who have forgotten, let us ask God to rekindle that precious vision once more. In Jesus name, Amen.