Why should we be like an ant?
Text: Proverbs 6:6-11
Hosts:
J. Kent Edwards
Vicki Hitzges
Nathan Norman
Narrator: Brian French
The CrossTalk Podcast is a production of CrossTalk Global, equipping biblical communicators, so every culture hears God’s voice. To find out more, or to support the work of this ministry please visit www.crosstalkglobal.org
Produced by Nathan James Norman/Untold Podcast Production
© 2025 CrossTalk Global
Brian: Sloths are adorable slow moving mammals that live in the tropical rainforests of Central and South America and are mostly inactive during the day. Their main activity is is eating. They slowly move through the rainforest canopy covering about 40 yards per day while munching on leaves, twigs and buds. Did I mention that they also take naps that last between 8 and 10 hours each day? Surprisingly, these funny faced, long armed animals are excellent swimmers, so they will occasionally drop from their treetop perches into water for a paddle. Sounds like a perpetual tropical vacation, doesn't it? That's why for many people, the sloth has come to symbolize a welcome escape from the hustle and bustle of human life. But take a moment before you start using the sloth as a role model for life, because you and I don't live in a tropical forest, are probably not very good tree climbers and we definitely don't want to exchange our diet of bread, fruit, meat and cheese for nothing but plates full of leaves, twigs and buds. Instead, Solomon urges us to adopt another often overlooked species as a role model, the common ant. Join Vicki Hitchkiss, Kent Edwards and Nathan Norman as they try to understand why Solomon, the wisest person in history, would want us to learn a life lesson from a bug. Welcome to crosstalk, a Christian podcast whose goal is for us to encourage each other to not only increase our knowledge of the Bible, but to take the next step beyond information into transformation. Our goal is to bring the Bible to life, into all our lives. Hello, I'm Brian French. Today Dr. Kent Edwards, Vicki Hitchkis and Nathan Norman continue their discussion in the Book of Proverbs. If you have a Bible handy, turn to Proverbs, chapter 6, verses 6 to 11 as we join their discussion.
Kent: In Solomon's introduction to the Book of Proverbs. In chapters one through nine, he reveals some of Satan's favorite snares, the strategies he often uses to destroy people's lives. The first one Solomon mentions is the wrong kind of friends, those who invite us to join them in their pursuit of ill gotten gains. A second is the temptation of focusing on living in the moment instead of first establishing our life's purpose and then making decisions today that guide us towards that goal. The third is adultery, the snare of exchanging a life of love with the spouse of our youth for a season of lust. Last week we saw that the fourth snare was debt. We can easily fall into this snare because it's when we're on the verge of financial disaster that we are much more likely to give in to the temptations to lie, cheat or steal to get the money we need to feed, clothe and house the people we love. Desperate times call for desperate measures. That's one of Satan's snares. But now he talks about another snare, the final one. And he does so by telling us to follow the example of an ant. I mean, I got asked the question, why an ant? Why not a creature that's more admired? After all, our sports teams, at least in North America, select animals that are more admired than an ant. I mean, when you look at the American game of football, what kind of animals names are chosen to represent their teams?
Vicki: Oh, you get Bengals, Broncos, Cardinals. You go for strength. Falcons, Jaguars, Lions, things like that.
Nathan: Yeah, you don't have, like, many lemurs, Pussycats, Squirrels.
Vicki: Yeah, Pussycats.
Kent: And the NBA? Oh, yeah.
Nathan: The Bucks and the Bulls and the Hawks and the Hornets and Raptors. And Timberwolves.
Kent: I think the Raptors are the best name. I mean, I know I'm from Toronto, but still, the Raptors, they've got to be the meanest, you know, animals that you can. You can pick baseball.
Vicki: No. Well, one that comes to my mind is the Blue Jays, which doesn't sound very ferocious. But I'll tell you what. One day I was taking a walk and I saw a blue jay torment a cat. Oh. I mean, torment. If that cat had caught that bird and that cat was working on it, that cat would have torn that bird up. But it couldn't. And the bird would just swoop down just. Just to annoy that cat. And it do it over and over and over. And it made. It made me think, man, Blue Jay. I don't know if all Blue Jays do it, but I bet they do.
Nathan: Blue Jays are all jerks. They are. They're all jerks. Come on. They're my w. Come on. Anyone named after them?
Kent: No.
Nathan: Yeah, but the animal, they're aggressive. They really are.
Kent: Yeah.
Vicki: You have Cardinals, too. I don't think of them as aggressive.
Kent: But if you're playing the real. The world's best sport, if you're coming to hockey, in the NHL, oh, you.
Vicki: Got Coyotes and Ducks. Okay, that was Cardinals on that one. Hurricanes and Predators and Penguins and Sharks.
Kent: But how about the sloth? I mean, why not rename the Dallas Cowboys the Dallas Sloths? No.
Vicki: Be careful. Well, actually, you kind of could, but maybe this season.
Kent: Yeah. No, but we wouldn't, because that. The sloth doesn't represent what you want the team to represent. They're not the image you want your fans to have when they think of.
Vicki: Your team, it is not. But you also don't want to go with the ant because you can just step on an ant, but you got to respect an ant. If you've ever been a kid and you've played with an ant, if it's going north and you turn it around, it'll turn around again and go back north. Ants are workers.
Kent: Yeah. And it's fascinating that Solomon introduces Satan's fifth and final snare by introducing the ant in Proverbs 6. 6.
Vicki: It says in that verse, go to the ant, you sluggard. Consider its ways and be wise.
Kent: Yeah. Often overlooked. It's interesting that the greatest figure of his day in Israel, the king, King Solomon, admired by everyone, stopped to look at ants. Maybe because they're amazing creatures for many reasons. They're certainly very plentiful.
Nathan: Yeah. A recent study back in 2022 says that there are some 20 quadrillion. That's 20 with what, 16 zeroes ants on Earth. 20 quadrillion. About 2.5 million ants for every human. That's why it's hard to get them out of your house.
Kent: That's incredible.
Nathan: And they're continent except the Arctic and Antarctic, which means that they're smarter than us.
Vicki: Well, and I go for. They're strong if you've ever seen an ant work. They go and they pick up what looks, compared to their size, like a boulder. And they've got these tiny little arms, way smaller than a hair. And they pick up those boulders over their head and they carry it wherever they're going. Amazing.
Kent: It's amazing the kind of amount of material and the size of the material they can move from one place to another.
Vicki: Absolutely.
Kent: It said it's what they can lift between 3,400 and 5,000 times their body weight.
Vicki: That's an actual statistic.
Kent: Yeah.
Vicki: It looks like. It's just amazing. Like they're lifting houses over their heads.
Kent: I know. That's even more than I can bench press.
Nathan: That would mean I could lift about a million pounds.
Kent: Wow. So they're numerous. They're strong. Do you know they can also communicate really well. How so? They can't speak, but they communicate primarily through chemical signals.
Vicki: What's that mean?
Kent: They leave behind certain formulations of chemicals that will communicate to other ants whether they should follow them to food or whether they're announcing danger.
Nathan: So it's pretty brilliant here. So when they're scouting for food, they need to be able to find their way back to the anthill. And so they leave down this particular Pheromone to lead them back. And if they find food, they find it. They turn around, they follow their own trail back, but they start releasing a new pheromone that says, this is food. Come this way. Just utterly unbelievable. That's why don't squish the ant. You got to clean up around the ant so that their little hidden TR gets decimated.
Kent: Which is why one summer when we were having watermelon, we left a couple of pieces out on the table at the back. You wouldn't believe the number of ants that discovered that piece of watermelon. It was sugary. They found it. They communicate also through just touching antennae with one another. They posture. They communicate through body language and even some sounds. They can make vibrations that the other ants can interpret. I mean, it's amazing the communication ability.
Nathan: Sounds like the beach Boys. Chemical signals, touching, body language, good vibrations.
Kent: But maybe the most impressive thing for me is that they are very well organized with each kind of ant having a very specific task.
Nathan: Yeah, the queen lays eggs, and then you have drones.
Vicki: So that's a lot like bees. The queen lays eggs, you get drones. The male ants probably what, mate.
Nathan: Mate with new queens. Yeah, yeah. Then you got the workers. You know, they're the ones that, you know, do the hard work. They forage, they clean, they nurse the young, they build.
Vicki: You definitely want the drone job.
Nathan: It took me a second.
Kent: I don't know.
Nathan: Why.
Kent: Would you have to rate this podcast explicit?
Nathan: And then soldiers. Right, so you have the large headed ants. They got the pincers for defense of the colony.
Kent: Yeah. But what I find even more amazing is that in addition to all these, each of these types of ants are contributing to their collective goals. Right, so the organization has a purpose, and they're achieving their purpose. But there is no hierarchy of command.
Vicki: You mean the queen can't boss around the drones, the workers, the soldiers?
Kent: Seriously, the queen just lays eggs. She does not give direction. There's no evidence that any one of these categories of ants has control over any of the others. In fact, that's exactly Solomon's point.
Vicki: He says, go to the ant, you sluggard. Consider its ways and be wise. Here's where it says it. It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, and yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.
Kent: Hmm. The word commander there literally means someone who decides another's duties, settles disputes about timing, distribution, and the order of lab. Yeah, they don't have any commanders. They don't have an overseer. That word is used in the Old Testament to talk about the Israelite foreman who passed on the Egyptian slave drivers orders to their fellow Israelites of how to make bricks and what was required and so on. They don't have commanders, they don't even have overseers. And then the final word that Solomon uses there is, it has no commander, overseer or ruler. Well, that's just being someone who is in authority. So to paraphrase our good friend Dr. Bruce Weltke, rather than having external leaders telling each ant what needed to be done, what order to do each task and when the job must be completed, each ant possesses a God given wisdom to get to work and to work wisely. Isn't that interesting?
Vicki: It's very interesting. And that they do it.
Kent: And that they do it. And it's obviously successful because look at what Solomon says in verse 8.
Vicki: It stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. All for one, one for all.
Kent: Right. And they're obviously successful. I mean, how many quadrillion are there?
Vicki: And every time you see them, they're working.
Kent: I know. It was interesting. When Nolan and I and our boys moved into our home in California, we had people come to our door that were unexpected. We had someone knock on the door and said, I cut the lawn. And I go, what? Oh, I cut the lawn. This is what I do. I've done this for years. Well, why would I pay you to cut the lawn? And he told me the price and I said, you can cut my lawn. Another day another guy came and he says, I'm the one that sprays for bugs. And I'm going, oh, come on, sprays for bugs? No, I spray for bugs. I spray for ants. I've never had anyone spray for ants in any house I've ever owned. He says, you never lived in California, have you?
Nathan: Southern California is a giant anthill. Everything is built on top of ants.
Kent: It is.
Nathan: Absolutely.
Kent: And this guy comes regularly and we need him. And sometimes in between. I wish he was here sooner. They are successful, everyone does their part. And no ant needs to be told what or when to do that. Solomon's point is they are self motivated. So that's interesting. Thanks, Solomon. Glad you studied ants. What does this have to do with me?
Vicki: Well, in verse nine it says, how long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.
Kent: So he's contrasting ants with people, right?
Vicki: Right.
Kent: The ants are self motivated. They know what needs to be done. They take the initiative, they get it done in time so they can benefit from their work. And then Solomon looks out at his population and says, you sluggard. You who are sleeping a little slumber, you're not going to be ready for fall like the ants are. You're not going to be ready for winter. Poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.
Nathan: I have to imagine a scenario where poor Solomon's kid, right, they just got home from college, they're sleeping in late, Solomon comes into their room at 10 o' clock in the morning, starts talking about ants and the kid's like, what are you talking about? Just going on and on about ants and then, you know, how long will you just lie there, you slugger.
Kent: Yeah, so you're telling me he may have had a teenager.
Nathan: What I'm saying is I am definitely talking about ants to one of my children who has a hard time getting up in the morning tomorrow.
Kent: So do people waste time today, fail to take initiative? Oh, sure.
Vicki: People are people are people.
Kent: How are some of the ways people waste time?
Vicki: Oh, they're on their phone, they watch too much tv, they're on their computers too much. Anything people do that's not productive is a waste of time. Yeah.
Nathan: I heard Paul Kingsnorth started referring to cell phones as the black mirror. Just that term alone is like convicting, right? Like, oh, okay, this isn't really that helpful device. Let's put this to the side.
Kent: Yeah, I think when I see people today, I don't know if you see this, but people everywhere seem to have headphones on. Earbuds, headphones, something as they're going through their day. There's no way you can properly concentrate having something constantly pumped into your ears. It's enjoyable, I'm sure, but I wonder if it's one of those additional ways where we simply waste time. But Solomon is drawing us to the attributes of the ant who are self disciplined, have foresight and industry, they get busy on what needs to be done and do the most important tasks first so they meet their deadlines. That's what Solomon is saying to us. Don't learn lessons from the sloth or the bear or the lion, but the ant. Why does Solomon say we should learn about life from the common ant? Because the value of taking the initiative to do the work that needs to be done is that we will have the resources we need in the future. That's what the ant did. That's what the Ant enjoyed. That's what he's calling us to do. And the reward? He tells us that we will enjoy. So how do we put this to work? Let's brainstorm. We're not ants and we're not farmers. Right. But what are some of the tasks that we have to get done? Do we have any obligations to God?
Vicki: Yes, we should worship him, love him, spend time with him. We're going to use our gifts in the church around other people and to evangelize.
Kent: Okay, so what is Solomon saying to us and our relationship with God? How are you going to do it? What's your plan? What's your strategy? What's your gift? How are you going to develop it and use it? What community are you going to belong to? And how are you going to invest in it? How are you going to get to know God better? What is your plan? Get up out of bed, you sluggard.
Nathan: Go to church.
Kent: Yeah, I mean, go to church.
Nathan: Go to your community group, Go to the outreach that the church is doing. Or if you have some sort of hobby that interest you, go involve yourself with that and be a light for the gospel where you're at.
Kent: Yeah. The worst thing you can do is nothing. The worst thing you can do is say, oh, yeah, I know I need to get to do that. But, yeah, maybe tomorrow. In the meantime, I wonder how my favorite sports team is doing today. What about your obligations you have to yourself? What obligations do we have to ourselves as individuals?
Vicki: Well, you ought to take care of yourself. If your body's at temple, you ought to take care of it.
Kent: Right? Oh, yeah. Eat.
Vicki: You ought to eat. Right. You ought to rest. You ought to exercise.
Nathan: See, you could have just said eat, but you said eat. Right. Just gotta go push that conviction right all the way in.
Vicki: Yeah, it really does make a difference. In fact, they're saying now that Alzheimer's is a form of diabetes. It's from eating too much sugar.
Kent: Wow.
Vicki: And so, you know, how we eat really makes a difference, not only in how we look and feel, but down the road mentally and then taking care of our house.
Kent: We need to meet the basic needs of life.
Vicki: Right.
Kent: So how are we going to do that? How are we going to keep ourselves healthy and prepare for old age and make sure we're eating properly and have enough not only today, but in the years to come? Maybe I need to get a job. Maybe I need to save. Maybe what we don't do is say, I wonder what my favorite sports team is doing today.
Vicki: I can tell where your weaknesses lie.
Kent: Or Sometimes it's easier to see others. Or perhaps our listeners have a spouse. Does that mean, does that bring any obligation, any responsibilities to spend time with.
Vicki: Your spouse, care about your spouse, talk to your spouse, love your spouse?
Kent: Yeah, yeah. As Christ loved the church sacrificially, which I think means what do they need that they're not even aware of? Maybe. Now, how can I surprise them in a way that demonstrates my love for them? Well, you got to take the initiative. We have to make plans. What about people who have children? Well, what about education? Yeah, Their future.
Nathan: Educate them now, educate them later. You know, clothes, I mean, you know, I'm at a stage of life where I got kids that are growing out of their clothes faster than anything. You know, I have one son, my middle son, he's what, 11? And we, he's growing so tall. We just bought him new pants and then it was like two weeks. I'm not kidding. Two weeks later I'm watching him at church and the new pants we bought him and they're like up past to his calves, you know, like we're trying, we're trying to clothe this kid. Right. You know, so you have to plan in the future and you have to plan for the roof. Last night. Last night it was his winter jacket and it got really cold here in New York. I don't know what it was yesterday, 16 degrees. He puts on his winter jacket, it comes up to his elbows almost. So, you know, it was like we didn't have time, it was crazy. But he got home from school and I said to my wife, I got to take him out, we got to get a jacket because like, this kid, you know, can't be going to and from school without this jacket here.
Kent: Yeah.
Nathan: So you have to plan. You've got to plan and you got.
Kent: To make sacrifices and take initiative and in a timely manner if you wait too long. You know, I hear about people who are going to look after their spouse in their old age, but they waited too long and now they're 50, 60 something. And it's tough to save enough money for the final years of life if you start too long.
Nathan: For our listeners in North America, the song the Cat's in the Cradle is really good. That's a song about a father neglecting a son who wants to spend time with him and he never does. And then when the dad gets old and finally has time, wants to spend time with his son and his son's turned out just like him and doesn't have time for his dad.
Kent: Yeah, good yeah, good image there. Sad image, but it certainly echoes what Solomon is telling us here. Look, why should we learn about life from the common ant? The value of taking the initiative to do the work that needs to be done in every area of life is that we will have the resources we need in the future. Consider the sloth, but choose the ant. Because the fifth snare of Satan is procrastination.
Brian: There's value in taking initiative. If we procrastinate over and over and over, the scripture warns us we'll end up in poverty. When we do not procrastinate like hard working ants, we can help ensure we'll have resources we need in the future. I trust that today's discussion of God's Word has been helpful and served as an encouragement to not just be hearers of the Word, but doers. Together, let's bring God's Word to life, to our lives. This week, the crosstalk Podcast is a production of crosstalk Global equipping biblical communicators so every culture hears God's voice. To find out more about this educational nonprofit organization, please visit www.crosstalkglobal.org. crosstalk has trainings coming up in Cuba, Kenya and Kansas. Help us train the next generation of biblical communicators. All you have to do is click Donate in the show notes and make a donation of any size. You can also support this show by rating it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you're enjoying it. Be sure to listen next Friday as we continue our journey through the Book of Proverbs. You won't want to miss it.
Kent: That's what Solomon is saying to us. Don't learn lessons from the sloth or the beer or the bear. Makes sense.
Nathan: All right, Consider the sloth. That sounds like a positive endorsement. Have you considered laziness that might be your problem? While munching on leaves, twigs and buds. Did I mention that they also take naps that last between 8 and 10 hours each day? Surprisingly, these funny. That's why for many people, the sloth has come to symbolize a welcome escape from the hustle and bustle of human life. Go and do likewise. I'm Nathan for CrossTalk Global. But take a moment before you start using the sloth as a role model. Oh, for life. Because you and I don't live in a tropical forest and are probably not. You know, I know we're running long if we got to community. Great example of that was in Vietnam. You remember we went to the garden and we're looking around a beautiful, beautiful garden right in the middle of Old Town Hanoi, and acres and acres and acres. The thing must have been at least 10 acres, maybe 20. And it's just amazing. We were asking who maintains this? And everyone said, the community. We're like, okay, what do you mean, the community? They're like, the community takes care of it. So is there a work schedule? Is there a sign up list? No, the community lives in the area. This is their garden. And they just come and say, oh, this needs to be changed, this needs to be weeded. We need to put water here, we need to irrigate it over this way. And they just do it. What a phenomenal example of collectivist society working together to make the whole. Just amazing.
Kent: Yeah, good insight. I'd forgotten that. So thank you.