Strand or Strings

"A cord of three strands are not quickly broken."

Strings or Strands

Ecclesiastes 4:12 Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. NIV

Have you ever agreed to a task; only to find out that you were given the raw end of the deal? I defiantly have. Once when starting a job as an elementary teacher at a new school a co-worker approached me with a proposition that she would enter the data scores if I shared lesson plans. Wanting to be a team player; I agreed. Quickly I realized data entry happened once each quarter but lesson planning took place every week. She had manipulated the situation for her benefit. She was pulling the strings and unbeknownst to me; I was her puppet.

In 1 Samuel 18:17 Saul begins to devise; at least in his eyes, a master plan to have David killed. With a jealous mindset, he set his plan into motion by offering his oldest daughter, Merab to marry David with the stipulation that he would continue to fight the Philistines. However, when the time came for the two to wed; Saul reneged on the promise and gave her to another man named Adriel.

More determined than ever, Saul got wind that his daughter Michal was in love with David. Using this information, he promised David Michal’s hand in marriage with the belief that she would trick him into the hands of the Philistines therefore killing David leaving Saul free and clear of the murder. Typically, this story focuses on Saul’s scheming behavior toward David. But what about the daughters? Could you imagine how humiliated, betrayed, hurt not to mention angry they must have felt once the truth about their dad’s plan was exposed? They had been puppet’s in his deceptive puppet show.

Although, it was a coworker; not a parent that had manipulated I still felt many of the emotions the daughter’s must have felt. I was confused and believed that I should have known better. This is where God’s Word came in and saved the day. Proverbs 10:21 tell us that “fools die for lack of wisdom.” NKJV. God revealed that I, like the daughters were unaware of the defense mechanism that was being used to pull our strings. Being wiser to the tactics and wide eyed to the red flags, we are less likely to fall prey to the manipulator.

In Ecclesiastes 4:12 we read that “A cord of three is not quickly broken.” Many commentators identify the three as God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Lining ourselves with the three strands replaces the lack of knowledge with wisdom. God promises in James 1:5 that if we ask for wisdom He is faithful to give. It is with the three strands; we can find the strength to forgive the manipulator and the assurance that going forward we will be better equipped to recognize their ploys. Let’s decide today to choose the wisdom of strands over the manipulation of strings.