Things that Stay the Same

There are many plans in a man’s heart,
Nevertheless the LORD’s counsel – that will stand.

Proverbs 19:21

The Hebrew word translated plans has the idea of a machine…something doing its job mechanically and continually to make plans.  It can be negative in meaning, but here it is neutral.  A man continues thinking, planning and plotting based upon new information and new situations at every single moment.  This is one of the many limitations of humanity – we are limited in time, space and perception.  Try as we might we are always going to be vulnerable to a new fact or factor that will cause our plans to change. 

The Lord is in a different situation altogether.  The Lord’s character and plans will never be surprised, nor will they ever be changed because of something which He didn’t see or know.  The Lord’s plan is perfect and it is not ever in question.  This means that, as fallible and shortsighted people we are always making the wisest choice by building our plans around His perfect and unchanging counsel.  This means building our thinking around His perfect word.