Matthew 6:28-30, consider the lilies of the field
6:28 “Why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They don’t toil, neither do they spin,
(Matt 6:35-30 WEB)
6:29 yet I tell you that even Solomon in all his glory was not dressed like one of these.
6:30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today exists, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, won’t he much more clothe you, you of little faith?”
A lesson from Solomon
Solomon enjoyed one of the most glorious reigns in Israel’s history, yet his desire to acquire ever more led him into marriages of convenience with trading partners. These domestic arrangements proved to be the downfall of his kingdom, for they lured him into the worship of multiple gods. The fallout, from Solomon’s desire for wealth, split Israel and went on claiming lives for centuries.
Solomon was famous for his interest in natural history, so Jesus places his reference to that great king amidst observations from nature, of the type that Solomon himself might have made in his wiser moments.
Like the birds of the sky feeding on the fallen, the grass of the field being thrown into an oven was another familiar Biblical picture, again of how death renders all human glory transitory. Each year Israel’s countryside would have blossomed with the rains as ‘lilies of the field’ covered vast swathes, as they still do in some parts. However, come the baking heat of the dry season, their glory soon fades. The prophet Isaiah contrasted this picture with the eternal glory of God's wisdom that never fades.
If God was capable of providing such finery for the transient blooms, surely those to whom God entrusts wisdom will be clothed even more gloriously.