Proverbs
Notes on Proverbs – Chapter 19
Proverbs 19:1
A Poor Man of Integrity
Introduction:
1. This is yet another one of Solomon’s “better than” proverbs.
2. Here Solomon states that a poor man of integrity is better than a perverse fool.
3. At first glance it seems almost like it goes without saying.
4. However, there are some subtleties in this passage to consider.
1. Perverse: twisted; distorted; morally crooked.
2. Prov. 11:20 – God HATES the twisting and perverting of moral standards. But He LOVES the upright.
3. This man is perverse in his LIPS…
4. This man is a fool – stupid fellow, dullard, simpleton, arrogant one, a rebel.
5. I think it is also IMPLIED in this passage that this foolish man who is perverse in his lips is also RICH.
a. Otherwise, the comparison would hardly need stating.
b. Why would he have to tell us that a poor man of integrity is better than a perverse fool?
c. Well, of course! Why would anyone ever think otherwise?
d. If these two men were in the same social or financial condition (say both were poor)—no one would ever think a perverse fool was better than a man of integrity.
e. The only way anyone might to be tempted to think that the perverse man was better than the poor man of integrity was IF the perverse man was also filthy rich!
f. The man’s financial and/or social standing is only mentioned in the first part… but because it is being contrasted, it is best to understand this contrast to include their finances too.
g. Prov. 28:6 – is nearly identical to this. That proverb DOES mention that the perverse man is rich.
6. Thus, the contrast here is between a poor man of integrity… and a rich man WITHOUT integrity. He is a perverse fool.
a. That is not always the case with ALL wealthy people. Some wealthy men are fine, moral citizens… and today some are even fine, godly Christians.
b. However, Solomon saw MANY wealthy men in his day.
c. He noticed that wealth was not always accompanied by good manners… by a good, wholesome, moral lifestyle.
d. Solomon noted that many wealthy men are perverse fools.
e. Solomon saw a side of the wealthy that man OTHER people never saw.
f. The poor people only saw their earthly glory and splendor.
• Poor men were often jealous of the rich… jealous of their lifestyle…
• The poor often LONGED to trade places with the rich.
• Perhaps some of US have those same feelings. It is part of our nature.
g. As a king, having to deal with Kings, nobility, and wealthy landowners on a daily basis, Solomon also knew all about the ugly side of wealth.
h. Thus, Solomon writes this proverb to let the poor men in his kingdom know that things aren’t always as they seem.
i. Poor men had one snapshot of the wealthy… and it seemed SO appealing and attractive.
j. Solomon wanted to broaden their perspective of wealth and the wealthy… so he gives them another view…
k. He gives them another view of the wealthy nobles AND another view of their own humble circumstances.
• Solomon wants his readers to know that the wealthy might SEEM to be in an enviable position… looks are deceiving!
• Solomon also wants his readers to know that the poor aren’t in such a bad position after all…
• Not once they broaden their perspective and look at the WHOLE LIFE of the man.
1. Poor man
a. To be poor financially
• To be in want, lacking, impoverished, destitute.
• To be in a state of not having enough income or means of livelihood for normal essential needs.
b. To be in a poor or lowly position
• Used of a man’s lowly position in society.
• It could be used of a common laborer in contrast to the nobles.
• The difference being his status and not his finances are considered.
2. Usage
a. Sometimes in Proverbs Solomon uses this term poor implying some fault on the part of the poor.
b. Ex: Prov.10:4 – because of laziness.
c. However, that is not the case here.
d. This poor man is not poor because of laziness or folly.
e. This poor man is a man of integrity. And in spite of living his life honestly and diligently, he is still poor.
f. He has fallen into hard times through no fault of his own.
3. The poor man’s WALK
a. Behave, conduct, live, formally, to go about doing certain actions in a regular, more or less consistent manner, so possibly constituting a life or lifestyle.
b. Thus, Solomon is considering the whole manner of life of this poor man.
c. If you narrowly focused on his position in society one might conclude that it is better to be a nobleman.
d. If you narrowly focused on his finances, one would conclude that it is better to be a rich man than a poor man.
e. But Solomon is not focusing narrowly. He is looking at the man’s WALK… his life as a whole… all things considered.
f. He is comparing this man’s whole life to the whole life of the man in the second part of the proverb.
4. This poor man’s LIFE is one of INTEGRITY.
a. Integrity:
• Innocence, simplicity, uprightness,
• A state or condition of moral goodness in a life.
• Clear conscience, i.e., a state of integrity and moral purity and so not guilty of wrong-doing or sin.
• Ps. 25:21 – integrity preserves us—keeps us pure.
• Ps. 26:1 – it keeps us from sliding—spiraling downward.
• Ps. 26:11 – enables us to experience God’s mercy.
• Ps. 41:12 – God upholds those who live in integrity.
• Prov.2:7 – God is a buckler (protection) to those who walk in integrity (same term).
b. A WALK of integrity:
• This speaks of a lifetime of living… a whole life full of integrity.
• This man LIVED uprightly… he did things the right way.
• He lived in a pure conscience… refused to violate his conscience.
• He was concerned about morals and purity…
• I Kings 9:4 – This is how David walked. He was a man after God’s own heart.
• Now naturally, that kind of life is harder to live than simply going with the flow… walking the broad way.
• A life of integrity is a pretty good indication that this man is on the narrow road… that leads to life.
• His whole life is characterized by uprightness.
• He’s not perfect.
» Here and there you could take a few snapshots of this man and catch him in behavior he would be ashamed of.
» Prov. 24:16 – Good men fall from time to time… but they get back up.
• However, when you widen the lens to see the WHOLE life… it can only be characterized as one of integrity.
The Poor Man is BETTER OFF
1. When the lens is narrowly focused on his position or his finances, one concludes that it is better to be rich and famous.
a. However, when the lens widens to include the man’s whole life… the picture is very different.
b. AND the conclusion changes as well.
c. Now the poor man of integrity is seen to be BETTER OFF.
d. We might liken this difference to the difference between a heavenly and an earthly perspective.
e. From earth’s perspective,
• We see narrowly.
• We see only the here and now…
• We see a narrow snapshot. A snapshot captures only the moment.
• Take a picture of a poor man’s house and a rich man’s house.
• Take a snapshot of their weekly income.
• Take a snapshot of the food they eat
f. From heaven’s perspective
• We see a very different angle.
• From far above, we can see the man’s whole life.
• From heaven we can see his life not in the moment but from eternity’s perspective.
• From heaven we can see things that really count… things that last forever…
• Take a picture of the rich man’s earthly house—and compare that to our dwelling place in glory.
• Take a picture of the fancy clothes of the rich man—and compare that to our robes of glorious white in heaven!
• Take a picture of his earthly riches… and from heaven—over time—we see them all rusted… or stolen… or moth eaten…
• From heaven the camera’s lens widens out far enough to see the WHOLE life…
• It widens far enough to see the whole parade…
• It widens far enough to see time and eternity…
• That angle forces one to a completely different conclusion: the honest poor man is BETTER OFF!
• Rev. 2:8-9 – Jesus said of the poor, suffering believers in Smyrna, “I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich).”
• Prov. 15:16-17 – if you have righteousness, integrity, and the fear of the Lord you are much better off than the rich.
• Wealth is often accompanied by things you would never really want in your life.
• We look at the glorious side of wealth and envy it.
• We ought to look at the ugly side too—hatred, bitterness, envy, trouble, pressure, etc.
• When we widen our angle to see the whole picture—we’re not so bad off after all!
• We may not have the big fancy house… the gold and rubies… or the jet set lifestyle…
• But Solomon wants us to know that our little can actually be BETTER than their much…
• A man of integrity has a clean conscience. He can sleep at night… and have peace of mind… and experience rest.
• His friends like him because of his character—not for his money. That is priceless.
• The true measure of a man is his character—not his outward circumstances.
» One man noted that Job on a dunghill was really better off than Ahab on his throne…
» Lazarus in his rags was better off than the rich man who fared sumptuously every day.
• The believer whose life is one of integrity—though he may be poor on earth—will be RICHLY rewarded at the Bema.
Proverbs 19:2
Two Ways to Sin
Sin
1. Sin defined:
a. To miss the way; to miss the intended mark; to go wrong, to err; to fail.
b. The term is the one most often used of sin against God.
c. However, the purest meaning of the term simply means to miss a mark.
d. Judges 20:16 – Here is an example of the purest meaning of the term.
e. The context has to determine what that missed MARK is.
2. Various translations:
a. Darby: maketh false steps
b. misses his way
c. makes poor choices
d. errs
e. to sin
3. In this context, as a proverb, it seems best to take this term in its most basic meaning: missing the mark.
a. Often times missing the mark is ALSO sin against a holy God, but not always.
b. Sometimes it may speak of an earthly failure of one sort or another.
c. The two are not mutually exclusive.
• Because this is a proverb, and it was intended to have MANY practical applications, it is best to understand it in the broad sense… applicable in EVERY realm or situation.
• Solomon is speaking about failure… error…
• From an earthly practical sense, they are seen as failures.
• Those same earthly failures from God’s perspective are often the result of sin… failure to follow the principles found in God’s Word… namely, the principle in this very verse!
• The two shades of meaning are not unrelated.
d. The proverb ought to be related to both realms: good practical principles for life on earth AND principles dealing with our relationship to God.
THE FIRST WAY TO SIN:
A. A Soul Without Knowledge
1. Soul: nephesh (lit = breath) – the breath of life
a. This term has a broad range of meaning.
b. Self, life, living being, person.
c. It can also refer to appetites, mind, desire, emotion, passion…. inner drive…
d. It speaks of his liveliness, vigor, vitality, how spirited he is.
e. In several translations, the term speaks of soul in the sense of the emotions or passions of the soul.
• Desire without knowledge is not good.
• Enthusiasm without knowledge is not good.
• Even zeal is not good without knowledge.
f. Some of the commentators have understood “soul” in the sense of zeal or enthusiasm because of the second part of the proverb… where he speaks about haste… rushing into things.
g. It is probably best to understand the term soul in the broadest sense—the whole inner life of the PERSON: his thoughts and emotions; his inner drive…
h. In every possible way—ignorance is dangerous!
2. Without knowledge.
a. Here Solomon speaks about ignorance.
b. KNOWLEDGE: information, skill, understanding, wisdom.
c. He speaks about a man who may have a lot of inner passion… a lot of enthusiasm and zeal—but not much knowledge… not much understanding…
d. That can be dangerous.
e. When a person operates on pure soulishness… emotion… zeal… and he is IGNORANT… look out.
f. He is an accident waiting to happen! He is on a collision course with disaster.
g. And when he willfully remains on that course… it is SIN.
h. In other words, the first sure way to miss the mark and fail is IGNORANCE.
3. This leads to failure (and sin!) in MANY different areas.
a. Consider Israel’s failure (Rom.10:1-4)
• They had lots of zeal for God, but not knowledge.
• Hence, they went about trying to please God by diligent keeping of the law…
• Their ignorance of God’s ways led the nation to failure—sin against God.
• Zeal and good intentions are not enough.
b. In your career
• Young men have lots of enthusiasm, zeal, ambition, etc.
• However, they don’t have the wisdom that comes with hands on experience, practice, and even failure.
• When you put a young enthusiastic man in a position of authority… his inner zeal and drive to DO THINGS often results in failure…
c. In one’s walk with God.
• A new believer often thinks that if he is going to get busy and DO something for God… and often before he really has the understanding to know what it is that pleases God!
• The believer who has no knowledge of HOW to have victory over sin… will end up in failure… and sin!
• Rom. 7:18 – Paul was a failure early on in his Christian life because of IGNORANCE of how to have victory. He was zealous for the law… (vs.22-23) but ignorant of God’s grace.
4. Acting without knowledge leads to failure.
a. This verse tells us that careful, diligent planning is necessary for success.
b. A failure to plan and think things through leads to failure.
c. And willful ignorance is SIN against God.
d. To rush into a decision… to rush into a course of action… to rush into anything without thinking it through leads to failure.
e. Zeal and good intentions will not compensate for poor choices… foolish behavior.
f. If we rush into action because we REFUSE to listen to advice… refuse to seek counsel… refuse to think about the consequences… or to refuse to take the necessary precautions…. is SIN.
g. For a doctor to behave this way is negligence. It is considered a crime!
h. If an architect or engineer makes haste to finish the project in order to make more money… and does a sloppy job… without doing his homework… that leads to failure.
• Before the law it is a crime and he could be held liable before the courts.
• Before God it is sin.
i. It’s one thing to act in ignorance if you are genuinely ignorant… if no information was available… or the information you did have was faulty.
j. It is far worse to act in ignorance because you were too lazy to think about the consequences… or didn’t care about the consequences… or you didn’t really WANT to hear about the consequences…
k. That is sin. This is serious consideration.
5. By stating that ignorance leads to failure and sin, Solomon speaks of the importance of knowledge!
a. Knowledge is so vital in EVERY area of life.
b. Ignorance is dangerous… and deadly.
c. How much MORE important then is the knowledge of God!
d. For that reason, we should FEAR ignorance of God, His will and His Word… it leads to failure and sin!
e. Hos. 4:1 – God had a controversy with Israel: there was no knowledge of God in the land. They were ignorant of God and His ways… It didn’t matter how much energy they put into religion and service… they lacked the MOST important thing.
f. Hos. 4:6 – The SIN of a lack of knowledge of God resulted in their failure… and judgment.
THE SECOND WAY TO SIN:
1. Haste leads to failure too.
a. We have another proverb that speaks to one error that haste leads to: haste makes waste.
b. Here Solomon says that haste leads to failure.
2. Haste Defined:
a. press, be pressed, make haste, urge
b. be eager, energetic… perhaps overly eager
c. It speaks of being in a HURRY to see things done.
3. Haste here speaks of the urgency and PRESSURE put on people to DO something… to perform… to accomplish… to produce…
a. There are times when it is urgent to act right away.
• This term was used in Gen. 19:15 of the urgency the angels placed on Lot to get himself and his family out of the city of Sodom.
• Sometimes pressure and urgency is good…
• But usually it is NOT good.
b. Ex. 5:13 – Pressure was put on the Jews to do more and more…
• Pressure was put on them to produce… to make more bricks with less…
• This is the kind of pressure many companies put on their employees… be more productive… do more with less…
4. Solomon says that HURRYING things along leads to missing the mark… failure… sin…
a. It is our nature to be in a hurry… but God isn’t. He has all the time in eternity!
b. It is part of our American culture to want everything done yesterday…
c. But regardless of what our culture tells us—or what our nature tells us… God’s Word tells us that haste is dangerous…
d. Prov. 21:5 – haste without the necessary diligence and planning leads not to success but to poverty… want.
e. Haste is NOT the best way to accomplish a goal.
f. I think of Joshua who was in a hurry and failed to take the matter of the Gibeonites to the Lord in prayer.
5. Applications:
a. Cooking food – food cooked hastily is not usually the best food.
b. Training a man for the ministry – school can crank out graduates year after year… like a sausage factory. A diploma does not necessarily mean a young man is trained and ready for the ministry.
c. Choosing a mate – I suppose you could fill out an electronic form on the internet and have a computer select a mate for you in twelve seconds. But haste could lead to disaster.
d. Church growth – Young ambitious men in the ministry want the church to grow fast… and if it doesn’t grow fast enough—they resort to fleshly schemes to hasten the pace. That often leads to failure in God’s sight… even if it looks successful from man’s perspective.
e. In making a product – haste often decreases the quality… more imperfections… more defects… more failures…
f. Young couples – think they need an instant house with all the amenities… it often leads to financial failure!
g. Abraham and Sarah – God made a promise of a son, but they were in a hurry and God wasn’t. To hasten things along, Sarah encouraged Abraham to go in unto Hagar. While it seemed to work… it was sin… and ultimately a disaster.
h. Relocating – A job offer comes along that you can’t resist… and in haste you agree to move. If you waited, did some research, you might not have made that choice. Is there a good church there?
i. Rushing into serving God – without waiting to know His will is sin! Acting out of pure emotion… soulishly instead of spiritually… many young people have sought to become missionaries or pastors when God never called them. It can lead to disaster.
6. The Bible emphasizes WAITING on the Lord.
a. This is the opposite of our human nature.
b. A refusal to WAIT often leads to failure… even sin.
c. Isa. 28:16 = “He that believeth shall not make haste.” Haste is often the opposite of faith… waiting and resting in the Lord.
7. Being in a hurry to get things done leads to failure… being in a hurry to see fruit… being in a hurry to produce leads to failure, and often into sin!
a. Mindless activity is not what God is looking for.
b. Constant, hurried business without having thought about a specific goal is a waste of energy… misses the mark.
c. This proverb teaches us the importance of walking in the Light… seeking wisdom, guidance, and counsel before acting… thinking things through before choosing… think about the consequences of your action before you act…
d. There are countless other applications of this gem of divine wisdom!
e. Jumping off a cliff is usually the quickest way down… but not the most thoughtful.
f. We have ALL made decisions that turned out disastrous… because of these two reasons: either we acted ignorantly (without doing our homework) or we acted hastily (without thinking things through).
g. And we have all paid a price for it.
h. This proverb reminds us to be CAREFUL… look before you leap… think before you act. Failure to do so can be catastrophic… and sinful.
Proverbs 19:3
Blaming God
Introduction:
1. This is one of those proverbs that simply tells it like it is.
a. Solomon is not saying this is the way it SHOULD be.
b. What he speaks of in this proverb is most definitely is NOT the way things should be.
c. But unfortunately, this is often the way things ARE.
2. The gist of the proverb: People ruin their own lives through foolish behavior, and then blame God for their woes.
a. Solomon saw this happen many times, and recorded his findings in this proverb for our learning and our admonition.
b. This is written so that WE will learn from their woes and not follow their poor example.
A. Foolishness
1. Defined:
a. Dict. of Bib. Lang.: foolishness; folly; i.e., a state of being devoid of wisdom and understanding, with a focus on the evil behaviors which occur in this state.
b. Theological Workbook of the Old Testament: one who is morally deficient; moral perversion or insolence, to what is sinful rather than a lack of intelligence. The fool is often described as rejecting counsel and refuses to accept instruction.
c. The fool is mentioned many times in Proverbs.
d. This kind of folly is not a lack of intelligence. It is not normal, childish silliness.
e. Throughout the book of Proverbs, this term is a moral problem… a sin problem.
2. Foolishness in the heart translates into foolish, sinful behavior.
a. It speaks of the foolish things that people DO.
b. Prov. 14:8 – deceitfulness in their dealings with men is one form of this term for folly.
c. Prov. 14:17 – uncontrolled anger is another form of this kind of folly.
d. Prov. 14:29 – a hasty spirit is another form of this term. (Easily agitated…)
e. Prov. 15:2 – a big mouth is another form of this kind of folly.
f. Prov.1 8:13 – making up your mind without hearing both sides of the story—the term is used here too!
g. Prov. 22:15 – it is the kind of folly that is bound in the heart of a child—and needs to be driven out.
h. Prov. 24:9 – this kind of folly is also described as sinful thoughts… which generally come out in one form or another—verbally or in sinful, dishonest, or cruel behavior.
B. Perverting His Way
1. Pervert defined:
a. Strong’s: to twist, pervert, turn upside down, ruin.
b. Dict. of Bib. Lang.: overthrow, ruin, destroy, a state of destruction and ruin brought to a life, implying unfavorable circumstance to that person.
c. The term is used in Job 12:19 of a defeated army, being led away and spoiled of all their valuables.
2. Solomon’s point is that foolish, sinful behavior will PERVERT or ruin a person’s life!
a. Way = road, pathway, journey,—figuratively.
b. It can turn your whole life upside down… and bring it to ruin.
c. It can destroy a person’s journey through life… bring in destructive influences… and most unfavorable circumstances.
d. In other words, we can RUIN our own lives by our own behavior.
e. The course of behavior we choose… the kind of person we choose to be… the way we choose to speak and act… all have built in consequences.
f. There are consequences to folly…
g. We get to choose which course we will follow in life, but we do NOT get to choose the consequences of those choices. The consequences are BUILT IN.
h. If you sow folly you will reap the fruit of folly.
i. If we sow poison, bitter, destructive seeds, we will reap poison, bitter, destructive plants!
j. We bring much trouble and grief into our own lives because of our foolish behavior… by the things we do and say… the way we live… the way we work… the way we treat others… the way we deal with the laws of the land… the way we treat our own bodies…
k. All of these choices have built in consequences.
l. Foolish behavior—wrong, immoral, sinful behavior PERVERTS our lives… brings it to ruin.
3. These things can RUIN your life:
a. Drugs and alcohol – There are long term consequences to drug and alcohol abuse. You can choose whether you are going to use them or not. But you can’t choose the consequences.
b. Divorce – This is not God’s plan for the home… yet ½ the marriages in our country end in divorce. If you choose that route, there are long term consequences that can RUIN your life.
c. Stealing – If you choose to get in trouble with the law by stealing—that too can ruin your life… especially if you have to spend time in jail.
d. Lying and Gossip – If you use your mouth in a foolish, immoral way… that too can bring ruin to your life. The one who lies, slanders, and gossips can’t avoid the destruction of friendships that accompany that kind of behavior.
e. Spending more than you make – Choosing to purchase things we cannot afford leads to financial disaster… and all kinds of woes.
f. Laziness – Unreliable – If that is the way you have chosen to live, don’t be surprised if you lose job after job… and never get anywhere in life. Who wants a lazy, unreliable employee? It will ruin your career.
g. Greed – Proverbs warns about greed and get rich quick schemes. There are consequences to that which are unavoidable. You end up using people for your own advantage… and often it leads to dishonest means of gaining profit.
h. Pride – Pride too can ruin your life. Nobody wants to be around a know-it-all… or someone who thinks they are the greatest. When pride cometh, then cometh a fall.
i. SIN in all of its ugly forms comes with built in consequences that can RUIN your life.
j. If you want to avoid the ruin and destruction, then avoid the sin!
k. Repent… change your mind, heart, and behavior… and gradually the destructive influences of bad behavior will begin to decrease… and you can get your life back to what it SHOULD be!
1. Here Solomon states what he often noticed with those who ruined their own lives with foolish behavior.
a. And Solomon states this almost like an exclamation point!
b. It is as if he is saying, “You wouldn’t believe what I saw!”
c. What Solomon says in the second part of the proverb is NOT the way it should be… but the way it often is… unfortunately.
2. Heart Defined:
a. The inner man; mind; emotions; soul…
3. Fret defined: (appears only 4 times in Bible)
a. Strong’s: to be out of humour; to be enraged, be angry.
b. Dict. of Bib. Lang.: feelings of displeasure from mild to rage; from inward, simmering bitterness to overt outrage.
c. The word is from a root that means “storm” in the sense that a storm rages against the seacoast…
d. Used 2 times in II Chron. 26:19 – Then Uzziah was wroth, and had a censer in his hand to burn incense: and while he was wroth with the priests, the leprosy even rose up in his forehead before the priests in the house of the LORD.
e. It speaks of a man with a STORM in his heart…
4. In Proverbs 19:3, Solomon states that something that he observed throughout the years.
a. He noticed that many men, who brought ruin into their lives through their own bad behavior, end up being angry, resentful, or bitter against God because of it!
b. The man chose the foolish, sinful behavior… which has built in consequences… and then he has the audacity to blame God for the consequences!
c. It’s one thing to blame other people for the problems we bring into our lives. That’s bad enough.
d. But to blame the LORD—is truly reprehensible!
e. If our behavior is foolish and sinful, there is but ONE person responsible: self! The blame belongs to me, myself, and I… certainly NOT the Lord!
f. This is the “victim mentality” that Solomon describes here: “Poor me. God doesn’t love me. He allowed these awful things to enter my life. It’s not my fault that my life is ruined. God could change if He wanted to… but He won’t… so I’m angry at Him!”
g. And we allow bitterness against God to reside in our hearts. That is gross SIN…
h. We all know professing believers who are bitter against God.
i. The real problem doesn’t lie up in heaven with God, but within our own sinful hearts.
j. The first step to turning things around is to ADMIT it… accept the consequences… and thank God for those consequences… and learn to be grateful… and take personal responsibility for our choices.
5. Don’t blame God or anyone else for your own poor choices in life.
a. Drugs and alcohol—Divorce—Stealing—Lying—Gossiping—Laziness—greed—pride—all these sins come with built in consequences. They can RUIN a life.
b. And if they DO ruin your life, it isn’t God’s fault!
• It isn’t God’s fault if you abuse your body with drugs and alcohol and suffer long term consequences! God warns us AGAINST that kind of behavior!
• It isn’t God’s fault if you behave in a proud manner and suddenly fall flat on your face. God TOLD you that would happen. Pride cometh before a fall!
• It isn’t God’s fault if you have a big mouth—slander people—and then lose your friends. God WARNED you not to use your tongue that way.
• It isn’t God’s fault is you are lazy at work and get fired. Proverbs is full of warnings AGAINST laziness.
c. There is a pleasure to sin in the beginning, but eventually, it comes back to bite you with its unpleasant consequences.
d. We’re all guilty of this. We all sinned and have had to deal with the consequences. I sure have—and maybe you have too.
e. But when we begin to experience the painful side effects of our own sinful behavior—don’t blame God!
f. This is CHILDISH behavior.
• Because of his own bad behavior, a child evokes the chastening hand of his father.
• Then when the chastening comes (a spanking; being grounded; etc.) and the chastening begins to “hurt”—then the child gets angry at his father for punishing him.
• He frets… he is bitter because of the chastening—which is nothing more than the consequences or fruit of his actions.
• Just as children who are not humbled and repentant can become bitter against the father who disciplines them, so we as Christians do the same to our Heavenly Father.
• God has warned countless times that we reap what we sow… yet we still get angry or bitter when we reap!
g. Instead, we should submit to His chastening and say, “Thank you, Lord” and from there learn some good lessons and change your behavior.
h. When that is the case, we will discover that many of those unpleasant consequences of our sinful behavior will begin to disappear!
Proverbs 19:4
Wealth Makes Many Friends
Introduction:
1. Verses 4-6 of this chapter deal with the subject of friendships…
2. And in particular, Solomon speaks in these verses of the difference between TRUE and FALSE friendships.
3. Verse 4 speaks of the relationship between wealth and friends.
4. This is one of those proverbs which when you first read it, it seems to say one thing. But when you think about it, it actually says the opposite!
1. Wealth Defined:
a. Strong’s: wealth; riches; substance; that which is of high value.
b. Dict. of Bib. Lang.: possessions desirable in a society.
c. The term is used primarily of riches, wealth, possessions… but also can speak of anything highly prized or of great value.
2. Wealthy men MAKE many friends.
a. Make: add; increase; join; gain…
b. The term doesn’t mean that friends are actually MADE by the wealthy.
c. Rather, it means that friends INCREASE all around wealthy people.
d. When a person has lots of money—friends will increase… they will come out of the woodwork to be around you.
3. Wealthy men make MANY friends.
a. Many: much, many, a great number…
b. Not only will such friends increase… but they will GREATLY increase.
4. At first glance, this sounds like a great blessing for wealthy men. They will have lots of friends!
a. At first it might make a person a bit jealous of the wealthy.
b. At first we might wish that we were in their shoes. They not only have money, but they have LOTS of friends too!
c. We might even begin to sulk—poor me! I only have a couple of real friends—but the wealthy have MANY friends.
5. But when you stop to think about this statement a little more, it is NOT really a great blessing, but is more like a curse!
a. Note that it is not the MAN who makes all those friends, but his WEALTH makes friends!
b. Wealth makes the friends… not the man. The friends are attracted to the wealth.
c. That makes you wonder what KIND of friends they really are!
• If they are your friend because you are rich, that is a pretty shallow friendship.
• Chances are, their friendship is not just shallow, but entirely phony.
• These “so called” friends are only your friends for what they can GET out of the relationship.
• When a wealthy man thinks about this, he may begin to realize that these so called friends are more like leaches.
• And to attract MANY leeches is not such a blessing after all. It is a curse.
• Solomon no doubt wrote this proverb from his own sad experiences as a King…
• So don’t be jealous when you see lots of people following wealthy people around.
• Their so-called friends may not be what you think!
d. What a sad condition that really is.
• The spoiled little rich kid whom no one really likes, has to use his money to BUY friends!
• He has to buy the food… pay for the tickets… or he doesn’t get invited to go…
• As long as he keeps pulling out the wads of money, his so-called friends will cheer him on.
• But as soon as the money stops flowing… his friends disappear.
• Having to BUY friends is a miserable way to live.
• They flatter him and seek to be with him… but really only love what he has… not who he is.
• Don’t ever envy that!
6. And consider that the word wealthy can also refer to ANYTHING prized or valued by men.
a. It’s not just wealth that attracts men… but other things can attract so-called friends too.
b. It might be your POSITION.
• Being in a high position is something valued—highly prized by most men.
• And people in high positions often have many of these kinds of so-called friends.
• Everybody wants to be on the good side of the boss or the CEO.
• Everybody treats him with smiles and butters him up… but that kind of friendship often it’s not real.
• They might slander him behind closed doors—but to his face they are sweet as honey…
• And their so called friendship exists because they want to GET something out of that relationship… a raise… a promotion…
• Having MANY friends like that around you all day is not as desirable as it might at first appear.
c. It might be GOOD LOOKS and POPULARITY… celebrity status.
• People are attracted to wealthy men… but people are also attracted to those who are good looking and popular.
• Celebrities deal with this all day long.
• People want to be SEEN with a celebrity… but not because of genuine friendship. Often it is for selfish reasons.
• People want to hang out with those who are popular. But not always because of a genuine friendship. Often it is for selfish reasons: so that they might be part of the IN crowd…
• They USE popular people to advance their own status… so others will consider them to be part of the in crowd… one of the so called beautiful people.
• It’s all very shallow and phony—and celebrities know it.
• Their so-called friends that flock to be with them are often seen as leeches.
• Having MANY leeches is not such a blessing after all.
d. Solomon knew this all too well. He had it all: wealth, power, good looks, popularity, prestige. People must have FLOCKED to be around him.
7. Wealth makes many friends.
a. It sounds great at first.
b. But Solomon worded it such that you have to THINK about it.
c. Upon thinking about it… you come to another conclusion.
d. The lifestyle of the rich and famous—with all their so-called friends isn’t so great after all.
e. The rich and famous know it… painfully!
f. That’s why they live in their gated communities—to keep all of their so-called friends—who want to selfishly USE them… OUT!
1. In contrast to the wealthy, Solomon now speaks of the poor man.
a. This statement, like the first part of the proverb, seems to say one thing.
b. But when you think about it, it actually says the opposite!
2. The POOR man…
a. Poor here means lowly, weak, helpless.
b. It is often used of a man who is poor financially… in a lowly condition in society.
c. But like the word for wealth, it has broader application.
d. A man might be considered POOR financially when compared to a rich man. He is lowly.
e. A man might be considered lowly next to a man with an important SOCIAL status.
f. A man would be considered lowly next to a CELEBRITY or a popular person.
3. The poor man does NOT have many friends like the rich man.
a. The word translated “neighbor” is the SAME word as is translated “friends” in the first part of the proverb.
b. He is SEPARATED from his friends or neighbors.
c. Separated: divided; isolated; apart.
d. It is used of a river “splitting” into two…
e. Solomon states here that the poor man is DIVIDED from his neighbors… isolated from them… set apart from them.
f. Sadly, this is a fact of human nature.
4. Many people are embarrassed to be seen with a lowly person.
a. James had to rebuke believers for catering to the rich and famous and ignoring the poor. (James 2:1-4).
b. It is an age-old sin of partiality.
c. But like it or not, it is a reality… a sinful reality.
d. Everybody wants to flock towards the rich and famous. People always try to get their picture taken with a celebrity or politician—someone famous.
e. How many people flock to have their picture taken with a homeless man?
f. Prov. 19:7 – People seem to AVOID contact with the lowly… with the poor.
g. Prov. 14:20 – This is human nature.
5. Jesus said of Himself, “I am meek and lowly in heart.”
a. Jesus experienced a period of popularity when the multitudes FLOCKED to be near Him.
b. But when they came—they usually came with selfish reasons: to be healed… to receive a free lunch.
c. But later, when He began teaching what it REALLY meant to follow Him… the crowds disappeared.
d. Only a few continued to follow Him.
6. People don’t flock to be with lowly people.
a. And this “lowliness” has application beyond just money and finances.
b. It could be applied to other forms of lowliness: a low status in society… someone who is not famous… someone who is not good looking and part of the IN crowd…
c. People don’t flock to those society considers lowly.
d. And that would be most of US. We don’t have any celebrities here…
e. Salem NH is not a popular meeting place for the rich and famous.
f. At first reading of this, it sounds pretty discouraging.
g. A lowly person—like us—will not attract the great crowds of friends that the rich and famous have.
h. And we could sulk over that: poor me!
7. But when we think about this proverb a little more—it’s not such a bad thing after all.
a. The kind of people who are seeking to USE YOU for their own selfish advantage will not flock to the lowly.
b. They only flock to the rich and famous… the high and lofty ones.
c. People who are attracted to the rich and famous for their riches and fame are usually NOT real friends. They are more like leeches.
d. Those kinds of people… phony friends… NEVER flock to be with the lowly.
e. Thus, a poor man may have only one or two friends as compared to the thousands others have.
f. However, the one or two friends that the poor man has are usually GENUINE… the real thing!
g. They are not attracted to you for your wealth, position, or fame. They are attracted to you for YOU.
h. That is true friendship.
i. One real friend is way better than 10,000 leeches.
j. And when our friends are few and far between, we can always rely on the Lord.
k. Ps. 40:17 – But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me.
l. Rom. 8:38-39 – Poverty may separate us from our so called friends… but NOTHING can separate us from the love of Christ!
Proverbs 19:5
Liars
The Sin
1. False: lie; deception; falsehood; deception; misleading; falseness; that which causes a mistaken belief.
a. Prov. 17:4 – false lips – a liar – deceitful words
b. Prov. 11:18 – used of deceitful work
c. There are various ways to be deceitful… our words, our actions, even the rolling of the eyes, or the look on one’s face, body language, and even silence… can promote a lie or deception.
2. Witness: i.e., a person who gives testimony and provides information about a situation; refers to the testimony given, written or oral.
a. A witness is that which testifies to something… it communicates a message as testimony or evidence of a fact.
b. A witness can be either a truthful witness or a false witness…
c. A witness can accurately testify to the truth or a witness can deceitfully testify to something he knows to be inaccurate.
d. Gen. 31:50 – God Himself is the ultimate witness to all we do, say, and think. He knows all the facts and is a truthful witness.
e. Christ is referred to in Revelation as the faithful and true witness. (Rev.3:14)
f. Our witness or testimony ought to be like that of God—faithful and true… honest… genuine… without guile or deception.
3. A false witness: one who deceives by giving misleading, false evidence, whether written or oral testimony.
a. Deut. 19:18 – a false witness in court
b. Ex. 23:1 – those who bear false witness are putting their hands with the wicked – siding with the wicked.
c. In court this can determine the outcome of the case.
d. Men have been convicted and sent to prison—even to the death chamber because of false witnesses who lied.
1. Lies: falsehood; deception; any form of untruth…
a. Num. 23:19 – God cannot lie. (God is not man that He should lie…)
b. Heb.6:18 and Titus 1:2 – “God which cannot lie…”
• It is contrary to His nature. God is Light. God is Truth. Jesus said, “I am the Truth.”
• Lying is being UNLIKE God… as contrary to His nature as it comes!
• It is the opposite of being godly; it is ungodly.
• Thus all sin is against God—it is an affront to TRUTH and God is the Truth.
c. John 8:44 – Satan is a liar and is the father of all lies.
• Lying is unlike God.
• But it is LIKE the devil. Lying is satanic.
d. Lying is both ungodly and satanic. It is a very serious issue.
2. Speaketh: to cause to exhale or breathe out.
a. It is a poetic or figurative way of expressing speech – breathing out words.
b. The Bible is God-breathed. The product of God’s breath is TRUTH… His infallible Word.
c. The product of the breath of a liar is not truth but deception… dishonesty… lies…
3. He that speaketh lies:
a. This expression describes a person for whom lying is as natural, easy, and as commonplace as breathing…
b. A truthful person breathes truth. A liar breathes lies.
c. He opens his mouth and lies come forth! He is a liar. It’s as easy as breathing to him.
4. God HATES this sin.
a. Prov. 6:16-19 – These are six sins God especially hates… and two of the six relate to lying!
b. Prov. 12:22 – lying lips are an abomination to the Lord.
5. Lying destroys the spiritual life.
a. Isa. 59:2, 3 – you can’t pray with the sin of lying in your heart.
• God chooses not to hear your prayers.
• They are a sham.
• There is a wall between you and God until that sin is confessed and forsaken.
• There is no fellowship with God as long as the sin of lying is tolerated in the heart.
• The psalmist said, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” (Ps. 66:18)
• As long as we allow a lie to be lodged in our heart—we have no relationship to God… to prayer life… and no fellowship.
• We can pretend—but that’s all it is: phony pretense.
b. Psalm 101:7 – David knew it would adversely affect him and his kingdom. He refused to hire known, habitual liars to work with him in his kingdom. Godly people should avoid habitual liars.
The Parallel in the two parts of the Proverb
1. False and lies are virtually synonymous
2. But there is a slight contrast between witness and speaketh.
a. A witness is more generic and communicates in various ways.
b. Speaking is more concrete… breathing out lies.
c. The contrast also may imply different venues of lying: a false witness in court—and one who lies in common, everyday conversation.
d. Of course the courtroom setting causes the lie to be also the crime of perjury… and it is injurious to person lied about… and detrimental to justice!
THE CONSEQUENCES
1. Unpunished: to be free; innocent; cleared; pure; pardoned; exempt from obligation or punishment.
2. Jer. 30:11 – God will not allow Israel to go unpunished for their sin.
a. He will correct her “in measure” – in proportion to the crime.
b. In other words, God will not go overboard on His punishment, nor will He ignore their sin and let them go unpunished.
3. Justice demands that sin be punished.
a. Prov. 11:21 and 16:5 – regardless of the numbers involved, sin will not go unpunished.
b. No one can use the excuse, “Well everybody’s doing it!”
c. God is not impressed with numbers.
d. If everybody joins hands to oppose God and live in wickedness, then God will punish EVERYBODY.
e. Consider the flood.
4. Deut. 19:16-21 – When false witnesses ARE punished, it causes others to fear… lest they also be punished.
a. The penalty attached has a deterring factor.
b. And note how FAR the Law was willing to take this principle!
c. God takes this matter seriously.
5. The one who LIES shall not go unpunished. There are consequences for lying.
1. Escape: to slip forth, slip out, slip away, escape.
a. Here it is used of slipping away from judgment or punishment.
2. The one who breathes out lies shall not slip away and escape punishment…
a. Is that really true? Is it true in all cases?
b. Surely we know people who have lied and deceived others and have never been caught. Nobody ever found out. They seemed to get away with it.
c. BUT the eyes of the Lord are everywhere… and so are His ears.
d. The liar may escape punishment on earth… but never before God.
e. And even if God doesn’t punish him on earth—the day of reckoning will come… and we shall give account for every idle word… and every lie or deception.
f. Lies may escape the notice of man, but nothing ever escapes the notice of the Lord.
g. Num. 32:32 – “Behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.”
3. The repetition here (shall not be unpunished; shall not escape) IMPLIES that liars continue to lie because they THINK they can get away with it…
a. They THINK that they shall escape…
b. Ecc. 8:11 – because judgment doesn’t immediately fall, sinners think they can sin with impunity. “I haven’t been caught yet. Therefore I won’t get caught!”
c. But in direct contrast to what sinners think, God SAYS, “he shall not escape!”
4. Lying and deception are sins of which we are ALL guilty.
a. Ps. 119:29 – the psalmist asked for help concerning lying.
b. Pr. 30:8 – Solomon also asked for deliverance from this sin
c. The Bible is full of the accounts of the lies of men… from Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, David, Peter, etc…
d. Lying is our nature. It is the fruit of the flesh.
e. God can give victory—He delights in giving victory.
f. Eph. 4:25 – And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 25Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour.
• Lying belongs to the old man… the old way of life.
• Lying is described as the garments of the old man and the old life that is to be “put off.”
• Lying is to be replaced with truth telling… always.
• A liar can become a truth teller… by putting off and putting on…
• And over time, character is being built… as either a liar or a truthful person.
• And it really is an issue of character: if a person lies and shows disregard to truth… he will likely cheat… and perhaps steal… dishonesty breeds dishonesty.
• But by walking DAILY in the Spirit, with our hearts right with God, we WILL be practicing truthfulness… and will earn the reputation of a truthful, honest person.
Proverbs 19:6-7
Sad Observation about Friends
Introduction:
1. This proverb is quite similar to verse 4, where Solomon also speaks about the relationship between wealth and friends.
2. The main thrust of vs. 6-7 is the same as verse 4, but with a slightly different approach to the subject.
SOME “FRIENDS” ARE FRIENDS BECAUSE OF WHAT THEY CAN GET OUT OF THE FRIENDSHIP.
a. Intreat:
• to be weak or sick; to show oneself to be weak or sick; even to feign oneself to be sick or weak…
• It is sometimes used of entreating… beseeching… seeking favor (as here).
• The ideas may be connected in the sense of a weak man coming to another to seek for mercy… by laying his griefs, weakness, or sickness open—and saying, “help!”
b. Prince:
• Strong’s: inclined; willing; noble; generous.
• Dict. of Bib. Lang.: leader, ruler, official, prince, i.e., one who is of great or noble status.
• Zodhiates: willing, generous, noble; as a noun, those of noble birth. The word often denotes an attitude of heart which consents or agrees (often readily and cheerfully) to a course of action.
• Generally speaking, the term describes a man in a high position, noble status, who is also noble and generous…
• He may be a prince or a noble in rank, but the emphasis seems to be on princely or noble behavior… especially as being generous to others.
c. Favour: face; in the presence of…
• Solomon states that many people like to come to such a wealthy, generous person… to stand in his presence… before his face…
• But they do so to curry his favor…
• The implication is that it is done to flatter… without any sincerity at all.
• His case is laid out in the presence of or in the face of… before another…
• He lays out his plea before the prince… perhaps with great embellishment…
• BECAUSE he wants to GET something from this generous man of high rank or social status.
d. Many: This is a very frequent occurrence.
• Many people do it… all the time.
• As a generous King, Solomon knew this all too well.
• He had discernment. He seemed to be able to see right through people.
• He recognized that MANY of the sad cases that came before his face for help… MANY of those who laid out their weakness and need before him were insincere phonies…
• They were out to take advantage of his generosity.
• MANY people did this… and he knew it.
e. Of course, there is great advantage in being a friend to the king… or a generous noble man.
• He has power and clout.
• He can do many things for you.
• He can cut some good business deals for you.
• He can give you an advantage over the competition.
• He can bring you up to the front of the line.
• He can grant you waivers… privileges…
• He can also take out vengeance on your enemies…
• Solomon was well aware of the fact that MANY people who came seeking his favor doing so with selfish intentions… sometimes even evil intentions…
• MANY were out to take advantage of his generosity.
• They would present themselves as weak, downtrodden, underprivileged, mistreated, unfairly punished, etc… in hopes that Solomon would be so moved by their story that he would bestow some great act of kindness on them—cash preferably!
f. MANY intreat the favor of a prince.
a. Giveth gifts:
• Strong’s: gifts; offerings; presents.
• Dictionary of Biblical Languages: an object given freely to another as a token of relationship and good will.
• This speaks of a man who is inclined to give things away… inclined to give gifts to others…
• Some men are naturally generous… and you don’t have to be rich or of noble birth to be generous.
• Many average Joes are generous and often give away things to others in need.
b. There is great advantage in being a friend of any generous person who is free with his money.
• There would be a great advantage to being a friend to the local butcher or baker… or to the man who ran the corner store… or the local farmer (around harvest time…)
• You could bring your sob stories to them… let them know how poor your family is… how hungry your kids are… and how nice it would be if someone would help!
• Evidently Solomon observed this as well.
• He knew that many people came to the wealthy nobles to take advantage of them.
• But he also observed that those kinds of people took advantage of ANYONE who was generous with what they had—whether they had much or little.
• Hard luck stories were not presented only to princes and kings.
c. Solomon has really exposed an ugly side of human nature… that human beings take advantage of one another.
• This proverb does not say anything about the generous man being naïve or foolish with his goods.
• Rather, the emphasis is on the insincerity and self greed of those who seek to take advantage of the kindness of others.
• I have even seen this in Christian circles.
» Believers trying to get goods or services from another brother in Christ… just because he is a brother…
» Sometimes believers seek after other believers who make their living fixing cars, remodeling houses, repairing computers, or some other craft… to get them to do work for them for free… or for next to nothing… just because they are brethren.
• And many believers are generous and help that brother… only to discover that others come to him trying to take advantage of his generosity…
This is a completely self centered kind of friendship.
a. Being a friend for what you can GET from the relationship is no friendship at all.
b. This is the opposite of the Biblical concept of love.
c. It is a sad and ugly side of human nature.
d. The saddest thing is that MANY do it! It is very common.
e. As believers, we should not take advantage of others… especially of the brethren.
f. Being a friend of generous people for selfish advantage is not friendship at all.
g. Of course we don’t want to discourage generosity. That is a good thing.
h. But it is not something that we should SEEK after… or even expect… and it certainly ought not to be the basis for a friendship!
SOME “FRIENDS” ARE FRIENDS NO MORE WHEN IT IS NO LONGER ADVANTAGEOUS TO BE YOUR FRIEND
Here Solomon speaks of the flip side of that same selfish attitude.
a. Brethren: relatives…
b. MANY people—and often total strangers—love to be around a generous person, but even the RELATIVES of a poor man want nothing to do with him.
c. This is pretty sad indictment of human nature… even blood relatives often “hate” a poor man.
d. HATE might be a bit too strong a term here.
• It sometimes speaks of loving to a lesser degree
» Jacob loved Rachel and hated Leah…
» In other words, he loved Leah to a lesser degree…
» By comparison, it was like hatred… but did not imply a genuine HATRED for her.
• The word can also mean shunned; unloved; disliked;
• It may simply imply that poor relatives are shunned… avoided… not invited to all the family gatherings… they dislike being in his presence…
• They consider him to be a nuisance… or an embarrassment because he is not successful like they are. They consider him to be a blemish on their family name.
e. It is the same sort of selfishness that is at the root of this evil attitude too.
a. If his blood relatives shun him, how much more will his friends and acquaintances shun him!?
b. Prov. 14:20 – the poor is hated of his own neighbor.
c. The prodigal son had all kinds of friends as long as he was blowing his inheritance on fast living.
• But when his inheritance was gone—so were his friends.
• He ended up eating with the pigs… and his “so called friends” were then mysteriously absent.
a. The poor man pursues them… he seeks to be their friend… but they still go far from him.
b. And, there is nothing the poor man can do to WIN them as his friends.
c. People who USE other people for their own advantage cannot be won with words.
d. They are not looking for friendship.
e. They demand money or favors… something more tangible than words.
f. Here we have yet another good reason to make God our FRIEND… and to seek His favor… and not to put confidence in man.
Proverbs 19:8
The Value of Wisdom and Understanding
A. The Man Who Gets Wisdom
1. GET: Defined
a. To buy, purchase, to get, acquire, obtain.
b. It is often used of obtaining wisdom. (Prov. 1:5; 4:5, 7)
2. WISDOM: Defined
a. Heart, mind, soul, spirit, self, i.e., the source of life of the inner person in various aspects, with a focus on feelings, thoughts, volition, and other areas of the inner life.
b. Thought functions may be attributed to the heart. In such cases it is likely to be translated as “mind” or “understanding.” To “set the heart to.”
c. I Kings 3:12 – This term is used of a “wise heart.”
d. II Chron. 9:23 – And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, that God had put in his heart.
e. Prov. 16:23 – it is translated the “heart” of the wise (a wise heart).
f. Thus, this term for “wisdom” is not the normal term for wisdom.
• It is broader and speaks of the whole inner life of a person.
• Here is emphasizes the inner thought life and is thus translated “wisdom.”
• It implies a WISE inner thought life… and WISE inner attitudes… a wise heart.
3. Solomon here speaks of the VALUE of obtaining a wise heart.
a. It isn’t something that comes naturally. It has to be OBTAINED.
b. All by itself, our inner heart life is desperately wicked!
c. Jer. 17:9 – The “heart” (inner thought life of a man—including the will and emotions) is desperately wicked.
d. First of all, we need a NEW heart, which only comes by means of regeneration… the new birth.
e. And even then, our old heart can manifest itself because we still have the old nature.
f. Our inner thought life can be just as vile as before. It does not improve—ever. It is incorrigible.
g. That’s why we need to leave our old man on the Cross by faith… including the old heart… the old way of thinking.
h. Thus, to men whose hearts are deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (incurably sick)…OBTAINING a new heart… a wise heart is extremely valuable!
4. OBTAINING a wise and understanding heart (Acts 15:8-9)
a. First, one must be born again – receive a new heart by faith. (The Holy Spirit regenerates the heart.)
b. The Holy Spirit dwells within to continue to sanctify and purify the heart.
c. This is ALL by faith—both justification and sanctification.
d. For the believer today to obtain a wise heart, we must reckon self to be dead…
• Keep the old man and his heart on the cross—crucified by faith.
• Then, we can experience the power of the resurrection in the NEW man… and in our new heart.
• The new heart, controlled by the Holy Spirit, will focus on things above…
• It will be looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.
• It will seek communion with Him through the Word…
• The Word will richly dwell in our hearts…
• And as we walk like that day by day, we will experience a wise and understanding heart.
e. And you don’t have to be smart. You can be an average Joe like me… and obtain a wise heart.
• That’s because a wise heart (though related to the intellect) has its real source in the heart relationship to Christ.
• In Christ is hidden all the treasures of wisdom.
• Average believers like us can have a wise heart… if we are yielded to God.
• We can obtain all the wisdom we need for life… because it is found in Christ.
• The closer we get to Him… the wiser we will be.
• That is something we can ALL obtain… but only if we CHOOSE to do so.
• It is ours… but only as we are surrendered to Christ as Lord… yielded fully to Him.
• Why should He give wisdom when we are resisting Him?
B. Obtaining Wisdom is Like “Loving One’s Own Soul”
1. This is NOT to be understood in a negative sense (Narcissism or vanity—“I love me…”)
2. Rather, this is a very positive statement.
a. It is a way of saying, “This is good for you… it is beneficial for you… it is in your best interest.”
b. Paul said in Eph. 5 that “no man ever hated his own flesh but nourisheth and cherisheth it.”
• It is natural to take care of oneself.
• It is good and right to want to avoid that which is harmful.
• That’s Solomon’s point here. In that sense, we ought to “love our own soul.”
• We do that by avoiding things that are harmful and seeking after things that are good…
c. Prov. 8:35-36 – loving wisdom is like loving a good life… and it is beneficial. The man who rejects wisdom does WRONG to his own soul (life). It is spiritually damaging.
3. Since obtaining wisdom is GOOD for you… then it is worth SEEKING after with the whole heart.
a. There is much in Proverbs about this…
b. Prov. 2:1-4 – seek for wisdom as you would seek for gold and buried treasure.
c. Anything worth having is worth paying the price to obtain.
A. The Man Who Keeps Understanding
1. Understanding defined:
a. This term stands in contrast to wisdom (a wise heart) in the first part of the proverb.)
b. Understanding means: understanding, intelligence, knowledge, skill, logic, reasoning, instruction.
c. This term is almost always translated “understanding.”
d. It is used here as a virtual synonym for wisdom.
e. Though a different term than “wisdom” in the first part of the proverb, the contrast is not so much between two kinds of wisdom/understanding… but rather the contrast is between OBTAINING and KEEPING wisdom.
2. Keep defined:
a. Zodhiates: to watch, to keep, to preserve, to guard, to be careful, to watch over, to watch carefully over, to be on one’s guard.
b. To keep; to cause a state or condition to remain.
c. Can also mean to observe or obey.
d. The concept of preserving or maintaining seems to fit best here.
e. The term is also used of caring for sheep (I Sam. 17:20).
• Sheep were handed over to a shepherd for safekeeping.
• It was the shepherd’s job to protect and maintain the flock that had been committed to his trust.
• If the shepherd was not careful and diligent, the flock could be diminished… by wolves… some get lost, etc.
• A shepherd had to MAINTAIN that which was given to him.
f. In a similar sense, the one who has obtained wisdom… is to MAINTAIN it… to protect it… lest it be diminished.
3. Thus, the contrast between the first and second parts of the proverb is a contrast between obtaining and keeping wisdom.
a. It is one thing to OBTAIN a wise heart.
b. It is another thing to MAINTAIN it over time.
c. The danger is always present that once a certain amount of wisdom is obtained, the believer decides that “he’s wise enough and doesn’t need any more.”
d. And if a wise heart is not maintained, it is lost.
e. Prov. 4:24 – KEEP your heart with ALL diligence!
• Here Solomon uses a different word for “keep” but it is a synonym. The meaning is the same.
• Keep: (Zodhiates) A verb meaning to guard, to keep, to observe, to preserve, to hide. The word refers to people’s maintaining things entrusted to them, especially to keeping the truths of God in both actions and mind.
• Whatever the present condition of the heart, it needs to be continually guarded… preserved… maintained… or it will revert BACK to manifesting the OLD heart… which is deceitful above all things…
• This term for KEEP is used of the maintenance of a tree (Prov. 27:18)
» Fruit trees, bushes, and other valuable plants need to be maintained.
» Fruit trees and vines need to be pruned in order to continue to be fruitful.
» They require constant maintenance.
» So does our HEART… maintenance with all diligence!
» If it is not maintained, it will become UN-fruitful… it will lose its wisdom.
f. So when God grants wisdom… treasure it… take care of it… value it… use it… practice it… don’t waste it!
g. A wise heart is maintained through exercise… by putting that wisdom into practice.
B. Shall Find Good
1. Find: to find, attain, obtain, secure, acquire
2. Finding GOOD: pleasant, proper, agreeable, beautiful, beneficial, prosperous, fruitful, etc.
3. This expression “shall; find good” is similar in meaning to “loveth his own soul.”
a. Solomon’s point again is that this is good for you… beneficial… valuable…
4. His point in this proverb seems to be that it is just as valuable and necessary to MAINTAIN a wise heart as it is to OBTAIN it.
5. Prov. 3:17-18 – Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. 18She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.
6. Prov. 4:20-22 – words of wisdom are valuable. Find them… then KEEP them in your heart. Don’t let them depart.
a. Wisdom is GOOD for us… she is a tree of life. It is good to obtain… AND to RETAIN…
b. Obtaining and maintaining are both valuable… something worth seeking and maintaining…
c. It is beneficial to your life… it is good for you… you will find good and good things will come from it…
d. So rather than seeking beneficial things… rather than seeking for good things… put your energy and effort into this: obtaining and maintaining a wise and understanding heart!
e. If you have found wisdom… learned some good and helpful spiritual lessons, then be careful that those lessons don’t fade away from your memory. MAINTAIN them… keep them fresh or you will lose them… and may have to learn them all over again—perhaps the hard way!
f. The one who learns good lessons and maintains them… finds GOOD for his life. It is beneficial.
Proverbs 19:10
Something’s Wrong with This Picture
Introduction:
1. This proverb does not make a contrast or a comparison as many other proverbs do.
2. It is not really a contrast between wisdom and folly or between diligence and laziness. Nor is it a warning against bad behavior.
3. Here Solomon simply mentions an occurrence that he has evidently seen often enough for him to include it as a proverb: something that doesn’t seem quite right.
4. We have a saying that pretty well sums up the approach Solomon takes in this proverb: “something is wrong with this picture.”
5. Well Solomon also saw similar “pictures” in his day… and something was wrong with that picture.
1. Delight defined
a. Strong’s: daintiness; luxury; exquisite delight; comfort, pleasantness.
b. Dictionary of Biblical Languages: Living in luxury, i.e., a state of relative comfort and enjoyment.
c. Zodhiates: Delight, a pleasure. It refers to pleasure surrounding a carefree life of luxury.
d. Putting all the various connotations together, it speaks of a delightful life of luxury and pleasure.
2. Fool defined:
a. Strong’s: Fool, stupid fellow, dullard, simpleton.
b. Theological Workbook of the Old Testament: The dull or obstinate one, referring not to mental deficiency, but to a propensity to make wrong choices.
c. This is the opposite of a wise man.
3. Solomon observed men and women who were FOOLS delighting themselves in the lap of luxury.
a. Solomon observed stupid men with great wealth living in luxurious homes… living the good life.
b. He observed simpletons who had a propensity to make poor choices in life… yet they had more money than they knew what to do with.
c. Remember that Solomon was a king. He traveled in royal circles and rubbed elbows with the nobles of the land.
d. For the most part, kings do not become kings because of their brains… or because of their great achievements in life… nor because of demonstrated wisdom.
• They become kings because their daddy was the king.
• They became king because they were firstborn son. However, being firstborn does not guarantee wisdom… or even common sense.
• Very often princes—the sons of kings—were spoiled brats who never had to lift a finger their whole lives.
• Not always, but often, they were foolish young men.
• They had the greatest advantages on earth to grow, mature, and learn.
• But some of them figured, “Why should I study history, economics, or business. I’m going to be king! Why should I bother?”
e. This was not true of kings only. It was also often true of the sons born into noble families.
• The wealth, power, and prominence of noble families is passed on to their children…
• It is not passed on to the wisest, best educated, or most talented people in the land.
• It was passed on to whoever happens to be born in that noble family.
• And those sons were not always wise people. Some of them were foolish… arrogant… proud… self centered… lazy…
f. Too often for his liking, Solomon observed FOOLS living in wealth and in the lap of luxury.
• Obviously, they did not obtain the wealth or power through their own achievements, hard work, or wisdom.
• They usually obtained it all through inheritance.
• They just happened to be born into a prominent family… the nobility or royals.
4. That was unseemly to Solomon.
a. Seemly defined:
• Fitting, suited, i.e., pertaining to what is proper and appropriate to a situation.
b. Solomon’s point here is that it is not fitting that such a man should be in possession of such wealth… especially if he doesn’t have the wisdom to use it wisely.
c. Prov. 20:21 – An inheritance is obtained all at once… suddenly…
• The wealth of an inheritance was not earned by the one inheriting it.
• No blood, sweat, and tears went into accumulating it.
• In fact, no wisdom was involved either.
• Very often, because it was obtained so easily, its value is not appreciated.
• Therefore, inheritances are often wasted in riotous or foolish living.
• Solomon observed foolish sons wasting the inheritance of their fathers.
• He saw fools living it up in the lap of luxury… and blowing away that accumulated wealth foolishly.
• That is what Solomon here refers to as “unseemly.”
d. It seems that it would be so much more appropriate for a wise man to inherit that wealth and prominence. He would use it so much better.
e. It seems appropriate for a wise man to have wealth… a man who wisely earned it… and wisely uses it.
f. It is inappropriate for a fool… but it happens all the time.
g. Prov. 1:26 – “The prosperity of fools shall destroy them!”
• Prosperity is not even good for a fool.
• It will be his ruin… because he does not know how to handle it.
• Wealth can be deadly and dangerous for those not accustomed to handling it.
• Consider the lives of 18-year-old athletes from the ghetto who become millionaire superstars overnight!
• Consider the miserable lives of lottery winners!
5. There are thousands of extravagantly wealthy families in America.
a. That money is passed on from generation to generation.
b. And those who inherit it are often quite foolish.
c. Solomon saw the way they lived, and noted that “there is something wrong with this picture.”
d. Wealth has never been distributed in a fair, sensible, or wise manner.
e. It is distributed randomly and inappropriately in many cases.
f. That was true in Solomon’s day and in ours.
6. Many Hollywood celebrities qualify for Solomon’s definition of a fool.
a. Folly in Proverbs speaks of a lack of fear of the Lord… a lack of spiritual understanding… a lack of good morals.
b. Hollywood and the rest of the entertainment world are full of foolish people living in the lap of luxury…
c. Sometimes they are there only because of good looks… not because of wisdom… or education… or hard labor.
d. It seems so inappropriate that they possess such power, prominence, and wealth… yet they do.
e. People look up to them as heroes.
f. Prov. 26:1 – “Honor is not seemly for a fool.” It is inappropriate. It shouldn’t be that way… but it happens all too often.
g. It seems even more inappropriate to me when foolish, immoral people begin pontificating to the rest of the country on how we should live… who we should vote for… or what constitutes a moral lifestyle… or what a family is… foreign policy…
h. Look at all the wealth, power, prominence, and prestige athletes, rock stars, and movie stars have in America.
i. And they have such great influence in the media… and in the minds of many people…
j. There’s something wrong with this picture.
1. There is something else that Solomon noted that fits into the same category of “unseemly”—when servants rule over princes.
a. In this proverb, it is likely that Solomon meant a foolish servant.
b. Ecc. 10:7 – Solomon observed this. This is based on reality… on real life situations Solomon saw first hand. It happens!
c. Prov. 30:31-32 – it is unsettling because it is so inappropriate.
2. It is unseemly for servants to be in positions of leadership.
a. This implies a servant with a servant’s training.
b. Solomon is not addressing this situation from a class warfare angle. (Trying to keep the lowly servants in their lowly place.)
c. Rather, he is speaking about a servant with a servant’s background… with no training or experience in leadership.
d. It is inappropriate to take a servant… (who was usually uneducated, untrained, unskilled, lacking knowledge of history, politics, economics)… and to put him in charge of a country.
e. Foolish servants put in position of power become tyrants.
3. You want someone in charge who has some training and experience… someone who KNOWS what he’s doing.
a. This situation is unseemly in all kinds of situations…
b. In a country, a business, a church, a mission board, a school, any organization…
c. Solomon recognizes that that is not always how it is. Something’s wrong with this picture.
Proverbs 19:11
Turning a Blind Eye to Transgressions
A. Deferring Anger
1. Defer Defined:
a. To be long, prolong.
b. OR it can mean to postpone; delay, i.e., have a long time pass; to be patient, i.e., be in a state of calm in the midst of a trying, upsetting experience.
2. Anger Defined:
a. Literally: nose
b. Num. 22:27 – It literally says that his nose was kindled—a graphic illustration of anger… flared nostrils… perhaps with steam coming out!
c. Jer. 15:14 – A fire is kindled in mine anger (nose).
d. It comes to be used as a picture of anger, wrath, resentment,
e. To have a strong feeling of displeasure over a person or a situation
f. This term emphasizes the emotional aspect of anger and wrath – an outburst of anger rather than a quiet simmering of anger
3. The first part of the proverb does not say WHAT evoked this anger.
a. However, as with so many of the Proverbs, the second half supplies the answer.
b. The two parts of the proverb are to be considered together… they each shed light on the situation at hand.
c. Here the situation at hand… or the CAUSE of the anger is explained to us as another man’s transgression.
d. This proverb gives us some inspired advice as to how to handle the transgressions of another person.
4. But before we consider Solomon’s inspired advice, we should once again remind ourselves that this is a PROVERB.
a. Proverbs were not intended to cover EVERY possible situation.
b. Proverbs were not intended to tell us all we need to know about a particular subject.
c. Proverbs are generalizations… truth in nugget form…
d. There is an element of truth in what the proverb says… and wisdom is needed in APPLYING that truth.
e. Actually, there are times when the Bible tells us NOT to follow Solomon’s advice given here.
• There are times when it is NOT right to defer our anger against transgression.
• There are times when it is NOT right to pass over a transgression.
• But this proverb indicates that there ARE occasions when it is proper to do so.
f. Wisdom is needed to discern the difference.
5. Prov. 16:32 – It takes inner strength to be able to defer anger… to control one’s spirit—especially in a situation where someone has purposely irritated you… or sinned against you.
a. To be able to control one’s spirit speaks of inner strength—along the lines of a mighty general who conquers a city!
b. To defer one’s anger… and put it aside is a great quality.
c. Any fool can blow up and strike back.
d. It takes the strength of the Lord working in the inner man to have what it takes to defer anger… to be PATIENT with those who wrong you… to turn the other cheek when insulted… to be reviled and revile not again…
6. This is the DISCREET thing to do (wise; prudent).
a. The wise man knows that an angry reaction to bad situations only make matters worse.
b. Wisdom is patient… cool headed… and able to defer anger.
c. The way we react when attacked is a good indication of the level of our wisdom and discretion.
d. Such attacks are really tests to prove us… to show us whether we are wise or a slave of our emotions.
A. Passing Over a Transgression
1. Transgression:
a. Sin, rebellion, crime, offence, fault, breach of trust.
b. It is kind of a broad term… with many possible variations.
c. But the fundamental idea of the root is a breach of relationships, civil or religious, between two parties.
d. This is KEY in interpreting this proverb.
e. Gen. 31:36 – here Jacob was angry with Laban and asked “What is my transgression?”
• In other words, “how have I offended you?”
• “What did I do against you… how have I wronged you?”
• It speaks about a possible offence or conflict between these two men.
f. The term emphasizes a breach of relationships… (often between man and God… or man and man)
2. Solomon seems to be using this term (transgression) as a breach of relationship between men…
a. As fallen human beings we DO sin against each other… we offend one another… we wrong one another.
b. You don’t have to look very hard in the Bible to find examples of men sinning against men… offending men… breaking their trust… men lying to men… men hurting the feelings of other men… men pulling a fast one on men… cheating… stealing… misleading… double crossing… not keeping a promise…
c. I’m sure we have ALL had someone—even a brother in Christ—offend us… treat us cruelly… gossip… slander… double cross us…
d. And if we were honest, we would probably all have to admit that we have not only been the victims of such transgressions… but we have also been the perpetrators at times!
3. The story of Joseph is a perfect example of a young man who was sinned against… by his own brothers.
a. They had a moral responsibility to take care of their young brother… instead, they plotted to kill him…
b. They settled for selling him into slavery in Egypt.
c. Talk about being offended… double-crossed… a breach of trust—here is an extreme illustration of that sort of “transgression.”
d. They sinned against their brother.
4. Passing over a transgression
a. Defined: the term literally speaks of linear motion… to pass over from one place to another; to take away…
b. It has lots of variations in the figurative sense…
c. II Sam. 12:13 – used in the sense of forgive. David sinned and God “put away”… passed over his sin.
d. Passing over a transgression speaks of putting it away… turning a blind eye to it… forgiving the offender…
e. Psalm 38:12-15 – David himself demonstrated this quality.
5. What should we DO when someone transgresses against us?
a. Matt. 18:15-17 – Jesus said that when someone transgresses against us we should do the opposite!
• He said that we should confront that brother with his sin.
• We should expect an apology and repentance…
• If he refuses to repent (assuming he is guilty)… then discipline is in order.
• This is very different than what Solomon says to do.
b. Solomon advises us to “pass over” his transgression. Brush it aside… sweep it away… let it roll over your back like water off a duck’s back…
c. Obviously Solomon and Jesus are not contradicting one another. Remember, this is a proverb.
d. There are times when following the pattern of Matthew 18 might be called for.
• If this is a gross sin which if left unchecked will harm the testimony of the Lord…
• If you are so offended that it is eating away at you on the insides… or you can’t sleep at night… or it is ruining relationships… or it is hindering your walk with God—then by all means confront that brother and make things right.
6. There are times when following the advice of Solomon might be in order when someone has transgressed against you:
a. If it is a minor infraction…
b. If it is offensive, but something you can handle… and you can let it go in one ear and out the other… let it!
c. If it is simply an area where that brother needs to learn and grow… ignore it…
d. If it was a moment of weakness on the other brother’s part… and he blurted out something unkind…
e. There are many occasions when this proverb ought to come to mind.
f. If we apply Matthew 18 to every little infraction against us… we will be labeled a kook… a troublemaker… and will have very few friends.
B. It is His Glory
1. Glory defined:
a. beauty, splendour, glory, honor
b. The state or quality of having an attractive appearance as the feature of an object. (a crown of glory or a crown of honor)
2. Solomon’s point is that the man who has the inner strength, the capacity, and the grace to turn a blind eye away from those who transgress against him is likened to a man of great honor.
a. This capacity is like a crown of honor upon his head.
b. It is an honorable thing…
c. Some men turn away from transgressions against them because they are too weak and cowardly to DO anything about it.
d. Other men turn away from transgressions against them out of inner strength and grace… and it is to their honor that they do so.
3. One of the most glorious qualities in Joseph is seen in his treatment of his brothers.
a. The men who sold him into slavery—years later stood before him.
b. Only this time the tables were turned… and Joseph was in the position of strength and power.
c. He COULD have had them tortured and executed.
d. Instead, he put aside his anger… he passed over their transgression… and showed them grace.
e. That took real inner strength… to forgive… to pass over their transgression.
f. As far as Joseph was concerned, (to use Solomon’s words), “it was his glory”… an honorable thing to do.
g. It is honorable… and discreet (wise)
h. May we have that inner strength from the Lord to do the honorable thing… when the circumstances call for it… and may we have the discretion to discern HOW to respond to offences.
i. As Christians, we should take this a step higher. Not only should we “pass over” such transgressions… but we should even BLESS those who curse, revile, or insult us…
Proverbs 19:12
The King’s Wrath or Favor
Kings are In Authority
1. This is by God’s design. They were to represent God’s authority on earth… and establish a sense of righteousness in the land… to punish evildoers and praise those who do well.
2. BUT kings are also human beings… fallen human beings.
3. Ecc. 8:4 – Ancients had absolute, unrestrained authority. Virtually nothing was beyond their power.
4. Prov. 16:14a – His wrath meant death.
a. The king of Babylon became angry and sent out a decree to kill all the wise men in the land.
b. He was angry again and threw Daniel’s friends in the furnace.
c. Dan. 6:24 – Then again, the king took all the presidents who opposed Daniel, and cast them and their families in the den of lions. He consulted no one.
d. King Herod was angry that the wise men tricked him so he had all the children under two killed!
5. Prov. 16:15a – His favor meant life. Life and death were in his hands.
6. Kings could give a verbal command and had the authority to begin a war… execute a man… pardon a man… (asPharaoh did with the butler and baker). A king could make a decree—without consulting anyone.
7. To use American terms, the king was the executive, legislative, and judicial branch of government all rolled up in one person.
8. We do not live in a monarchy, but that doesn’t mean this proverb has no application for us in America today.
a. We don’t have a king, but we DO have men in authority over us—by God’s design.
b. Thankfully, they do not have absolute power… but they DO have lots of power.
c. What they say and legislate can affect us as citizens and as Christians for years to come.
d. Solomon gives a word to the wise here… concerning what our attitude should be towards those in positions of power.
Kings are not always fair and just… (or even good!)
1. There are a lot of examples of kings in the Bible.
a. Some godly; (David) some ungodly (Saul).
b. Some kind and benevolent; (Hezekiah) some cruel tyrants. (Ahaz).
c. Some were considerate of the people; some considerate only of themselves.
2. Sometimes kings were good and sometimes not so good.
a. Sometimes government officials are wise; sometimes foolish.
b. Sometimes they make laws that are helpful and wise; sometimes they pass laws that are detrimental.
c. But as citizens, we are to submit to authorities… realizing that they have real power… power from God.
d. Whether they are wise or foolish… good or evil, Solomon warns us here not to get them riled up and angry at you. It’s not worth it.
But Kings Can Be Fickle
1. Sometimes they are as angry as a roaring lion.
a. Angry, roaring lions are dangerous. Don’t mess with them. Stay out of their way. They could tear you to pieces.
b. That’s the point here. An angry king is like that roaring lion. He too could tear you to pieces.
c. Prov. 20:2 – Because he is like a roaring lion, it is exceptionally foolish to provoke him to wrath.
d. Prov. 28:15 – This was a common picture of cruel kings: they roar. And notice that they are especially cruel to the poor and needy in the land. They are easily trampled over.
e. We have a modern proverb that says something similar: Don’t grab a tiger by the tail.
• Don’t do anything foolish that would stir up someone in a position of power and strength to wrath.
• They will turn on you… and you are no match for them!
• When you come across a tiger—be very careful not to get him riled up.
• Be careful around wicked men in positions of power. They too can cause you much harm.
2. Sometimes they are like the dew on the grass:
a. Dew on the grass is a picture of refreshment… joy… nourishment…
b. The vegetation in that land was dependent upon the dew of the grass each morning.
c. A king can be like dew in that he has the power to bestow favor on a man, a city, or a nation…
d. Prov. 16:15 – When the king’s countenance shines upon you—it can mean life… blessing… abundance… like the refreshment that comes from the latter rains… or from the morning dew.
e. Like it or not, people were dependent upon the king’s favor. Hence what folly to irritate the king or to provoke him to anger. What a delight to stand in his favor.
3. Hence, there is a good warning in this.
a. The same fickle king whose countenance is shining on you on Monday might be a devouring lion on Wednesday!
b. Realize that kings and those in positions of power can be fickle… they can change…
Application: It Makes Sense to Be on Their Good Side
1. Kings are not like your average person.
a. Frowns are always uncomfortable… If the average citizen gets angry at you, it is uncomfortable, but he is limited in what he can do to you.
• But the frown of a king can be much worse than uncomfortable. It can be deadly.
b. Smiles are always pleasant and welcome. It’s nice to have others who smile at us… and to be in good favor with our friends.
• But the smile of a king is far more valuable. It can mean life… prosperity… blessing…
2. We have another American proverb that comes close to the meaning of this proverb: You can’t fight city hall.
a. The government is bigger and more powerful than the average Joe.
b. Getting government officials angry at you won’t help either. It can only hurt.
c. The last thing you want is to have the government against you… angry at you.
d. As a church, we should take a lesson from this proverb. We want to do whatever those in positions of authority tell us to do…
• We don’t want to anger them by questioning their authority…
• We don’t want to anger them by violating their laws or town ordinances…
• I Peter 2:13-14 – The church is not above the law… we are to SUBMIT to the laws of the land… and not to get them angry at us.
• Why? For the Lord’s sake…
• And also for some very practical reasons… they can make life miserable for us.
e. The point of the proverb: since those in authority have such power—don’t do anything to provoke them. Stay on their good side. Even if their decrees are not always brilliant… you might just as well submit to them and do what they say to keep them happy.
3. Prov. 16:14c – a wise man will PACIFY the wrath of a king.
a. Solomon’s advice: Don’t give them any cause to get angry at you!
b. They may not be fair; they may not be just; they may not be reasonable; they may not be honest; they may not be wise; but they DO have authority…
c. Solomon’s inspired advice is: learn to live with them. Don’t buck their authority… pacify them.
4. This is good advice not just for subjects under their king
a. But also for workers under their boss…
b. Students and their teachers…
c. Drivers and the policeman…
d. It is always a good idea to try to pacify the wrath of those in power. Sometimes their power goes to their head…
5. If it makes such good sense to stay on the good side of an earthly king because of the power he wields, how much MORE should we stay on the good side of the King of Kings and submit to Him… and not to get Him angry!
a. We KNOW what makes Him angry. (Sin; self; pride; etc.) Therefore, avoid that which angers the King of Kings and seek His favor. It only makes sense.
b. We should actively seek His favor… seek to have His countenance shine upon us…
Proverbs 19:13
A Foolish Son and a Nagging Wife
Introduction:
1. This proverb speaks about every man’s nightmare scenario.
2. Solomon knew the pain of this more than anyone. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines. No doubt some of them were nags.
3. And with 700 wives and concubines, it goes without saying that he had many children… not all of whom were wise. Many of Solomon’s sons were foolish.
4. Solomon knew experientially what he describes in this proverb. He knew this calamity well.
The Foolish Son
1. Foolish:
a. fool, stupid fellow, dullard, simpleton, arrogant one
b. The term implies foolish rebellion.
c. This term for fool appears about 50 times in Proverbs. He is a common theme of the book.
d. The foolish son expresses his folly in any number of ways:
• He may be a rebel against authority—and in trouble with the law.
• He may refuse to listen to counsel—and end up eating the sour fruit of his own foolish ways.
• He may spend money foolishly—and always in debt… and thus in trouble…
• He may be lazy—unwilling to study at school; unwilling to work.
• He may be undisciplined—living a carefree life and not taking care of business, only to suffer for it later.
• He may be immoral—living a life of sin… which eventually will catch up to him.
2. A foolish son:
a. It’s bad enough that there are so many fools out there in the world. But it is far worse when one of them is your own son… your own flesh and blood!
b. That makes his folly all the more painful.
c. Nobody WANTS to have a foolish son.
d. However, it is such a common experience that Solomon writes about it over and over again in this book.
3. Eli had foolish and wicked sons.
a. I Sam. 3:13 – The REASON they were foolish was because Eli did not restrain them.
b. The foolish sons were obviously to blame for their vile behavior.
c. However, their father Eli was blameworthy as well.
d. Through a lack of discipline and training children can become what Solomon calls “foolish.” (Vile, sinful, immoral, ungodly).
e. The behavior of his foolish sons became a heavy burden on Eli the rest of his days.
4. However, other men have had foolish sons who DID discipline them.
a. Solomon speaks repeatedly in the book of Proverbs about sons who are well taught and disciplined, yet who do not RESPOND to their training… and they chafe under the discipline.
b. Prov. 1:24-25 – Wisdom was offered, but not received.
c. Prov. 10:17 – Some sons reject reproof and as a result, it causes them to err… to wander from the straight and narrow way.
d. Those sons have to learn the hard way. That process of learning the hard way is a CALAMITY to his father: painful.
e. It happens so very often, that in ONE family, some of the sons (or daughters!) submit to the training and do well. Others reject their training and become fools.
f. A foolish son is not necessarily a reflection on the parent—although parents almost always feel guilty about this… as though it was their fault.
g. The way to deal with that guilt is faith… BELIEVE what the Bible says about such fools.
h. Some become fools because of a LACK of training. Others who are well trained become fools because they REJECTED good training.
5. The TRAGEDY of it all.
a. Sometimes a foolish son is the parent’s fault (like Eli).
b. Sometimes it’s not the parent’s fault. But either way, the pain of a foolish son is the same.
c. It is a CALAMITY for the father.
d. Calamity defined:
• Strong’s: engulfing ruin, destruction
• Theological Workbook of the Old Testament: falling; a downfall, disaster
e. Regardless of HOW it came about, the bottom line is that it is painful for the father to see a son ruin his life.
• The father almost SHARES in his ruin… because in a sense, it has a ruining effect on the father’s life.
• He loves his son and wants the best for him… and what pain to see him suffer—especially when the suffering is due to his own folly… (alcohol, drugs, laziness, rebellion, criminal activity, etc.)
• Prov. 17:21, 25 – Consider the terms Solomon uses to describe the EFFECT of a wayward son on his parents: sorrow; no joy; grief; bitterness.
• Prov. 10:1 – Of course it is painful for the mother too… and Solomon mentions that elsewhere.
• It is a calamity; it is painful; it is heaviness; it is sorrow and grief; it is bitterness…
• Having a wayward son is like an open wound…
• We would do well to avoid PRYING and DIGGING into the open wounds of others.
• Even if our intentions are good, (prayer) our actions may be extremely painful to others.
• Nobody wants to have to keep on repeating the agonizing details of the awful condition of his wayward son!
• A foolish son is painful to his father.
The Contentious Wife
1. Contentious defined:
a. Strong’s: “brawling” twice, strife, contention.
b. Dissension, quarreling, disputing.
c. This term is used 9 times in the Bible, and ONLY in Proverbs.
d. 5 out of 9 times this term appears in the Bible it is used of a contentious, argumentative woman. (I’m not drawing conclusions; I’m just stating the facts:>)
e. Of course men can be contentious too.
2. Consider who wrote these Proverbs. Of all the Bible writers, only Solomon used this term… and most often he used it of a contentious woman.
a. Keep in mind this man had 700 wives and 300 concubines!
b. He had MORE than his share of nagging women.
c. The circumstances of Solomon’s life should mitigate a bit the fact that it was used so often about women.
d. Nagging wives was a subject Solomon knew all too well.
3. Polygamy was not God’s idea… and it was never a good idea.
a. Because it is not God’s plan, it is fraught with difficulties… and brings nothing but trouble to the home.
b. Imagine the in-house fighting that occurred with 700 wives! The jealousy, envy, selfishness, mischievousness, the backstabbing, the lying, gossip, slander, and bitterness that occurred in that home must have been unbearable!
c. No wonder Solomon felt like running away into the wilderness at times!
d. Prov. 21:19 – It is better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman.
4. The contentious woman is the wife who is constantly AT her husband for everything.
a. She does not allow him to have any peace.
b. She is constantly correcting him… pointing out his faults… reminding him of his failures… shortcomings… sins…
c. She remembers every tiny detail of every argument they have ever had… and she never fails to bring them all up… over and over again…
d. She has a “to do” list a mile long and badgers him over the things that he hasn’t yet done…
e. She nit picks every little thing he does or says…
5. This Solomon likens to a constant DRIPPING of water…
a. This likely had reference to a leaky roof. (Many of the roofs of common folks were made of sod—and would leak and drip when saturated from a heavy rainstorm.)
b. In fact, the sod roofs often leaked long after the storm was over!
c. The nagging wife is like the constant dripping of water…
d. We might liken it today to a leaky faucet—that endlessly drips is irritating and drives you crazy. That’s the point.
e. A nagging wife drives her husband crazy,
f. A nagging wife can wear her husband out with her nagging, as dripping water over time can wear out rocks!
g. If dripping water can wear out rocks, the nagging of a wife can certainly wear out the patience of her husband.
h. If the roof is continually leaking—it will eventually cause the house to ROT.
i. The continual dripping of a wife has been the ruin of many marriages. Some men get to the point where they can’t stand it any more and take off for the wilderness!
j. Knowing how damaging nagging can be to a relationship… how unbearable it can become for the husband… ladies would do well to take heed to Solomon’s warning here…
k. This proverb is more than simply stating facts. The facts are given as a warning… and appropriate action is expected to be taken where needed.
l. When someone tells you that faulty wiring can burn your house down, it is more than a fact. It is a warning—to take care of any faulty wiring you might have.
6. Solomon paints a sad picture here: a nightmare scenario for any man.
a. His son is behaving like a fool, which is like an open wound that continually causes pain….
b. And his wife is a nag… like continual dripping water…
c. This poor guy needs a break! He’s getting it from all sides.
d. If you know someone in this situation—PRAY for him. He needs it!
e. We don’t need to know all the gory details, but we can all pray for grace and strength. The Lord knows the situation.
f. If you are IN a situation like that, the Lord is sufficient. Come to the throne of grace daily—moment by moment…
g. And if you are CONTRIBUTING to this kind of a situation (a wayward child or a nagging wife), then take this proverb as a warning…
h. Your actions have a deep and lasting effect on others.
i. Your actions COULD become the downfall of a family.
j. Take heed all around!
Proverbs 19:14
A Prudent Wife
1. Children receive an inheritance from their parents.
a. A son might receive a portion—or even all of his father’s estate when dad dies.
b. This has always been the custom.
2. Of course a father could CHOSE to leave his estate to whomsoever he desired.
a. But that was normally his son.
3. This sometimes created a sense of uneasiness in aging parents.
a. Even Solomon worried about whom he would be leaving all his wealth to.
b. Ecc. 2:18-19 – Who could tell if one’s son would be a fool or not? Solomon hated to think of a foolish son wasting and destroying everything he worked so hard for.
c. In that case, he might want to put that bumper sticker on the back of his chariot: “I’m spending my kids inheritance.”
• This is actually the same sentiment as Solomon states… only in the form of humor…
• Solomon didn’t see any humor in it.
• He lamented over it—all is vanity… emptiness.
d. Prov.17:2 – Sometimes fathers KNEW their sons were foolish and chose to leave the wealth to someone else… even a wise servant.
4. But the NORM was that fathers left their house and riches to their sons.
a. The SOURCE of this blessing was their earthly father.
b. The father provided the son with this blessing… the blessing of the inheritance.
14b And a prudent wife is from the LORD.
A. A Prudent Wife
1. Prudent defined:
a. Wise, understanding, with insight, skilled.
2. Usage: The WAY that the term PRUDENT is used in various passages provides much good application to the wife.
a. Proverbs 1:3 – the purpose of proverbs is to instill wisdom (prudence) into young people.
• A prudent wife will want to meditate upon the practical truths revealed in proverbs!
• There are countless applications to the home, to child rearing, and to the marriage to be gleaned from this book.
b. Prov. 10:19 – In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise(prudence).
• Here prudence is described as refraining the lips…
• Proverbs speaks a LOT about the wisdom of controlling one’s tongue… limiting speech…
• A prudent wife will exercise self control with her use of the tongue.
c. Psalm 119:99 – I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation.
• Here the psalmist states that prudence comes by means of meditating upon the Word of God.
• Psalm 119 is a great place to start…
• A prudent wife is one whose mind and heart are saturated with the Scriptures… and she lives it out in the home.
d. Psalm 101:2 – I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
• A prudent or wise wife demonstrates her prudence by walking in her house with a perfect—mature heart.
• Vs.3 – she sets no wicked thing before her eyes. She does not sit on the couch and watch soap operas.
• She meditates on the Word instead.
e. Joshua 1:7-8 – The word for “prosper” (vs.7) and “success” (vs.8) are the same word as translated “prudent” in Prov.19:14.
• Vs. 7 – by not turning to the right or the left one “prospers”… or prudent behavior is achieved.
• This means no extremes… but walking in the middle of the road… not turning off the straight and narrow way. That is the way of spiritual prosperity. That is prudence.
• Vs. 8 – Again, by meditating on the WORD, and observing to DO it… one achieves good “success”—a prudent life.
• Success in life is spiritual wisdom. Obtaining spiritual wisdom is success.
• These are needed in the home!
f. Isa. 41:20 – That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
• Here the word for prudence is translated understand.
• Here understanding is associated with recognizing the hand of the Lord in circumstances.
• Cf. Jer. 9:24 – understand here is the same word.
• Knowing God in a deep, personal way is prudence.
• This is what we should glory in throughout life.
• A wife that really knows God… is a prudent wife.
g. This idea of PRUDENT is so very important in the home… for the wife.
• It is God’s wisdom.
• It results in refraining one’s lips.
• It comes from meditating on the Word.
• It results in walking in one’s house with a perfect heart.
• It is associated with knowing God.
• It results in spiritual prosperity and success in the things of the Lord.
3. A prudent wife is quite a treasure!
a. In the proverb, it stands parallel to the house and riches in the first part of the proverb.
b. An inheritance is a great blessing… something highly valued and appreciated.
c. But a prudent wife is even better!
d. A prudent wife is to be even MORE highly valued… and more appreciated.
e. Prov. 12:4 – A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband.
f. Prov. 31:10 – her price is far above rubies.
g. She is far more valuable than the house and riches received through inheritance.
h. What a contrast to the nagging wife of Prov. 19:13!
• The nagging wife might think herself to be wise and insightful in her ability to point out all the errors of her husband… but it is really a display of her folly.
• Wisdom would cause her to demonstrate not loud, boisterous nagging, but a meek and quiet spirit…
B. Of the LORD
1. In that culture, it was often the earthly father who PRE-ARRANGED the marriage.
a. This was almost like a business deal between the parents of the prospective bride and groom—sometimes when they were only children.
b. The father would arrange for a wife for his son.
c. Here Solomon makes it clear that while the father might pass on an inheritance… and a father might even pre-arrange a marriage. However, if a man ends up with a prudent wife, it is really a gift from GOD… not dear old dad.
2. Proverbs 18:22 – favor from the Lord.
a. Favor: When attributed to God, the term expresses the divine goodwill which He extends to humanity as He sees fit. It is similar in meaning to the New Testament word for GRACE.
b. If you get a prudent wife thank God for her… and acknowledge that she is a grace GIFT… not something we deserved. So thank God for her.
3. God is actually the Author of ALL blessings… of every good gift. (Jas. 1:17)
a. If you have a prudent wife, thank God for her.
b. Don’t praise yourself for a wise choice. Solomon tells us that it was divine providence… not human insight.
c. This thought was especially important to make in the culture of Solomon’s day when the fathers often arranged for a wife for his son in a pre-arranged marriage.
4. This proverb may well imply that often the leading factor in making the choice between families was “houses and riches.”
a. But arranging a marriage on those grounds was fraught with trouble.
b. Godliness and prudence are much better traits to be looking for than houses and riches.
c. Look to GOD for a prudent wife.
5. There is always an element of surprise.
a. You never FULLY know what you’re getting.
b. So if you get a prudent wife, thank God for her!
c. Not all wives are prudent.
d. Many men have been deceived by women pretending to be godly and wise during the courtship.
e. If God is first in YOUR life… you will likely get connected with a woman with the same goals.
f. God providentially provides a prudent wife. Consider how God brought Ruth to Boaz. God arranged the steps all the way along… and at the core of it was the fact of two hearts that wanted to honor God.
g. When that is the desire of one’s heart, the Lord brings those two lives together.
h. If you are looking for a mate… look to God—not the internet. A wise mate is a gift from God…
i. Prov. 3:6 – In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Proverbs 19:15
Slothfulness and Hunger
A. Slothfulness Defined:
1. Sluggishness, laziness.
2. Dict. of Bib. Lang.: a state of extreme inactivity or idleness, showing a lack of discipline and initiative, as a moral failure.
a. Note the distinction—as a MORAL failure.
b. Obviously, this does not refer to the slowness or inactivity that is the result of old age or infirmity.
3. Prov. 6:6, 9 – It is a moral failure—less wise than an ant!
B. A Deep Sleep
1. Casts: to fall prostrate; prostrate oneself before; bow down; settle down.
2. Deep Sleep: deep sleep; trance; lethargy; listlessness; apathy.
3. Usage:
a. Gen. 2:21- God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam and He took of his rib and made the woman.
b. Gen. 15:12 – God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Abraham when God came down and passed through the midst of the animals cut in half—when God emphasized to Abraham the fact that the Abrahamic covenant was unilateral.
c. I Sam. 26:12 – A deep sleep God put over Saul’s soldiers when David went into their camp and took the cruse of water and a spear.
d. Isa. 29:10 – God poured out a deep sleep on the false prophets.
e. It is used almost exclusively (except for a passage in Job) of a deep sleep that the LORD imposed upon men… not your ordinary sleep.
4. Solomon chose an especially STRONG term to describe the deep sleep of the slothful man.
a. Whether he intended to imply that this sleep was a judicial judgment of God against their activity or not is not clear.
b. It doesn’t SAY that… but the unusual term he chose to describe their “sleep” may suggest it.
c. In other words, it may be a judicial judgment pronounced by God against such laziness… OR it may be the natural consequences of such laziness.
d. There may be a little overlapping of the two—in light of God’s providential dealings in the ordinary lives of men.
e. Either way, Solomon states that a very deep and serious form of lethargy and apathy are the result of slothfulness…
f. It is almost as if the person were in a trance—a trance that he CHOSE to enter into.
g. One man spoke of it as an “unconscious oblivion.”
5. The effect is something similar to a downward spiral.
a. The man is lazy and slothful and doesn’t DO what he’s supposed to do…
b. As a result, he becomes accustomed to not doing much…
c. And in that condition, he grows tired and sluggish easily…
d. He looses his initiative… apathy sets in…
e. And he arrives in a state (almost a trance) where it becomes extremely hard to get through to him… of the seriousness of his condition!
f. One thing leads to another… and it becomes very difficult for him to change his ways… they are so deeply entrenched.
g. Prov. 5:22 – His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.
h. He can become TRAPPED in this lazy lifestyle.
i. Parents do their kids no favor by doing everything FOR them.
j. Kids can learn responsibility and develop a work ethic at a young age.
k. OR they can develop the bad habit of laziness… procrastination… slothfulness… and become couch potatoes at a young age too.
6. The sluggard is inventive with his excuses for his laziness.
a. Prov. 22:13 – he comes up with all kinds of excuses—a lion might eat me!
b. Prov. 20:4 – he always has a reason why he “can’t” work now.
• His work is thus never done on time.
• He procrastinates. Puts things off.
• Work piles up—and he feels inundated and overwhelmed.
• The work piles up like a mountain before him, and he thinks it impossible to move a mountain… so he doesn’t try.
• And the mountain continues to grow… and he sinks in deeper… and he feels justified in not attempting. Why bother? I’ll never move that mountain.
• And it’s all his own fault. He LET things pile up… he LET things go to seed… and rot. He ends up with nothing…
A. The Lazy Person
1. Idle defined:
a. Laxness, slackness, slackening, deceit, treachery.
b. A condition of slowness and sluggishness to do an activity.
c. This is used as a virtual synonym for slothfulness in the first part of the proverb.
2. Soul here is used in the sense of a person… hence, an idle, lazy person.
B. The Consequences
1. In the first part of the proverb Solomon describes the trance or the stupor—the state of the lazy person.
2. Now he suggests that there are serious built-in, personal consequences to his laziness, namely, HUNGER.
3. Note that God gives a clear warning here: laziness results in hunger.
a. Hunger is a good thing.
b. Hunger hurts. It captures your attention. When you are really hungry, it’s hard to think of anything else.
c. Hunger can eventually kill a person. We need food. Food is not an option. It is a must.
d. God in His wisdom caused the human body to feel hungry… and He caused that feeling to become overwhelming when the need is not met.
4. Hunger is good on a couple of levels.
a. First, if we didn’t feel hunger, we would forget to eat…
• We need our three meals a day… and if we miss one, we feel it. That is good for us.
• Our body is talking to us… making sure we meet that need.
b. Secondly, hunger is good because it is a great incentive to WORK!
• Laziness… a refusal to work leads to hunger… which hurts.
• Hunger is designed to work something like physical pain.
» If you step on a piece of glass and cut your foot, it hurts—right away! You feel the pain.
» That pain serves a most valuable purpose… it instantly gets your attention SO THAT you do something about the problem at hand—glass shards stuck in your foot!
» If you didn’t feel the pain, you might not realize the problem, and it would not be taken care of right away.
» A much worse condition could set in.
• The PAIN of hunger OUGHT to instantly get the attention of the lazy person.
» It should cause the person to see the folly of his laziness…
» It should cause him to get up and DO something about it… take care of the problem.
• II Thess. 3:10 – “If any would not work, neither should he eat.”
» Here too hunger is described as a built in incentive to work.
» And if a man WILL not work—neither SHOULD he eat.
» Note the word “will” – it speaks of a man’s willingness.
→ This is not describing the man who wants to work but cannot find a job.
→ This does not describe a man who wants to work, but he is sick and unable to.
→ This is a man who is able to work but unwilling.
» Note also the word “should” – which often carries with it a moral obligation.
→ He SHOULD not eat.
→ It is not right for him to eat.
→ It is not right for him to receive free food… which someone else labored for.
→ It is good for him to suffer hunger.
→ The pain of hunger… going without his needs should trigger an incentive in him to DO something about his situation—to get up and get a job, or do whatever it takes.
5. Welfare is one of the WORST things we can inflict on someone.
a. The motives are good. It stems from pity and compassion which are good in their place.
b. Helping someone in need IS good.
c. But helping someone who is in need because they WILL not work is not love. It is NOT what is best for that person.
d. Free food or free money sounds great, but it is a miserable trap.
e. I would like to see us double or quadruple the amount of money we give to people on welfare… IF we could weed out those who are lazy and unwilling to work… and those who lie and cheat and take advantage of the system.
5. Other consequences to idleness and slothfulness too.
a. Ecc. 10:18 – It also destroys your property.
b. Prov. 21:25 – Constantly coveting… and it KILLS him!
• It eats away at him. There is no joy.
• He lives in that trance… a kind of dream world, with lots of dreams and wishes, but no action.
• He may well regret his laziness, but doesn’t DO anything about it…
c. Prov. 13:4 – A miserable life—constantly wishing you had what others had… constant envy… discontentedness… and to make it even worse, the added burden of GUILT… knowing it was your own fault!
d. Prov. 26:14 – He can’t sleep at night—because of a guilty conscience.
e. Prov. 20:13 – Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread. (also – Prov.6:9-11; 10:4)
• I have met lazy, slothful believers—nice people—but lazy.
• I would never hire them if I owned a business… for that very reason—lazy!
f. Prov. 12:24 – He shall be under tribute… forced labor… like slavery… working for peanuts… taken advantage of by wealthy landowners… because the lazy man has no job… no rainy day fund… he has no recourse.
g. Prov. 26:13–16 – He THINKS himself to be wise… usually smarter than everyone else who works hard.
6. It is a pity to see a man suffer the consequences of slothfulness in his earthly life.
a. It is far worse to see a man suffer the consequences of slothfulness in his spiritual life!
b. There are a LOT of lazy Christians.
c. There are believers too lazy to open the Bible each day…
d. There are believers who don’t come to prayer meeting because they are lazy. They’re always too tired. So am I—and you are too… but you came. I think there might be a lot of stuttering and stammering at the Bema seat when the question is asked, “Why didn’t you go to prayer meeting?”
e. There are believers too lazy to minister in the Body… too lazy to minister to one another… but they sure expect to BE ministered to when they need it!
f. They are too lazy to work out their own salvation in fear and trembling.
g. They too will HUNGER… and not be able to eat the Bread of life their souls need. They will thirst… and find no water of life to satisfy.
h. They are wasting their spiritual lives.
i. The funny thing about spiritual laziness is—that some folks who are spiritually lazy are often VERY diligent in the things of this life… they take good care of their things… their business… but never seem to have time or energy left over for the things of the Lord.
j. Physical poverty is bad enough. Spiritual poverty is an eternal waste.
Proverbs 19:16
Life or Death
Introduction:
1. This proverb like the last speaks of the consequences of our actions.
a. Vs. 15 – The consequence of slothfulness is hunger.
b. Vs. 16 – The consequence of disobedience is death.
2. Consider the parallelisms used here:
a. Keepeth (commandments) and keepeth (his soul)
b. Keeping the commandments and despising the commandments (His ways)
c. Preserving his soul (life) or losing his soul (dying)
1. Keepeth: to keep; observe; to observe to do something; give heed; care for; guard; watch carefully over; protect…
2. Keeping the commandments
a. The commandments refer to the commands of God found in His Word… including the 10 commandments.
b. The term “commandment” to the Old Testament Jew was often used as a synonym for the Word of God… not exclusively referring to the list of 605 commands… but ALL of God’s Word.
c. Psalm 119 speaks about the Word—and uses the term “commandment” to refer to Scripture in general… more than just the 10 commandments.
d. Thus, keeping the commandment here speaks of OBEDIENCE to God’s Word.
3. Keeping his own soul.
a. His own soul = one’s own life… the person.
• The man himself, self, person or individual; seat of the appetites; seat of emotions and passions; activity of mind.
• It speaks of the whole inner man… the inner life… thoughts, emotions, passions… drives.
b. Keep = same word as above… but remember that the term has various shades of meaning.
• Keep in the sense of observe to do: (commandments)
• Keep in the sense of guarding or protecting (soul)
c. Keeping one’s own soul means protecting or taking care of one’s own life.
d. In other words, Solomon tells us HOW to take good care of our own life: obey God! Keep His Word! Don’t step outside the circle of obedience…
e. Our soul is in dangerous territory outside that circle.
f. Our soul is SAFE within the circle of obedience.
g. That’s the point of the first part of this proverb.
h. Prov. 16:17 – He preserves his soul from danger and destruction.
i. Luke 11:28 – “Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.” There is a blessedness involved in a life of obedience.
4. The best thing one can do for oneself is to OBEY GOD.
a. Ecc. 12:13 – Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
b. Prov. 2:10-13 – One of the ways we protect ourselves is through wisdom and knowledge in God’s Word.
• It shall KEEP thee (same word) from calamity.
• Departing from evil has a preserving effect…
• This is advice very much like the advice the doctor gives. “Wash your hands often in order to get rid of the dirt and germs. It will help prevent you from getting sick.”
• Departing from evil and evil men will prevent you from the bad consequences of evil. It only makes sense.
• Prov. 21:23 – “Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.” By guarding our mouths from saying things we shouldn’t, we preserve our souls from all kinds of trouble.
• And the mouth is just ONE member.
• If we guard ALL our members, we will be safe indeed.
• Prov. 4:23 – Guard your heart. This is the MAIN member to guard. If the heart is right with God, we will be preserved… kept safe… our adversary cannot harm us.
c. By DOING what God said, we protect ourselves from a life of misery and unhappiness.
• God SAYS to guard our mouths, our hearts, and to keep His Word.
• This is God’s means of keeping us safe in a dangerous world.
• It is a simple proposition: do what God says and you’ll be protected!
• If we keep the Word, the word will keep us—safe and secure.
1. On the one hand, we have the man who KEEPS God’s Word.
2. Now Solomon speaks about the person who DESPISES God’s ways.
a. His ways refers to GOD’S ways… not the man.
b. Ways = a road; a pathway; a course; and hence, a course of conduct; a way of life; behavior.
c. God has revealed to us the way of life in His word… the way OUR lives should be lived.
d. God has established a pathway for us… a straight and narrow way and He expects us to WALK in that pathway.
3. The contrast is:
a. Keeping the commandments vs. despising the commandments (His ways).
b. God’s commandments and God’s ways are used as virtual synonyms.
c. God’s ways are recorded in God’s Word… and a man will either choose to WALK in that pathway or NOT walk in that pathway. It is a choice.
4. Despise defined:
a. To despise, regard with contempt; consider worthless; think lightly of; hold with disdain; to disrespect.
b. A man honors God and His Word through submission and obedience.
c. Obedience to God’s Word and ways is a way of expressing our RESPECT for God and His ways.
d. Disobeying God’s word… and choosing NOT to walk in His ways is a way of expressing our disdain for God and His Word… it is an expression of disrespect… even contempt… considered worthless… treated lightly.
e. Disobedience is a choice… a choice that reflects a heart attitude: contempt for God. There’s no way to candy coat it. It is what it is.
5. Solomon’s point is that despising God’s ways (disobedience) is self-destructive.
a. Prov. 6:32 – But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.
b. Prov. 10:29 – Destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.
c. Prov. 13:13 – The one who despises the Word shall be destroyed.
6. The consequence of despising God’s ways: DEATH.
a. Prov. 1:10-18 – The allurement of sin tells us just the opposite.
• Temptation from the enemy tells us just the opposite… things will go WELL for us!
• Cast your lot with us as we disobey God. Things will be much better for you!
• We’ll be rich and happy!
• We’ll have one purse—we will BE one… there will be a great camaraderie with our band.
• Vs. 18 – but they lurk secretly for their own blood. It ends in death or destruction.
d. There is a pleasure to sin. God says the end of that road is death… but sin tries to convince us otherwise.
• Sin promises pleasure and good things, but it is a deceptive lie.
• In the Garden of Eden—
» God said: “In the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die.”
» Satan said: Ye shall NOT surely die!
» This fruit is desired to make one wise! You can be like God…
» But it ended in death. Horrible consequences to their sin—consequences that we are all dealing with every day of our lives!
» We live in a sin cursed earth… because Adam and Eve despised God’s ways, disobeyed His word, sinned, and brought DEATH into the world
• James 1:14-15 – We are drawn away by our own lust. Lust (desires) brings forth sin (fruit – deeds). And sin brings forth death. The wages of sin is death. The flesh brings forth fruit unto death.
• These are the cold, hard facts.
• Obeying God’s Word in EVERY detail makes such good sense!
Proverbs 19:17
Pity Upon the Poor
A. He That Hath Pity Upon the Poor
1. Poor: Low, poor, weak, having little wealth and so of a humble condition and low status and vulnerable to oppression.
a. This term is used often as a noun to designate poor and oppressed persons for whom the Lord has a special concern.
b. Prov. 19:4 – Solomon earlier spoke of the poor as those who have few friends.
c. I Sam. 2:7-8 – The Lord is sovereign over a man’s status. He delights in raising up the poor.
d. But God does NOT raise up all of the poor. He ALLOWS many men to remain in poor, weak, lowly positions.
e. God has a reason for that. It serves His purpose for there to be people who are weak and lowly and in positions where they suffer great need.
2. Pity: To be gracious, show favor; show an act of kindness or compassion to another.
3. The man who has pity is not a man who FEELS something. He is a man who DOES something.
a. His pity is more than simply feeling sorry for the weak and sad plight of others.
b. His pity is not just an inward emotion.
c. Rather, it is an inward emotion that MOVES him to action.
d. He DOES something about the situation that causes him to feel sorry.
e. The man who HAS pity on the poor SHOWS pity towards the poor.
4. True pity is expressed in DEEDS.
a. It is expressed by meeting the needs of the one who is weak and poor.
b. He doesn’t say, “Be warmed and filled.” He helps provide them with food and clothing.
c. This principle was an important part of Old Testament Law.
d. Deut. 15:7-11 – Open your hand wide to your poor Jewish brother.
B. Lending to the Lord
1. Lending:
a. This term literally means to be “joined together” with someone; to be associated or bound to someone in a relationship.
b. It is used in being joined together monetarily.
c. Hence, it can mean EITHER to lend or to borrow. The context has to determine which.
• Cf. Prov. 22:7 – where the word appears twice and is translated in both ways: borrower and lender.
• Cf. Deut. 28:12 – where it is again translated both lender and borrower.
2. The one who has pity on the poor by meeting their needs is in a sense, LENDING unto the Lord.
a. This implies that it COSTS us something to meet the needs of the poor, the weak, and the lowly.
b. Solomon’s point here is that whatever we SPEND on the poor is like money (or effort; work; etc.) that we are LOANING to God.
c. We are not only showing mercy and love to the poor man, but we are demonstrating love to the Lord!
d. This transforms our ministry to men into a service for God.
e. Proverbs 14:31 – One’s treatment of the poor and weak, the feeble is an expression of one’s attitude towards God.
• If you want to honor God—show mercy to His people in need!
3. This also ought to transform our MOTIVES in such service.
a. It’s for the Lord, not man.
b. That means that we can minister to men we may not actually LIKE.
c. We can minister to the UNLOVELY… when we realize that it is actually the LORD we are serving.
d. Even if we later discover that the people we ministered to were just taking advantage of us, it does not detract from our ministry to the Lord.
e. Paul took up this principle in Colossians in giving instructions to servants with respect to their masters—even cruel masters.
4. This elevates our service concerning temporal and earthly things to that which is eternal and heavenly in nature.
5. There is a great sense of satisfaction that comes from obeying God in this area.
a. Prov.14:21 – “Happy” is the man who shows mercy on the poor.
b. Prov. 22:9 – He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.
c. There are two levels of the kind of happiness of which Solomon describes.
• There is a happiness on an earthly level.
→ This is often the driving force behind philanthropy.
→ It feels good to help others.
→ Many unsaved men regularly give to the poor.
→ Religious men from all faiths give to the poor.
→ And it brings a sense of happiness to the giver.
→ It is better to give than to receive.
→ Philanthropy is good and moral on an earthly plane. It is about as good as the unsaved man can do.
→ It is about one of the best things that fallen flesh can do, but it has no merit before God.
• On a spiritual plane, the happiness that comes from giving for the Lord is deeper than a feeling.
→ It is the sense of satisfaction that comes from being yielded to God and allowing Christ to be manifested through us.
→ It becomes a love offering to the Lord Himself.
→ This is the joy of the Lord! It is infinitely superior to philanthropy (the love of man).
A. That which he hath given
1. Given: What is done; performed. It indicates the actions or good deeds done to benefit others.
2. Note that Solomon equates HAVING pity on the poor with GIVING to them.
a. The man who has pity GIVES. The man who has pity HELPS. The man who has pity DOES something to alleviate the suffering of the one he pities.
b. Pity is the kind of thing that needs to find an outlet… an expression.
B. He will pay him again.
1. The first “he” here refers to the Lord, not the poor man.
a. By giving to the poor, you are lending to the Lord and HE (the Lord) will pay back.
b. In other words, GOD will pay back the man who expresses his pity by giving to the poor.
2. Pay: Recompense, restore, pay back, restitution.
a. I Sam. 24:20 – And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand.
• Saul recognizes here that he is a usurper who stole the kingdom from David.
• He also recognizes that God will RESTORE the kingdom to David one day.
b. Solomon uses a term of restitution to describe what GOD does to the man who spends himself for others.
3. God will pay back… restore whatever is spend.
a. This does not necessarily mean He will pay us back in THIS life. But He will in the life to come.
b. That’s where faith comes in.
• A person really has to BELIEVE this truth before he will be willing to practice.
• Naturally, we think like Esau. He was willing to sacrifice eternal things for the present.
• God wants us to be willing to sacrifice the temporal earthly here and now things for the eternal.
c. Consider what Jesus said to Peter. (Matt. 19:27-29)
d. Giving up anything in this life for others is no loss in light of eternity.
e. Paul was willing to spend and be spent for God’s people.
f. But he also knew that it was not foolishly spending his time, energy, and resources.
g. He realized he was laying up treasure in heaven. (Matt. 6:19-20)
h. Showing mercy and pity and helping the poor and weak is actually an investment in eternal things.
i. Psalm 37:26 – “He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.”
• It is good to give to others KNOWING that God will reward in glory. (Even a cup of cold water given in His name is rewarded.)
• But the very BEST reason to help the poor is not that God will pay us back.
• The best reason is that such action testifies concerning WHO GOD IS.
• HE is merciful and lends to the poor! It is an expression of godliness… for the Christian it is a manifestation of the indwelling life of Christ.
4. As we mentioned in the introduction, God has a PURPOSE in allowing poor and weak men to cross our pathway.
a. It becomes an opportunity for us to demonstrate the love of God to others.
b. It becomes a TEST of the sincerity of our faith…
c. It is an occasion for the indwelling Christ to manifest HIMSELF through us.
d. And what a privilege: when we allow God to use us as HIS instrument in that way, HE is glorified… and we are rewarded!
5. Two Common Abuses of this Concept:
a. People who purposely take advantage of the pity and compassion that people FEEL.
• Many have made a killing by showing pitiful pictures of poor starving children… hoping that people will respond on an emotional basis… and send in money.
• But remember, Solomon’s point is that the kind of giving he speaks of is spiritual in nature—not just emotional.
• The world gives to the poor out of earthly, temporal, and emotional motives.
• That is not bad or evil, but it is not spiritual. It is not elevated to giving to the Lord.
• That makes it merely a humanitarian effort. Even atheists give on that basis.
• It is quite secular and has no eternal value.
• I Tim. 4:8 – Here Paul distinguishes between the earthly and heavenly… the temporal and eternal.
1. Taking care of the human body (exercise; eating well; health care; etc.) does have a little profit. It profits during THIS LIFE ONLY. That is a little compared to eternity.
2. But godliness—doing things for God and with eternal values in mind—profits not only in this life, but also in the life which is to come.
3. Thus, if you are going to help someone physically (food; money; clothing; etc.) make sure that there is a Christian testimony attached to it—or it has no eternal value.
4. And be careful about groups who show pitiful pictures of starving children who claim to be Christian. Make sure you know what KIND of Christian testimony they hold to.
b. Another abuse of the concept in this passage comes from the charismatic movement.
• They teach that if you give to their ministry, then God will pay you back!
• And what they mean is in THIS life!
• They even say that God will pay you back 10 fold.
• In other words, if you give $100.00 to our ministry, God will give you $1000.00 in return somehow.
• And they put people on their platform who testify of such a “payback”—in this life.
• Thus, the motivation behind that kind of “pity” and “giving” is often selfishness and greed!
• Our adversary is clever isn’t he? He can twist a passage designed to teach God’s people to express selfless generosity for God’s glory into an expression of greed and selfishness!
Proverbs 19:18
Chasten Thy Son
1. Chasten defined:
a. Discipline; instruct; admonish.
b. Teach; correct; punish to improve behavior.
c. instruct, i.e., give formal and informal instruction, often with a focus on warning of consequences for bad behavior.
2. Note that this proverb comes in the form of a COMMAND.
a. That is not the usual way for proverbs.
b. Normally the proverbs are simple statements of facts.
c. But here Solomon gives a command to parents to chasten.
3. God chastened His people Israel. And if they did not hearken, He chastened them seven times harder. (Lev. 26:18, 23)
a. Everyone has their breaking point.
b. Some children require MORE chastening and punishment than others…
c. Some children instantly melt with just a look. They are all different.
d. Some children are more stubborn than others and may not respond to the initial chastening.
e. But no matter HOW stubborn a child may be, increasing the punishing will eventually bring them to their “breaking point.”
4. Prov. 3:11-12 – Don’t despise chastening; don’t grow weary of it.
a. This is the advice Solomon gives to his son AS God chastens him.
b. He reminds him that chastening is an expression of God’s love.
c. It OUGHT to be an expression of parental love too.
d. But kids need to be challenged:
• Don’t despise it. It is easy for a child to learn to HATE chastening or discipline of any sort.
• If it is administered out of anger and the child sees no PURPOSE in it, he would naturally hate it.
• But if he genuinely perceives that his father is chastening him out of love… out of a desire to see his son improve his behavior for his own good and the glory of God—THEN he is less likely to hate it.
• Prov. 1:7 – FOOLS despise instruction… they despise being chastened… being told what to do… that FOLLY needs to be driven out of them while they are young.
e. Prov. 15:32 – The one who despises instruction (same word = chastening) despises his own soul. A parent ought to communicate to the child that discipline is GOOD for the child.
5. Prov. 22:15 – Discipline and chastening are to be administered by means of the ROD.
a. This is a taboo subject in our generation—but certainly NOT in the Bible.
b. We see odd extremes in our generation.
• On the one hand, we see our society looking DOWN upon spanking children—for the first time in the history of Western Civilization.
• And on the other hand, we see an increase in the cases of real child abuse… horrible abuse.
c. The society that deems spanking to be immoral ends up with MORE cases of child abuse.
• Could it be that a lack of godly discipline is behind it all?
• Could it be that the cases of REAL child abuse are aggravated by the fact that parents have NOT disciplined their children properly, and as a result, they end up with “out of control” kids who push them to their breaking point and they end up beating and harming their own children out of frustration?
• Of course, this isn’t the ONLY cause of child abuse, but it sure seems to be one of factors involved in the increase.
• And each case of child abuse seems to fuel the flames of those who seek to eliminate TRUE Bible based discipline.
• When that is eliminated altogether, God help us!
6. Prov. 13:24 – Don’t spare… and do it “betimes” (early or often)
a. Betimes: to seek early… (early in life).
• Deal with the problem early—RIGHT AWAY.
• Especially with small children… they forget. Spanking them on Tuesday for what they did on Monday is not a good idea. The sooner the better.
• And deal with those issues right away lest they become ROOTED… and become hardened into a habit.
b. Spare: to hold back; to refrain; withhold; to keep from doing something.
• It is used in Proverbs of “refraining” our tongues.
• Here Solomon commands parents NOT to spare using the rod.
c. Hate: to despise; to dislike; to loathe;
• This is a strong term.
• The parent who refrains from disciplining their son THINKS that he is loving his son. (Emotional kind of love)
• But that love is called “hate” by God—because it refuses to do that which is BEST for the child.
• But this sets up for us a major problem with discipline: the son hates to receive it… and the parent hates to administer it.
• But it HAS to be done. Avoiding it is not the answer.
• Replacing it with “time outs” is not the answer. A time out is good on occasion and in certain situations.
• But there are situations where the ROD is needed. Nothing less will suffice.
• It is quite selfish and self centered for a parent to withhold the rod from a son because it hurts the parent.
• By doing so, the parent is in fact saying, “Son, I know you need to be disciplined. I know it is best for you. I know that God wants me to. I know it will be used of the Lord to help you develop into the kind of person God can use. However, because I don’t want to inflict emotional pain on myself, I am going to forgo this spanking. I don’t want to hurt myself.”
• Now no parent would ever say that, but perhaps parents ought to THINK about what their actions really are saying.
7. Prov. 22:15 – Foolishness is BOUND in the heart of a child, but the rod of reproof will DRIVE it from them.
a. The Bible SAYS that if we use the rod at appropriate times and in appropriate situations, it WORKS.
b. This is God’s method for driving folly from the heart of a child.
c. Here God has told us what the problem is (folly bound in the heart); what the method of dealing with it is (rod); and the results will be (it drives it from him).
d. Hate spares the rod; love uses it. Choose love!
8. Prov. 23:13-14 – another command to parents-
a. Don’t withhold the rod.
b. Don’t be afraid to beat him with a rod.
• Be careful about this expression.
• It is not a good idea to use this kind of language today.
• It connoted something very different when the KJV was written than it connotes today.
c. Beat: physically strike (Cf. II Kings 11:12 – clapping hands)
• It simply means to strike.
• And he is to be struck with a rod—a switch from a tree, etc. NOT a baseball bat or anything that would harm him physically.
• The idea is to make the spanking STING—not injure or damage the child.
• And Solomon notes that he will live through it.
• His crying is designed by him to cause you to stop… to spare him. “I promise I’ll never do it again!” (Don’t spare; he’s trying to manipulate you.)
• He will SAY that you are killing him… but you know you’re not.
• Don’t let your EMOTIONS or the arguments of a four year old convince you to stop doing what God tells you TO do.
• Matthew Henry wrote: “It is better that he should cry under thy rod than under the sword of the magistrate, or, which is more fearful, that of divine vengeance.”
d. Hell: Sheol; the place of the dead.
• It does not imply that he will be saved from eternal condemnation.
• It means that he may well be spared from a premature death. (Keep him away from drugs; alcohol; racing in his car; etc.)
• Prov. 10:27 – Wicked behavior, unchecked has a built in consequence of early death. That is often prevented by disciplining a child early.
• Solomon also may have had the death penalty of the Mosaic Law in mind here.
• Either way—good child training often prevents that from occurring… not always, but more often than not.
9. While there is hope…
a. Hope: expectation; a ground for hope; a confidence in regard to a good and beneficial future.
b. Prov. 11:23 – Hope and desire are used as synonyms.
c. There is hope while the child is YOUNG. That’s the time to point him in the right direction, spiritually.
d. Even apart from the spiritual realm, this principle is true. Unsaved parents who get a hold of a child’s heart when he is young can expect him to turn out much better than the parent who does NOT discipline his son.
e. It is much easier to bend an oak tree and directs its growth when it is a little sapling, than to wait until it is grown and its trunk is firmly set.
f. The idea behind this exhortation to parents is, “Don’t quit disciplining. Don’t ever lose hope. Keep it up. Don’t ever cave in and say, ‘It’s no use. It’s hopeless.’” Don’t ever say, “There’s nothing more I can do.” If he’s still breathing, there’s hope!
10. Deut. 8:5 – as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord chastens us.
a. Here Moses writes of the experience of the children of Israel in the wilderness.
b. The nation was young.
c. God wanted them to remember that HE would chasten them just like a father disciplines his son—for their own good!
d. Thus, we too should take heed to Solomon’s warning in the spiritual realm. God disciplines us too… age (maturity) appropriate discipline too.
e. God knows where we ought to be spiritually, and like a Father, He disciplines us to keep us in line… and growing… for our own good.
f. Don’t despise God’s chastening. He is our Father who is training us. He is instructing us.
g. In fact, chastening is not always because we did something bad. It may be like preventative maintenance.
h. God chastened Paul with a thorn in his flesh, NOT because Paul had sinned, but to PREVENT Paul from sinning… to prevent him from falling into pride. It was GOOD for Paul.
i. Chastening is good for us too… even though as we endure it, it can be quite painful.
11.The second part of this proverb is translated in ALL kinds of various ways.
a. It is evidently an old Hebrew idiom… the meaning of which is not clear.
b. I see no good reason to depart from the KJV translation.
12. Spare defined:
a. To lift up; to be carried away with.
b. This meaning is used in both a literal and a figurative sense. It is obviously a figurative sense here.
c. It can also have the meaning of a BURDEN. (Something heavy that is lifted up.)
d. This term is used over 600 times in the Old Testament and it has LOTS of variations in its meaning.
e. Here it could mean either:
• Don’t let their crying carry you away…
• Don’t allow your heart to be overly burdened by their cries.
13.Either way, Solomon’s point is “don’t stop” disciplining them because of their cries… or their arguments… or their reasonings…
14.This passage encourages firm, consistent, early, and loving chastening of children.
a. It certainly should NOT be used as an excuse for abuse of any sort.
b. In part, that is what Paul meant when he wrote, “Father, provoke not your children to wrath.”
c. Abusive type of chastening certainly WOULD provoke a child to wrath and even rebellion.
d. Unreasonable expectations and commands and overly extreme forms of punishment are never acceptable.
Proverbs 19:19
A Man of Great Wrath
The Man and His Sin
a. Heat, rage, hot displeasure, indignation, anger, wrath, burning anger.
b. Very strong feeling of displeasure, hostility, and antagonism, usually in relation to a wrong.
c. Intense anger; hot displeasure.
d. This particular term for anger is used 129 times. And there are several other terms used even more often.
e. That is because anger is a very real problem with us all. This problem has been around for a LONG time. It is part of our nature.
f. Thus, it is mentioned often in the Scriptures, because we need to hear about it often.
2. Prov. 27:4 – Wrath is cruel and outrageous.
a. People do and say some very cruel things when they are angry.
b. We’ve all done it… we’ve all said cruel things in anger… even to the people we love the most.
c. Of course, anger doesn’t EXCUSE our behavior.
d. But knowing what anger leads to should cause us to seek to control anger all the more!
3. Consider what the king of Babylon did when he was angry.
a. Dan. 3:13, 19 – Nebuchadnezzar was in a fury because Daniel’s three friends did not bow to his image.
b. We read a lot about kings getting angry.
• There is probably a good reason for that.
• Kings were brought up in the lap of luxury, and were used to getting whatever they wanted when they wanted it.
• When they DIDN’T get what they wanted, they often went into a rage… because they were not used to that… and didn’t know how to handle the word “no.”
c. In Daniel 3, the king’s inordinate pride was hurt by hearing these three men say “no”… and he became angry.
d. He had them thrown alive into a fiery furnace… and he heated it up 7 times its normal heat… because he was angry.
e. That’s a pretty outrageous thing to do, but wrath is outrageous. Solomon warns us about how cruel and outrageous anger can be.
f. We are told this for a purpose—that we might DEAL with our own anger as soon as it begins to stir. Don’t wait until it boils out of control. Take it to the Lord in prayer.
4. Prov. 25:28 – He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.
a. Uncontrolled anger is the result of a lack of self control.
b. This is a pitiful man. He has no self discipline. He has no self control.
c. He is like a city without walls: meaning, he is wide open for the enemy to attack. He is weak and vulnerable… defenseless.
5. Prov. 6:34 – For jealousy is the rage of a man.
a. Jealousy is the source of much rage and anger.
b. A man is jealous because he doesn’t have what others have—and he gets angry… very angry!
c. There may be a multitude of reasons WHY he doesn’t have what others have.
d. He may not have many friends because his anger chases them away… and he becomes jealous of others who DO have friends.
e. He may not have a good job because he doesn’t control his anger, and keeps on getting fired.
f. He may be lazy, and does not have what others who work hard have… so jealousy flares up and causes him to be angry. (That’s not fair! I should have gotten that promotion!)
g. There are lots of reasons behind a person’s anger.
h. But the PRIMARY reason is SELF.
• I don’t have what I think I should have! I’m mad!
• I deserve this and that and I didn’t get it… so I’m mad.
• I was insulted by what he said. Nobody treats me that way. Doesn’t he know who I am? I’m mad!
• When you look at life through that vain little prism of SELF, it is easy to even justify such anger.
• “I have a right to be angry. Don’t they know that I deserve to be number one! If they drop me down to number two, I will be really angry!”
• It is simply a manifestation of one’s vain, old, SELF…
• When self is slighted, self gets mad!
6. When our proud, arrogant old SELF is reigning, and he doesn’t get his way—look out! That’s trouble.
a. Prov. 29:22 – Angry men stir up strife wherever they go. They go from one controversy to another.
b. And they abound in sin. (It gets them in a lot of trouble).
7. Modern psychology has created its own way of dealing with anger.
a. They often say, “Express it… release it…”
b. They say to vent it out in a harmless way. (Punch a pillow; they hold yell and scream sessions to vent it…)
c. They view anger almost as if it were steam boiling up in a pressure cooker that has to be released or it will blow up.
8. The Bible has a very different way of dealing with anger.
a. Psalm 37:8 – “Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.”
b. God doesn’t say VENT it out. He says “cease.”
c. God expects us to obey. Anger CAN be controlled.
d. The fruit of the Spirit is self control. This requires divine power to have victory over anger.
e. Cease: to relax, withdraw, idle, to let drop, abandon, relax, refrain, forsake, to let go, to go limp; to be quiet.
f. This is quite the opposite of what psychology says to do with anger.
g. It is not an energy that needs to be released.
h. Rather, repentance is what is needed—a change of mind.
i. Choose to say NO to anger. Choose to abandon in the strength of the Lord what God says to abandon.
j. It is NOT our nature to do so, but by God’s grace and in God’s strength, the fruit of the Spirit can be manifested through us.
k. God says cease from anger and He means it. And He never commands us to do anything that we are unable to do in His strength.
9. There is HOPE of course… and that hope is found in Jesus Christ.
a. When one comes to Christ, he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit… and the fruit of the Spirit is self control.
b. This doesn’t mean that believers don’t get angry. (We certainly do!) But it DOES mean that believers have access to the power of the Spirit to have victory over anger… temperance: self control!
c. By yielding to the Lord, victory over anger is possible for all those in Christ. Faith is the victory.
d. Men of great wrath as described here CAN be transformed into the image of Christ!
The Consequences of His Sin
1. There are consequences to uncontrolled anger.
a. There are always consequences to sin…
b. There is a price to be paid for violating any of God’s principles.
c. Here Solomon says that he shall be PUNISHED.
d. Punish: fine, penalty, tribute.
e. The term is only used twice. In the other passage it speaks of a monetary fine that had to be paid—tribute.
f. Here it speaks of a penalty in a more general sense: there is a PRICE to pay for one’s anger.
g. That price can be minor or very serious depending upon the circumstances.
h. Demonstrating anger in public can cause you embarrassment.
i. It can be more serious if results in arguments and loss of friends.
j. It can have a more serious penalty if it causes you to lose your job.
k. It can be even worse if you end up killing someone out of anger and are sent to death row.
l. The penalties for anger vary greatly depending upon the circumstances.
m. Solomon warns us here that there IS a price to pay for uncontrolled anger.
2. Prov. 22:24-25 – “Make no friendship with an angry man.”
a. Here’s another consequence of uncontrolled anger: they lose friends in a hurry!
b. This is a warning to us too. Don’t chose this kind of person as your friend. Avoid getting close to that kind of a man because this kind of bad behavior is easily spread.
c. Evil communications (fellowships) corrupt good manners.
d. Here is some good advice to young ladies seeking a mate!
e. This kind of person gets in all kinds of trouble… and does things that are cruel and outrageous. Seek your friends elsewhere.
f. Elders are not to be strikers or brawlers. They are not to be hot heads.
g. This is a very poor quality—and one God warns us about in various contexts in the Bible.
h. Take heed! We’ve been warned.
The Futility of Delivering Him
1. Deliver: to defend; to rescue; to save; to cause to escape;
a. In this context, the man of wrath faces “punishment” (a fine).
b. By paying the fine and bailing him out of trouble, you are delivering him.
c. He is delivered when the punishment is paid for him by someone else.
d. Those who would deliver such a man do so with the best of intentions. They don’t want to see him suffer… and seek to rescue him from suffering.
2. But here Solomon states how futile it is to try to bail out an angry man from the messes he makes for himself.
3. If you deliver him (bail him out of the mess he made), you will just have to do it again… and again… and again… and again…
4. In other words, Solomon says, let him suffer the divinely appointed punishment that anger deserves.
5. If you keep on bailing him out, he never pays the price… and thus never learns the lesson.
6. That is hard to do if it is a loved one. However, sometimes love has to be tough.
a. But remember what he said in vs. 18: “Let not your soul spare for his crying.”
b. That same principle parents need to employ in dealing with LITTLE children have to employ in dealing with GROWN children too.
c. Hearing the little child cry breaks the heart of the parent spanking the child.
d. Solomon says: Don’t stop spanking. They NEED to learn the lesson. Don’t allow emotion to cause you to ROB that child of the discipline he needs to learn from the lesson.
e. The same truth is found in the next passage. This is really the same kind of situation—only an advanced case.
f. Don’t allow your emotions to cause you to bail him or her out of trouble. They need to learn the lesson the hard way… by paying the price.
7. If you don’t take heed… and you keep bailing him out, you will find yourself stuck in a revolving door… an endless cycle of bailing him out… and because he didn’t pay the price, he didn’t learn the lesson, and doesn’t control his anger, and thus it will explode again… only to start the cycle all over again…
8. At some point you have say, “Enough is enough. It’s time to pay the price.”
Proverbs 19:20
Hear Counsel
A. Hear Counsel
1. Hear—
a. To hear with the ear.
b. To listen to, to hear with attention or interest.
c. To perceive by ear; to understand.
d. To obey; to give heed; submit to an authority and so do what is asked or required.
e. Thus, the term means to literally hear with the ear, but at various levels: (1) hear sound; (2) listen to what is heard and pay attention; (3) to understand what is heard; (4) to obey what is heard.
2. In Proverbs 19:20, Solomon obviously means more than to just hear the sound…
a. When counsel and instruction is given, he means that it should be heard in the sense of listening carefully. (The counsel may be a means God uses to lead or guide you.)
b. He seems to imply here more than hearing and even more than understanding, but obeying. (Responding to the counsel IF it is godly counsel and IF the Spirit leads.)
3. Counsel:
a. Counsel; advice; plans; purpose; to think about a course of action, often including consultation with a counselor or advisor.
4. Solomon’s point here is that counsel is to be heard.
a. It is to be sought out.
• Sometimes counsel comes to us. But sometimes, we have to seek it out.
• People who might be able to give you wise counsel may have wisdom to share, but they cannot read your mind.
• They don’t know the issues in your life about which you need counsel unless you tell them and ASK for counsel.
• Seek, older, spiritually mature believers for advice.
b. It is to be listened to carefully.
• And when they give you advice, listen carefully.
• Even if you don’t like what they say, LISTEN.
• Hear them out.
• It may not be a direction you are comfortable with; it may not be a direction you even considered; but hear them out.
c. It is to be examined in light of God’s Word.
• Be a Berean when it comes to counsel. Hear, but verify… with the Word of God. (Acts 17:11)
• Make sure the counsel lines up with Scripture.
• Remember—not all counsel is good counsel!
• People giving you counsel may not know all the circumstances… and they may give good counsel based on the information they have… but they may not have all the facts.
• Even godly counsel… based on God’s Word is not necessarily what God wants for YOU.
• Counsel is different from Scripture. Counsel is just advice. It is not authoritative. It is not a “thus saith the Lord.”
• Therefore it needs to examined and judged in light of the circumstances and in light of Scripture…
d. It is to be prayed about. (Jas. 4:2) (have not = ask not)
• Godly believers might give you godly counsel (meaning it is not contrary to scripture) but it may not be God’s leading in your life.
• What is MOST important is the leading of the Lord.
• People can offer help, encouragement, words of warning, personal testimonials in similar situations, and statistics, all of which may be helpful.
• But ultimately, sons of God are those who are LED by the Spirit of God.
e. It is to be obeyed if it passes the test.
• If after seeking counsel, listening carefully to it, and putting it to the test of Scripture, and praying about it… if after all that you are convinced that this is the leading of the Lord, then God expects OBEDIENCE.
• What’s the point of going through all that if you are not going to obey anyway?
• If at the end, you are unwilling to obey, then all your seeking counsel was a sham… it was phony… hypocrisy.
• You were PRETENDING to want wisdom and to know God’s will, but when it IS make known and you reject it… then you are discovered to be a hypocrite.
• The whole purpose of counsel is to know and to DO God’s will for your life.
5. Prov. 12:15 – The one who hearkens is wise. What will HINDER a person from taking heed to counsel? PRIDE! So humble yourself and listen! That’s the message here.
B. Receive Instruction
1. Receive:
a. To take, choose, to accept; to agree to.
b. Job 2:10 – Job’s wife just told him to curse God and die and Job responded, “What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?”
c. It is used of accepting what God has for us.
2. Instruction:
a. Discipline; chastening; correction.
b. Instruction in the sense of the teaching of principles for living.
c. Sometimes it has the meaning of a warning.
d. While this term is different from counsel, it stands in parallel to it.
e. Counsel often comes in the form of correction or a warning.
f. Used in Prov. 1:8 – “My son, hear the instruction of thy father.”
g. Thus, right from childhood, we are to be receiving instruction:
• Warnings: Don’t play in the street; don’t run in the house; don’t fool around with those knives; don’t touch the stove.
• Correction: “That’s not how you clean your room!” “You’re not wearing that to school!”
• Discipline: “Make sure you get up on time!” “Brush your teeth every day!”
h. Even as Christian adults, we too need to receive instruction: warnings; correction; discipline.
i. It might be from church; through preaching; reading the Word; your boss; the government; etc.
j. II Tim. 3:17 – The BIBLE is God’s book of instructions!
3. Solomon’s instruction in this verse is, that when instruction is given (warnings; correction; etc.) we are to RECEIVE it!
a. Don’t reject it. You are rejecting that which is beneficial… needful… helpful… it might prevent you from falling… from going backwards… from making a big mistake.
b. It might even keep us from sinning against God.
1. “In thy latter end.”
a. It is not entirely clear what Solomon meant by this expression.
b. It COULD mean in the end of your life.
• In other words, after hearing counsel all your life, you will become WISE in later years.
• This is certain true and this thought is amplified in other passages. (wisdom associated with age)
c. Or it may mean in the latter end of the instruction.
• In other words, if you sit through all the instruction, listen to it and obey, you will be wiser for doing so!
• There is a certain amount of wisdom that is available right away—just for taking heed to wise counsel.
d. Whether Solomon meant that this wisdom comes right away for listening to instruction or whether he meant in the long run (wisdom that accumulates to the end of your life)… the overall meaning is quite similar.
2. Hearing counsel and receiving instruction RESULTS in wisdom.
a. Becoming wise is not based on intelligence here.
b. It is based on submissive spirit. The one who is willing to humble himself and LISTEN… and submit to the counsel given… will BECOME wise.
c. A basic characteristic of a wise man is that he is wise enough to know that he doesn’t know everything. He RECEIVES instruction.
3. There are a LOT of benefits from hearing counsel and receiving instruction.
a. Prov. 1:5 – “A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels.”
b. Prov. 9:9 – “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.”
c. Prov. 11:14 – “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.”
• Multitude of counselors: parents; school teachers; church; friends; older mature believers; elders; pastor; Sunday school teachers.
d. Prov. 15:22 – “Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counselors they are established.”
• Good counsel can keep us away from dead end streets… from wasting God’s time…
e. Prov. 27:9 – “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man’s friend by hearty counsel.”
• Psa. 55:14 – We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company.
• Make sure you seek counsel from a good, solid Christian friend.
f. Consider what taking heed to counsel accomplishes:
§ Increases learning; causes you to attain wise counsel.
§ Makes you wiser in the latter end; establishes your purposes.
§ Provides safety; rejoices the heart.
g. These are good reasons to receive counsel and instruction.
Proverbs 19:21
Many Devices
This proverb is full of contrasts:
God – Man
Divine Counsel – Human Devices
One Counsel – Many Devices
God’s Heart (mind – implied) – Man’s Heart (mind)
Stands Firm – Does Not Stand Firm (implied)
A. Man’s Heart
1. Man
a. This term usually refers to a male.
b. However, it sometimes refers to mankind in contrast to other created beings, such as angels.
c. In that sense, it simply means any human being – an individual… male or female.
d. That seems to be the way it is used here.
2. Heart
a. This term is translated variously as heart, mind.
b. Strong’s: Inner man; mind; will; heart; understanding; thinking; reflection.
c. The source of life of the inner person in various aspects, with a focus on feelings, thoughts, the will, and other areas of the inner life.
d. Solomon is using the term here to refer to the whole inner self life… a man’s thoughts; imagination; reflection; emotions; passion; wishes; dreams; and desires.
B. Many Devices
1. Devices
a. Plans; thoughts; purposes; inventions; schemes.
b. It is used in both a positive and a negative sense.
• Positive: God gave men wisdom to “devise cunning works” in the building of the tabernacle and furniture… and also used of the skilful men who invented weapons which shot arrows and stones from the towers.
• Negative: Used of evil plots, schemes, and plans of men for wicked purposes. (Esther 8:3 – the evil device or plan which Haman plotted against the Jews)
2. Solomon doesn’t mention whether these are good or evil plans and devices.
a. It is stated generically enough to include BOTH.
b. What he says is true of both good and evil plans and purposes of men.
3. Solomon states here that there are MANY devices in a man’s heart.
a. He is speaking of an individual here.
• His point is not that there are many devices in the world because there are many people… say, with one device each.
• Rather, he is saying that in each and every individual human being, there are MANY devices… many plans.
b. This is true of EVERY single human being.
• We all think. We all have imaginations. We all have desires and wishes. We all have purposes we would like to see fulfilled.
• We all make plans and attempt to implement those plans… that they might be fulfilled.
c. Every one of us has devised plans that are evil!
• If you have ever stolen, you plotted out how to carry out that evil device.
• If you have ever smeared someone, you planned how to cast them in a bad light.
• Young people sometimes plan how to deceive their teacher… or fool their parents…
• Older folks may do the same to their boss…
• Think of all the planning and plotting that is taking place in our political scene right now: how to make the other candidates look bad; sound bad; how to cast them in a bad light; how to expose every failure from the 5th grade on…
• It is our NATURE to make plans.
d. Every one of us has devised plans that are good too.
• We make plans as to how we are going to serve the Lord in the local church.
• We make plans to help a neighbor (set aside time to help him fix his fence…)
• We make good plans for our children’s education.
• We plan for our retirement.
• We plan for our health; our finances; to take care of our house; our vehicles; etc.
4. In the first part of this proverb, Solomon is simply stating a fact: men make many plans throughout life.
a. He is NOT disparaging the making of plans.
b. He is certainly not saying that we shouldn’t make plans.
c. Life is FULL of the plans we make.
d. He simply states a fact. We all make plans. Sometimes they are good ones; sometimes not so good. Sometimes, they are outright evil.
e. We think of things. We imagine and dream things. We make plans. We seek to carry out those plans and purposes.
f. As long as we are walking with God and our hearts are right with God and one another, plans are a good and normal part of life.
A. The Counsel of the Lord
1. Counsel
a. Purpose; counsel; advice.
B. Shall Stand
a. Stand: to stand; to stand up; to endure; to be fixed; to be valid; to be proven; to be fulfilled.
C. God’s Counsel Stands
1. Men can make all kinds of plans… but God is sovereign. He is in control of the outcome.
2. God sits on His throne ruling over all… and overruling over some of the plans of men.
a. HIS will will come to pass… no matter how hard men may try to thwart it.
b. Isa. 40:8 – His word stands forever.
c. In the long run, no human device or plan can prevent God’s will from coming to pass.
3. Before the fall, God’s purposes and man’s plans were one and the same… united.
a. Adam’s will was submitted to the will of God.
b. Adam was given a mind and a will and he was given liberty to think, to plan, and carry out his plans.
c. However, when sin entered the world, there was a huge gap between God’s purposes and plans, and those of men.
d. Man’s plans were often contrary to the will and plan of God.
e. Today there are 6 billion people in the world. Each one has MANY plans and devices in his heart and mind. Most of those plans have never even considered the plan and purpose of God.
f. Hence, those plans and purposes often conflict with the plans of other men AND with God.
g. It is all a recipe for disaster in the world. All you have to do to see the effect of this is to watch the 6:00 news.
h. At any given moment there are billions of plans being devised around the world… some good; some evil.
i. Unless those plans are governed somehow, the result is anarchy and violence.
j. One of God’s purposes was to govern those clashing wills and plans via human government.
k. One of the WORST things God could do would be to leave us to our own devices! (Prov. 1:31)
l. On our own, we would live in a world of 6 billion people… each one having MANY clashing and conflicting wills, plans, purposes, and desires brewing in his heart.
D. What a Contrast: God’s Counsel and Man’s Devices
1. Man has MANY purposes…
a. Our purposes and devices often conflict with those of other people. Hence, conflict—at the office; in church; at school; and among the nations!
b. God has ONE overarching purpose: to bring glory to Himself. God’s counsel shall stand.
2. Man’s devices and plans are vain.
a. Many of our plans never get off the ground. They are just passing thoughts, wishes… and never come to anything because we never DO anything about them. They are just dreams. (Ps. 94:11)
b. We may pour our heart and soul into other plans… and they too often come to nothing… or not much.
c. Ps. 32:10-11 – But God’s purposes never fail. They never fall to the ground. His counsel stands forever!
3. Men are often UNABLE to perform their plans and purposes.
a. Ps. 21:11 – The enemy here plans and imagines wicked devices… but it unable to perform it! (Either because of his inability or because God providentially intervenes.)
b. On the other hand, God’s counsel shall stand. He knows no limits in power or ability. God is omniscient and omnipotent.
4. Man’s plans are often full of anxiety and uncertainty.
a. However the counsel of the Lord shall stand.
b. Heb.6:17 – His counsel is immutable.
5. Man’s wisdom and ways are both weak and foolish.
a. We saw that in our study of I Corinthians.
b. God’s counsel is strong and wise.
c. God’s counsel and wisdom is able to bring to nothing the best laid plans of the wisest of men.
6. Man’s plans are usually short sighted and selfish.
a. We make plans that we think will be good for me, myself, and I.
b. Often those plans are designed to make us comfortable, happy, and prosperous in the here and now… like Esau.
c. Often our plans do not consider what is best spiritually… and from eternity’s perspective…
d. Often our plans do not consider God’s glory… but we like to put self interest before all.
e. We should be making plans with the Bema seat in mind.
f. Instead, we often plan as if this world was all there is.
g. But God’s counsel is not short sighted. It was planned before the world began… from heaven and eternity’s perspective…
7. Prov. 21:30 – Ultimately, there is no wisdom or counsel AGAINST the Lord that will ever stand.
E. God Uses Man’s Plans (Good and Evil) For His Own Purpose
1. Evil:
a. Consider the evil devices of Joseph’s brothers. God used it for good.
b. Consider the evil plot of Haman. God used it for good to protect His people that His counsel would stand. God made promises to that people!
2. Good:
a. God uses our plans.
b. He gave us minds and expects us to use our minds and think… plan… and carry out those plans…
c. God uses our plans… our prayers… our efforts… in carrying out HIS eternal plan.
3. This proverb is a two edged sword.
a. To evil men:
• You can plan and plot all you want.
• You can use the best minds on earth to carry out your evil designs.
• But God is sovereign. His counsel WILL stand in the final analysis… your plans will fail.
• What arrogance and folly for man who is but a worm to think that his puny plans could outwit or overturn God’s counsels!
• God can even bring good out of the evil plans of wicked men.
• Consider the cross – Acts 2:23; 4:26-28
• Consider Haman; Joseph
b. To good men:
• If our desire is to honor God, God will USE our plans and devices to carry out His purposes on earth.
• And even if we make a mistake… or make an unwise choice or decision… even if we unintentionally step out of His will… God can OVER RULE our errors.
• We cannot undermine God’s purposes by accident.
• God even incorporated our mistakes and failures in His eternal plan.
• He is able to work all things together for good… including our plans and devices… the good, the bad, and the just plain stupid!
• Thus we can REST in the One who is Sovereign and omniscient and omnipotent… whose eternal plan is all wise… and whose counsel shall STAND.
4. Wisdom demands that we respond in faith and obedience to God’s will and counsel when it is made known. (Prov. 19:20)
a. Job 23:11 – God’s plan for Job included much suffering.
b. Job’s wisdom lay in the fact that he learned to submit to it and learn from it.
c. No human device of Job could have reversed God’s plan for his life.
Proverbs 19:22
The Desire of a Man
1. Desire:
a. This term can mean desires, longings of the heart; cravings; etc.
b. Here the term is used of the thing desired, the object of desire
• That which makes a man desirable is his kindness.
• A man’s personal kindness is that trait which makes him desirable to others… pleasing… attractive…
c. Usage:
• This term indicates something that is attractive and delightful to the eyes, desirable. (Gen. 3:6)
• Eve saw the fruit and she was attracted to it.
• There was something pleasing and appealing about the fruit. She desired it.
• The desire of that fruit (the desirable quality of that fruit) was the fact that it would make one wise.
• The desirable quality about this man is his kindness.
2. It is in this sense that Solomon uses this term to describe a man… or woman… any human being.
a. Solomon is describing a trait or a characteristic which makes a man appealing… attractive… pleasing… sought after…
b. We often think of good looks as that which makes a man or woman attractive.
c. Sometimes we might think that it is great wealth.
d. It might be their social status…
e. People are attracted to celebrities and royalty.
f. There are lots of things that might cause you to be attracted to a certain individual.
g. But here, Solomon zeroes in on one particular trait that is appealing or attractive.
h. That desirable quality is kindness.
3. Kindness defined:
a. Strong’s: Goodness; kindness; faithfulness.
b. Dict. Of Bib; Lang.: Loyal love, unfailing kindness, devotion, i.e., a love or affection that is steadfast based on a prior relationship.
c. It is used of being loyal to a covenant… faithful… reliable.
d. It is the type of kindness that demonstrates faithfulness and loyalty.
e. This term is translated “mercy” in Psalm 136, where it is used twenty-six times to proclaim that God’s kindness and love are eternal. God is faithful to His people. His kindness proves it.
f. Hos. 6:6 – God desired “mercy” and not sacrifice. God desires to see mercy in us (kindness; loyal devotion to Him)… and not just the performance of outward duties. That trait makes us attractive to God.
g. Job 6:14 – To him that is afflicted “pity” should be shown by a friend. That’s what friends are for. That is a desirable quality—a man or woman who shows pity to someone in a time of affliction. This quality makes us attractive to other people.
h. Ps. 141:5 – Let the righteous smite me. It shall be a “kindness.”
• Even in rebuke, a man’s kindness is displayed to a friend.
• He is showing loyalty to his friend by “smiting” him when he needs it. This is a desirable trait… even though it hurts.
i. Solomon’s point here is that it is this quality that makes a person attractive and appealing to others.
• People LIKE to see that quality demonstrated… if it is genuine… heartfelt.
• People are attracted to people who show love, kindness, mercy, and devotion to others.
j. Even in the world, men find this quality appealing.
• This truth helps to explain the immense popularity of Mother Theresa. She gave herself to helping and showing pity to afflicted people. She didn’t do it for the glory of God, but she did show mercy to afflicted people. On a human level, that is attractive.
• The world doesn’t find anything attractive about Christians evangelizing others. They have no use for spiritual things.
• But they DO find it attractive when someone opens a soup kitchen, or an orphanage, or a medical clinic for the poor. There is something appealing about showing mercy and kindness on a human level.
• A ministry like Dr. Mitchell’s goes a long way in helping to win the hearts of people… so that the people might be attracted to the Christian missionaries in his village.
• This proverb simply makes a statement about human nature: people are attracted towards those who show kindness and mercy.
• The desire of a man (that which makes him desirable) is his kindness.
k. Knowing this should help us to win the hearts of people around us too.
• By showing mercy and kindness to our unsaved friends and family members, we can be better equipped to win them to the Lord.
• Nobody will be attracted to us or to our message if we are mean and grumpy old men and women.
l. And this is a great way to make friends too. People are attracted to this quality: kindness!
• If you are constantly helping others, there is something appealing about that.
• If you are self centered and thus constantly complaining that others are not continually showing kindness to you, then that is not very appealing.
• The desirable trait here is not receiving kindness, but SHOWING it.
1. In the second part of this proverb, Solomon contrasts the man who shows kindness… loving loyalty… to a liar.
a. Liar: a deceiver; one who promotes falsehood.
b. Liar here is seen as being OPPOSITE of one who demonstrates loving loyalty… kindness…
c. A liar is disloyal and unkind to those to whom he lies.
d. His point is that NOBODY likes a liar. Nobody likes to be deceived, or tricked.
e. That is not a very attractive quality.
f. The liar stands in stark contrast to the man who is KIND.
• The first man demonstrates his loyalty through deeds of kindness and mercy.
• The liar perhaps PROMISES to help… he promises to demonstrate kindness… but he was lying. He had no intention of helping.
• Or perhaps he denies that he is ABLE to help, when he is in fact very able… but unwilling.
2. It is a great way to lose friends.
a. Psalm 119:163 – I hate and abhor lying: but thy law do I love.
b. Prov. 13:5 – A righteous man hateth lying: but a wicked man is loathsome, and cometh to shame. (Who wants to be with liars? They are not desirable; they are loathsome.)
c. Ps. 40:4 – Godly people lose all respect for a liar.
d. Ps. 101:7 – David didn’t want any liars working with him in his court. It is a most UNdesirable quality.
e. People are charmed by those who are thoughtful of others… by those who are loyal… considerate… reliable… kind.
f. But there is nothing charming about someone who is a liar who is disloyal and unkind.
g. The liar might PROMISE to help… he might SAY he will be there for you… but he’s not. He’s a liar. It’s all puffery.
h. A liar is unreliable… not trustworthy…
i. That is especially disappointing when you are counting on him to come through for you—and he doesn’t.
3. It is a great way to ruin your testimony for the Lord.
a. Not only do the godly hate liars, even men in the world hate liars.
b. If a candidate is caught in a boldfaced lie, it causes them to go down in the polls.
c. If a company is caught lying about its product, its sales go down.
d. And if a Christian is caught in a boldfaced lie in the office—rest assured that he will be the brunt of the jokes for the next three weeks. (And he calls himself a Christian!! Ha ha!)
4. In the second part of this proverb Solomon tells us just HOW undesirable a liar is.
a. A POOR man is better than him!
b. Poverty is one of things that most people would never want to be. Who wants to be poor… hungry… homeless… unable to feed your kids? No one!
c. It is one of the LAST things anyone would ever want to be.
d. So Solomon says that, as bad as being poor is, being a poor man is still better than being a liar.
5. Thus, a true contrast is made… in a simple, concise, and poignant manner.
a. Being loyal and kind is most desirable.
b. Being a disloyal liar is most despicable.
Proverbs 19:23
Satisfied in the Fear of the LORD
1. Solomon states that the fear of the Lord ___ to life.
a. There is no verb, it must be added.
b. Some translations have added “tended towards” life
c. Others added “leads to” life.
d. Yet others have “is” unto life.
e. You might also add “results in” life…
f. The meaning is virtually the same either way.
2. The meaning is similar to Proverbs 11:19a: “As righteousness tendeth to life…”
a. Chapter 11 speaks of the results of a righteous life.
b. Chapter 19 speaks of the results of a God-fearing life.
3. LIFE may imply two things here.
a. There is a sense in which righteousness and the fear of the Lord tendeth to (results in) preserving one’s physical earthly life.
• Prov. 10:27 – The fear of the Lord prolongs days.
• Prov. 14:26,27 – The fear of the Lord is a fountain (source) of life… and it keeps men from falling into the snares of death.
• Psa. 33:18, 19 – God takes care of those who fear Him… He delivers them from physical death… especially during difficult days.
» Believers have a special place in God’s heart.
» He KNOWS those who truly fear and honor Him.
» Those who have genuine honor and respect for the Lord—as demonstrated in their lives and attitudes—can expect that God will provide refuge and deliverance in time of trouble… even preserving their physical lives.
» Those who do not fear God have no such promise.
• Psa. 34:9-11 – God provides for one’s physical life in a special way when we fear Him.
• Psa. 145:18-20 – God fulfills all their desire and preserves those who love Him and fear Him.
• Mal. 3:16-17 – God will spare those who love and fear Him. God will spare him from evil and from misery.
• This is a common theme in the Bible concerning God-fearers: God prolongs their days; God preserves them; God protects them; God delivers them; God provides for them; spares them… from danger, death, and misery.
• The fear of the Lord LEADS TO (results in) LIFE (preserving, protecting, and prolonging) life…
• The FLIP SIDE of that is true also.
» Prov. 11:19b – So he that pursueth evil pursueth it to his own death.
» The one who chooses evil over righteousness sometimes pays with his life for that foolish decision.
» Prov. 8:36 – Those who choose to reject God’s wisdom behave as if they loved death… It is the path of death and destruction.
» Fearing God results in preserving and protecting physical life; a LACK of the fear of God often results in the loss of life.
b. Fearing God also TENDS TO LIFE in another sense: it preserves the GOOD life… paves the way for an ABUNDANT life… the quality of life.
• That is highlighted in the rest of the proverb.
1. He that hath it: he that hath a God-fearing attitude which results in life.
2. The God fearing man has life and as a result, he shall abide satisfied.
3. Satisfied:
a. Full; abounding; content.
b. Deut. 33:23 – Used of God’s blessing upon Naphtali.
4. Abide:
a. Lodge; dwell; continue; endure; rest.
5. The one who fears God—no matter what happens throughout life—can ABIDE satisfied.
a. His life will be characterized by blessing; contentment.
b. His life will be FULL… abounding.
c. And he will ABIDE in that fullness. It is not just a passing fullness, like this world offers.
d. The things of this earth come and go… they provide momentary satisfaction… but nothing lasting.
e. But the one who fears God… will be full… satisfied… and it is abiding and lasting. God never changes.
6. Psalm 25:12-13 – God fearers shall “dwell at ease.”
7. Psalm 34:9-10 – God fearers shall “lack nothing.” They will have all they need… and will be content. After all, they have GOD on their side. What more could we need?
1. Evil:
a. Hurt; ill; injury; harm; misery; trouble; distress; calamity.
2. Visited: (translated a variety of ways in different contexts)
a. To visit; search out; charge, count up; take inventory; examined; summoned; punish.
b. Visits can be either good or bad. It depends on who’s visiting and why! If the police visit with a warrant for your arrest, that’s not a good visit. But if your boss pays you a visit at your office with a big promotion, that’s a good visit.
c. When God visits a person, it can either be to bless or to judge.
d. This term is often used of Divine chastening (God visits the wicked with evil.)
e. Jer. 23:2 – God will visit them with the evil of their doings.
f. That’s the way Solomon uses it here… visiting with evil.
3. Solomon states in this proverb that those who fear Him will NOT be visited with evil.
a. In other words, they will NOT be chastened or punished.
b. They shall be preserved from the kind of evil and calamity that is visited upon those who do NOT fear God.
c. This is a good reason all by itself to fear the Lord. He means business.
4. This does not mean that bad things never happen to God fearing people. They DO.
a. But if a God fearing person IS afflicted with evil and calamity in life, he can know that it was not a visitation of Divine chastening or judgment.
b. Rather, it was a test allowed by God, not for his ruin, but for his good… and like Job he shall come forth as gold.
c. Bad things may happen to God fearing people, but it does mean that they will not harm him.
• Isa. 43:2 – “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.”
• The same event that otherwise would be a calamity is not so calamitous or catastrophic to the one who fears the Lord.
• We have been looking at the book of Daniel on Monday nights. Daniel’s three friends feared God and were cast into the fiery furnace… but they came out without one hair being singed… not even the smell of smoke on their clothes. The Lord was with them in the furnace. Calamity struck – but they were not harmed.
• Calamity happens to God fearers, but it is not the ruin of them.
• They cannot inflict lasting damage and misery.
d. Job 1:1 – Job feared God… and calamity struck.
• However, it did not ruin him.
• Job 23:10 – He came forth as gold.
• Job 42:12 – So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning.
e. Solomon tells us that the one who fears God will NOT abide in that. He will abide satisfied!
f. When calamity strikes a man who does NOT fear the Lord, that calamity may well abide. It may be his ruin. It may be lasting.
g. But not so with the God-fearing man or woman.
h. The one who fears God is not visited with evil, because whatever kind of evil or calamity he may face, God is able to turn it to good… as He did with Daniel’s friends… and with Job.
i. All things work together for good to those who love God… and fear Him.
j. Solomon puts a clear contrast before us: abiding satisfied, or abiding in ruin, calamity, and misery. (evil)
Proverbs 19:24
Slothfulness
1. Slothful Defined:
a. Sluggish, lazy.
b. Pertaining to be slow to take any action, suggesting a lack of discipline or initiative, as a moral failure.
c. The term is used only in Proverbs: (15 times) – 6:6, 9; 10:26; 13:4; 15:19; 19:24; 20:4; 21:25; 22:13; 24:30; 26:13-16.
2. Hiding his hand in his bosom.
a. Hiding: conceal, bury.
b. Bosom: this term has two possible meanings (like many English words)
• dish, bowl
• Bosom; chest area
c. The KJV translators chose to use the second definition.
d. Most other translations chose to use the first definition: dish or bowl.
e. While both are legitimate translations, the context (second part of the proverb) seems to favor translating it dish, since he is speaking of putting something in his mouth, eating.
f. If we understand the term to mean “bosom” it is hard to see what the relationship is between putting one’s hand in his bosom and then bringing it back to his mouth.
3. I understand it here that Solomon is describing a slothful, lazy, sluggish man who sticks his hand in his dish…
a. The second part of the proverb demonstrates just HOW lazy he is!
1. “Bring it again” = reverse direction; bring back; restore; put back; cause to return.
a. In other words, here is a man who buries his hand in the dish, presumably to draw out some food to eat.
b. However, he is SO incredibly lazy, that he won’t even bring the food up to his mouth to eat it!
c. Obviously, this is hyperbole… an exaggeration to make a point.
d. His point is that this man is REALLY lazy!
2. The POINT Solomon makes is that this man is SO lazy that he lacks what it takes to follow through with what he started.
a. He started to get something to eat… but he didn’t follow through.
b. He stuck his hand in the bowl to draw out some food, but he never finished the job… he didn’t follow through… and thus he never brought his hand back to his mouth to actually eat it!
c. He is so lazy he would rather starve than work.
d. That is exactly what the New Testament says he deserves! If a man will not work, neither should he eat. (II Thess. 3:10)
3. A man sticks his hand in the dish because he is hungry.
a. He knows WHAT his need is: food. He sees his need.
b. He knows WHERE the food is and he knows HOW to get it.
c. He started to get the job done… he stuck his hand in the bowl.
d. But he didn’t follow through. He didn’t FINISH the job.
e. Thus, he remained hungry. The need was never met.
4. This is a proverb that demonstrates through hyperbole the need to follow through on a project that you start… and the consequences of not following through.
a. Solomon traces the ROOT of this problem back to slothfulness.
b. Prov. 26:15 – the very same proverb.
• However, here is added the REASON he does not bring his hand back: “grieved.”
• Grieved = emotional weariness; worn out emotionally; wearied.
• Dict. of Bib. Lang.: Defines “grieved” emotionally tired, i.e., be in a state which will manifest negative emotions or attitudes such as impatience or discouragement.
• Ezek. 24:12 – She hath wearied herself with lies.
• Isa. 1:14 – Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.
• He’s too tired!
c. The real pitiful thing to note is that what he needs is right there before him! It is within reach… but he refuses to reach!
• He COULD have the food in the bowl… but he’s too lazy.
• This is the way of most lazy people.
• What they need is right there before them… within their reach… and with just a little effort it could be theirs!
• That’s the point here. Just a little more effort… a little more follow through… and it would all be theirs.
• But they won’t take that last step… it’s too hard. They come up with all kinds of excuses.
• The picture here Solomon paints is a man who is so lazy he expects the food is just going to fall into his mouth! It doesn’t work that way.
5. Prov. 15:19 – The way of the slothful man is as an hedge of thorns.
a. Here Solomon states that the way of a lazy man is all hedged in.
b. He is surrounded by a hedge of thorns: obstacles everywhere!
c. That’s all he sees… a hedge on every side… like a huge maze…
d. He may FEEL trapped… he sees no open doors… everywhere he looks he is hedged in.
e. He may feel that life is just too hard…
f. This is the thinking of the lazy man… the quitter…
g. But Solomon implies here that he is hedged in BECAUSE of his own slothfulness.
h. Consider the example of the two students: one lazy and one diligent.
• They both leave school and walk down the same pathway in life.
• As they walk down that pathway, the lazy classmate will find many closed doors—hedged in; while his hard working classmate finds many open doors.
• The lazy man finds many obstacles to his progress… hedges of thorns… but they are often obstacles of his own making!
• This is the WAY of the slothful man.
i. This “way of life” very quickly turns into a “poor me” attitude.
• Nothing ever goes right for me… woe is me…
• Everybody else always seems to get all the breaks, but not me! I never have any luck.
j. Then the “victim” mentality sets in.
• It’s the government’s fault. They should have a program for me.
• I DESERVE something better than this…
• Everybody is against me… the cards are all stacked against me.
• If the kids in the third grade didn’t pick on me so much, I never would have had such a hard time in life…
6. But Proverbs 19:24 calls that man’s bluff.
a. This proverb says that the REAL reason that he goes without is because he lacks what it takes to follow through with whatever he starts.
b. He did well in high school, but quit. Too much homework.
c. He went from job to job…
d. Then he got a pretty decent job, making a good salary, but didn’t stick it out.
• They wanted him to learn to use a computer, and he didn’t want to take the course.
• It was on a Friday night, and he liked to have fun on Friday nights. Work was crimping his lifestyle.
• Because he didn’t learn the needed skill, they had to let him go.
e. He tried to get another good job, but the personnel department didn’t like what they saw on his resume: “worked for six months here, a year there, four months at his next job, a year and two months there…”
f. And the personnel department wasn’t interested in listening to his endless list of excuses. They weren’t like dad and mom. They saw his record and said quite snappily, “No thank you.”
g. So he strikes out again… and becomes more and more emotionally worn out… drained… weary, discouraged… and quits again and again.
h. What he OUGHT to do is humble himself, take an entry-level job, and stick with it… and PROVE himself finally… and work his way up—like everybody else.
i. In other words, FOLLOW THROUGH on whatever you start!
7. The man in Solomon’s proverb was SO lazy, that he didn’t even follow through on something that was really quite EASY: eating!
a. And when you don’t follow through, your needs are not met.
b. You can stick your hand in a bowl full of food, but if you don’t follow through and bring it to your mouth, you will still be hungry.
c. This is a SERIOUS issue Solomon raises here—in a comical way: people who make a halfhearted effort.
d. This man did half the work. He did bury his hand in the bowl of goodies. But it didn’t do him any good. It didn’t satisfy his hunger at all.
e. Going half way doesn’t work.
• You don’t win a marathon by being first to cross the half way point. You have to FINISH.
• If a company requires a four year degree for the job you want, going to college for two years and quitting won’t get you in the door that you wanted to enter.
• If the doctor says you have to take your medicine every day… and you take it every other day, or whenever you feel like it, you won’t get the right result.
8. The same principle is true in the spiritual life as well.
a. This might just be the number ONE reason why Christians fail and falter in their walk… why they don’t experience victory: because they don’t follow through on what they started.
b. In a problem with a brother in the Lord. The Bible says, “Turn the other cheek.” He tried it, but it didn’t work. The brother is still mean to him… so he quit trying.
c. Or the husband who is having a spat with his wife. The pastor exhorts him to “Love your wife as Christ loved the church.” Too often the response is, “I tried it, but it didn’t work!”
d. Or a believer is trying to deal with a boss who constantly yells. The Bible says, “A soft answer turns away wrath.”
e. All too often believers get good advice from a brother in the Lord—right from the Scripture. And with the best of intentions, they start off well… but they don’t follow through! They quit mid stream.
f. The Bible doesn’t say turn the other cheek, and if that doesn’t work, try something else. Nor does it say use a soft answer two or three times, and if that does work, then look for another solution.
g. When the principles in God’s Word don’t seem to work for you, it’s not because they are ineffective. It’s because you quit too soon.
h. We tend to put in a half hearted effort. We really try at first (like putting your hand in the bowl of food), but then we don’t follow through… we don’t finish the job.
i. Thus, we don’t experience the victory or satisfaction… like the man with his hand in the bowl is still hungry.
j. The word of God is like that bowl. It is set right before us all… within reach. All we have to do is take of it and eat. Yet, as absurd as this proverb, we are often too lazy to eat… and we suffer spiritual hunger as a result.
k. This proverb is an extremely absurd one. When we read it, we immediately think, NOBODY could be that lazy… that stupid. But lo and behold. We do the same thing in the spiritual realm.
Proverbs 19:25
The Value of Discipline
A. Smite the Scorner
1. Scorner:
a. To scorn; talk arrogantly; mockingly.
b. Talk big, i.e., speak words which show no respect for the object, and make fun of the object.
c. To use colloquial expression, he is a big mouth, who is also arrogant and rude, and makes fun of others in a mocking way.
d. This is not poking fun in a good natured way. This isn’t fun for the other party. This is a hurtful kind of mocking.
2. Scorners come in all sizes, shapes, and colors.
a. A little toddler might scorn or mock his younger brother.
b. A high school student might mock some of his fellow students… perhaps those who are a little different.
c. Teenagers mock one another if they don’t like their clothes…
d. An employee might mock the boss… or other workers…
e. A politician might even mock his opponent.
f. People mock their politicians…
g. Different nationalities and races mock each other…
3. The unsaved mock Christian beliefs…
a. We have heard people mock the idea of Jonah being swallowed by a fish…
b. People mock the Biblical concept of a family…
c. Sinners mock sin. (Prov. 14:9 – Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour)
d. Sin is a laughing matter to them. It is a game or sport to them to cause mischief. (Prov. 10:23)
e. If you watch movies or sitcoms on TV you will see men mock at sin… and over time you will become de-sensitized to sin. It is not spiritually healthy for a Christian to watch such things.
f. Humor is a powerful medium.
g. And the folks in Hollywood have an agenda: to make fun of Christianity and Christian values… to get people to LAUGH at them, so others will be intimidated to practice them… for fear of being laughed at.
4. Even as believers, we are not above mocking or scorning one another.
a. I know that pastors get mocked and scorned by those who didn’t like what he preached on—especially if it hit a little too close to home… It’s easy to attack the messenger in a mocking way.
b. We can also mock one another—perhaps for different convictions that are held… or because of some other difference…
c. Believers sometimes mock the church… or the decisions leaders make… or the Sunday school teacher… or the message…
d. Christians are not above mocking.
e. Unfortunately, mocking and scorning are very common experiences of life.
5. Smite:
a. Smite, strike, beat, afflict, scourge, chasten, punish, used of a military victory.
6. Smiting a scorner speaks of DISCIPLINING a scorner…
a. Solomon is speaking here of some sort of authority DEALING with the scorning through discipline or punishment.
b. It could be a physical smiting for scorning. (A child may be spanked; you might get a punch in the nose for your big, rude, arrogant mouth.)
c. But perhaps more often it is a verbal smiting.
• The scorner is “smitten” by a verbal rebuke.
d. It could take on many other forms too.
• A scorner could be “smitten” by his boss by getting fired.
• A scorner could be “smitten” by losing his friends. (Prov. 24:9 – a scorner is an abomination to all men. Nobody likes a mocker.)
• A scorner could be “smitten” by going down in the polls (politician).
e. For the believer, it could take the form of Divine chastening.
• Prov. 3:34 – Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly.
• The scorner reaps what he has sown.
B. The Simple Will Beware
1. Simple: Inexperienced; naive; pertaining to persons that are easily deceived or persuaded, showing lack of wisdom and understanding, yet having some capacity to change this condition.
a. Prov. 1:4 – The book of Proverbs was written to give subtly to the simple.
b. Prov. 14:15 – They are often easily led and naive. But on the other hand, they are easily taught too
2. Beware:
a. To be crafty, be or become shrewd, cunning or wise.
b. This verb has a neutral tone but can assume either a negative tone: crafty and tricky (1 Sam. 23:22; Ps. 83:3[4]); or a positive tone: prudent and wise.
c. Here is it used in a positive sense: the simple is made wise. He learns from what he sees.
3. Prov. 21:11 – when the scorner is punished, the simple observe, learn, and are made wise.
4. Prov. 9:7, 8 – The simple might beware, but the scorner will not learn. He will hate you for it!
a. Prov. 13:1 – Scorners usually don’t listen.
5. But the simple onlookers DO pay attention to what they hear and see. The simple learn…
6. This principle has great application in MANY settings.
a. In the home:
• For example, a parent may spank a child for his big mouth… mocking and scorning and making fun of others.
• His younger and less experienced brothers will be sure to observe the spanking. They will hear their big brother cry.
• The younger simple brothers will become wiser and shrewder as a result… even if his big mouth brother DIDN’T learn his lesson from it.
• Dealing with a proud, scornful son can have a good effect on others who are observing in the background.
b. In the local church:
• God may “scorn the scorner.” God may allow the scorner to reap what he has sown.
• And even if he doesn’t learn from this form of chastening, other believers may learn.
• The believers who observe his actions and the results of his actions may be simple (inexperienced in the kind of scorning for which the scorner is being chastened) but by observing he can learn… He can beware… and become wiser as a result.
c. The point of the first part of the proverb is this: even if the scorner who is smitten for his scorning doesn’t learn his lessons… the smiting is worthwhile.
• OTHERS may learn from it… and often do.
• The smiting has a deterring effect—if not on the part of the scorner… surely on the part of those who observe.
• It may not cure the scorner, but it will prevent others from scorning.
• Matthew Henry put it this way: “If it cures not the infected, it may prevent the spreading of the infection.”
• Deut. 19:20 – that others may hear and fear.
• I Tim. 5:20 – “Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.”
• Sometimes it is necessary to make a public example of a sinner or criminal so that OTHERS will learn from their bad example.
• Teachers need to do that on occasion in the classroom.
• Judges need to do that on occasion in the courtroom.
• God told Moses to do it in Israel.
• In fact, church discipline is designed for the very same purpose. (Acts 5:5,11)
25b And reprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge.
1. Reproving a man of understanding is parallel with smiting a scorner.
a. Reproving and smiting are similar concepts. They both speak of confronting a man for the wrong he has done.
b. But the scorner and the man of understanding stand in contrast to each other. They are in some ways, opposites.
c. The proud, arrogant scorner doesn’t have understanding, and therefore, doesn’t learn.
d. But a man who may scorn… who may transgress in other ways, when he is reproved, he LISTENS and LEARNS.
e. And as a result, he understands even MORE knowledge. He learns through his failure.
f. Whereas smiting (physical punishment) is needed for mockers, a verbal rebuke is often sufficient for a man of understanding.
g. Prov. 17:10 – “A reproof entereth more into a wise man than an hundred stripes into a fool.”
• The scorner who will not listen to reproof, continues to be a scorner… in the end he is a fool!
• But the simple man (inexperienced) who does pay attention to the consequences of being a scorner, DOES learn… and in the end he becomes a wise man.
Proverbs 19:26
A Son that Causeth Shame
A Son’s Cruel Treatment of His Parents
26a He that wasteth his father
1. Wasteth:
a. The primary meaning of the verb is to devastate or to destroy.
b. It was the term Jeremiah used to describe the utter devastation of the Temple.
c. To deal violently with, despoil, devastate, ruin, destroy, spoil.
d. This term is broad enough to include the ideas of robbing, mistreating, or assaulting, etc.
2. Wasting one’s own father.
a. This speaks of the utter depravity of man.
b. This is probably a grown son—certainly not a toddler or a fourth grader.
c. Solomon describes an extreme example of a son who is so depraved, that he tramples over the most intimate relationship he has ever known—his own parents… the ones who brought him into the world… and showered him with love and care.
d. From time to time we hear of “elderly abuse” in nursing homes. Workers mistreat the elderly—hitting them and stealing from them.
e. As despicable as that is, what Solomon describes is much worse. It’s one thing to do so to a total stranger, but to one’s own parents?
f. Any kind of crime or sin committed against a loved one is far worse than the same crime or sin committed against a stranger.
g. It is certainly far more painful to the victim of the crime if you were assaulted by your own son!
h. If someone broke into your house and robbed you, you would naturally be angry and upset.
i. But if you discovered that it was your son—or daughter—you would be more than upset. In addition to being upset and angry over the robbery, you would be CRUSHED by the fact that it was your son that did it.
j. How could he!? After all you’ve done for him. That’s not the way you brought him up.
k. How will you face family, friends, and neighbors when they find out it was your own son?
l. How humiliating and embarrassing if his picture appears in the paper…
m. Yes, it’s far worse if it is your own son.
3. We might think that Solomon is using hyperbole here… this sort of thing could never happen!
a. But it DOES happen.
b. Sons can become drunks or drug addicts… and end up stealing to support their habit. And what easier target than dad’s house? You know where everything is there… even the dog won’t bark at you there.
c. Some elder fathers, beginning to experience dementia, have had their bank accounts dry up because of a heartless son who took advantage of them.
d. Some aging, wealthy men have even been killed by a greedy ingrate of a son so that he might get his inheritance sooner…
e. As despicable as these things are, they DO happen.
f. Prov. 28:24 – In fact, they have been happening for many centuries. Solomon spoke of it a few thousand years ago… repeatedly!
26b And chaseth away his mother
1. Chaseth: Chase; drive away; put to flight.
2. The term is often used of chasing away enemies. But here is it used of a son chasing away his own mother!
3. It is not clear HOW she is driven away.
a. Perhaps it was left ambiguous to make it applicable in all kinds of situations.
b. Perhaps the evil behavior of a son drives his mother away from him… because she can’t bear to be in his presence… it is too painful for her.
c. It could refer to a rebellious son refusing to see his mother because she is always correcting him… and he doesn’t want to hear it any more.
d. Perhaps an evil son literally drives his mother off her own property… through treachery or deceit he takes over the estate…
e. One might envision a cruel son sending his mother away empty when she comes to him for help.
f. Mark 7:10-11 -Jesus spoke of this too!
g. Yes, children can be cruel to their own parents… and this is nothing new.
h. Don’t think that “some strange thing” has happened to you. It has been happening since Solomon’s day and before.
i. We hear a lot about child abuse nowadays. But parent abuse and elderly abuse are issues that we should not ignore either. The Bible says a lot about this.
Respect for Parents Is a Serious Issue in the Bible
1. It’s hard to imagine something crueler (in the words of Jacob) than for a child to “bring down their gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.” (Gen.42:38)
2. Prov. 20:20 – Solomon even had to speak about children cursing their parents.
3. Ex. 20:12 – This was a violation of the fifth commandment.
4. Ex. 21:17 – It was punished by the death penalty. That should tell us how seriously God takes this matter.
5. II Tim. 3:2 – The last days:
a. Paul warns us that in the last days, disobedience to parents will be even more prevalent.
b. Without natural affection… chasing his own mother away…
c. Unthankful – the son Solomon describes is the ultimate in a self centered ingrate!
d. Of course these traits have existed for many centuries… since the fall of man. However, Paul says that there will be an INCREASE of this kind of behavior in the last days.
6. Children should TAKE CARE of their aging parents.
a. II Cor. 12:14 – For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children…
• Parents take care of the children when they are young.
• Parents lay up for them… they provide food, clothing, shelter, etc. They salt away some money for school for them.
• They do so out of love and natural affection.
• Kids are unable to take care of themselves. God designed the home… and parents.
b. I Tim. 5:4 – Requite their parents = Take care of them by paying them back for the many years of sacrifice the parents endured in bringing them up.
c. There is a natural cycle here:
• Parents lay up for their children.
• Children take care of aging parents.
• Parents die and leave their estate to their children.
• Those children thus have some resources to bring up the next generation.
• It is a natural cycle of natural affection… family members taking care of one another at various stages of life… when help is needed.
d. Our proverb tonight takes note of the fact that that cycle of natural affection is sometimes broken by cruel and heartless children.
e. There is nothing new under the sun.
f. I Tim. 5:8 – If anyone allows his “own” (flesh and blood) to go without the basic provisions of life, he is worse than an infidel.
• One who breaks this natural cycle by refusing to help his own flesh and blood is worse than an unbeliever.
• It is not a good testimony.
• Unfortunately, it happens all too often.
• Some sons waste their fathers and chase away their mothers. That is NOT the way it ought to be.
THE RESULT
1. Shame – Ashamed; be disconcerted; be disappointed; have a painful feeling and emotional distress (sometimes to the point of despair); humiliation.
2. Reproach – Ashamed, be confounded, be in a state of low status and dishonor; disgraced.
3. These two terms are virtual synonyms.
a. The behavior of the son Solomon describes produces great shame and disgrace.
b. What is interesting is that which Solomon doesn’t SAY. He doesn’t say WHO is shamed or reproached.
4. It could be the parent’s fault, but not necessarily.
a. It may NOT be his parent’s fault at all.
• He might have other siblings that treat their parents well… who are also grieved over his behavior.
• The parents may have trained him well, but he chose to go down another path… a path of ruin and destruction.
• That’s not his parent’s fault.
• Of course if his parents neglected him and abused him, then they share in the blame too.
• But Solomon gives no hint whatsoever that this is the parent’s fault here. Solomon blames the son.
• Many godly fathers have had sons whose behavior was a grief to them. (Eli; David; Samuel)
vii. Unfortunately, this is a common experience of life. It has been a common theme in Proverbs.
b. The son has really brought shame and disgrace upon himself.
• He has violated the natural laws of family behavior… He has violated the moral laws of God… He has violated the normal obligations of a child to his parents…
• It is gross ingratitude… inhuman behavior…
• It is selfish to the nth degree.
c. He has also brought disgrace to his society…
• Society should not tolerate such behavior. It is degrading… and abases the whole land.
• That’s why the Law of Moses required children to HONOR their mother and their father.
• If the family isn’t strong, then the nation isn’t strong.
d. He has brought shame and disgrace to his parents…
• Even if it is NOT the parent’s fault, they feel it most.
• When parents are mistreated by their own flesh and blood, it is painful.
• Prov. 17:21 – “He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow: and the father of a fool hath no joy.”
• A foolish child (son or daughter) robs parents of their joy.
• Many an aging parent has gone to the grave in sorrow because of the shameful way their own children treated them…
5. The child who wastes his father or chases away his mother brings shame and reproach.
a. This is a good warning to the young children to APPRECIATE what your parents do for you.
b. This is a good reminder to older, adult children to take care of your aging parents.
c. Natural affection will keep this natural cycle going as God intended.
Proverbs 19:27
Instruction that Causeth Thee to Err
Introduction:
1. This proverb is translated in one of two ways, that at first seem to be saying the opposite, but they are not.
a. KJV and others
• KJV: Cease, my son, to hear the instruction that causeth to err from the words of knowledge.
• Darby: Cease, my son, to hear the instruction which causeth to stray from the words of knowledge.
• This is a command: stop listening!
b. Others:
• Holman Christian Standard Bible: If you stop listening to instruction, my son, you will stray from the words of knowledge.
• NASB: Cease listening, my son, to discipline, And you will stray from the words of knowledge.
• This is a conditional clause: if you stop listening… you will err.
2. One is a command to STOP listening (because it will cause you to err), and the other is a condition: IF you stop listening, you will err.
a. One says, “stop listening or else!” The other one says, “don’t stop listening or else!”
b. What is implied in each is this:
• KJV: stop listening to bad instruction…
• Others: don’t stop listening to good instruction
3. One might think at first glance that these two are opposites and hopelessly contradictory… but that is not the case.
a. Actually, in the end, they are both saying pretty much the same thing… one from a positive and one from a negative perspective.
4. All hinges on the italicized words: that causeth
a. These words were added by the translators.
b. This completely changes the way we approach this proverb.
c. SOMETHING needed to be added to this sentence for it to make sense. This is common in any language. We do it in English.
d. What I like about the KJV is that they TELL you they have added words.
• Thus, with the KJV, you have the option of interpreting it for yourself.
• The other translations do not tell you that. They lead you to believe that there are no options.
• Young’s Translation: Cease, my son, to hear instruction—To err from sayings of knowledge. (nothing is added but a dash)
e. LIT: Cease to hear instruction… err from sayings of knowledge.
• You can add: If… then (if you cease to hear, then you will err)
• You can add: Cease to hear and it will cause you to err)
• SOMETHING has to be added.
• Both make perfect sense; both are true; both concepts are supported by other proverbs; both are equally legitimate ways to reconcile the two parts of the proverb.
f. Since something needs to be added… and the only two things that make sense to add are equally viable and legitimate, I am going to look at BOTH possibilities.
• We will see from the Scriptures how perfectly legitimate both views are.
• Usually the author has ONE thing in mind when he writes. We don’t give two meanings to one passage.
• However proverbs are a little different.
• One has to wonder if Solomon left this ambiguous on purpose that it might be taken either way.
• I don’t feel qualified to say dogmatically one way or the other, so we are going to look at both possibilities.
KJV
27 Cease, my son, to hear instruction that CAUSETH TO ERR from the words of knowledge.
A. Cease to Hear!
1. This would be a COMMAND to stop listening to WRONG instruction.
2. Prov. 14:7 – GO from the presence of a foolish man. Get away from him.
a. If you stay with him and you will eventually listen to him.
b. The command here is, “Don’t listen to him,” for you will become LIKE him if you do.
c. Therefore, GO from his presence.
3. Matt.16:6, 12 – Don’t listen to the “leaven” (false teachings) of the Pharisees.
a. Leaven is a corrupting influence that starts off small, and then spreads throughout the whole.
b. Don’t listen to false teachings because it will have a corrupting influence on YOU.
4. Mark 4:24 – “take heed what ye hear.”
5. I Tim. 4:7 – Refuse old wives fables.
a. It isn’t necessary to be familiar with every strange view that comes along.
b. It isn’t necessary to have an answer for every strange view.
c. We are told to REFUSE them!
d. This is the same word as “reject” in Tit. 3:10 – reject a heretic!
e. Don’t give them the light of day. They are a waste of time and energy.
6. I Tim. 6:3-5 – Withdraw yourselves from those who do not teach wholesome words.
7. II Tim. 2:16-18 – but SHUN profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as doth a canker. (They err and overthrow the faith of some.)
8. II John 10 – When someone comes to your house with false doctrine, don’t receive him into your house. Don’t even listen to him!
9. This is a common and oft repeated theme in the Scriptures.
B. Causing You to Err
1. There are words which (if listened to) will cause you to err from the words of knowledge and truth.
a. This was the problem of Eve in the Garden. She first LISTENED to the serpent.
b. The words of the serpent led her and Adam astray.
c. Being led astray begins with words… listening to words… appealing words (ye shall be as gods)… great swelling words of enticement…
2. Words can be helpful or harmful…
a. Not everyone who offers you advice is offering that which is good for you.
b. There is such a thing as BAD advice… and bad advice can lead you astray.
c. This kind of warning is necessary because Satan has his emissaries out in the world seeking to lead us astray. They fill pulpits. They write books. They have talk shows. They are on TV and radio. They are out for your ear and your heart.
d. This is one of the reasons the doctrine of separation is so important. God wants us to AVOID those whose doctrinal positions can lead us astray. Stay away… don’t listen to… avoid!
e. Gal. 5:7-8 – Paul warned the Galatian believers about listening to the Judaizers.
• They were having a corrupting effect on the church.
• These false teachers were causing believers to be led astray into error.
• He writes to tell them to CEASE from hearing them!
f. Rom. 16:17 – Avoid them altogether.
g. The world teaches us to be broadminded… to listen to all religious voices. God says just the opposite. DON’T listen!
h. Deut. 13:1-4 – Do not hearken to him. He is to be put to death! God meant business concerning those who lead His people astray.
3. Why do you think the Jehovah’s Witnesses continue to knock on doors?
a. Because some people let them in and listen to them.
b. Even some believers let them in and listen to them (in spite of what John said!)
c. And they are well versed in their twisted concept of sonship… and most believers are not able to answer their questions… and are easily deceived by them.
4. This is good advice when it comes to many of the popular speakers on TV and radio too.
a. Don’t buy their books. Don’t listen to their tapes and CD’s.
b. Don’t listen to what they have to say.
c. The danger is that they mingle truth with error, and many new or untaught believers don’t have the discernment to be able to separate the truth from the error.
d. That’s why Solomon said CEASE TO HEAR…
5. And what good advice this proverb is to our young people away at secular colleges and universities!
a. Don’t listen to words that will cause you to err from your faith in Christ and in the Word of God!
b. Don’t give credence to them. Sift everything through the Word of God. Put everything you hear to the test of God’s Word.
c. They will try to convince our young people about variations to morality… the origins of the earth… new forms of family… spanking… roles of husbands and wives…
d. They have an agenda to replace every last ounce of Christian influence in this country with their own program. Don’t hear them!
e. Solomon urged his son to RESIST every assault against the words of knowledge he received from his father and from the Lord.
NKJV
1. The NEW KJV interprets the proverb as a conditional clause. “If you cease to listen to instruction, you will stray…”
a. Unfortunately, they did not italicize the words they added.
b. This conditional clause (in meaning if not grammatically) is akin to what Solomon wrote in verse 20: “Hear counsel… and you will be wise…”
c. The difference is that verse 27 approaches the subject from the negative: “If you stop hearing counsel… you will stray…”
d. If you STOP listening to good instruction, you will err… wander… go astray…
e. Therefore don’t stop listening to GOOD advice and instruction.
f. The point is this: don’t ever stop learning! Don’t ever stop receiving instruction.
g. Don’t ever think you have arrived at a place of wisdom where you no longer have to listen to advice and counsel. That is PRIDE.
h. Young people like to think that they can open themselves up to all kinds of theories and philosophies and not be influenced by them. It is a lie.
i. We like to think of ourselves as being broadminded and intellectual because we are open to all kinds of views. In fact, we end up with a kind of eclecticism that is spiritually deadly.
j. That person will surely FALL… wander… be led away into error.
2. This thought is also well attested to in the book of Proverbs and throughout the Scriptures.
a. Many of the earlier proverbs were instructions from a father to a son. (Like this one… the expression “my son” has not been seen since chapter 7)
b. Solomon wrote to his son and gave him much fatherly instruction.
• Here Solomon states to his son, “My son, if you stop listening to the instruction I’ve given you over the years, you will end up in trouble. You will STRAY far away.”
c. Prov. 19:20 – Hear counsel
• Solomon’s point here is that counsel is to be heard.
• It is to be sought out.
» Sometimes counsel comes to us. But sometimes, we have to seek it out.
» Seek older, spiritually mature believers for advice.
• It is to be listened to carefully.
» And when they give you advice, listen carefully.
» Even if you don’t like what they say, LISTEN.
» Hear them out. They are trying to help.
» If you CEASE TO HEAR, you will not gain the help you need. You will err from the right pathway.
d. Prov. 12:15 – The fool is the opposite of the one who HEARS instruction. The fool doesn’t listen because of his pride. He thinks he knows it all. If he CEASES TO HEAR… he will wander in folly!
e. Prov. 11:14 – Where no counsel is, the people fall. (They wander about in the dark, and eventually fall!)
3. Thus, understanding Prov. 19:27 to be a conditional clause in meaning, (“If you cease to hear instruction… then you shall go astray,”) there is equally well supported in Proverbs and in the rest of the Scriptures.
Proverbs 19:28-29
Scorners and Justice
28a An ungodly witness scorneth judgment:
1. Ungodly:
a. Worthless; good for nothing; unprofitable; base fellow.
b. One who is a lawbreaker and unruly, and rebellious.
c. The Hebrew word is “belial” which means a worthless person.
d. This term appears in Greek form in the New Testament as a name or title for the devil… the worthless one. (II Cor. 6:15 – what concord hath Christ with Belial?)
2. Witness:
a. This term means exactly the same as in modern English: a witness; a testimony.
b. It refers to a person which gives verbal testimony and provides information about a situation… sometimes used in a courtroom situation.
3. Ungodly Witness
a. A witness is to testify to what he knows… to provide verbal information…
b. In a courtroom situation, someone’s life could hang in the balance!
c. A good, honest witness could cause you to be justified.
d. A worthless witness, an ungodly witness who lies… could result in your incarceration or death.
e. Ex 23:1 – an honest, accurate witness was required under the Law… but it didn’t always happen… just like today.
f. Many men go to jail, and sometimes for long periods of time, for crimes they did not commit—because of a worthless witness… an ungodly witness who was covering for a friend.
4. Scorns judgment
a. Judgment:
• Justice; deciding a legal dispute or case.
• II Sam. 15:4 -Legal action taken in court.
b. Scorns:
• Mock; make a mockery of; show no respect; make fun of.
c. Solomon’s point is that an ungodly witness (one who lies; one who is not in truth; willing to perjure himself) makes a mockery of justice.
• This is the kind of person who would mock when he hears that God is holy and will judge the hearts of men one day. He laughs that thought to scorn! He mocks divine justice.
• But it is likely that Solomon had earthly justice in mind here.
• This man would mock the judicial system in the land.
d. I Kings 3:16-27 – Remember that Solomon was a king, who also functioned as a JUDGE on occasion.
• Recall the account of the two women who came to him, both claiming to be the mother of the living child—one was a boldfaced liar! A false witness.
• Solomon knew firsthand about witnesses before the judicial system who were liars.
• One of the mothers lied to his face as she stood before his throne.
• I’m sure he caught many other false witnesses too… ungodly witnesses.
e. Solomon’s assessment was that they made a mockery of justice.
• To them justice was a joke.
• To them truth didn’t matter.
• To them the judicial system of the land meant little.
• But Solomon knew that the stability of a nation depends upon everyone having a sense that they will get a fair shake in a court of law.
• Without justice—there will be rebellion and insurrection.
• As a king and a judge, Solomon saw making a mockery of justice as extremely detrimental to nation of Israel.
• Their lies undermined the stability of their national institutions (like the judicial system; the monarchy). That caught the attention of one who was both king and judge.
1. The mouth of the wicked
a. Wicked: guilty one; criminal.
b. Deut. 25:1 – Judges were to condemn the wicked (same term = guilty criminals).
c. Prov. 18:3 – When the wicked (same term) come, then comes contempt. (Contempt = attitude of disrespect and scorn toward persons.)
d. Solomon is describing the person who has no respect for authority, for the law, for the judicial system…
e. We shouldn’t expect good things to come out the mouth of this person.
2. But Solomon isn’t speaking here about what comes OUT of his mouth.
a. He is speaking about what he puts IN his mouth.
b. Devoureth: To gulp down; to swallow; consume.
c. Solomon states that these contemptuous wicked men (or women) DEVOUR iniquity… sinful things.
d. Devour is obviously used in a figurative sense.
• They don’t literally EAT iniquity.
• But they do “take it in” and make it theirs.
• You are what you eat. You devour it and it becomes part of you.
• Figuratively, it means to “embrace” or to “partake of.”
• This implies that he likes it… he delights in it. We eat food because we ENJOY it. He partakes of sin because he enjoys it. There is a pleasure to sin.
• Prov. 1:22 – Scorners delight in their scorning. It makes them feel good… superior… smarter than everyone else
• It also implies that he has an appetite for iniquity… an insatiable appetite for it.
• Job 15:16 – this man drinks iniquity like water!
3. Iniquity: Wickedness; unrighteousness; morally evil and corrupt.
a. Sin, and moral corruption, have a corrupting effect on a nation.
b. Prov. 14:34 – Sin is a reproach to any people.
4. Solomon writes about the DANGER of such a person.
a. Out of the mouth of this man comes a mockery of justice which undermines a land.
b. Into his mouth he puts iniquity, which is a reproach to the land.
c. As a king and a judge, Solomon was determined to deal with this kind of individual.
d. The next proverb speaks of that.
Vs. 29 – Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools
1. Here Solomon speaks about what he has in store for such scorners and fools.
2. Judgments are prepared for the scorners.
a. Judgments = a different word for judgment than appears in the previous verse.
b. This word means “punishments” – “inflicting pain or suffering on a guilty party, either to improve behavior, or for strict justice.”
c. Stripes – Whipping done on the back. It too inflicts pain.
d. This man devours iniquity, but he doesn’t realize that he has swallowed a hook along with the bait… punishment accompanies the iniquity he devoured.
3. In other words, Solomon was determined to PUNISH those who scorn the legal system by lying as an ungodly witness… or attempting to obstruct justice.
4. Solomon’s answer: they will be punished and beaten!
a. Those who scorn judgment will not escape judgment!
b. And even if they don’t learn the lesson from their punishment, they would STILL be punished for the sake of strict justice… because it is the right thing to do.
c. Prov. 19:25 – As previously mentioned, even if the scorner doesn’t learn, the punishment is right because OTHERS might learn from it… and beware…
5. Such punishments have been PREPARED (ordained; appointed; set in place).
a. Prov. 13:1 – Scorners don’t learn from a rebuke. It takes something much more severe and serious to get their attention.
b. Rom. 13:4 – God designed human government such that they are equipped to execute justice.
c. They have judgments PREPARED for scorners…
d. They do not bear the sword in vain.
6. There ought to be a healthy sense of fear both in a home and in a nation—a fear of the sword for evil behavior. That kind of fear is GOOD. It prevents evil behavior from becoming commonplace.
7. And this sends a good warning to young people too.
a. If you have friends who scorn justice and righteousness, find some new friends!
b. Those friends who scorn God’s justice and sacred things will not escape the punishment.
c. And those who STAND with them are in danger too.
d. “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.” (Ps. 1:1)
• Don’t walk with them; don’t stand with them,
• Because eventually you will be sitting with the scornful and become one OF them!
• And you will find punishment prepared for you too!
