Proverbs 21-31

“Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint.”(Proverbs 23:11) Our culture would have us believe that riches lead to happiness. Of course not all, but most celebrities with fame and fortune are the unhappy of all and cause their own demise with the constant “chase”. Done spend your time chasing fleeting earthly treasures.

“Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor...Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding…Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes? Those who linger over wine…In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. Your eyes will see strange sights and your mind imagine confusing things.”(23:20, 23, 29, 32, 33) To some, alcohol is comforting or an excuse to drop inhibitions and behave according to animal instinct without rational thought. Real relief and comfort comes from dealing with the cause of the anguish and sorrow and turning to God for peace. You can lose yourself in alcohol; and you can find yourself in God. The Bible warns the dangers of wine. Wine dulls the senses; limits clear judgment; it lowers the capacity for control; it destroys a person’s efficiency. Wine is a means for self-indulgence, or as an escape from life. I have witnessed people in bars who were “respectable and of sound judgment” until they decided to indulge and become drunk. To watch a strong individual give in so easily to temptation and weakness is a sad sight. The people that claim they have the most fun when they are drinking leads me to wonder if they know what “fun” really means and if they ever uncover the buried painful emotions that they are desperately trying to run away from. Alcohol will never be a means to a healthy end. Beware of seeking numbness and hardening your heart so that in time; it becomes challenging to give and receive love.

“If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!”(24:10) Times of struggle and trouble can show you who you are; what type of character you’ve developed. Trouble can be a great thing. Difficulty helps you grow stronger. Complaining of your troubles only actualized your weakness in overcoming the trial to experience the joy. Instead, consider good times and bad times blessings because God is preparing you for situations He needs you to be strong for in the future. It’s like experiencing growing pains; sure when you were a child you wouldn’t wish those feelings on your worst enemy; but then again, how will you relate to your children or others who experience similar growing pains had you not gone through what you did. This is when it is always important to remember God’s good purposes for allowing circumstances in your life; when we remember this life “is not all about me” and realize that God equips us to help another in their circumstance; we begin to realize why things may have happened to us.

“An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips.”(24:26) One who gives an honest answer is a true friend; bending the truth to avoid hurt feelings will only hurt your friend more. Have you had a friend speak honestly and freely to you and you knew it was the truth even though you didn’t like hearing it? It doesn’t feel great when someone holds a mirror to your face and challenges you to evaluate your weaknesses; but this is part of true friendship. When you love someone; you encourage them to see the truth and make changes on their own accord when necessary. When people want the sugar coated version of the truth; it is usually because they aren’t ready to do something about the truth or ready to even hear it.

“Like the coolness of snow at harvest time is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the spirit of his masters.”(25:13) Trustworthy friends and coworkers are hard to come by in our world; fair-weathered acquaintances are much easier with the rise of easy communication through technology. A faithful messenger is punctual, responsible, honest, and hardworking.

“Like a club or a sword or a sharp arrow is the man who gives false testimony against his neighbor.”(25:18) False testimony or lying is vicious. Its affects can cut like a stab wound. When we are tempted to gossip about someone, we should imagine ourselves stabbing the person we care about with a sword because that is the way it feels when the gossip has been discovered.

God’s word is God’s gift to us. We know Him through His word and in studying the Bible, His word speaks to us. God can communicate in more ways than one and it is important to realize that His word is our guide; but in order to understand and apply His word, you’ll need the Holy Spirit to direct how the word is meaningful for you and in your particular situations. For instance, in Proverbs, there seems to be a contradiction in the word. “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself.”(26:4) The very next line reads, “answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.”(26:5) Although seemingly contradictory, it is important to realize that this is precisely the reason you need the Holy Spirit to speak to you as you read the word so that you’ll know which truth applies to you and at which time. You may use both truths with 2 different people; or both for the same person on two different days. It is impossible to apply God’s word without the Holy Spirit for times like this when you don’t know which path is the wiser of the two.

Here are four different tongues. The controlled tongue: those that think before speaking, know when silence is best, and give wise advice. The caring tongue: those who speak truthfully while seeking to encourage. The conniving tongue: filled with wrong motives, gossip, slander, and a desire to twist the truth. The careless tongue: patterns of speech filled with lies, curses, quick-tempered words that can lead to rebellion and destruction.

“As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”(27:17) Meeting of the minds helps people see their ideas with new clarity to shape them into brilliant insights. To gain such mental sharpness is to place yourself in the presence of those who challenge you and stimulate thought. People who can free themselves of ego and immerse themselves in openly sharing in discussion; this occurs with people who learn how to argue the thought and not the thinker. Two people who selflessly bring together their ideas can help each other become sharper.

Diligence versus Laziness: The Diligent: Become rich, gather crops early will rule, prize their possessions, are fully satisfied, bring profit, have an easy path, stay awake and have food to spare, make careful plans, give without sparing, reap abundance through hard work. The lazy: are soon poor, sleep during harvest, are an annoyance, chase fantasies, will become slaves, waste good resources, want much but get little, experience poverty, have trouble all their life, love sleep and grow poor, love pleasure and become poor, desire things but refuse to work for them, sleep too much which leads to poverty, experience poverty because of laziness.

“If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable.”(28:9) God will not listen to our prayers if we secretly intent to go back to our sin as soon as we get off our knees; we can’t keep secrets from an all-knowing God. It is not the depth of our sin that closes God’s ear to our prayer, but the intention to repeat the sin over and over again.

“He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”(28:13) It is hard to admit we are wrong at times. Have you met someone where you can’t remember ever hearing them willingly admit to a wrongdoing? Have you been that person? It is easy to admire someone who openly and graciously admits their mistakes. These people have a strong self-image. They do not always have to be right to feel good about themselves. Be willing to reconsider and admit to being wrong. The first step toward forgiveness is confession.

Qualities of Good Leadership: diligence, trustworthy messengers, listen before answering, able to discern, listen to both sides of the story, stand up under adversity, able to stand up under praise. What happens without good leadership: honoring the wrong people backfires, a wicked ruler is dangerous, and people despair.

“A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed without remedy.”(29:1) Making the same mistake over and over again is not only foolish and a waste of time, but also an invitation to disaster. People will face consequences when they refuse to learn the lessons from mistakes.

“A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.”(29:11) Have you ever seen someone you thought really had it together and then they lost their temper and gave in to looking ridiculous in their own anger? Did their credibility come down in your eyes? We are witnesses to those around us; God is always watching our behavior. It doesn’t matter how many great deeds you do; when we lose our tempers and give way to anger against another, deserving or not according to us, we lose all our credibility as a trustworthy and sound individual.

“Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise; Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer; coneys are creatures of little power, yet they make their home in the crags; locusts have no king, yet they advance together in ranks; a lizard can be caught with the hand, yet it is found in kings’ palaces.”(30:24) Ants teach us about preparation; coneys about wise building; locusts about cooperation and order; and lizards about fearlessness.

The book of Proverbs ends with a picture of a woman of strong character, great wisdom, many skills, and great compassion. “The wife of Noble Character” is described in the Epilogue as an excellent wife and mother. She is a manufacturer, importer, manager, realtor, farmer, seamstress, upholsterer, and merchant. The results of her strength are described as achievements because of her reverence for God. Her attractiveness comes entirely from her character; not outside appearance. “A wife of noble character who can find? Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm. She works with eager hands. She provides food for her family…her arms are strong for her tasks. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned and let her works bring her praise at the city gate. “(31:10-31) Her qualities are hard work, fear of God, respect for spouse, foresight, encouragement, care for others, concern for the poor, wisdom in handling money, successes, honor, and worth.

Proverbs show us how to become wise and live according to God’s wisdom. It helps us make decisions and live according to God’s ideal.