The crown of the wise is their riches, But the folly of fools is foolishness. Proverbs 14:24
There is a promise from God that the wise will be crowned with riches. Some take this to mean only financial riches. The problem with this view is that many a godly, wise man or woman did not grow rich with money - but would argue to their death that they were rich in ways that a wealthy man would never understand. That is the key to understanding the proverb for today. When a man acts wisely, he will be blessed in business endeavors. His wisdom will guide him into good practices that will yield sustainable financial growth and blessing. Wisdom will keep him from ungodly habits that rob a man of his wealth - as well as help him form habits that will prove very financially profitable to him. It was the wisdom of Joseph that kept Egypt from being devastated from seven years of famine that came to them. That wisdom led them to not sqander the years of blessing that God gave them. They saved instead and prepared for leaner times that would come. Wisdom is what leads us in this way. Wisdom also leads us to abandon addictive activities that rob us of wealth. A wise man does not engage in gluttonous and addictive habits like smoking, drinking, taking illegal drugs or overeating - not just because of the health problems such lifestyles pose. They also avoid these things because they have a tendency to cost a great deal financially as well. The hard working mindset of the wise man also prospers him and causes him to be blessed financially. All these things as well as hundreds more bless the wise man. The wealth that a wise man gathers is more than financial though. He embraces wisdom because he embraces God. The wealth that comes to him initially manifests itself through the gospel. He receives the grace of God - and learns that this makes him wealthy beyond imagination. He rejoices in God more than in mere financial riches. This gives him the precious jewel of contentment - which makes him richer still. Being content in God, he knows a sense of blessing no matter whether he has little or much in this world. He has fellowship with Almighty God - and a future promise of an eternity enjoying Him in heaven. Knowing this makes him rich even if he has nothing - and causes all who watch him to covet the joy and peace that reigns in his heart. The fool only knows his folly. The interesting thing about this second phrase in verse 24 is that all the fool gets for his folly is more foolishness. The word in Hebrew here is "ivveleth" which means foolishness or folly. We don't really get the idea of what the fool is doing and getting here until we look at the root of these two words. The root word for folly and for foolishness used in verse 24 is "ewiyl." The word means a foolishness that hates wisdom and morality. Hence this man walks in a way that despises God's counsel - and that embraces a worldly morality that rejects God's commands. In the end, this fool will only get his fill of his own ways. One of the Hebrew targums on this verse teaches us that when the fool acts according to his foolishness, he is not rewarded with riches - but with only a wealth of his own foolishness. In truth - the fool gets nothing for his foolish behavior. He receives only more foolishness and deeper bondage to his ungodly actions. This may be hard to understand, but let me conclude the comments on today's proverb with two examples. The fool acts with folly - and gets more foolishness for it. The heavy drinker drinks himself into a stupor. The drug addict gets high. The sex addict looks at his online pornography or engages in prostitution. Each of these fools acts foolishly - and what they get for their actions is a deeper desire for more. They don't ever get anything except a short-lived thrill for their folly. The wise man acts according to God's wisdom and moral law and receives riches for his actions. His work ethic yields wealth for him. His choice to avoid sexual immorality will yield a happier life with the wife of his youth. His choice to avoid the excesses of the party life will yield two things. First, he has a morning without the hangover or the downer from his high. Second, he will live a far more healthy life because he avoids these things that destroy our physical bodies. The wise man is crowned with a wealth of unwasted money, undamaged health, and one other thing more valuable than all else. He winds up with uninterrupted fellowship with His God.
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The poor is hated even by his neighbor, But those who love the rich are many. Proverbs 14:20
Popularity is far too often determined by what a person has or does not have, rather than by whether they are a person of character and value. Today's proverb reminds us of this as we are faced with how people are judged by their bank account rather than by who they truly are in life. The poor is hated by even his neighbor. That is a strong statement, but unfortunately, a true one. James warns in chapter 2 of those who judge by the mere appearance of wealth in the church. His statement is fascinating and will bring much light on our current verse here in Proverbs 14. "My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, "You sit here in a good place," and you say to the poor man, "You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool," have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives? Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?" (James 2:1-5) Here James confronts the attitude that respects the rich, but despises the poor. The rich are recognized by their clothing and their jewelry as they walk into the meeting of the church. As a result, they are treated with great respect and deference. The poor, whose clothes seem to betray their poverty, are treated with disrepect and disdain. One if given the seat of honor - the other is left to sit on the floor. The problem with this kind of judgment is that it is motivated by evil motives. Honor is given by what a person makes - not what God has made of them. Respect is shown because of a person's wealth of money - not their wealth of godliness and character. These things are done also because of selfishness, because we figure in the end that we can "get something" from them. We will profit from the relationship - but the profit we seek is only monetary. We shun spiritual blessing and true wealth. We are reminded hat the poor of this world are usually rich in faith. We devalue that and forget that God sees all and knows all. This is evil - and shows great disrespect for Both God and His Word. It also usually aligns us with those who do harm to God's people. The poor, we read, are rich in faith and are heirs of the kingdom. Ultimately we need to remember that Jesus was poor as He lived on this earth. He spoke of how the birds of the air had nests - but He had no where to lay His head. It is not that the poor are automatically saved - due to their poverty. It is that they have nothing in this world - thus they are far more ready to hear what God says - not being blinded by their money or their possessions. If we despise the poor - we in all honesty despise our Lord Jesus as well. Yet he is rich in what truly matters - and from what we read in James - the poor are usually rich in faith as well. That is why we need to be wise and value people not on a basis of their financial bottom line - but with true judgment - on the basis of their character and their wisdom gained from their intimacy with God and their study of His Word. He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will suffer harm.
Proverbs 13:20 Who comprises your group of companions will have everything to do with the level of blessing you will experience in your future. Today's proverb has to do with our friendships and also our mentors. If you have the wrong mentors and the wrong friends, you are going to have a very difficult future. God tells us here that the man who walks with wise men will be wise. That sounds like it is not a difficult statement to grasp and to follow. I will agree that it is not difficult to understand - but when it comes to how hard it is to follow - that is a different story altogether. First, we need to be schooled in how to know a wise man from a foolish one. A wise man is often shunned because he may not be as "fun" as the fool. It is not that wisdom inherently is dull - but it is that wisdom follows God's way - even when doing so means you will not be the life of the party. The wise man seeks to walk and to speak according to God's Word. Sometimes this means that he will speak pleasant things - and at others - rebuke. But you can know one thing - walking with him will make you wise as well. Remember that early in Proverbs we were told that the beginning of wisdom is, "Get wisdom!" That means be where wise people can influence and speak into your life. There is another way to walk with the wise - even if they are dead. That way is by reading books that they have written. I can still walk with men like Andrew Murry, John Calvin, Watchman Nee, A. B. Simpson, George Mueller, Charles Spurgeon, and A. W. Tozer. I can do so by reading their writings. By doing this I can fill my mind with their thoughts and their teachings. As I walk with these dead men in their books - I can become wise with the wisdom God gave them. One of the best friends of a man of God is the books which bring to life men who have gone on to be with the Lord. By a contrary choice, those who are companions of fools will suffer harm. You cannot stay long with a fool without his foolishness rubbing off on you. Bad company corrupts good character - and that is never more true than with those who become companions of fools. We would be wise to avoid them altogether. Something that is similar to the knowing of wise men through their books - is the influence of fools through their writings and productions. Consider all the influence a movie or a television show has on people. We will actually lay down good money for a fool to influence us for 2 hours when we go to watch movies. Their message often contains philosophies that are diametrically opposed to our own - yet we not only watch them - but encourage others to do so as well. We hear their words - and we see their actions - which often include sexual immorality, profanity, murder, rebellion, and a godless world where one can sit for 2 hours and only hear of God in their blasphemy of his name. Our entire society has been the companion of the fools in Hollywood through movies and television - and consider the damage and harm we have suffered as a result. The worldview of the silver screen in one generation will be the worldview of the populace in the next - if not sooner. Walk with the wise. It is a choice that we will never regret. Get to know older men and women who have walked with God for years. Listen to their wisdom and be wise. Take the time to sit with someone older and wiser - for it will be of immense benefit to you. Such choices will insure that we become wise as we walk with the wise. Poverty and shame will come to him who neglects discipline, But he who regards reproof will be honored. Proverbs 13:18
Everyone would like to see their hopes and dreams realized. One of these dreams is that of earning a fortune. The conventional wisdom of this world says that if you work hard and apply yourself these things can be yours. But the Word of God counsels us a little differently. There is more to success than just making a lot of money because you work hard. Far too many men who stepped on the road to their riches - wound up unable to achieve them because they would not listen to counsel and accept discipline. They would not take wise advice - and as a result were not honored in the end. The Word of God ties the whole idea of wealth and blessing to something more than hard work. The Bible teaches us to work hard and apply ourselves in what we do. That is why we hear about the "protestant work ethic." But there is so much more to "true success" than just having a lot of money. Real success biblically is tied most of all to knowing and walking in God's favor. Beyond that God also speaks of things like character and virtue. These things are developed by not only working hard - but also in submitting to the counsel of wise and godly people. What many people do not understand is that submission to such wise counsel also means being willing to accept criticism. Let me put before you two Old Testament examples from which we can learn. We first come to a King in the Old Testament named Rehoboam. He was the son of Solomon who received the kingdom when his father died. The people came to him asking for him to lighten the load that his father put on them. Rehoboam asked his father's counselors what to do. They advised him to take a position of servant to the poeple, lighten their load, and they would serve him. He rejected such counsel and chose instead to listen to his own friends who said to be harsh and tell the people who was king and who was in charge. He rejected wise counsel from godly men. The end was that he was NOT honored. He wound up losing 10 of the 12 tribes of Israel. He also was humbled further when he would not listen to God's life-giving rebuke and turn from his idolatrous ways. In the end, his kingdom was severely weakened and eventually overrun by Egypt. The second king we seek to learn from is David. David was confronted and rebuked by Nathan the prophet for his sexual sin with Bathsheba. Instead of neglecting this correction and discipline, he received it - and was restored. He had some pretty severe discipline for what he did - but never rebelled against it. He knew he deserved far worse - and therefore submitted himself to God in all of it. David was honored for being a man after God's own heart. Such praise was given because of his repentance and willingness to undergo and learn from discipline. It turned him from a disastrous course and back into the arms of God. It is so important that we be wise and learn that it takes hard work and discipline to truly succeed in life. Those who do such things will be blessed in the end. Their lives may not be profiled among the rich and the famous - but they will be honored in the one place where it matters. They will be honored before the throne of God in the day of judgment. It is there where we find out whether we are blessed and wealthy - or whether we are going to know eternal poverty and shame. Be wise - choose the former - submit to God - and listen to life-giving rebuke. He who troubles his own house will inherit wind, And the foolish will be servant to the wisehearted. Proverbs 11:29
There is a foolishness that harms our homes. It is not a foolishness though from outside of our homes - it is one that is perpetrated within them. We are warned in today's proverb about a person who troubles his own house. We are warned against such behavior because we will not be blessed in the end. What does it mean to "trouble" ones own house? The word here means to trouble, to stir up, to disturb, or to bring calamity. Someone can trouble their own home by being a constant source of fighting and conflict within it. When there is a member of a household that constantly fights with the others - the home is troubled and continually disturbed. But other things can trouble a home. Anyone guilty of disboedience to God, rebellion, selfishness, carelessness, covetousness, or cruelty - will bring serious problems to their family. It is well known that a home can be a harmonious place to live - or a torturous one. Those who act in this way will inherit wind in the end. This is a picture of nothingness - of an empty inheritance at the end of life. One biblical example of this is the home of Issac and Rebekkah. These two had ways that they troubled their own home. They both had their favorites which eventually led to a home divided. Rebekkah eventually allowed her feelings for Jacob to bring her to a point where she involved him in a plot to deceive her husband. Jacob complied and wound up with the blessing - but later had to flee the home because his older brother harbored thoughts of killing him. This led to Jacob leaving the home to find a wife. Rebekkah did not know that this would not be a short trip - and never saw her son again. She troubled her home with her plot, and inherited the wind in never seeing her son again. Jacob's deceit came back on his own head when he went to work for Laban - who deceived him multiple times. The second half of this proverb also warns that the foolish will be servant to the wisehearted. The fool will continue to walk according to his folly - and will waste his wealth and his opportunities to lead effectively. As a result someone who is wise in heart will eventually be the one in charge. The fool will then have to take his place as a servant. Saul and David are an example of this proverb. Saul began his life well - serving the Lord and being His instrument of deliverance for Israel. But soon Saul began to do foolish things. In time Saul and his family wound up being servants to David, who was wise in his choices and way of living. How this warns us against living for ourselves and our own desires, rather than living as a servant to others - a love slave to God - and finding His favor blessing us in every area of life. The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who is wise wins souls. Proverbs 11:30
It is interesting that long before we knew what it meant to be a "soul-winner," God blessed those who brought others to Christ. He spoke of the wisdom of taking God's message of redemption to others. There is so much imagery in this proverb that it is difficult to take it all in unless you step back and see each picture. The first picture we see is that of the "tree of life." The fruit of the righteous one is a tree of life. What is amazing here is that the tree of life is seen very early in Scripture. The tree of life is in the garden of Eden - but is overshadowed by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil because of the first couple's sin. The tree of life is seen again at the end of Scripture in heaven where its leaves provide healing for the nations. I believe that the tree of life is a type of Christ. The only place the righteous can become righteous is in partaking of that tree - partaking of the righteousness of Christ. So, it should not be shocking to learn that the fruit of the righteous is the very life of Christ. It is that tree that brings life. When the righteous partakes of the life of Christ consistently - they will seek to give that life to others. That is why we read the second half of this verse and do not find it at all odd that the wise man wins souls. This was why Jesus, the original tree of life , came to earth in the first place - to seek and to save that which was lost. When His life is moving through a man or woman - they will seek to win souls. Consider Jesus' first call to His disciples, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." Wisdom is doing all that we can as we live our lives to see men and women come to Christ. Wisdom is so partaking of Christ, the tree of life, that our fruit is apparent. When we do not grasp this - when we do not realize that God's ultimate act was to give His Son for the sin of mankind - we miss that it is wisdom's greatest passion to see the love of God passed on to those who desperately need it. Truly, saints, if we are wise - if we have the fruit of Christ Himself flowing from our lives - we will take the gospel to those who are dead in sin. When we do, we will watch once again our Lord be the Tree of life - and bring the very life of God to those whose soul's we win! The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom, But the perverted tongue will be cut out. Proverbs 10:31
One of the topics that the book of Proverbs touches on a great deal is that of our tongues and the benefit or damage that they can do. Here we have another of those proverbs that counsel us on having a tongue that honors and glorifies God. The mouth of the righteous is described here liks a fruitful tree. The word "flows" is the Hebrew word "nub" which speaks of something that flourishes. It means to bring forth or to bear fruit. It is also used in the Old Testament to speak of someone who is experiencing prosperity. We are told that the mouth of the righteous has an abundant harvest of wisdom. The words that the righteous man speaks are like a tree laden with fruit. That fruit when eaten will lead us to wise, godly choices. The reason this is true is because men speak out of their mouths what resides in their hearts. The righteous man can speak forth wisdom because the Word of God dwells in his heart. Therefore as his heart gives his lips the substance of his words - those words will be in accordance with the Word of God. Truly then, you will get wisdom from the things that he says. Not only is the mouth of the godly man mentioned in this proverb, but also the perverted tongue as well. Perverse as used here means something deviated and distorted. It describes deceptive and corrupt speech. Here in Proverbs it refers to one who intentionally distorts what is straight and right. Thus, this man is not sharing God's wisdom, but a perversion of it. This kind of tongue will be cut out. This may sound gruesome at first, but the idea is that of cutting something out of the ground. It referred to uprooting a plant that was not productive - or one that was counter productive. The picture that we have from this proverb is an agricultural one. We have a mouth that is like a fruitful tree - and a tongue that is like a harmful weed. One is a blessing, the other is a curse. One will be welcomed as wisdom flows forth from it, while the other will be viewed as a weed that disrupts the production of a garden. The difference between these two is very simple. One comes from a man who loves with is right in the eyes of the Lord, while the other comes from a man who distorts what is right and true. He does so because he values having his own desires fulfilled, rather than doing what is right and good for all those around him. Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool, and so is wisdom to a man of understanding.
Proverbs 10:23 One of the things I find funny is that Christians try to convince people who are lost that they can still have fun and be a Christian. It is as if they think that people will come to Christ if we can convince them they still will have a blast once they come to repentance and faith. It reduces the problem of the human condition to what can provide the most fun while on earth. If that were the case, the biggest denomination in the world would be Six-Flagsists, Disneyists, and Xboxians. The truth is that for a man who is ungodly - doing wickedness is joy and laughter - and the same is true for the discerning man and his view of wisdom. We are not that accustom to the word, "sport" as it is used here. The word comes from the Hebrew word "sehoq" which means laughter. But this is a laughter of derision and ridicule. It is a laughter used to make fun of someone or something. What we are speaking of here is how the wicked do their evil - and laugh and deride God and His law. They laugh at righteousness and joke about it. They make fun of those who have standards and whose desire is to do what is godly and righteous. Let me give a few examples of this. When the abstinence movement came out, the wicked mocked it mercilessly. They mocked virgins - and decided that anyone who was still a virgin at 18 to 20 years of age must have something wrong with them. They mocked the idea of waiting for sex until marriage. They argued that a person should be able to test drive a car before buying it - referring to the consummation of marriage in crassest of terms, as if you were buying a car, not choosing a life-mate. They defended an immoral president in the 1990's by saying that everyone does what he did – and - they also lie about it when caught. They mocked the idea of a child needing a father and a mother when a TV character in the 1990's decided to get pregnant and have a baby without a father. They mock everything that is holy - and deride anyone who stands in the way of their immoral agenda for our nation and especially its children. We need to remind ourselves that the people who do these things are fools. They have no understanding. They are ignorant and oblivious to a holy God and His judgments. They may mock the morals that we have - but when society continues to fall apart - and when the statistics come in as to why it is falling apart - their actions will be seen those of fools with no understandings against the backdrop of failure and disfunction that they engender. The man of understanding takes an equal delight and joy in wisdom. As the fool celebrates wickedness and mocks holiness - so the man who has discernment delights in God's wisdom. The man of understanding is the man who has discernment. The idea here is of a man who looks at something and determines its end and consequences. Seeing this, he turns away from wickedness and makes his decisions on the basis of God's wisdom. His discernment comes from the Scriptures. This guides him into wise decisions. It also tells him to shun and even mock those decisions that embrace what God has judged on the cross - and will judge at the end of the age. This man allows discernment to turn him to the right and true way. He sees the reward - and delights in it. As I close the thoughts on today's proverb, let me re-visit my first comments of today. Too many do try to make the gospel more palatable by saying that we can have as much fun as the wicked. This is based on a faulty understanding of the nature of man. The wicked delight in their wickedness - because they are still wicked. Christians delight in holiness because they have been born again. Having had their hearts changed by the gospel - they now delight in things that delight the heart of God. It is impossible for an unsaved man to truly delight in these things. His heart is captive to his sin. Until He is saved, he will not truly value righteousness. This proverb ultimately is about salvation – not the lifestyle that is the most fun on earth. Paul said it best when he said that if we only have this life to hope in Christ - we are to be pitied most of all men. If Jesus is not Who He says He is - then we should eat, drink, and party because tomorrow we die. The reason we embrace Christ is not for a superior life here on earth - but because there IS a judgment coming. Without Christ that judgment WILL BE HORRIFIC! We embrace Christ because we have sinned and, without the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ to pay for our sin, we will be judged and sent to hell. All the rest happens WHEN we are saved. We enjoy different things because our heart is different. We enjoy righteousness because we are fundamentally different because of God's grace. The wicked will always delight in their sin - and the discerning will delight in godliness. The difference comes not in which is more fun - but rather in whether a man's heart has been redeemed and changed by God's grace. May we be among those discerning. May we be among those with understanding. May we be among those transformed by grace - and given a whole different outlook on what is fun - what is enjoyable - and mostly, on what is better in eternity. He is on the path of life who heeds instruction, But he who ignores reproof goes astray. Proverbs 10:17
If we are wanting to be blessed in life - we are going to have to embrace two things. These things are the ability to be taught or instructed, and the ability to have someone correct or reprove us. This proverb puts it right out there for us - the path of life is wide open for the one who heeds instruction. This means we need to be teachable! Note it is not just the ability to hear someone - but we learn to heed what they say. The word instruction is important for us to grasp here. The word means to be instructed and disciplined. The primary instruction that it speaks of in Scripture is that of a father. When we learn to be instructed and disciplined by our fathers - it carries over into all of life later. There is a general ability to receive instruction in general. The other major figure who instructs in this way is God. Therefore - if we struggle being instructed by our fathers - it should not shock us when later in life we are unteachable - not only by others - but even by God Himself. Remember this . . . how we deal with dear ole dad - is a precursor to how we will one day be able to deal with God or anyone else. Rebel against dad - it is more likely that you will rebel against others and God. The second half of this proverb tells us that when we ignore reproof - we will go astray. The word "ignores" is the Hebrew word "azab" which means to forsake, abandon, or leave something. The idea is that of walking away - and not caring about someone. The word is used of those who forsake their wives - of those who abandoned their cities in a time of battle - and of those who forsake God. Reproof here speaks of someone giving us a rebuke, correction, or an argument that shows us where we have erred. The erring here is when someone forsakes the warning of God and goes their own way. They may listen - but they reject what is said - the reject the rebuke or correction. The end though is that they reject what is said and continue in the way that they want. We are warned that such choices will lead us away from God. We will make mistakes when we live like this - with an unteachable and unrebukable spirit. None of us are born as unquestionable genius' who do not need instruction or correction. We all make mistakes and err in our thinking. That is why it is a blessing to have those who love us enough to offer correction and godly training. They become a source of protection and life to us. But if we never learn to accept such teaching and correction - we will ensure that we are on a path that will fail in the end. Therefore - listen! But there is more to this than listening alone - there is the need to hear with understanding and with a heart that embraces change. This, dear saints, is wisdom. On the lips of the discerning, wisdom is found, But a rod is for the back of him who lacks understanding. Wise men store up knowledge, But with the mouth of the foolish, ruin is at hand. Proverbs 10:13-14
A godly mouth can be a great blessing to anyone who has one granted to him by the grace of God. Such a mouth, though given by God, must be disciplined to follow Him only - and not the foolishness of the natural man. The wisdom of God is found on a certain kind of man. He is called a discerning man. The Hebrew word used here is "bin" and it speaks of someone who through the use of the Scriptures is able to determine the difference between what is of God and what is not. This discerning heart and mind instructs the lips of the wise man. We learn later in verse 14 that this man stores up knowledge. This knowledge is a practical knowing of God and of the world that is around him. Thus this wise man instructs his mouth with this knowledge. He learns to know much, but not always speak what he knows. He has learned that he can NOT say things and be a blessing. Thus he seeks to quell within himself words and statements that will unnecessaily disburb the peace in relationships. Many an argument and fight could be prevented if one or the other of the two combatants would have practiced this wisdom. They would keep their words to themselves - knowing that sharing their "knowledge" would be done more from pride than from love. We know from the New Testament that knowledge puffs up - but love edifies. We can share all our knowledge - and by doing so cause a disturbance as others react to our pride. The wise man stores up knowledge within - and only brings that knowledge out at the direction of the Holy Spirit - Who will direct him to use that knowledge to build up and encourage others. We are also told of the fool - and his mouth. These two verses go together because they speak of the speech of one - and then the consequences of the other. The next verse reverses this order - trading the wise man for the fool in his speech - and the fool for the wise man in the reward or retribution that results. The consequences of the fool is a rod for his back. His words are the source of his punishment - for they evidence his foolishness and lack of regard for what is right. A proverb from the Talmud expresses this wonderfully when we read there, "that which a wise man gains by a hint, a fool only obtains by a club." The wise man learns - instructs his mouth and heart with that wisdom - and therefore avoids problems and public discipline. The fool chooses to let his mouth run - and with that overactive mouth - ruin comes to him. Biblically we can remember the difference between Solomon and his son, Rehoboam. Solomon began his reign seeking God and requesting wisdom from Him. His son Rehoboam had an opportunity to win over the people - but chose the foolish counsel of his friends. That led him to speak harsh, unkind, oppressive words to the people. In the end he lost all but one tribe - which God granted to him because of His promise to David. But how the foolish mouth granted him much destruction and difficulty. The wise mouth, though, was blessed in many wonderful ways. So take the time to listen - and allow God's wisdom to sink deep enough into your heart so that it instructs your mouth on what to say. Doing this promotes blessing. |
Proverb a DayEach day, we'll take a look at a verse from the chapter of Proverbs for the day. Our hope is to gain wisdom each day - and from that wisdom - to have understanding to make godly decisions in the throes of everyday life. Thank you for visiting our website! Everything on this site is offered for free. If, however, you would like to make a donation to help pay for its continued presence on the internet, you can do that by clicking here. The only thing we ask is that you give first to the local church you attend. Thank you!
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