Be a Life-Long Learner
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Be a Life-Long Learner

Apply your heart to instruction and your ear to words of knowledge.Proverbs 23.12 Positioned in stark contrast to the previous saying that characterizes those who despise godly wisdom as fools, the sage instructs us to be different: to intentionally bake into our inner-most being godly instruction [1] and knowledge. “Apply” is an imperative in the Hebrew text. Applying your ears is another way of saying, “pay attention and...
December 14, 2021Posted inWisdom SayingsTags: ,
Have Minimal Contact with a Fool
Posted inWisdom Sayings

Have Minimal Contact with a Fool

In the ears[1] of a fool[2] do not speak, for he will despise[3] the wisdom of your words.[4]Proverbs 23.9 Wisdom is too high for fools; in the assembly at the gate they must not open their mouths.[5]Proverbs 24.7 Fools are often mentioned and contrasted in Proverbs. Here are many of their characteristics: Despise wisdom and instruction (1.7, 15.5, 19.29, 23.9)Hate knowledge (1.22, 17.10, 18.2, 26.7)Complacent (1.32)Always talking...
November 9, 2021Posted inWisdom Sayings
Avoid Those Who are All About the Money
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Avoid Those Who are All About the Money

Proverbs 23.6-8 Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy;[1] do not desire his delicacies, for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.[2] “Eat and drink!” he says to you, but his heart is not with you. You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten, and waste your pleasant words.[3]Proverbs 23.6-8 This saying is similar to the sixth saying in that...
October 9, 2021Posted inWisdom Sayings
Maintain Margin in Your Life
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Maintain Margin in Your Life

Proverbs 23.4-5 Do not toil[1] to acquire wealth; be discerning[2] enough to desist.[3]  When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.[4] The acquisition of wealth, in and of itself, is a moral neutral in the Bible. It is the how and why we acquire wealth that make the difference in how God views our wealth-building...
September 2, 2021Posted inWisdom SayingsTags:
Control Your Desires
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Control Your Desires

When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well[1] what[2] is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.[3] Do not crave[4] his delicacies, for that food is deceptive.[5]Proverbs 23.1-3 This is the first of three sayings (23.1-3, 4-5, 6-8) which pertain to greed of one type or another. The phrase “do not crave his delicacies” appears in both...
July 30, 2021Posted inWisdom Sayings
Competence Wins Every Time
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Competence Wins Every Time

Proverbs 22.29 Do you see someone skilled[1] in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank.[2] I happen to be writing this devotional during the week of the The Master’s[3] golf tournament. Every year, I marvel at their ability to hit a little white ball hundreds of yards and land it within a defined space. I’ve tried numerous times...
July 3, 2021Posted inWisdom Sayings
Do Not Steal
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Do Not Steal

Do not move an ancient boundary[1] stone set up by your ancestors.[2]Proverbs 22.28 Do not move an ancient landmark or enter the fields of the fatherless, for their Redeemer is strong; he will plead their cause against you.[3]Proverbs 23.10-11 This instruction is given to us twice by the sage. With these two sayings, our attention is directed back to protection of the poor: Protecting the fields of...
June 5, 2021Posted inWisdom SayingsTags:
Do Not Pledge Another’s Debts
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Do Not Pledge Another’s Debts

Proverbs 22.26-27 Do not be one who shakes hands in pledge or puts up security[1] for debts; if you lack the means to pay, your very bed will be snatched from under you.[2] In this saying, we’re instructed to avoid accepting the legal obligation to pay another’s debts on their behalf, should they default on the debt. In essence, we should not allow our assets or our...
May 15, 2021Posted inWisdom SayingsTags: ,
Stay Away from Angry People
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Stay Away from Angry People

Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person,[1] do not associate with one easily angered,[2] or you may learn their ways and get yourself ensnared.[3]Proverbs 22.24-25 Angry people stir up strife and those who become angry cause much transgression (Proverbs 29.22). Man’s anger doesn’t lead to a godly life (James 1.20). Harsh words stir up anger (Proverbs 15.1) and often produces strife (Proverbs 30.33). The hope of...
March 4, 2021Posted inWisdom SayingsTags:
Do Not Exploit the Poor
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Do Not Exploit the Poor

Do not exploit[1] the poor because they are poor and do not crush[2] the needy in court, for the Lord will take up their case and will exact life for life.[3]Proverbs 22.22 By definition “poor” entails being vulnerable to an economic predator.[4] This is one reason why being charitable to the poor is so important. Not only does our charity enable them to fully participate in the...
February 25, 2021Posted inWisdom SayingsTags: , ,
Exhortation to Listen
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Exhortation to Listen

Pay attention and turn your ear to the sayings of the wise; apply your heart to what I teach, for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart and have all of them ready on your lips. So that your trust may be in the Lord, I teach you today, even you. Have I not written thirty sayings for you, sayings of counsel and knowledge,...
February 23, 2021Posted inWisdom SayingsTags: ,