Proverbs 13 (New King James Version)
1 A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
2 A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, But the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence.
3 He who guards his mouth preserves his life, But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.
4 The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.
God has designed us to dream big. You can see it in children, pretending to be superheroes or famous performers. Verses 2-4 are keys to seeing our dreams come true. Verse 2 is talking about our mouths. What we say becomes part of who we are. We have to speak well of ourselves and of others in order to be who God has called us to be. Words affect the spirit, soul, and body and words reflect the heart. I know what is in my heart about a person or a situation by my words. This is a good thing! When I see my words exposing a heart issue, I can go to God and ask for help. I can repent of any bitterness, negativity, judgmental criticism, or cynicism that focuses my thoughts on man and keeps me from thinking God's thoughts for my life. Verse 4 tells us success comes with diligence. I know it takes work and constant, honest surveillance to keep my heart!
5 A righteous man hates lying, But a wicked man is loathsome and comes to shame.
6 Righteousness guards him whose way is blameless, But wickedness overthrows the sinner.
7 There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
8 The ransom of a man’s life is his riches, But the poor does not hear rebuke.
9 The light of the righteous rejoices, But the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
10 By pride comes nothing but strife, But with the well-advised is wisdom.
11 Wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished, But he who gathers by labor will increase.
12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
13 He who despises the word will be destroyed, But he who fears the commandment will be rewarded.
14 The law of the wise is a fountain of life, To turn one away from the snares of death.
15 Good understanding gains favor, But the way of the unfaithful is hard.
16 Every prudent man acts with knowledge, But a fool lays open his folly.
17 A wicked messenger falls into trouble, But a faithful ambassador brings health.
18 Poverty and shame will come to him who disdains correction, But he who regards a rebuke will be honored.
19 A desire accomplished is sweet to the soul, But it is an abomination to fools to depart from evil.
20 He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed.
21 Evil pursues sinners, But to the righteous, good shall be repaid.
22 A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.
23 Much food is in the fallow ground of the poor, And for lack of justice there is waste.
24 He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly.
25 The righteous eats to the satisfying of his soul, But the stomach of the wicked shall be in want.
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6 comments:
There it is again! Warnings against my big mouth...I think the Lord isn't going to leave me alone about this one, huh?
v7--There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
I thank God that my mom and dad taught me early in life that true riches are not material things, but instead are things that money can't buy. Family, relationships, the love of God...those are things that make me rich.
v10--By pride comes nothing but strife, But with the well-advised is wisdom.
I'm struggling right now with being the victim of some folks with "spiritual pride". Because of that, however, I'm learning NOT to be religious and self-righteous towards others. I've repented 1,000 times over the last year, asking God to forgive me for my own past self-righteous attitudes. I know that God is saddened when His own people beat each other down.
v24--He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly.
I know people who have taken this verse too literally, in my opinion, and have used this as an excuse for severe and regular spankings. Whether or not we spank our chidren is a personal choice, but I believe the main teaching in this verse is DISCIPLINE. Discipline is "a training that develops self-control, character, orderliness and efficiency." I pray that God will help me to discpline Anna in a way that will teach her self-control and build her character without breaking her spirit.
I feel like God is really talking to me about the things I say. Like I said, I used to be a person who would tell you exactly what I thought about any given situation. Verse three warns us that opening our mouths can bring destruction. You never know who is listening to what you say. As a teacher of young children, I find that just when you think they are not paying attention to you-you are wrong! They listen to what we say and how we say it. If I use my words to hurt or bring negativity, it will change the way people feel about me, and especially in children, it can smash a dream.
Verse 24 reminds me that we as Christians cannot grow properly without learning what we are doing wrong. God loves us, so he corrects undesirable behaviors. However, he never rejects us. When I first started teaching kindergarten, I believed that if I just loved my students, I would never have a discipline problem. Wow, was I wrong!!! While loving them definitely came easy for me, discipline did not. I have since learned that one of the best ways to show them love is to create boundaries that keep them and their classmates safe. If a rule is broken, we take care of it immediately and then we go on with our day as if nothing has happened. I believe one of the keys to correction is to remember that once it is over, we forgive the offender just as God forgives us. God has given me many "time-outs" when I needed to stop and think about what I was doing. If there are no consequences, we do not learn the lesson and we will continue to do what we have always done. This kind of growth does not come easy, but it is well worth it.
3 He who guards his mouth preserves his life, But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.
My dad would always say this, "It is better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt." I'm sure that he was quoting someone else....because I thought that he should've taken his own advice for that was the most foolish thing that I had ever heard. Little did I know that he was almost paraphrasing scripture.
This verse doesn't mean to keep your mouth shut, but it means to "guard" your mouth. To guard means to keep under control or restraint as a matter of caution or prudence: to protect. I believe that this scripture reminds us to "think before we speak."
Another quote of my dad was, "Always make sure that your brain is in gear before you put your mouth into action." What a wise man, that dad of mine. It is easy to engage ones mouth without thinking of the rewards or consequences of our words. However, this is usually done without considering that we are revealing our heart to the world. Matthew 12:34b says; from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. I am reminded to listen to my own words....I can learn a lot about what is in my heart when I listen.
And briefly,
20 He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed.
I think that this is one of the most important verses in the entire word of God. (notice I said "one of") Saved, unsaved, born again or lost....surround yourself with fools and you will be destroyed! One of the most important things that I have tried to teach my children is to surround themselves with "wise" people. Some of the darkest times in my life have occurred when I stopped gaurding my heart and tore down those protective hedges allowing foolish thinking and people into my life.
I don't want to look back at my life when I am old having followed a quotation of Mark Twain, "I was young and foolish then; now I am old and foolisher."
I believe when my soul prospers I am rich! The worlds view of prosperity is the exact opposite of God's view. Once I grasped a hold of this concept I have never felt more richer. Prov.4 says 'the soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing'. We can desire all day and wish, but it is the doing that reaps a harvest of prosperity. If we are lazy studying God's word, not praising Him when we do not feel like it, not giving away our money or time helping people like we should our soul is so poor. When we diligently seek, study and do what God's word says our soul will prosper!
13The one who despises the word will be in debt to it, but the one who fears the commandment will be rewarded.
I remember a time in my life (before my salvation) when I thought little of the Word and totally disregarded it as being relevant for my life. I actually considered it unworthy of my time and attention. But isn’t it ironic: a person who doesn’t fear God or His commandments should fear everything else.
This verse makes that abundantly clear. If we despise the Word, we are in debt to it. The New Testament explains that we, as sinners, are all debtors, and that the only way to pay our debt is through death. If we continue to despise the Word, then we will be forced to pay our debt through spiritual death (hell).
But praise Jesus for His redemptive work on the cross. If I enter into a personal relationship with Him, then His death covers my sin, and I am no longer a debtor. I am rewarded with favor, protection, blessings, and eternal life.
We have one of two responses to God’s Word: disregard or fear. King Jehoiakim responded with disregard. He read it, cut it with a knife, and threw it into a fire. He despised the Word due to rebellion and a refusal to obey. And he and his descendants suffered because of it – he was “in debt to it” (Jeremiah 36: 21 – 32). King Josiah, on the other hand, responded with reverent awe. He heard the Word, tore his clothes, and cried out to the Lord. His heart was tender, humble, and obedient. And God blessed him – he was rewarded (2 Chronicles 34:19-28).
I want to respond to the Word with fear and awe. I want to regard the God-breathed Scriptures as holy and relevant to my life today. I want to obey Him and please Him. Not for rewards or for blessing (although that will follow), but I desire to please Him because of all that He has done for me. He deserves my very best!
Verse 3 reminds me of an old saying, loose lips sink ships. How true that is. When we say whatever comes to our minds without giving it any thought, our words can quickly bring destruction. You can destroy someone with your words. God has really spoke to me about this over the years because I have always been one to say what is on my mind. Use your words to bless and not to curse. There are obviously a lot of people beside me that has had a mouth problem or God wouldn't have said so much about it in His Word. Whenever God speaks about wisdom there is always something about the mouth or the tongue in the verses! Something to think about!
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