Proverbs 21:17 He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man: he that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.
18 The wicked shall be a ransom for the righteous, and the transgressor for the upright.
In this first verse we see that wine and oil are associated with unbridled luxury in feasting and that many people in our society today have expensive pleasures like golf, ball games, movies, etc. If people indulge in these things on a regular basis and they will never have anything in life or death.The thing I see in this last verse is that God has always had a sharp separation between the wicked and the righteous. It seems that the transgressor has a price to pay for his wickedness and God will not have the upright to pay. Their debt is paid in full through Jesus. The wicked shall be cut off to preserve he righteous. Again let us strive to do our best to follow the path that God lays out for us
Proverbs 21:16 The man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead.
Verse 16 talks about someone who has know the how to walk in the righteousness of God and turned away from it . If this person never finds his way back he is condemned to eternal life in hell. It would have been better for this person if he had never known the ways of God than to have known the ways of God and tuned from them. It is faith that keeps us on the right path and when we doubt God that is when we begin to drift away. We need to continue to fellowship with with other Christians, and stay in God’s Word, to help us to stay strong in the Lord.
Proverbs21:13 Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.
14 A gift in secret pacifieth anger: and a reward in the bosom strong wrath.
15 It is joy to the just to do judgment: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.
This first verse is the opposite of what we have seen in scripture when it says “give and it shall be given to you”. Those who refuse to listen when they should will also not be heard when they need someone to listen. When you do give gifts it should not be to gain recognition but in secret to possibly prevent someone from getting angry thinking it may be bride. Then when it is a gift from the heart it will stop all anger and hurt and wrath. Last we see it is joy to the righteous that treat people fairly because they know they are pleasing God. But the workers of iniquity are afraid someone is going to find out just how bad they really are while all the time headed for death and destruction. Let us gain from these verse that we do not need to overlook the poor and in giving do it humbly and from the heart and last treat people with respect and that is what you will receive.
Proverbs 21:10 The soul of the wicked desireth evil: his neighbour findeth no favour in his eyes.
11 When the scorner is punished, the simple is made wise: and when the wise is instructed, he receiveth knowledge.
12 The righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked: but God overthrowe
These verses we see differences in kinds of people the wicked have no mercy for anyone not even their neighbor.This person seeks to do evil so strongly that he will not even spare his neighbor if he gets in their way. The next verse shows us three kinds of people . First we have the scorner who when punished still does not change his evil ways. Then we have the simple who sees what happens if he does evil and learns to do right. Then you have the wise who are eager to learn and through accumulated learning he gains knowledge .Finally we righteous man who sees and knows what the wicked has done and also knows that in the end this person will be overthrown by God and cast into hell. Again we see in the teaching of Proverbs that we should strive to gain as much knowledge of God and try to live a righteous life in His eyes so we can enjoy that heavenly home that God has promised us.
Proverbs 21:9 It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house.
Our homes need to be a place of refuge and rest from the problems of this world. If the place is a battle ground it does not matter how small or big the house is it will be in constant turmoil. It does not matter how small the the house is if there is love in the home, but you cannot get a house big enough if there is constant fighting. The house tops in the days this was written were open spaces on patios, with a small arbor or enclose in the corner, which was a very inconvenient place to live. This verse kind of shows us why the Bible tells us not to be unequally yoked. It is setting the stage for a bad relationship if a Christian and a non Christian are married but if this happens it does not mean the lost one cannot come to Jesus. It will just take a lot of praying an forgiving to keep the house at peace til this happens.
Proverbs 21:5 The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness; but of every one that is hasty only to want.
6 The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death.
7 The robbery of the wicked shall destroy them; because they refuse to do judgment.
8 The way of man is froward and strange: but as for the pure, his work is right.
This first verse deals with the difference between someone who works hard for what they have and someone who who wants all he can get in short amount of time with out having to do much and end up still wanting.The second verse tells of the one who lies to get what he has and we know God does not like lying but coupled with deceiving people for gain just adds to the punishment that will dealt them. Verse 7 talks again of the ones who rob people to get what they have not realizing they are only robbing themselves of eternal life with Jesus. Lastly we see that that the way of man without God is crooked and perverse and is a stranger to God, while the pure in heart that desire to follow will do what is right in the sight of God In these verses we see more ways man can lose sight of salvation so attend a church today of your choosing and let God fill you with His Holy Spirit.
Proverbs 21:4 An high look, and a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked, is sin.
This verse deals with three common sins that are present in the lives of to many people that feel they are walking in the righteousness of God. The first being someone who believes they are just a little better than everyone else and really has no time time for anyone but themselves.The next one is one that is hard for a lot of people to overcome and that is pride. Pride keeps people from sharing the love God the way He wants us to. If we cannot share the love of God we are sinning against God by not doing His will. The last part of this verse sums up the first two parts because it refers to what these two two things can cause. If a person is stuck on themselves and prideful they will be sowing their wicked ways in everything they do. A saying that I have heard many times says ” Sin will take you farther than you want to go, cost you more than you want to pay, and keep you longer than you want to stay.” These three things in this verse can carry you down that path.
Proverbs 21:1 The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.
2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts.
3 To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.
Most leaders believe they are always in total control but God controls even the hearts and minds of kings. God gave the children of Israel kings because they ask for them but He controlled them. A good kings heart can be pliable with God to mold as He will, just as irrigation channels are controlled by the gardener. As verse two goes on we see even man thinks most of his ways are right in his own mind. This is a false security for man because God determines whether are motives are good or bad. Man needs to keep uppermost in mind that God looks at he heart to see if it wicked or good. Lastly how we look we look at people is important to God because He wants us to treat everyone fairly. He wants us to be just and judge people righteously if we love Him like we should. If we love people like we should it is better than sacrifice because the greatest sacrifice was Jesus dying on the cross for those that will accept Him.
Proverbs 20:29 The glory of young men is their strength: and the beauty of old men is the gray head.
30 The blueness of a wound cleanseth away evil: so do stripes the inward parts of the belly.
This first verse shows us that young men are proud of the physical strength in their body they really do not care to seek the wisdom and knowledge of God.The beauty of an old man is his gray hair, for one because he has lived long enough to have it. Also at this time his life he is not worried so much about physical strength but is more concerned about the wisdom and knowledge he has acquired from God.This last verse deals with discipline. When children are disciplined sometimes it may leave a mark but it helps them to learn to be a better person later in life. When it talks of the inward strips it is talking about the punishment that is felt within our inner most being.We are supposed to see in the bruises and in the stripes that correction has come for the sins in our lives.
Proverbs 20:26 A wise king scattereth the wicked, and bringeth the wheel over them.
27 The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly.
28 Mercy and truth preserve the king: and his throne is upholden by mercy.
This first verse is kind of like the way they did wheat when they separated it from the chaff . They would run a ruff shod wheel over it to push the chaff out and it would be scattered by the wind. Likewise the king would sift out the bad people so he could keep his kingdom righteous.The second verse lets us see that God uses the spirit of man as a light to search out the the inward parts to determine which is good or bad.We are told by Jesus in Matthew 5:16 “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. God’s light shining within us separates us from darkness because that light is Jesus. This last verse tells us that if a leader wants to stay in power and be trusted by the people he needs to merciful and truthful in all things.
"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." I John 5:7
