Proverbs 23:12 Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.
13 Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
14 Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.
These verses begin by telling us that we need to get as knowledge and understanding of the word of God and apply it from our heart. With that we see we are not to withhold correction from our children even if it means spanking them. As the scripture says it will not kill them to get spanked for doing wrong. The last verse lets us know that by doing this we helping to save our children from the pits of Hell. If they are disciplined when they young you run the risk of them being bad people when they grow up. Discipline is part of the knowledge they gain when they are young.
Proverbs 23:9 Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.
10 Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:
11 For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee.
This starts off telling us that when we try to talk to a person who is determined not to listen to the wisdom of God we are wasting our time . Anything we say they will not pay attention to it and will probably not care to speak to you again.Again we see that God is telling not to defraud someone or take something that is not ours .God will fight for those that are mistreated. This winds up letting us know that our redeemer is mighty and He will defend us to the ends of the earth. He will especially defend those that have no one else to defend them. Let us ever be mindful of those that are in need and be ready to help in any possible.
Proverbs 23:6 Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats:
7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.
8 The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, and lose thy sweet words.
Well theses verse let us know that we need to be careful when ask to join someone for fellowship. Whether it be for food or a good time we need to be aware that they could have a motive for entertaining us. This person is one who hoards what he gets and could care less about helping anyone much less the poor.He is full of jealousy and spite and cannot bear to see anyone happy. Last this person will offer you a fine meal but it really is not very good because it was done for wrong motives and you cannot wait to get away and forget about this experience. When you get this feeling at someone’s table, it is hard to find nice things to say.
Proverbs 23:4 Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.
5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.
These two verse help to understand that we do not need to labor constantly trying to get more riches on this earth. We came into this world with nothing and we will leave with nothing of this world. When people come into a lot of money at one time it is usually gone just as fast and they are in worst shape before they had what they received. We should be more concentrated on gaining wisdom and knowledge from God and let Him supply our needs as He can from His riches and also wait for greatest riches which is eternity in Heaven with Him.
Proverbs 23:1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee:
2 And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.
3 Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat.
When ever you are invited to eat in the presence of those that are wealthy do not act like you are starving to death and have never had such delicious food. When it says to put a knife to your throat it means to not make a glutton of yourself and subdue yourself so you can make a good impression. Last we should not lust after the delicacies or appear as we have not ever had such food. These delicacies could be to lure us away from what we know is right. From these verses we can see that we need to use the wisdom and knowledge we have learned to asses the situation we in and act accordingly so we do not get led in wrong direction.
Proverbs 22:28 Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set.
29 Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.
In these last two verses we see that the boundaries God laid out in the Old Testament and the alters that were set up were to stand forever. We know today that Israel does not occupy all the land God gave but one day they will. Put that in today’s terms and when you buy land you expect to get ten acre if that is what you bought and not nine and a half. In the last verse we that a leader will select those men that he knows he can trust, and only those men that have the guidance of God will want to serve under a good leader. The men in the days of kings were beheaded. From these verse let see that we always need to deal truthfully with people and those landmarks that are dear to us keep them safe. Also when ask by a leader to serve him do it with the guidance and wisdom of God.
Proverbs 22:26 Be not thou one of them that strike hands, or of them that are sureties for debts.
27 If thou hast nothing to pay, why should he take away thy bed from under thee?
Again we see that it is not a good thing to take over or sign with anyone on a note. If you do not have anything to pay do not take a note for someone else because it could cause you to lose everything you have even the bed you sleep on. You know this is talking about a physical debt but we need to realize to that we are responsible for our own salvation and we do not need some trying to lure us away from it by following them in their schemes. This could really cost us everything. Today I ask that you attend a church of your choice but would hope that it would be one that is a true Bible teaching church and no sugar coating. May God bless you and have an awesome day.
Proverbs 22:24 Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go:
25 Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.
These two verses help us to see that who we hang around with is who we will imitate if we stay around them long enough. if we hang around people who use bad language we will begin to use the same language. If we hang with someone who commits murder we are guilty by association. Fellowship has a tendency to teach you the evil ways of the one you fellowship with. We are told not to be unequally with those of unbelief. A man or woman will pick up the habits of the people they hang around with whether good or bad. So these verses let us know to surround ourselves with Godly people if we want to be a Godly person.
Proverbs 22:22 Rob not the poor, because he is poor: neither oppress the afflicted in the gate:
23 For the LORD will plead their cause, and spoil the soul of those that spoiled them.
We see here that God tells us not to oppress those that cannot help themselves. We are also not to judge them because they do not have the means to plead their case.If they were rich they could buy favor for themselves, but the warning here is not to judge to judge them harshly because they are poor. The next verse lets us know that the Lord plead their cause. God will always help those that cannot help themselves when they ask for it and rely on Him. For those that want to oppress the poor know that God will deal with them to.
Proverbs 22:20 Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge,
21 That I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth; that thou mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee?
These two verses remind us that we have already learned of the knowledge of God because of His Word. With this we receive the blessings from God that enable us to go and share the words of truth with people when they ask us questions. We have heard it said to be instant in season and out of season which means to be ready at all times to answer with the truth of God’s word. In I Peter 3:15 it tells us “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:”
"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
