[Linux4christians] Tuesday - Proverbs 25

Mon Jun 6 22:56:25 EDT 2011

    Tuesday

      Proverbs 25

Proverbs of Solomon Collected by Hezekiah

25:1 These also are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of King Hezekiah 
of Judah copied:

25:2 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, and it is the glory of 
a king to search out a matter.

25:3 As the heaven is high and the earth is deep so the hearts of kings 
are unsearchable.

25:4 Remove the dross from the silver, and material for the silversmith 
will emerge;

25:5 remove the wicked from before the king, and his throne will be 
established in righteousness.

25:6 Do not honor yourself before the king, and do not stand in the 
place of great men;

25:7 for it is better for him to say to you, "Come up here," than to put 
you lower before a prince, whom your eyes have seen.

25:8 Do not go out hastily to litigation, or what will you do afterward 
when your neighbor puts you to shame?

25:9 When you argue a case with your neighbor, do not reveal the secret 
of another person,

25:10 lest the one who hears it put you to shame and your infamy will 
never go away.

25:11 Like apples of gold in settings of silver, so is a word skillfully 
spoken.

25:12 Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise 
reprover to the ear of the one who listens.

25:13 Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful 
messenger to those who send him, for he refreshes the heart of his masters.

25:14 Like cloudy skies and wind that produce no rain, so is the one who 
boasts of a gift not given.

25:15 Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a soft tongue can 
break a bone.

25:16 When you find honey, eat only what is sufficient for you, lest you 
become stuffed with it and vomit it up.

25:17 Don't set foot too frequently in your neighbor's house, lest he 
become weary of you and hate you.

25:18 Like a club or a sword or a sharp arrow, so is the one who 
testifies against his neighbor as a false witness.

25:19 Like a bad tooth or a foot out of joint, so is confidence in an 
unfaithful person at the time of trouble.

25:20 Like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar 
poured on soda, so is one who sings songs to a heavy heart.

25:21 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, and if he is 
thirsty, give him water to drink,

25:22 for you will heap coals of fire on his head, and the Lord will 
reward you.

25:23 The north wind brings forth rain, and a gossiping tongue brings 
forth an angry look.

25:24 It is better to live on a corner of the housetop than in a house 
in company with a quarrelsome wife.

25:25 Like cold water to a weary person, so is good news from a distant 
land.

25:26 Like a muddied spring and a polluted well, so is a righteous 
person who gives way before the wicked.

25:27 It is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it honorable for 
people to seek their own glory.

25:28 Like a city that is broken down and without a wall, so is a person 
who cannot control his temper.

      Prayer

Lord, a life walked with You, according to Your wisdom looks different 
than that of a person without You, or a believer who does not pursue and 
apply wisdom. May my life be useful to You because I am teachable and 
willing ...

      Commentary

As noted in the Chapter heading, these are "Proverbs of Solomon 
Collected by Hezekiah", and so there is some considerable overlap with 
the message/text of other Proverbs.

Solomon remarked that the Lord God did not choose to make all things 
obvious because He knows that some matters are only valued and 
understood after one has worked-through the full context of them, so for 
one who He calls to leadership "It is the glory of God to conceal a 
matter, and it is the glory of a king to search out a matter ..." and 
that is why "As the heaven is high and the earth is deep so the hearts 
of kings are unsearchable ..." because their hearts belong to Him and it 
is in that process where the Lord does "Remove the dross from the 
silver, and material for the silversmith will emerge; remove the wicked 
from before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness."

He warned "Do not go out hastily to litigation, or what will you do 
afterward when your neighbor puts you to shame? When you argue a case 
with your neighbor, do not reveal the secret of another person, lest the 
one who hears it put you to shame and your infamy will never go away."

He encouraged "Like apples of gold in settings of silver, so is a word 
skillfully spoken. Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, 
so is a wise reprover to the ear of the one who listens.", again 
observing that a wise person is teachable.

Solomon counseled that choosing those we trust is important "Like a bad 
tooth or a foot out of joint, so is confidence in an unfaithful person 
at the time of trouble."

He also shared this wisdom with those who would counsel and encourage 
the hurting "Like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, or like 
vinegar poured on soda, so is one who sings songs to a heavy heart."

Solomon combined two images in one verse "If your enemy is hungry, give 
him food to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you 
will heap coals of fire on his head, and the Lord will reward you.", the 
first is that in showing your right-heart in contrast to the evil-heart 
of your enemy you shine light into their darkness, and he referenced the 
practice of giving hot coals to a guest to warm them on the way home and 
with which they'd then start their fire at home (the head-part 
referenced the head gear which held the coals without burning one yet 
still passed heat to the head).

He warned that it was a terrible thing when a righteous person allowed 
him/her-self to be drawn into the value-system of a wicked person "Like 
a muddied spring and a polluted well, so is a righteous person who gives 
way before the wicked."

Solomon warned against gluttony, of food or of fame "It is not good to 
eat too much honey, nor is it honorable for people to seek their own glory."

He returned to his counsel that choices have consequences, in this case 
one who is out of control becomes vulnerable and weak "Like a city that 
is broken down and without a wall, so is a person who cannot control his 
temper."

      Interaction

        Consider

Proverbs 25:26 Solomon warned that it was a terrible thing when a 
righteous person allowed
him/her-self to be drawn into the value-system of a wicked person "Like 
a muddied spring and a polluted well, so is a righteous person who gives 
way before the wicked." Wow! Ouch! Think of all of the excuses we hear 
for selling-out to the world!

        Discuss

How does a person who fails to control his/her anger become more vulnerable?

        Reflect

Choosing those whom we trust is very important, whether it is a spouse 
(if the Lord God calls us out of undistracted single-service to Him), a 
business associate, a leadership advisor, or in any other venue.

        Share

When have you observed someone bringing an accusation against another, 
and then dragging third-parties into the debate, only to be shown a fool 
and having lost friendships.

      Faith in Action

        Prayer:

Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your life where you are 
allowing yourself to be drawn into the value-system of an unrighteous 
person, or group of people, or philosophy.

        Action:

Today I will repent of the error which the Holy Spirit has revealed to 
me and act intentionally to break the unrighteous influence in my life. 
I will refuse to sell-out to anything that is not of-God and which does 
not draw me nearer to righteousness rather than nearer to the fire of sin.

        Be Specific ______________________________________________________

    Wednesday's text will be:

      Proverbs 26 - 27

-- 

Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you,
Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day!
David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com
Bible Resources: http://bible.org
Teacher's Verse: John 7:16
Defend free speech or lose your freedom.
I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://www.thelinuxlink.net/pipermail/linux4christians/attachments/20110606/b8ead915/attachment.html>