2 It is not good to have zeal without knowledge,
nor to be hasty and miss the way.
If you know me in real life you, know I tend to be a very excitable person! But excitement is not enough.
3 A man's own folly ruins his life,
yet his heart rages against the LORD.
For some reason I've thought of "folly" as more harmless than it is. I've known it's a bad thing, but I've thought of it as a description of someone who in an air-headed way gets themselves in trouble. But this verse is the opposite of that! It says that the heart of someone with folly RAGES against the Lord. Rages!
11 A man's wisdom gives him patience;
it is to his glory to overlook an offense.
I know I've said this before, but I almost think that those who are wise would have little patience for those who aren't. Yes, one of the beautiful gifts of wisdom is patience.
15 Laziness brings on deep sleep,
and the shiftless man goes hungry.
I have to confess (I've been doing that a lot in the Proverbs!) that I find myself suddenly tired when there is work to be done that I don't want to do.
18 Discipline your son, for in that there is hope;
do not be a willing party to his death.
Long before I was ever even married, I was given wonderful advice by a wise mother of teenagers. She said, "We moms always love our children, but sometimes we are tough because we want other people to love them as well." My children are very strong-willed, and I can see that if they were left up to themselves, they would have a very rough road ahead. I continue to set limits and instruct because I want them to have a chance to make it!
19 A hot-tempered man must pay the penalty;
if you rescue him, you will have to do it again.
Hello, codependency!
20 Listen to advice and accept instruction,
and in the end you will be wise.
Another way to be wise.
24 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;
he will not even bring it back to his mouth!
I have skipped meals out of being too lazy to have to cook something. That is definitely being a sluggard.
2 comments:
vs 3- A man's own folly ruins his life, yet his heart rages against the Lord.
This is exactly what we were talking about on the phone the other day. It's in the Bible!!! A man ruins his own life by what he does yet he rages against the Lord as if the Lord has done it to him! Wow!!!
vs 7- A poor man is shunned by all his relatives-how much more do his freinds avoid him! Tough he pursues them with pleading, they are nowhere to be found.
I am finding this alot in Proverbs. The poor. They are abandoned on all sides. Am I a true friend to my "friends"? Will I stick with them through all of lifes circumstances?
vs 17- He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward him for what he has done.
Wow.
Lord, how many times have I overlooked the poor out of pride. Not wanting to be thought of as one of them. Forgive me Lord. I am prideful and arrogant. My heart is far from you. Lead me down the path of humbleness and true love. May I actively put aside my worries of what others may think and love, befriend, and lend to the poor. You will be glorified in that one life touched! The others who judge Your love of the poor and lowly are condemned already, why would their judgement matter to me? Amen
Wow, Candice, you are so right. Verse 3 is exactly what we talked about on the phone. I didn't even think of it that way, so I'm so glad that you brought it to my attention.
And about the poor. Your tender heart has just opened me up. Sometimes I even find myself kind of glazing over those scriptures. You described it just how I feel it: "overlooking the poor out of pride so as not to be associated with them". It's really hard to see the darkness of my heart.
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