Posted on 02/21/2014 8:54:19 AM PST by OneVike
The LORD Considers the Heart
01 The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD,
00 Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.
02 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes,
00 But the LORD weighs the hearts.
03 To do righteousness and justice
00 Is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.
04 A haughty look, a proud heart,
00 And the plowing of the wicked are sin.
05 The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty,
00 But those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty.
06 Getting treasures by a lying tongue
00 Is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death.
07 The violence of the wicked will destroy them,
00 Because they refuse to do justice.
08 The way of a guilty man is perverse;
00 But as for the pure, his work is right.
09 Better to dwell in a corner of a housetop,
00 Than in a house shared with a contentious woman.
10 The soul of the wicked desires evil;
00 His neighbor finds no favor in his eyes.
11 When the scoffer is punished, the simple is made wise;
00 But when the wise is instructed, he receives knowledge.
12 The righteous God wisely considers the house of the wicked,
00 Overthrowing the wicked for their wickedness.
13 Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor
00 Will also cry himself and not be heard.
14 A gift in secret pacifies anger,
00 And a bribe behind the back, strong wrath.
15 It is a joy for the just to do justice,
00 But destruction will come to the workers of iniquity.
16 A man who wanders from the way of understanding
00 Will rest in the assembly of the dead.
17 He who loves pleasure will be a poor man;
00 He who loves wine and oil will not be rich.
18 The wicked shall be a ransom for the righteous,
00 And the unfaithful for the upright.
19 Better to dwell in the wilderness,
00 Than with a contentious and angry woman.
20 There is desirable treasure,
00 And oil in the dwelling of the wise,
00 But a foolish man squanders it.
21 He who follows righteousness and mercy
00 Finds life, righteousness and honor.
22 A wise man scales the city of the mighty,
00 And brings down the trusted stronghold.
23 Whoever guards his mouth and tongue
00 Keeps his soul from troubles.
24 A proud and haughty man--"Scoffer" is his name;
00 He acts with arrogant pride.
25 The desire of the lazy man kills him,
00 For his hands refuse to labor.
26 He covets greedily all day long,
00 But the righteous gives and does not spare.
27 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;
00 How much more when he brings it with wicked intent!
28 A false witness shall perish,
00 But the man who hears him will speak endlessly.
29 A wicked man hardens his face,
00 But as for the upright, he establishes his way.
30 There is no wisdom or understanding
00 Or counsel against the LORD.
31 The horse is prepared for the day of battle,
00 But deliverance is of the LORD.
The purpose of Writing the book of Proverbs by Solomon is to reveal the mind of God in matters high and lofty and in common, ordinary, everyday situations. It appears that no topic escaped King Solomon's attention. Matters pertaining to personal conduct, sexual relations, business, wealth, charity, ambition, discipline, debt, child-rearing, character, alcohol, politics, revenge, and Godliness are among the many topics covered in this rich collection of wise sayings.
Without wisdom, knowledge is nothing more than an accumulation of raw facts, influenced by emotional feelings. Many highly educated people are in positions of power in the United States, but very few of those educated leaders have the wisdom needed to rule properly.
One can say that they have been educated well beyond their intelligence. A cursory look at the court system will prove my point that knowledge without wisdom will only lead to an immoral society that eventually crumbles from within. Judges are supposed to be above the fray, and immovable to emotions. Instead, the vast majority of judges today are Godless individuals who are vacant of wisdom. So their rulings are totally based upon emotional feelings.
We the people are to blame, because we ignored God';s guidance in appointing our leaders. Instead of putting leaders full wisdom in power, we instead chose those who would scratch our itchy ears to lead us.
Along with my daily routine of reading the Bible, I try to read through the book of Proverbs once a Month. It's an easy task when you consider there are 31 Proverbs. So all you need to know is what day of the Month it is to know which Proverb to read. In the Months that have less than 31 days, I just double so I can begin the next month with Proverb 1 on the first again.
Thank you, OneVike, for the Proverbs Scripture and your prayer. Blessings to you.
I love that picture.
That sounds wonderful. I pray you have a good growing season and the weather is favorable to you and your plants!
A WISDOM book indeed!
We are to dwell on the Words of God.
God will allow us to go the wrong way if we ignore His Words of WISDOM.
Thank you both.
:>)
Yes.
Sadly we have many leaders who ignore His words and so we the people pay the price for their arrogance on a daily basis.
I didn’t forget you. I have been very busy with the remodel of my home. It was almost as bad as moving!
Proverbs, chapter 21
CHAPTER 21
1A king’s heart is channeled water in the hand of the LORD;
God directs it where he pleases.*
2All your ways may be straight in your own eyes,
but it is the LORD who weighs hearts.a
3To do what is right and justb
is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.*
4Haughty eyes and a proud heart—
the lamp of the wicked will fail.*
5The plans of the diligent end in profit,
but those of the hasty end in loss.*
6Trying to get rich by lying
is chasing a bubble over deadly snares.
7The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,
because they refuse to do what is right.
8One’s path may be winding and unfamiliar,
but one’s conduct is blameless and right.*
9It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop
than in a mansion with a quarrelsome woman.* c
10The soul of the wicked desires evil;
their neighbor finds no pity in their eyes.
11When scoffers are punished the naive become wise;
when the wise succeed, they gain knowledge.d
12The Righteous One appraises the house of the wicked,
bringing down the wicked to ruin.*
13Those who shut their ears to the cry of the poor
will themselves call out and not be answered.
14A secret gift allays anger,
and a present concealed, violent wrath.*
15When justice is done it is a joy for the just,
16Whoever strays from the way of good sense
will abide in the assembly of the shades.*
17The lover of pleasure will suffer want;
the lover of wine and perfume will never be rich.
18The wicked serve as ransom for the just,
and the faithless for the upright.* f
19It is better to dwell in a wilderness
than with a quarrelsome wife and trouble.
20Precious treasure and oil are in the house of the wise,
but the fool consumes them.
21Whoever pursues justice and kindness
will find life and honor.*
22The wise person storms the city of the mighty,
and overthrows the stronghold in which they trust.
23Those who guard mouth and tongue
guard themselves* from trouble.g
24Proud, boastful—scoffer is the name:
those who act with overbearing pride.
25The desire of sluggards will slay them,
for their hands refuse to work.*
26Some are consumed with avarice all the day,
but the just give unsparingly.
27The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination,
the more so when they offer it with bad intent.h
28The false witness will perish,i
but one who listens will give lasting testimony.
29The face of the wicked hardens,
but the upright maintains a straight course.*
30No wisdom, no understanding,
no counsel prevail against the LORD.
31The horse is equipped for the day of battle,
but victory is the LORD’s.
* [21:1] “Channeled water” in Is 32:2 and Prv 5:16 is water that fertilizes arid land. It takes great skill to direct water, whether it be water to fertilize fields or cosmic floods harnessed at creation, for water is powerful and seems to have a mind of its own. It also requires great skill to direct the heart of a king, for it is inscrutable and beyond ordinary human control.
* [21:3] External rites or sacrifices do not please God unless accompanied by internal worship and right moral conduct; cf. 15:8; 21:27; Is 1:11–15; Am 5:22; Mal 1:12.
* [21:4] Heart and eyes depict, respectively, the inner and the outer person. “Haughty eyes” peering out from a “proud heart” show a thoroughly arrogant person. How can such a person flourish! Their lamp, which signifies life, will go out.
* [21:5] The antitheses are diligent and impetuous. The metaphor characterizing each type is taken from the world of commerce. Planning is important; bustle leads to waste.
* [21:8] One cannot always read others’ hearts from their behavior. Unconventional conduct need not indicate evil motives.
* [21:9] In Proverbs, two great obstacles to a happy household are foolish children and quarrelsome spouses. The nagging wife is also mentioned in 19:13 and 27:15; 25:24 is a duplicate.
* [21:12] It is difficult to ascertain the subject of the saying. Some hold it is the Lord, the “Righteous One,” who is normally the executor of justice in Proverbs. Others believe it is the just person who is the agent of divine justice. “Righteous One” is a title for God in Is 24:16. The best argument for making God the subject of the verb is that elsewhere in Proverbs righteous human beings never do anything to the wicked; only God does.
* [21:14] Proverbs offers several remedies for anger—a soft word (15:1), patience, and a bribe. The last remedy implies a certain disdain for the disordered passion of anger, for it can be so easily assuaged by a discreetly offered “gift.”
* [21:15] The second line is a duplicate of 10:29b.
* [21:16] Assembly of the shades: those who dwell in Sheol.
* [21:18] In this bold paradox, the ransom that protects the righteous is the wicked person who attracts, like a lightning rod, the divine wrath that might have been directed at the righteous.
* [21:21] The paradox is that one comes upon something other than what one pursued. The way to (long and healthy) life and honor is the vigorous pursuit of virtue.
* [21:23] Themselves: see note on 13:3. To guard your “self” (lit., “throat,” the moist and breathing center of the body, by metonymy, “life”), you must guard your tongue. Speech in Proverbs is the quintessential human activity and often has a meaning broader than speech alone; it can stand for all human activity. Acting rightly is the best way to protect yourself from evil.
* [21:25] Desire, or appetite, is the impulse toward food and drink (see Ps 42:3) which spurs animals and human beings into action. But sluggards cannot lift hand to mouth; they bury their hand in the dish (19:24), and so their appetite is thwarted.
* [21:29] The wicked cannot deter the righteous from walking the straight path, i.e., from practicing virtue.
b. [21:3] 1 Sm 15:22; Hos 6:6.
c. [21:9] Prv 21:19; 25:24; 27:15; Sir 25:23.
**12The Righteous One appraises the house of the wicked,
bringing down the wicked to ruin.***
This WILL happen!
yes I agree.
The question is, what will be left.
America as we know it, like it or not, is finished. Even if we take the Congress back, and win the WH in 2016 I do not see the new President reversing 8 years of executive orders that have torn the very fabric of out country apart.
Look at what we expected from GW, yet look at what we got. He and the Republican House and Senate created the very agency, that is now being used by Obama to destroy us, Dept. of Homeland Security. While GW also gave us the Judge that helped Obama destroy our healthcare.
Times are going to get rough though. 92 million Americans without a job. Reagan was able to create 20 million new jobs over his whole 8 year term. Even if we get another Reagan in 2016, and like Reagan they are able to ease the government yoke on us. It would take 20 to 30 years to get those jobs back, and that is only “IF” if we get 2 or three 2 term type President in the mold of Reagan in a row.
Hell, there is no guarantee that after that persons 8 year term is over we will get another good conservative. look what happened after Reagan.
So while I agree that the wicked one will get his.
Sorry to be so negative, but I am a realist, and this Republic has had it’s main artery cut, and it’s now just limping along looking for the elephant graveyard to die in.
God tells us what is to come, and for years we have debated the logistics of the end times, well, a huge part has been clarified for us Christian. That is what part America will have in the end times prophecies.
Answer? Nothing. We will be of no factor. hell, even our military is being cut down to pre-WWII levels, and Obama is on target to destroy 80% of our nuclear warheads. Leaving the Bear of the North, and the Red Army as the remaining big guys, whom by the way both are eluded to in end times prophecies.
God bless you Salvation.
OV, Chuck
Oh yea, I understand. are not ignoring me. No worries. I too have been real busy lately. My time on FR is very limited lately.
That is why I decided to start the Proverb a day thing. It gives me a reason to force myself to take time and stop by.
Maybe a little wisdom will leak onto the other threads and enlighten some of our lost FReepers who are either caught up in cults, or just die hard atheists or agnostic.
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