Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 18-21.

When I started reading through the Book of Proverbs this year I intended to write each day about a summary lesson from the contents of the passage.  I am finding it difficult to come up with a summary lesson from the sections, such as today’s and yesterday’s which are collections of short proverbs.  I am going to try and go over the lessons which came to me as I went through today’s passage(not necessarily in the order they appear in the passage) and try to connect them to each other.

I am going to start by talking about the connection I see here between the ways in which fools (who are by definition in this context morally deficient) speak without thinking and do not have any desire to know what they do not know.  Throughout the Book of Proverbs the writer warns us that only fools speak without thinking or listening.  He also tells us that they do not desire knowledge or understanding.  From looking at the world around me, I realized how many people fail to pay attention to what those who disagree with them actually think and then wonder why they cannot convince them to change their minds.  These foolish ones spend a lot of time talking about why they think they are in the right, but refuse to listen to why their opposition thinks they are wrong.  Let us remember to listen to what those we disagree with say that they actually believe.  By doing so, we may learn that they are not so wrong, and/or we may learn how to show them a better way to attain their goal.  Which leads me to another point the writer makes.  Wisdom leads to patience, which makes one willing to overlook insult.  Those whose gullibility inclines them to evil do not learn from their own suffering, but they may learn to be more cautious when they see others suffering from the results of their wicked ways.  On the other hand those who seek knowledge and wisdom, learn when they are called out for their mistakes.

Early on in this passage we have these two short snippets:
The name of the Lord is a fortified tower;
    the righteous run to it and are safe.
And:
 The wealth of the rich is their fortified city;
    they imagine it a wall too high to scale.
Usually when I read this passage I see these as two separate lessons.  Today I realized that together they give us a better lesson than what can be gained from looking at them separately.  Wealth does provide some protection from the vagaries of life, but relying on wealth leaves one open to trouble when those troubles rise higher than the wall of our wealth.  On the other hand, if we instead run to the Lord and rely on Him for our protection, we will be safe.  The storms of this life will never rise higher than the walls which God will put around us when we turn to Him.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 18-21.

Today’s passage continues the collection of short proverbs.  It continues to give examples of the importance of controlling both your temper and your tongue.  It also reiterates that we make plans, but only those plans which fit into God’s purpose will come to fruition.  Today’s passage contains several proverbs which speak to me.  He tells us that a good wife is a gift from God.  Every time I read this passage I am reminded to thank God for the wife He gave me.  For me, the writer’s exhortations for patience runs right into that, as it took me a long time to find my wife.  However, seeking a life mate is only one area where patience is essential.  The proverb writer warns that being hasty leads us to make poor decisions.  Seek counsel and patiently consider your options before making any important decision.  The proverbs in today’s passage cover many more subjects.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 18-21.

Like yesterday, today’s passage contains many short sayings which sum up complex wisdom in short, pithy phrases.  Since these proverbs have many different themes I will focus on just a couple of things which feel the most important of these today.  The writer tells us about the importance of words, both those we choose to speak and those to which we choose to listen.  If we take more pleasure in listening until we understand than in telling others our opinions we both gain wisdom and demonstrate that we have it.  But when we listen we need to listen with discernment and be careful not to believe rumors of which appeal to our prurient interests, but otherwise have little value.  Even worse than listening to such rumors is succumbing to the temptation to spread them.  It feels good to be “in the know”, but the damage done is never worth it.

The writer also tells us how wealth brings friends.  He offers both a simple description of how things are and a warning, actually, two warnings.  First, he warns us that many of those we think of as friends will be nowhere to be found when we need them most.  Second, he warns us to not allow ourselves to only help those who can help us.  God rewards those who provide assistance to those who can never repay that aid.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 18-21.

Like yesterday, I pulled out a few of these proverbs to focus on, but there are many more which are worth thought.  The first two I want to look at are chapter 19:10-11.

It is easy to read these and overlook how they fit together because of the way so many of today’s proverbs are just little tidbits mostly independent of the one before and the one after.  In fact, I had not realized before today that these two go together.  There are numerous proverbs which refer to how the wealth of the rich protects them.  But in this case, the proverb warns rather than declares.  The righteous run to the name of the Lord and ARE SAFE. On the other hand, the rich IMAGINE their wealth a wall too high to scale.  So, we are warned to put our trust in God, not in our wealth, no matter how much of it we have.  I am tempted here to discuss how this applies to things which are going on in society around us, but instead want to focus on making it personal.  I must not allow the wealth I accumulate, however limited it may be, to replace God in my life.

There were some other proverbs in this passage which I had pulled out to possibly write about., But I am going to include just one more:

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 18-21.

As I wrote about yesterday’s passage, today’s passage also consists of individual proverbs strung together which makes it hard to write a blog entry about.  However, some of today’s proverbs continue the theme about the importance of watching what you say.  Today, the proverbs put more emphasis on not talking too much.  Whereas yesterday’s put more emphasis on being careful in what you say.  Although both contain references to both.  Really, today’s focus comes down to the fact that, no matter how carefully you try to choose your words wisely, if you say too much you will say something which you should not have said.  It also warns against hanging out with people who gossip and talk constantly.  In both cases, if you spend too much time with such people you will say something to them which when told to someone else will put you in a bad light and such people will, sooner or later, tell those things to someone else.