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Proverbs 1:5 (ESV)
Let the wise hear and increase in learning,
and the one who understands obtain guidance,
For the simple are killed by their turning away,
and the complacency of fools destroys them;
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
for the devious person is an abomination to the Lord,
but the upright are in his confidence.
Let your eyes look directly forward,
and your gaze be straight before you.
Ponder the path of your feet;
then all your ways will be sure.
Do not swerve to the right or to the left;
turn your foot away from evil.
she does not ponder the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it.
Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice in the wife of your youth,
a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight;
be intoxicated always in her love.
Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman
and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?
For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the Lord,
and he ponders all his paths.
The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,
and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.
He dies for lack of discipline,
and because of his great folly he is led astray.
Can a man carry fire next to his chest
and his clothes not be burned?
The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
and perverted speech I hate.
I have counsel and sound wisdom;
I have insight; I have strength.
By me kings reign,
and rulers decree what is just;
by me princes rule,
and nobles, all who govern justly.
I love those who love me,
and those who seek me diligently find me.
Riches and honor are with me,
enduring wealth and righteousness.
My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold,
and my yield than choice silver.
I walk in the way of righteousness,
in the paths of justice,
granting an inheritance to those who love me,
and filling their treasuries.
A slack hand causes poverty,
but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
He who gathers in summer is a prudent son,
but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.
When words are many, transgression is not lacking,
but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.
Where there is no guidance, a people falls,
but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.
The wicked earns deceptive wages,
but one who sows righteousness gets a sure reward.
The desire of the righteous ends only in good,
the expectation of the wicked in wrath.
Whoever trusts in his riches will fall,
but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.
From the fruit of his mouth a man is satisfied with good,
and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him.
The hand of the diligent will rule,
while the slothful will be put to forced labor.
Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down,
but a good word makes him glad.
Whoever is slothful will not roast his game,
but the diligent man will get precious wealth.
Wealth gained hastily will dwindle,
but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.
Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction,
but whoever heeds reproof is honored.
Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean,
but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.
In all toil there is profit,
but mere talk tends only to poverty.
The crown of the wise is their wealth,
but the folly of fools brings folly.
Better is a little with the fear of the Lord
than great treasure and trouble with it.
Folly is a joy to him who lacks sense,
but a man of understanding walks straight ahead.
Without counsel plans fail,
but with many advisers they succeed.
To make an apt answer is a joy to a man,
and a word in season, how good it is!
The plans of the heart belong to man,
but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.
Commit your work to the Lord,
and your plans will be established.
The heart of man plans his way,
but the Lord establishes his steps.
A worker’s appetite works for him;
his mouth urges him on.
A joyful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire;
he breaks out against all sound judgment.
Whoever is slack in his work
is a brother to him who destroys.
If one gives an answer before he hears,
it is his folly and shame.
The one who states his case first seems right,
until the other comes and examines him.
The fear of the Lord leads to life,
and whoever has it rests satisfied;
he will not be visited by harm.
Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty;
open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.
Plans are established by counsel;
by wise guidance wage war.
A man’s steps are from the Lord;
how then can man understand his way?
The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;
he turns it wherever he will.
The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,
but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.
No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel
can avail against the Lord.
Do not toil to acquire wealth;
be discerning enough to desist.
Be not among drunkards
or among gluttonous eaters of meat,
for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
and slumber will clothe them with rags.
Listen to your father who gave you life,
and do not despise your mother when she is old.
Buy truth, and do not sell it;
buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;
he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.
Let your father and mother be glad;
let her who bore you rejoice.
If you faint in the day of adversity,
your strength is small.
A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and want like an armed man.
Whoever sings songs to a heavy heart
is like one who takes off a garment on a cold day,
and like vinegar on soda.
If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat,
and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,
for you will heap burning coals on his head,
and the Lord will reward you.
A man without self-control
is like a city broken into and left without walls.
It is not good to eat much honey,
nor is it glorious to seek one’s own glory.
Do not forsake your friend and your father’s friend,
and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity.
Better is a neighbor who is near
than a brother who is far away.
Iron sharpens iron,
and one man sharpens another.
Crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle
along with crushed grain,
yet his folly will not depart from him.
The wicked flee when no one pursues,
but the righteous are bold as a lion.
Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always,
but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity.
A faithful man will abound with blessings,
but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.
Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor
than he who flatters with his tongue.
Scoffers set a city aflame,
but the wise turn away wrath.
Remove far from me falsehood and lying;
give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is needful for me,
lest I be full and deny you
and say, “Who is the Lord?”
or lest I be poor and steal
and profane the name of my God.
It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
it is not for kings to drink wine,
or for rulers to take strong drink,
lest they drink and forget what has been decreed
and pervert the rights of all the afflicted.
As I read through Proverbs on 8/10/2022, here are some things that stuck out:
I care more about pleasing men than pleasing God. He’s given me direction that, if an authority figure had given me, I would have thrown myself at. Yet, I don’t honor the Lord in the same way.
I don’t respect my own profession. I have somehow devalued “sales” in my own eyes.
I need to give Jeff some good words today (15:23), while not compromising on clear standards.
Something I think we have lost in our culture is the idea of seasons. There will be seasons of “harvest” which require extra time and energy. It’s a problem when those seasons are constant, but then we need to look to the Lord for guidance (10:5).
While I found the first bullet above immensely eye-opening, today (8/12/2022), this was my devotion concerning Proverbs 16:1, 9, 20:24 -
CONCURRENCE. Modern people reason that either God is in charge of history, working everything according to his plan, or we have freedom of choice. But the Bible says both are true at once. Theologians have called this “concurrence.” Jesus’ death on the cross was foreordained, absolutely certain, yet all the people who killed him were responsible for their actions (Acts 2:23).
The plans of the heart belong to us—they are our responsibility. The way God controls history does not force us to act. Yet all we do—every one of our steps—is part of his plan. This seeming paradox, while impossible to completely fathom, is supremely practical. It gives you enormous incentive to take personal initiative—poor choices will create pain and trouble. And yet, if you do fail, remember that you can’t truly mess up your life. God will weave even your failings into his plan for you. 20:24 adds that therefore we should not worry about the fact—as others do—that we can’t control our future. It is in God’s hands.
Have you grasped this unique biblically balanced view of history, or are you more anxious or more passive than you should be?
Prayer: Lord, you are of eternity and I am of time, and that is why I cannot grasp how every detail of history could be under the control of your plan, and yet every human action be free and responsible. Yet they are, and I bow with fear and trembling before the incomprehensible but wonderful wisdom of this. Amen.
--Keller, Timothy; Keller, Kathy. God's Wisdom for Navigating Life (p. 224). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
God is so good to have given me this today.