365 Reflections

There's a problem in your life for sure. That problem is you.  Hard to hear in our seeking-to-feel-good culture, but healing.  Proverbs 29:1 (ESV) He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck, will suddenly be broken beyond healing. Wise living comes from more than just hearing it. You have to receive it. And sometimes we don't receive wisdom because we don't have the ability or willingness to let ourselves be challenged in what we assume is right.  This is the person described in Proverbs 29:1 along with other passages from the chapter. The image of a person not willing to receive correction. This is the person who is so utterly convinced they are right there is no changing them. And this person is their own worst enemy. Because disaster comes eventually and if we don't turn and change, it will come for us.  There are three proverbs that describe the person who cannot receive instruction in the chapter: Proverbs 29:9 (ESV) If a wise man has an argument with a f...

Proverbs 28 brings to focus the need for Godly authority in our lives and in our nations. Proverbs 28:1–2 (ESV) The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion. 2 When a land transgresses, it has many rulers, but with a man of understanding and knowledge, its stability will long continue. There's a reward to righteousness we do not talk enough about. Here it is: Confidence.  Think of how this Proverb addresses the fruit of sin - it causes people to fear and flee. We think sin is an embrace of freedom, it's actually slavery. And a slave is someone who lives in the fear of others. They let others dictate their lives. They have no confidence in being who they are because they have defined themselves apart from who God made them to be. If a child has no point of reference for authority, they have no assurance of self and fail miserably in life.  The same is true of a people group ("land"). A nation without a firm commitment to what God wants wil...

I cannot get past this Proverb as I read through Proverbs 27.  Proverbs 27:21 (ESV) The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and a man is tested by his praise. What a thought on which to meditate. Praise, not problems alone is a test of character. And like problems, the test of praise does not produce character, it reveals it.  What happens to you when people approve of you? That is what praise expresses. Someone or some group thinks you've done well, you're a stand-up person, you're on the top of your game. You've just entered a testing ground of character.  One textual note. In the original text, the word "tested" is not there. It is inferred and translated into "tested" by the ESV and "valued" by the NKJV. The point? You know yourself in relation to the consideration you place on others' opinions of you. And therein lies the danger.  Now if you know anything at all about people it is the temporary nature of their pra...

The art of not speaking is forgotten. Today everyone has something to say even when they don't have much to say at all. If something should be re-learned it is the art of letting our tongues stop and knowing to speak less. This is a great amount of Prover 27's emphasis.  Verse 1: Don't talk about what you're going to do. Proverbs 27:1 (ESV) Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring. What foolishness it is to think we can surmise our future. The best plan is the plan that expects plans to not go according to plan. So boasting about our plans do us very little good in the long run.  Verse 2: Do not talk about what you've done.  Proverbs 27:2 (ESV) Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips. This wisdom is in severely short supply. Our resumes are padded, our social media pages staged and our certificates hang on the wall to let people know that we matter. Our lives are not boring and dull.  The best k...

Want to know what's wrong with the world? Look for a moment at the warnings of Proverbs 26: Proverbs 26:1 (ESV) Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool. Proverbs 26:3 (ESV) A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools. Proverbs 26:6 (ESV) Whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence. Proverbs 26:9–11 (ESV) Like a thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard is a proverb in the mouth of fools. 10 Like an archer who wounds everyone is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard. 11 Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly. Proverbs is a book of wisdom. And it is constantly reminding us of the damage fools and foolishness can do. We have developed an appetite for foolishness to our own detriment. Today school children learn about gender instead of history, about sexual abnormalities instead of science, and today's universities carefully censor...

Again and again, the wisdom of the tongue cannot be overstated in the book of Proverbs. Consider the emphasis of the timing and nature of our words in Proverbs 25.  Proverbs 25:11–13 (ESV) A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver. 12 Like a gold ring or an ornament of gold is a wise reprover to a listening ear. 13 Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest is a faithful messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the soul of his masters. Three facets of our conversation here that should be noted. First that it is timely. Our words have a right moment and a bunch of wrong ones. Wisdom puts them in the right place at the right time. Second, our words need to be truthful and given to those who will receive them. And finally, our words need to be faithful, that is, to scripture's truth as God has revealed.  Consider the proverb in verse 20 expressing a WRONG time for the WRONG word: Proverbs 25:20 (ESV) Whoever sings songs to a heavy heart is like one...

Proverbs 25:1–2 (ESV) These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied. 2 It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out. I love this notation about Hezekiah. He copied down the proverbs from Solomon. This no doubt is what led to his reputation as a righteous man. 2 Kings 18:2–3 (ESV)  (Hezekiah) was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. 3 And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done. Could it have been that Hezekiah not only read the Bible but saw the Bible (Solomon's writings at this point) as speaking directly to himself? And having heard God speak he search out the truth that His Word contained. When we think about great men, they are true seekers - always searching to uncover another mystery of the universe, the human condition, and how to make...

It's amazing how many times the Bible warns against being envious of evil people. It's found in Psalm 73, Psalm 37, Job 24 and many other places. Proverbs 25 opens with that very line. Proverbs 24:1–2 (ESV) Be not envious of evil men, nor desire to be with them, 2 for their hearts devise violence, and their lips talk of trouble. Seems the Lord knew this would be a problem for us for the oft-repeated warning should be noted. There will be a way in this world that seems advantageous which also jettisons the values and priorities of God's word. Don't fall for it. It's temporary. And eventually, the evil men come to an end.  Psalm 37:1, 10 (ESV) Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers!10 In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. Psalm 73:3, 18 (ESV) For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 18 Truly you set them in slippery places; you ...