Introduction
Solomon continues with his thirty sayings of the wise, which all relate to the heart, they begin in Proverbs 22:17 and finish in Proverbs 24:24.
‘Do not envy the wicked, do not desire their company; for their hearts plot violence, and their lips talk about making trouble.’ Proverbs 24:1-2
Saying 20
We can’t say that those around us don’t affect our lives, if we do, we are in denial. We become like them, 1 Corinthians 15:33.
‘By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.’ Proverbs 24:3-4
Saying 21
Wisdom and understanding are the blueprints for our house, without them, our homes would be chaotic.
‘The wise prevail through great power, and those who have knowledge muster their strength. Surely you need guidance to wage war, and victory is won through many advisers.’ Proverbs 24:5-6
Saying 22
These verses are simply telling us that wisdom is more powerful than any human power.
‘Wisdom is too high for fools; in the assembly at the gate they must not open their mouths.’ Proverbs 24:7
Saying 23
We must go to the high places in order to grasp wisdom. There is nothing wrong with asking for advice from certain people about a decision we need to make whether it is a new job or moving to a new place to live.
‘Whoever plots evil will be known as a schemer. The schemes of folly are sin, and people detest a mocker.’ Proverbs 24:8-9
Saying 24
We normally understand the folly as the sin, but here it’s related to merely thinking about it is the sin. Sin starts in your mind and then it grows and before you know it, it has caused a lot of devastation, James 1:15.
‘If you falter in a time of trouble, how small is your strength! Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, ‘But we knew nothing about this,’ does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay everyone according to what they have done?’ Proverbs 24:10-12
Saying 25
We must be willing to help those who are struggling, James 5:19-20 / Galatians 6:1 / 2 Timothy 4:5 / Jude 1:23. The words, ‘if you say’, imply this may be an excuse to not be involved. With opportunity comes responsibility, if we can help someone we had better do so, James 2:14-15.
‘Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. Know also that wisdom is like honey for you: If you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.’ Proverbs 24:13-14
Saying 26
Wisdom is referred to as honey, it’s sweet and good for us. When we do, we have hope, eternal hope, Psalm 19:10.
‘Do not lurk like a thief near the house of the righteous, do not plunder their dwelling place; for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes.’ Proverbs 24:15-16
Saying 27
We all know that a thief’s intentions are never good. We need to rise again and keep fighting the good fight, 1 Timothy 6:11-16. ‘Seven times’ is normally enough to defeat someone, but a righteous man will continue to get up, Matthew 18:21-22.
‘Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice, or the LORD will see and disapprove and turn his wrath away from them.’ Proverbs 24:17-18
Saying 28
It’s so easy to boast and rejoice when someone we don’t like falls but we must remember that vengeance is the Lord’s, Obadiah 12 / Romans 12:19. When God sees our joy, will He turn His anger toward us instead? We should never rejoice in someone else’s misfortunes even though it was wrong what they did.
‘Do not fret because of evildoers or be envious of the wicked, for the evildoer has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.’ Proverbs 24:19-20
Saying 29
The warning is clear here, if we want to have a hope for the future, we mustn’t become like those evildoers.
‘Fear the LORD and the king, my son, and do not join with rebellious officials, for those two will send sudden destruction on them, and who knows what calamities they can bring?’ Proverbs 24:21-22
Saying 30
Here we read about the Lord and the king and the importance of submitting and respecting them both. Romans 13:1-7 / 1 Peter 2:17. This concludes the thirty sayings of the wise.
‘These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judging is not good: Whoever says to the guilty, ‘You are innocent,’ will be cursed by peoples and denounced by nations. But it will go well with those who convict the guilty, and rich blessing will come on them. An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips.’ Proverbs 24:23-26
Further Sayings Of The Wise
Here we are reminded that God shows no favouritism and that He always wants to help the helpless, Leviticus 19:9-37 / James 2:1-11. Why is an honest answer like a kiss on the lips? It’s a sign of true friendship, trust and honesty. Honesty is always the best policy.
‘Put your outdoor work in order and get your fields ready; after that, build your house.’ Proverbs 24:27
Here we are reminded of our priorities, get your life in order before trying to settle down, Haggai 1:4-6 / Matthew 6:33.
‘Do not testify against your neighbour without cause—would you use your lips to mislead? Do not say, ‘I’ll do to them as they have done to me; I’ll pay them back for what they did.’ Proverbs 24:28-29
We mustn’t look for any old excuse to say something against anyone, we especially shouldn’t tell lies about them just to get our way, Ephesians 4:25.
Have you ever been angry with someone? What does that anger want you to do? That anger pushes us to get them back, sometimes like little children but that’s the way the world works, not Christians.
Again, this is the problem of vengeance, Romans 12:17 / Ephesians 4:25 / Ephesians 4:29.
‘I went past the field of a sluggard, past the vineyard of someone who has no sense; thorns had come up everywhere, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall was in ruins. I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.’ Proverbs 24:30-34
Procrastination
We all suffer from procrastination at times, we’re all very good at putting things off until a later date. This attitude doesn’t surprise the wise person because it is what they had expected to find from the sluggard.