Tomorrow
As often
happens in these chapters, I love the opening verse. We are not to boast about tomorrow, for we do
not know what the day holds for us. At
first I thought that this was rather depressing advice. It seems like the author is advocating for us
to not be excited about the future. Then
I realized that there is a difference between excitement and boasting. So long as we are excited in hopefulness of
what God may bring and not boasting in what we are demanding God to bring then
I think that we’re okay.
The Goodness of the Open Rebuke
The next
verse that really caught my eye is verse 5.
Better is open rebuke than hidden love.
I had to really ponder this one for a while before I decided whether or
not I truly agreed with it. In the end,
I have to say that I did agree with it.
I believe this proverb is more about communication and community than it
is about contrasting rebuke and love.
What the author seems to be saying is that it is better to be in a
relationship where people have the trust to be open even about the negative
things than to be in a place where people can’t even talk openly about the
things we love. Community is built upon
openness with one another. Community is built
on trust.
Being Full Without Over-indulging
As a
person who loves to eat, Proverbs 27:7 really hit home as well. The person who is full has no want; the
person who is hungry wants anything that will satisfy. Remember Proverbs 25:16? If you find honey, eat only your fill. Otherwise you will vomit it all up. This proverb truly seems to be advocating a
similar line of thinking. Keep yourself
lean and hungry. Keep yourself ready and
willing to hear God’s Word wherever it may be found. Don’t let yourself get to the point of
saying, “I’ve had enough God for now.”
Spiritually pace yourself so that you are always anticipating the next
big thing that the Lord will do in your life.
People Who Quarrel
Proverbs
27:15-16 are another pair of verses that really jumped out at me today. I know in the context it is specifically
talking about a quarrelsome wife, but I’m going to open it up to quarrelsome
people in general. Ever know someone who
no matter what you say wants to get into an argument about it? Or perhaps worse, ever know someone who never
seems to be able to stop rehashing the same arguments over and over? You can’t get anything positively done in
either of those circumstances! People
who are in the quarreling mindset are nearly impossible to work with because
they cannot move beyond the quarrel.
They cannot agree to disagree.
They cannot choose to exist in a community and let the differences
go. Such people cause the community to
sputter, stall, and eat itself alive.
Iron Sharpens Iron
Proverbs
27:17 is one of the most often quoted of the Proverbs; and it is a good
one. Iron sharpens iron. In other words, if you want to become a good
plumber, go to a good plumber and ask for advice. If you want to be a good soldier, go and train
with people who are already good soldiers.
If you want to be a godly person, hang around godly people so that they
can train you in how to be godly. You
can only improve yourself if you go to people who are at least as good as you
in a particular task.
One’s Heart Reflects One’s Character
Proverbs
27:19 is another good one. The heart
reflects the character of a man just as water reflects the man’s face. Do you want to know a person? Don’t judge them solely by what they
say. Don’t even solely judge them by
what they do. Get to know the
person. Listen to their soul. There you will get a taste of what is truly
deep within. Good people make
mistakes. Bad people do seemingly good
things for all the wrong reasons. The
only way to truly get to know a person is to get to know their spirit within.
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