Posted by Jeff Short on May 2, 2017 · Leave a Comment
Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labor shall increase.
– Proverbs 13:11
The word for
vanity means empty. It is contrasted in this proverb with
labor, which indicates work with the hands. So
vanity here doesn’t exclude illegitimacy but the contrast speaks more to haste and trying to gain wealth without working for it. It reminds us of those always attracted by the offer of making a lot of money with little time or effort. Other similar proverbs speak of haste instead of vanity (Proverbs 20:21; 21:5). The general tenor of Proverbs teaches that diligence, hard work, and good stewardship increases wealth without the attendant sorrows of the vain pursuers (Proverbs 27:23-27).
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Posted by Jeff Short on May 1, 2017 · Leave a Comment
Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.
– Proverbs 13:10
The word for
contention means a quarrel or strife. The first phrase reveals how it comes by
pride, or stubborn arrogance. The proud bringer of strife is identified as a scorner (Proverbs 21:24). They will not receive counsel because they know best (Proverbs 12:15; 1:7). This is shown to be foolish by the contrast with
wisdom in the last phrase. Wisdom is frequently described as instruction or correction (Proverbs 1:2-3, 23; 3:11). Acquiring wisdom necessarily means listening to and receiving good counsel, instruction, and correction (Proverbs 19:20; 20:18; 25:8).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 30, 2017 · Leave a Comment
The light of the righteous rejoiceth: but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
– Proverbs 13:9
The course a person is on in life gives an expectation for their end. We might say the
righteous have a bright future. The word for
rejoiceth can include the idea of brightening. They are in the way of increasing light (Proverbs 4:18). The
lamp being
put out refers to darkness and to death. The image is a repeated warning (Proverbs 20:20; 24:20). Whatever brightness the wicked enjoy in life will be turned to darkness when their expectation dies (Proverbs 11:7).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 29, 2017 · Leave a Comment
The ransom of a man’s life are his riches: but the poor heareth not rebuke.
– Proverbs 13:8
The word for
ransom means a price or even a bribe. The word for
rebuke in this context likely means a threat. This proverb is obscure but it seems the contrast indicates a rich man is a target for extortion perhaps, whereas the poor man offers no such target and is not bothered with the fear of it. In this sense, the poor man is freer.
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 28, 2017 · Leave a Comment
There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.
– Proverbs 13:7
This proverb seems ambiguous. It is a wisdom observation and doesn’t immediately make a value judgment. One way to take it is as an ironic statement. Some people have great wealth but really have nothing and are poor because wealth is all they have. Some have no wealth but are truly rich because of all they do have in terms of people and relationships. The moral in this case would be that money is not everything. Another way to take it, and the way that seems most natural, is as a character observation. Men are not always what they seem to be. Some pretend to be rich and they are not. Others pretend to be poor and they are not. Wisdom then will look beyond superficial appearances.
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 27, 2017 · Leave a Comment
Righteousness keepeth him that is upright in the way: but wickedness overthroweth the sinner.
– Proverbs 13:6
The contrast is simple between
righteousness and
wickedness. There is a safety in righteousness, or a deliverance from certain troubles that affect the wicked. The word for
righteousness means justice and is often used in context of interpersonal relations (Leviticus 19:9-18). The word for
wickedness means wrong and is also often used in context of interpersonal relations (Ezekiel 18:27). Wickedness brings its own punishments (Proverbs 5:22; 11:3, 5-6; 21:12).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 26, 2017 · Leave a Comment
A righteous man hateth lying: but a wicked man is loathsome, and cometh to shame.
– Proverbs 13:5
The
righteous deal in honesty. They hate, or make themselves the enemy of lying. So the righteous abominate what is false (Proverbs 6:17). The contrast is with the person of the
wicked man. The word for
loathsome means to stink and
shame means to blush. The wicked deal and trade in lies and slander and come to shame (Proverbs 3:35; 6:12-14; 16:27-28).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 25, 2017 · Leave a Comment
The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.
– Proverbs 13:4
This proverbs contrasts wanting and having. The word for
sluggard means indolent or lazy. We might even say sluggish to do anything. To desire is to wish for or to want something. The sluggard here has a desire for things but has nothing. The sluggard is a certain type of fool in the Proverbs. His character is sketched in vivid pictures. He is hinged to his bed (Proverbs 26:14). He produces outlandish excuses, such as a lion in the street (Proverbs 26:13). The sluggard is pure laziness (Proverbs 26:15). Sluggards tend to have plenty of ideas but they find out talk is truly cheap (Proverbs 14:23). The contrast is with the
diligent and their being
made fat. Fatness is a reference to abundance or plenteousness. The general tenor of the Proverbs is that diligence, hard work, is rewarded with profit (Proverbs 14:23). The diligent also desire like the sluggards do, but the difference is the diligent get up and work in order to have (Proverbs 21:5).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 24, 2017 · Leave a Comment
He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.
– Proverbs 13:3
This proverb is about controlling one’s mouth, or speech. Keeping one’s mouth refers to guarding or keeping watch over your mouth. Regulating speech is a recurring theme in the Proverbs (Proverbs 10:19). In most cases, it is better to say too little than too much. The indication in the first phrase is that keeping the
mouth also keeps the
life (Proverbs 21:23). The word for
openeth wide in this context means to be talkative. “The mouth of fools poureth out foolishness” (Proverbs 15:2). The consequence of open-mouth talking is
destruction, or ruin (Proverbs 12:13).
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Proverbs 13:11
Posted by Jeff Short on May 2, 2017 · Leave a Comment
Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labor shall increase.
The word for vanity means empty. It is contrasted in this proverb with labor, which indicates work with the hands. So vanity here doesn’t exclude illegitimacy but the contrast speaks more to haste and trying to gain wealth without working for it. It reminds us of those always attracted by the offer of making a lot of money with little time or effort. Other similar proverbs speak of haste instead of vanity (Proverbs 20:21; 21:5). The general tenor of Proverbs teaches that diligence, hard work, and good stewardship increases wealth without the attendant sorrows of the vain pursuers (Proverbs 27:23-27).– Proverbs 13:11
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