Posted by Jeff Short on May 6, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow? Who hath contentions? Who hath babbling? Who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes?
– Proverbs 23:29
Verses 29-35 form the last saying in this chapter and it is a character study of the drunkard. The saying begins with a riddle that will be answered in the next verse. We are presented with six questions describing a deplorable condition. The word for
woe means a lamentation, or a cry of grief. The word for
sorrow means an exclamation of pain. The word for
contentions means strife, or arguments. The word for
babbling means complaining. The word for
wounds means injuries. They are
without cause, meaning for no reason and indicating the unjust suffering of the complainer. The word for
redness describes bleariness, or eyes appearing tired and bloodshot. The sketch pictures one with bloodshot eyes constantly complaining of all the troubles he’s seen while being an innocent victim.
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Posted by Jeff Short on May 5, 2018 · Leave a Comment
She also lieth in wait as for a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men.
– Proverbs 23:28
The warning further uncovers the character of the strange woman. Her danger is more than a pit one might accidentally fall into. She is described as a hunter for a
prey, and the last phrase indicates great success. The warning reinforces the warnings that have come before (Proverbs 2:16-19; 7:12, 22-27; 9:18; 22:14).
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Posted by Jeff Short on May 4, 2018 · Leave a Comment
For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.
– Proverbs 23:27
The fatherly saying here is reminiscent of the fatherly sayings in the first nine chapters, particularly warnings against the
strange woman. The word
whore is indelicate today, but it commonly refers to a harlot, or a prostitute. The word for
strange woman means a foreign woman but is often put for a forbidden woman, such as a married woman. In this case, she is an adulteress. The
deep ditch and
narrow pit both indicate a trap with no escape (Proverbs 9:18; 22:14).
Wisdom is not taught just to keep a person from adultery and fornication, though it does that. By addressing the inner lusts, such as greed, gluttony, drunkenness, fornication, etc., the nature of walking the way of wisdom is revealed. Wisdom kept in the heart keeps one in the right way. It affects us transformatively within (Proverbs 20:9; 28:9; 16:6; 28:13). We infer this required inner transformation from the fact wisdom is alien to us, so we must acquire it through correction and instruction (Proverbs 22:15; 19:3). We also know that knowledge must begin with the fear of the Lord, which is put synonymously for knowing God (Proverbs 2:5; 9:10), which can only be had from revelation (Proverbs 2:6). When Proverbs treats of sins like fornication or drunkenness, it’s not just the breaking of a rule that’s warned against but the fundamental root sin of forsaking the God of righteousness (Proverbs 30:7-9).
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Posted by Jeff Short on May 3, 2018 · Leave a Comment
My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.
– Proverbs 23:26
The word for
heart means the cardiac muscle in a person’s chest. It has a wide range of figurative uses in the Hebrew Old Testament. It can refer to the whole inner being of man, the immaterial being. It can refer to the mind and understanding. It can refer to the will. It can refer to the feelings, or emotions, and more. Modern day westerners presuppose a reference to the heart being about affection and feelings. The word appears over 90 times in Proverbs and could seldom be thought to refer to emotions. When you couple this verse with similar calls to wisdom, particularly in the fatherly addresses, it is plainly an admonition to give thoughtful attention (Proverbs 1:8, 33; 2:1-2; 3:1, 21; 4:1-2, 4-5, 10, 10; 5:1, 7; 6:20-21; 7:1-3, 24; 8:1-6, 10-11, 32-33). The second phrase seals that understanding by calling for observation.
The word for observe means to be pleased with, or to accept. The word is translated, delighteth, in Proverbs 3:12. The call is clearly a call to hearken to wisdom and to recognize and embrace the rightness of the ways of the teacher. The picture of instructing in and imparting wisdom to another is a picture of master and apprentice, or discipling (Proverbs 13:20).
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Posted by Jeff Short on May 2, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.
– Proverbs 23:25
This verse finishes the saying on honoring parents. The good outcome of children acquiring wisdom is the rejoicing of the parents. Both father and mother rejoice as opposed to grieving a foolish child (Proverbs 17:25).
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Posted by Jeff Short on May 1, 2018 · Leave a Comment
The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him.
– Proverbs 23:24
The word for
righteous means just in conduct and character. Such a child brings joy and rejoicing to his parents. Joy and rejoicing in children, as well as the grim alternative, is a steady encouragement and exhortation to parental wisdom in raising children throughout Proverbs (Proverbs 10:1; 15:20; 23:15-16). Children who come to maturity with wisdom are a great delight to parents. The delight is also reciprocal, mature and wise children glory in their parents (Proverbs 17:6). Wise parents lovingly, patiently, and persistently teach their “law” to their children as they grow for the purpose of equipping them to walk in wisdom securely and honorably (Proverbs 1:9; 3:1, 23; 4:8-9, 12; 7:2-3). It is only a foolish and rebellious child who wants his parents to get out of his way (Proverbs 19:26; 30:11, 17; Luke 15:12-13).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 30, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.
– Proverbs 23:23
This verse gives a fatherly saying that is be hearkened to. The word for
truth means certainty, and so it points to reality, what is truly true. To
buy and not
sell means to labor to acquire wisdom and to retain it. The word for
wisdom means skill, like that of a craftsman or tradesman, and can be put for shrewdness. The word for
instruction means discipline, and can range from teaching to correcting, or even chastisement. The word for
understanding means discernment and indicates the ability to distinguish between. The four words here represent the necessary equipment for going in the right way, or living a godly life. Proverbs consistently urges the necessity of seeking, cost of acquiring, and value of having wisdom (Proverbs 2:2-4; 4:5-7; 16:16).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 28, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.
– Proverbs 23:22
Verses 22-25 form a saying on honoring parents, or being a wise son. The word for
hearken means to listen, to understand. The exhortation to listen extends even to when the
mother is
old. The word for
despise means to disrespect, or hold in contempt. The warning here is against quickly dismissing the counsel of parents (Deuteronomy 27:16; Proverbs 30:11). Honoring parents is a lifelong command (Exodus 20:12; Ephesians 6:2).
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Posted by Jeff Short on April 27, 2018 · Leave a Comment
For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.
– Proverbs 23:21
The word for
poverty means dispossessed, which can be inheritance but at least denotes impoverishing loss. Wisdom here looks to the end of the way of drunkards and gluttons. The word for
drowsiness means sleepiness, and is put for indolence. The saying likely includes a third form of excess, indulging in sleep and rest. This is a feature of the sluggard, with the same consequences (Proverbs 6:9-11; 19:15; 24:30-34). All could be generally characterized as lovers of pleasure, and their fate is the same (Proverbs 21:17).
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Proverbs 23:29
Posted by Jeff Short on May 6, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow? Who hath contentions? Who hath babbling? Who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes?
Verses 29-35 form the last saying in this chapter and it is a character study of the drunkard. The saying begins with a riddle that will be answered in the next verse. We are presented with six questions describing a deplorable condition. The word for woe means a lamentation, or a cry of grief. The word for sorrow means an exclamation of pain. The word for contentions means strife, or arguments. The word for babbling means complaining. The word for wounds means injuries. They are without cause, meaning for no reason and indicating the unjust suffering of the complainer. The word for redness describes bleariness, or eyes appearing tired and bloodshot. The sketch pictures one with bloodshot eyes constantly complaining of all the troubles he’s seen while being an innocent victim.– Proverbs 23:29
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