Posted by Jeff Short on June 5, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.
– Proverbs 24:18
Verse 18 provides a surprising explanation for the warning in verse 17. Gloating over the downfall of your adversaries is displeasing to the Lord. It doesn’t seem ultimate, divine judgment is in view, but rather the calamities that befall those who oppose you. Wisdom here seems to be along the lines of the words of Jesus when we warned about misinterpreting providential events in Luke 13:1-5. In other words, we don’t know the providence behind a calamity that comes on one. We should not assume such a calamity is a justification of ourselves and a condemnation of those we don’t get along with.
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Posted by Jeff Short on January 8, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Man’s goings are of the LORD; how can a man then understand his own way?
– Proverbs 20:24
The word for
goings means steps, or way. That his
goings are
of the Lord means that God ultimately directs the course of his life (Proverbs 16:9). The rhetorical question of the second phrase highlights that man cannot fully comprehend the whole course of his life. He cannot fully discern the twists and turns that attend life, and though he may plan and execute some things that prosper, many other things happen he does not intend or understand (Ecclesiastes 9:11). Contemplation of this without wisdom can lead to despair and fatalism. Wisdom means understanding that one’s life is in the hands of another and gives us incentive to seek good counsel and pursue wisdom (Proverbs 14:8; 20:18; Ecclesiastes 3:14).
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Posted by Jeff Short on August 2, 2017 · Leave a Comment
A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.
– Proverbs 16:9
The word for
deviseth means to plait, or weave, like a rug. The first phrase speaks of a man planning and plotting his course in his
heart, i.e., mind. The word for
directeth in the second phrase means to set upright, or to establish. The second phrase means that regardless of what man plans or attempts, what actually happens is established by God. It is more advanced theology concerning the sovereignty of God and providential governance of the creation. What man does and what he means by what he does is subjugated to God’s will and God’s intent of all that comes to pass (Genesis 50:20; Proverbs 16:1; 20:24; 21:30).
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Proverbs 24:18
Posted by Jeff Short on June 5, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.
Verse 18 provides a surprising explanation for the warning in verse 17. Gloating over the downfall of your adversaries is displeasing to the Lord. It doesn’t seem ultimate, divine judgment is in view, but rather the calamities that befall those who oppose you. Wisdom here seems to be along the lines of the words of Jesus when we warned about misinterpreting providential events in Luke 13:1-5. In other words, we don’t know the providence behind a calamity that comes on one. We should not assume such a calamity is a justification of ourselves and a condemnation of those we don’t get along with.– Proverbs 24:18
Listen to the Proverbs sermon series
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