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A Study of Proverbs 27
January 20, 2008
One of our members requested a study of Proverbs. This chapter repeats some points already made and introduces new ones. Be humble. A true friend will warn his friends when they are making serious mistakes. Control your anger. Take care of your friends. Fools don't change.
Bernie Parsons
Proverbs Chapter 27
by Bernie Parsons
Presented to the Load church of Christ 01-20-2008
Proverbs 27:1: “Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.”
James 4:13: “Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
14: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
15: For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
16: But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.”
The old folks had a saying, “Don’t count your chickens before they hatch!” It is a prideful and vain thing to brag about what you will do tomorrow. You may not live to see tomorrow. If you do, there are an infinite number of things that can interfere with your plans. It is okay to plan, but not to boast. Remember that God is in control of all things.
Proverbs 27:2: “Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips.”
Don’t promote yourself, because it is not seemly. Let others praise you and promote you.
Proverbs 27:3: “A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty; but a fool's wrath is heavier than them both.”
A stone is heavy, as is a bag of sand. However, a person who stupidly takes out his wrath on others is even more consequential. His actions will produce unwanted results.
Proverbs 27:4: “Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?”
Wrath causes cruel behavior, and anger results in out of control decisions and actions. However, envy is insidious—it eats away internally over time to create devastation.
Proverbs 27:5: “Open rebuke is better than secret love.”
If you truly love someone, you will help them correct their mistakes and errors. If you remain silent, you do not show your love.
Proverbs 27:6: “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.”
Luke 22:47: “And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him.
48: But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?”
Friends sometimes rebuke us, and say things that hurt us. That is better than someone who pretends to love us, while working behind our backs to hurt us.
Proverbs 27:7: “The full soul loatheth an honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.”
When the belly is full, even sweets are unattractive. However, to a hungry person, foods that normally repulse become attractive. Bitter food is better than nothing at all.
Proverbs 27:8: “As a bird that wandereth from her nest, so is a man that wandereth from his place.”
Just as a bird finds safety and comfort in the nest, so a man does in his home. If he goes to places where he should not be, he puts himself and his family in danger.
Proverbs 27:9: “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel.”
Wise and timely advice from a friend is as sweet as perfume.
Proverbs 27:10: “Thine own friend, and thy father's friend, forsake not; neither go into thy brother's house in the day of thy calamity: for better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.”
Don’t neglect your friends, nor your father’s—you never know when you will need their help. A friend close by does more good than your brother who is far away.
Proverbs 27:11: “My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, that I may answer him that reproacheth me.”
A man who wisely follows his father’s advice gives him a good defense against those who criticize.
Proverbs 27:12: “A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple pass on, and are punished.”
A wise man hides from approaching danger, rather than blindly rushing into it.
Proverbs 27:13: “Take his garment that is surety for a stranger, and take a pledge of him for a strange woman.”
When someone stands good for debts of strangers, there needs to be some collateral.
Proverbs 27:14: “He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted a curse to him.”
False praise is no better than a curse.
Proverbs 27:15: “A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike.
16: Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind, and the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth itself.”
A quarrelsome woman nags like the steady dripping on a rainy day. Hiding her is like trying to hide the wind, or trying to hide oil in your right hand.
Proverbs 27:17: “Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.”
Like a file sharpens iron, so a man helps shape how his friend appears to others.
Proverbs 27:18: “Whoso keepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof: so he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured.”
The gardener eats from the fruit tree and the servant is rewarded for good service.
Proverbs 27:19: “As in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man.”
A man can see his own heart as clearly as seeing his face reflected in still water.
Proverbs 27:20: “Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.”
The grave never stops receiving the dead. A man’s desires are never statisfied. The more that a man gets, the more that he wants.
Proverbs 27:21: “As the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so is a man to his praise.”
The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold. In the same manner, a man is tried by how he deals with the praise that he receives.
Proverbs 27:22: “Though thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar among wheat with a pestle, yet will not his foolishness depart from him.”
You could grind a fool along with the grain in a mortar with a pestle, and it would not separate him from his foolishness.
Proverbs 27:23: “Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.
24: For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation?
25: The hay appeareth, and the tender grass sheweth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered.
26: The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field.
27: And thou shalt have goats' milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household, and for the maintenance for thy maidens.”
Take good care of your business resources. Money earned is soon gone. Even kings come and go. You have to make the hay when it is ready, use the pastures while they are green, and gather herbs when they are available. Lambs supply wool for clothing, goats give milk for drinking and cooking for the entire household, including servants.
The lesson is to be productive, and not lazy, taking advantage of business opportunities as they arise. Don’t trust in riches already earned, for they can be lost through use, overuse, or loss. Remember to take care of the business resources, for they take care of you and your entire household.
