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Proverbs 28:1-28

“The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion. 2 For the transgression of a land many are the princes thereof: but by a man of understanding and knowledge the state thereof shall be prolonged. 3 A poor man that oppresseth the poor is like a sweeping rain which leaveth no food. 4 They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them. 5 Evil men understand not judgment: but they that seek the LORD understand all things. 6 Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich. 7 Whoso keepeth the law is a wise son: but he that is a companion of riotous men shameth his father. 8 He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor. 9 He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination. 10 Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit: but the upright shall have good things in possession. 11 The rich man is wise in his own conceit; but the poor that hath understanding searcheth him out. 12 When righteous men do rejoice, there is great glory: but when the wicked rise, a man is hidden. 13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. 14 Happy is the man that feareth alway: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief. 15 As a roaring lion, and a ranging bear; so is a wicked ruler over the poor people. 16 The prince that wanteth understanding is also a great oppressor: but he that hateth covetousness shall prolong his days. 17 A man that doeth violence to the blood of any person shall flee to the pit; let no man stay him. 18 Whoso walketh uprightly shall be saved: but he that is perverse in his ways shall fall at once. 19 He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread: but he that followeth after vain persons shall have poverty enough. 20 A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent. 21 To have respect of persons is not good: for a piece of bread that man will transgress. 22 He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him. 23 He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue. 24 Whoso robbeth his father or his mother, and saith, It is no transgression: the same is a companion of a destroyer. 25 He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife: but he that putteth his trust in the LORD shall be made fat. 26 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered. 27 He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse. 28 When the wicked rise, men hide themselves: but when they perish, the righteous increase.”

Introduction

Guilt Is The Parent Of Fear

“Chapter 28 says “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.” (verse 1) You guys, anybody remember before you were saved, being paranoid? Before I was saved, before I was a Christian, a police officer drove by, I froze, because usually I had something with me I shouldn’t have had with me. If he was behind me on the highway, your heart was going Ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump! and you’re driving so slow, and you don’t want to drive so slow that he’s getting suspicious, and then he finally drives by and you go, ‘Wheh!’ Just, because the wicked, they flee when no man pursueth. One old writer that I read from the 1800s, he said “Guilt is the parent of fear.” Guilt is the parent of fear, because the wicked have a guilty conscience. Look, it’s been that way from the beginning, ‘Adam, where art thou?’ ‘I hid myself because I was naked.’ ‘How did you know you were naked?’ ‘I was afraid,’ how did he know he was naked? He was guilty. “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.” (verse 1)

Rulers, Kings With Wise Counsellors Prolong Their Reigns

“For the transgression of a land many are the princes thereof: but by a man of understanding and knowledge the state thereof shall be prolonged.” (verse 2) Civil law, the civil government, it says when things are crazy, when transgression is ruling the land, then there’s all kinds of men and women with all kinds of opinions, it says in the end of the Book of Judges ‘that there was no king in Israel in those days, and every man doing what was right in his own eyes.’ When a Daniel comes on the scene, a Nebuchadnezzar is well-served, and the land becomes stable. When a Joseph comes on the scene, all of Egypt is brought to stability and there is enough grain to feed Egypt and many of the neighbouring countries, and mankind is preserved. When there’s nothing but transgression then you have all kinds of insanity, all kinds of people in positions they shouldn’t be in, we’re probably thinking of the northern tribes of Israel, they had one wicked king after another, some of them would reign for 30 days, but in the south there were a number of righteous kings that had longer reigns [see http://www.unityinchrist.com/kings/1.html and check out the chart in the beginning, for the House of Judah in the south, from Solomon’s son Rehoboam to 721BC 11 kings reigned, but for the northern 10 tribes of the House of Israel, 20 kings reigned within that same historic time-span, a two-to-one ration]. “For the transgression of a land many are the princes thereof: but by a man of understanding and knowledge the state thereof shall be prolonged.” (verse 2)

Rulers Taken From The Ranks Of The Poor Often Become Tyrants

“A poor man that oppresseth the poor is like a sweeping rain which leaveth no food.” (verse 3) Often somebody taking from the poorest ranks, put in a high position of authority in government, they become tyrants, so often. Sadly, he says they become like a driving rain that doesn’t leave anything behind, because, you see the rain coming, the land is thirsty, supposed to be a blessing to the crops, but sometimes when the wind, in a driving rain, the wind is so strong, the rain is so pelting the ground, that it doesn’t leave anything behind. It says if a poor man ruling over, that oppresses the poor, it should be a blessing, ‘Oh, a poor man, he’s going to appreciate the position that we’re in,’ and it says he can become a tyrant, and it’s like the driving rain that doesn’t leave anything behind.

The Law, The Word Of God

Verses 4 to 9, the Law is mentioned 4 times, that means in this chapter it’s mentioned more often than in any chapter in the Book of Proverbs. When we talk about the Law in the Old Testament, we’re talking about the Word of God, not just the Torah, it’s certainly that, first five Books, but we’re also talking about the Word of the LORD. God would say to them, to ancient Israel in the Book of Deuteronomy, ‘What other people are you like, in the face of the earth who is like you, that God has stooped down and given ordinances and precepts and laws for civil government?’ Because if you study the Canaanites and Amorites, you study about their immorality, their idolatry, their murder of one another, the murder of their children [Baal worship], the uncleanness, God said ‘What other nation is like you? That God himself stooped down and gave you his Word, gave you his ordinances, gave you order for civil government, gave you a way to worship and so forth.’ So that was the Law to ancient Israel, it was the Word of God [which when Solomon wrote these Proverbs would have been the first five Books, Genesis through Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, 1^st and 2^nd Samuel, Ruth, and the Book of Job and the Psalms of David, that would be the whole Word of God by that time]. It says here, “They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them.” (verse 4) [I always call proverbs like this, and there are a few in the Book of Proverbs, this is what I call a “Birds of a feather flock together” Proverb. The wicked always tend to “flock” with the wicked, and the good, the righteous, always tend to “flock” with the righteous, and neither group tends to blend well with the other, like hawks don’t tend to blend well with Red-winged Blackbirds.] Look, understand that, those that forsake the law, they praise the wicked. Seen any of that on TV lately? Those that contend with them, contend with the wicked, it tells us here, are those that keep the Law. “Evil men understand not judgment: but they that seek the LORD understand all things.” (verse 5) “judgment” justice, they don’t know what justice really is, “but they that seek the LORD understand all things” because they have the Word. “Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich.” (verse 6) Better to be a poor man, struggling to make it by, you’re upright, your heart is right before the LORD, than to be a wealthy man that’s filthy rich and filthy. “Whoso keepeth the law is a wise son: but he that is a companion of riotous men shameth his father.” (verse 7) it’s heartbreak to any father, any mother that has a prodigal son there living that way.

God’s Justice To Those Who Get Rich Charging High Interest Loans

“He that by usury” extortion, charging high interest rates in giving loans or banking, we used to call it loan-sharking, but most credit cards now charge those rates like it’s normal, charging what they’re not supposed to be charging to their brother in Israel, you’re not supposed to be charging interest, abusing them, “He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.” (verse 8) God is the one who is in control. When you look at the world, these guys are getting rich, ripping everyone off, God says ‘No, no, look, I’m in charge, they’re not on the throne, I’m on the throne, and ultimately, I’ll make sure that what they gather in their unjustness and in their extortion, it will make its way to the poor.’

The Religious Without Obedience, God Ignores Their Prayers

“He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination.” (verse 9) so somebody who plays the religious part, they attend Bible study, they do all this, and yet in their own life, they don’t want what the Word of God says, it doesn’t have any rule over their lives, they want to spout it off to other people, then they want to live however they want to live, it says ‘even that person’s prayer is an abomination.’ Because there’s no genuineness between them and God, it’s just an empty religious form.

‘Whoso Causeth The Righteous To Go Astray Had Better Watch Out!’

“Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit: but the upright shall have good things in possession.” (verse 10) Very interesting verse. “whoso causeth the righteous to go astray,” listen, that’s very different motivation than somebody who tempts evil men. Evil men tempt evil men, they’re out there trying to get their cohorts, trying to get their posse together, they want people to live in sin with them. But there’s a very specific influence on those who are evil, who try to tempt righteous men. And it began in Eden when Satan said ‘Yeah, hath God said?’ And there’s a particular form of evil, and there’s a particular worker of iniquity, invisible, behind the scenes, that very specifically wants to bring the righteous down. Not content just with leading mankind into wickedness, it says this, that when the righteous go astray, this is the work of a malovent force, “in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit:” the one that’s doing that to the righteous man, “but the upright shall have good things in possession.” (verse 10) We are told that we do have an inheritance, uncorruptible, undefiled, that fades not away. We are told in Romans chapter 8 that ‘nothing shall separate us from the love of God,’ we do have good things in possession. But there are those around us, who specifically aim at you, because there’s a malovent unseen force that would love to bring you down, they specifically want to bring down the righteous.

The Poor Sometimes Have More Understanding Than The Rich

“The rich man is wise in his own conceit; but the poor that hath understanding searcheth him out.” (verse 11) ‘the poor that has understanding has a beat on him,’ understands who he is, that he’s not as smart as he thinks he is.

When The Wicked Rise Up The Righteous Hide

“When righteous men do rejoice, there is great glory: but when the wicked rise, a man is hidden.” (verse 12) It’s very interesting inference in the Hebrew, what is says is this “when righteous men are ruling, they rejoice, there’s great glory, when there’s goodness. But when the wicked rise, that kind of man is hidden.’ I mean, I’ve been waiting, I want to hear every day, what’s Ben Carson saying [at this point, he was running in the primaries for the Presidential nomination. He ended up on Donald Trump’s cabinet]. The media doesn’t want to tell about what any believers or upright people are having to say, they don’t get any coverage. And it says when that kind of influence is in the land, a man is hidden, and that’s a shame, really, but God’s on the throne so I’m not worried. Let’s end with verse 13 here, very important.

There Are Two Ways To Cover Your Sins

“He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” (verse 13) So, God and man both cover sin, they just do it in two different ways, they do it in two different ways. God covers sin with the blood of his Son, and man covers sin with fig leaves. And there ain’t enough fig leaves on the planet to cover up our sin. God’s willing to cover our sin when there’s repentance and faith in his Son Jesus Christ. He covers sin one way. Men try to cover their sin in another way, because they don’t want to give it up, and they don’t want to be exposed. Their pride doesn’t want anything to do with bringing it into the light. He that covers his own sins, it says here, shall not prosper. I’m sure David sat with Solomon and said, ‘Son, for a year, I hid my sin with your mother, I took her from her first husband, Uriah.’ And David says in Psalms 32 and 51, my bones were dried up, like a drought inside of me, I had no rest, I was being eaten alive, and then finally he says when I confessed my sin, there was life again, there was medicine again in my being. I realized, sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not desire, there was no sacrifice for adultery, you were put to death, there was no sacrifice for murder, you were put to death. He said to God, sacrifice and offering thou hast not desired, but a broken and contrite spirit thou wilt not despise. And I’m sure he said ‘Solomon, if you ever make the mistakes I made, don’t try to cover it, God will not let that happen, you will not prosper.’ “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper.” In fact, in the end of the Book of Deuteronomy, you read it, it tells you the different sacrifices and the different things that have to be done for the one who sins, if they come and they repent, these offerings have to be offered, this has to be done, some of them were beaten, but God says ‘for the person that sins and hides it, and nobody knows about it, he says, I’ll take care of it, that person will suffer the botch.’ I don’t know what that is, but you don’t want the botch, trust me. God just says ‘I will deal with it, I will deal with that person.’ So Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, no doubt he learned from his father, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper:” but please take note, “but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” (verse 13) it doesn’t say whoever confesses them. It doesn’t say that. It says whoever confesses and forsakes them. If we confess our sins, he’s faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Confess, homolagao, so say the same things, people they do this, ‘Hey, I’m sorry man.’ That doesn’t say anything. But that’s way different from somebody saying to me ‘Forgive me,’ forgive me means you’re owning the fact that you sinned. You know, if you’re in sexual sin and go to the Lord and say ‘I’m so sorry,’ it doesn’t mean anything. If you say ‘Lord, forgive me, because I know this is wrong,’ then that’s confession, homolagao, homo, the same, lagao, to speak, word, you’re saying the same thing God is saying about your sin, that’s genuine confession, ‘Lord, forgive me, I’ve been doing this, I know it’s wrong, your Word says it’s wrong.’ It says if we confess our sins, here it will take us eternity to learn the wonder of this, ‘he’s both faithful’ and the next word is incredible, ‘and he is just to forgive,’ because he paid the penalty on the cross, he is both faithful and he’s just to forgive us, and then to cleanse, to catharize us, drain out the poison, from all unrighteousness, he then does the work. Here it says “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” (verse 13) that’s because they’re agreeing with God about it, they confess and forsake. We see people that forsake their sin, but for some reason they never confess it, never bring it out, they try to keep it hidden, God doesn’t ever go for that. There’s two things here for blessing, one is to confess it, Jesus Christ gets the glory out of it. “I blew it,’ you bring it out into the open, the blood of Christ is sufficient, what he did on the cross, and it doesn’t say big sins or little sins, what he did on the cross is sufficient for me, I was wrong, I blew it, you know what, I went to him, I got on my knees, I confessed, and he met me, and he cleansed me, I’m done with it, it’s behind me, it’s the confessing and then the forsaking, and it says, those who do that “shall have mercy.” So, if there’s anybody I know who needs mercy, it’s me. No, no, it’s not you, it’ me, it’s me. Read ahead, and we’ll continue to work our way through this Book of Proverbs, just some great stuff. And if you haven’t noticed, as we’re going through, I kind of get busted every night that we study this, I don’t know about you, it’s really convicting. I’m looking forward to getting outa here, to Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, because I’m kind of getting whupped every week, you know, I sit alone with Proverbs every morning, I get in less arguments during the day, I do less stupid stuff, because it already told me in the morning, this is the way you are, this is the circumstance you’re gonna get into, and if you’ll be wise and keep your mouth shut and follow me, we’ll do better today, Proverbs tells me that every morning. [Comment: I have been studying and trying to apply a wonderful coursebook on Effective Listening, and had come to notice that over one third to one half of all the Proverbs apply to how to obtain wisdom by control of the tongue, listening instead of talking, who we should listen to, and who we shouldn’t listen to, and in general, Proverbs teaches us to more or less keep our mouths shut and learn. The Effective Listening text has some excellent points on how to go about doing this, but it takes a lot of practice to apply the principles taught in it.] Proverbs chapter 28, we have come as far as verse 13, that’s where we ended. “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” So, certainly, something that Solomon heard from his father David, who had learned the lesson the hard way, for over a year, where it says his bones were dried up, he hadn’t confessed his sins with Bathsheba, hadn’t come into the light, and he talked about then what it was like, in Psalm 32 and 51, finally to confess his sin, the moisture that returned to his being again. And again, reminding the nation, that sacrifice and offering, God has not desired, there’s no sacrifice for adultery, death sentence, not sacrifice for murder, death sentence. Sacrifice and offering God has not desired, but a broken and contrite spirit he’ll not despise. So here, he that covereth his sins, look, God covers sins, men cover sins. There’s a right way and a wrong way to cover sins, God covers our sins with the blood of his Son, man, it’s always fig leaves, and it never works. So, ‘whoso that covers his sins shall not prosper, he that confesses, not just confesses, but confesses and then forsakes them, shall have mercy.’

‘He Who Hardens His Heart To God Shall Fall Into Evil’

“Happy is the man that feareth alway: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.” (verse 14) Now look, it’s obviously ‘happy is the man that walks in the fear of the LORD,’ it isn’t ‘happy is the man whose afraid all the time,’ you know people that are afraid of everything. It doesn’t say ‘Happy is the man whose just afraid,’ that’s not a blessing, the context here is confessing and forsaking sin for verse 13, and happy is the man that walks in the fear of and reverence of God, “but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.” (verse 14b) no fear of God, he’s not yielding to the conviction that comes his way, “he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into evil.”

What A Wicked Ruler Is Like

Verses 15 and 16 go together, interesting, “As a roaring lion, and a ranging bear; so is a wicked ruler over the poor people.” (verse 15) a wicked ruler is like a wild lion, a beast of prey, to be feared, a wicked ruler. Then it says, “The prince that wanteth understanding is also a great oppressor: but he that hateth covetousness shall prolong his days.” (verse 16) the idea is, ‘he who lacks understanding, a leader who lacks understanding is also like the lion and like the bear, a great oppressor.’ So, ‘a roaring lion and a ranging bear, so is the wicked ruler over poor people, the prince that lacks understanding is also a great oppressor. But he that hateth covetousness shall prolong his days.’ So, Paul would say it like this, when he talks about those who desire the office of a bishop [pastor], to be in leadership in the church, he says ‘But not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride, he fall into the condemnation of the devil.’ So it says here, a leader, a prince who lacks understanding, he’s a novice, he ends up to be an oppressor, “but he that hateth covetousness shall prolong his days.” Now look, covetousness, when we hear that, we immediately think, money. When we read the Law it says ‘Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, thy neighbour’s ox, that was your neighbour’s tractor, your neighbour’s home,’ we give ourselves to covetousness in many different ways, certainly people are covetous in regards to material things and money. But people are also covetous in regards to recognition, people want their pride, they want to be recognized, they want to be put out in front of others. Ah, they use their position for gain, for their own ego, for gain, for money. So it says here ‘The prince that lacks understanding is also like the bear and the lion, a great oppressor. But he that hateth covetousness, has the great sense that it’s wrong, he shall prolong his days.’

About Murderers

“A man that doeth violence to the blood of any person shall flee to the pit: let no man stay him.” (verse 17) i.e. he who becomes a murderer, shall flee to the pit, God says, let no man stand in his way, don’t let anybody get in his way as he flees to the pit. The murderer, whether he likes it or not, is fleeing to the pit. [A graphic movie that proves this is “PUBLIC ENEMIES” about John Dillinger and the Dillinger Gang.] He’s a fugitive, and whether he knows it or not, there’s only one place he’s headed is a hole in the ground. And it says, don’t let any man get in the way of that. Is God merciful, of course, God has his Saul’s of Tarsus, has his that have murdered and turned from those things, and turned to him and are forgiven, they’re washed, they’re cleansed. There may be very deeply injured people around them from what they’ve done, but in the court of heaven they can be forgiven, and they can experience salvation. But “a man that doeth violence to the blood of any person shall flee to the pit; let not man stay him.” (verse 17) don’t get in the way of that. “Whoso walketh uprightly shall be saved: but he that is perverse in his ways shall fall at once.” (verse 18) This is, one shall be saved, but the other, he shall fall, the idea is, once he goes down, he’s not going to get back up again.

You Work The Farm, You Got Food, Don’t Plow In Get-Rich Schemes

“He that tilleth his land” this is a no-brainer “shall have plenty of bread: but he that followeth after vain persons shall have poverty enough.” (verse 19) You work the farm, you got food to eat. It’s what it says. That goes without saying, not a whole lot of wisdom there. “but he that followeth after vain persons” he’s plowing a different field, “shall have poverty enough.” So there’s one field you plow, the one that God gives you, you’re working your land, you have plenty of bread to eat, somebody who follows after vanity and vain people, that’s where they plow, that’s where they sow, they’re going to reap nothing. It ends up to be poverty, it says.

‘A Reliable, Longsuffering, Patient Man Shall Abound With Blessings’

“A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.” (verse 20) So, a faithful man, the Hebrew says “a reliable man” some have the idea ‘a longsuffering man, a patient man, a faithful man, who stays at it, he shall abound with blessings.’ And the idea is, these are blessings of God. Reliable, a faithful man, longsuffering man, somebody whose character is the way that it should be, ‘he shall abound with blessings.’ “but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.” Get rich quick schemes is all he’s thinking about, he’s not going to be innocent, if that’s what drives him, he’s gonna be in trouble. Somebody who makes haste to be rich, I’m going to give you a bit of another application here. Somebody who makes haste to be married, is gonna end up in trouble too. Because the person who makes haste to be rich is not trusting God to do it. And then we always see in the church, somebody who just ‘I married an unbeliever because all of the men in the church are weirdos,’ really, thanks girls, we appreciate that. And somehow there’s 30 weddings on the book at any given time of believers getting married, so take a deep breath, so get down, and get on your knees, instead of going hunting, go praying, and you might catch something. Ah, you know, the same thing, vice versa. Here, motivation, making haste in the wrong thing, you’re not going to end up innocent in that process.

The Respecter Of Persons and The One With A Stingy Eye

“To have respect of persons is not good: for a piece of bread that man will transgress.” (verse 21) So, you’re the kind of person, you know, you want to Selfie with everybody that somebody might recognize. Don McClure told me one time, he was out with his son, and his son’s wife called, because they were late, something went on, somebody stopped to get some food on the way, and he said his son’s wife called and said, “What, you guys are late, you were supposed to…’ and he said, just when she was giving him a hard time, and maybe he deserved it, he said ‘I looked over and there was the Fonz there [Henry Winkler from Happy Days],’ so Don went over to him and said ‘You’re the Fonz, right?’ he said ‘Ya,’ He said, ‘You mind if I can take a picture of you and my son together?’ He said, ‘Oh no, it’s really nice,’ he took a picture of the Fonz and his son and sent it to his wife and said ‘We were doing our best to get home, and the Fonz wanted to spend some time with us.’ A respecter of persons, you know people like that, they always drop names, always drop names. “To have respect of persons is not good:” ‘because when you’re like that, for a piece of bread, that’s gotten by favour, gotten by schmoozing, that’s the kind of person whose going to transgress for a piece of bread.’ “He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him.” (verse 22) I always think of the guy in Young Frankenstein, that’s not what it’s speaking of, gotta get that picture out of my mind. “He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him.” He that is quick to be rich, you know, get rich quick, it’s all he thinks about, it says he has an evil eye, ‘a stingy eye,’ this is a tightwad, this is the kind of person that never has enough. And it says he doesn’t consider that poverty is ultimately come upon him. [i.e. he’s not being liberal, helping the poor, which God promises if you do, he’ll repay and you’ll be blessed, even monetarily. It says that throughout Proverbs.]

Don’t Be Afraid To Speak The Truth In Love

“He that rebuketh a man” or a woman “afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.” (verse 23) “afterwards” that’s the key word here in this proverb, to help us understand it. He that rebuketh a man, or woman, he’s not a yes-man, he sees his friend or somebody he cares about getting off track, and instead of buttering him or her up, telling him it’s ok when he really knows in his heart it isn’t, he reproves him, he rebukes him, he challenges him, Biblically is the idea. “He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.” (verse 23) because he’s not a yes-man. Look, you may complain to the dentist, ouch! you know, they hit that nerve, but afterwards, you’re glad it’s all over, you’re not happy when you can smell enamel burning. Isn’t it funny they always want to talk to you while they’re inside your mouth and can’t talk, they have this whole conversation when you can’t say anything. But afterwards, because their mission is to heal, it’s to save life. And it says “He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.” So don’t be afraid, speak the truth in love, it may not be real popular right in the moment when you do it, but it says, in the long run, somebody’s going to look back, and thank you for being honest, you know.

Don’t Steal From Mom And Dad

“Whoso robbeth his father or his mother, and saith It is no transgression: the same is the companion of a destroyer.” (verse 24) You know, some of us, before we were saved, we borrowed from mom and dad when we knew they weren’t around. Ah, whoever robs his father or his mother, and says, ‘Hey, no big deal, there’s no transgression,’ the Bible just says, that same person is a companion of a destroyer.

Pride Is The Root Of Not Trusting God, The Proud Trust In Themselves

Verse 25, “He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife: but he that putteth his trust in the LORD shall be made fat.” Now, you thought, being fat was cool now, Solomon the wisest man that ever lived, knew being fat was cool then, this is not being overweight, the idea is, prosperous, blessed, in the vernacular. So, it says “He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife: but he that puts his trust in the LORD shall be made fat.” Look what it’s saying is, pride is the root of not trusting the LORD. Because the proud man thinks he can do it on his own, the proud man thinks he doesn’t need any help. The Bible says that you and I are meant to be part of a community, we’re not meant to be alone, every joint, every ligament supplies, we can never grow properly unless we’re a part of the family of God, of the Church of Jesus Christ. But the proud man doesn’t need any of that, and it says that pride is the root of someone who doesn’t trust the LORD, that they trust in their own ability, they trust in their own ways. So he that is proud of heart, one of the things he does, is he stirs up strife. The proud man strives with anyone who doesn’t agree with his opinion, that’s just pride. We’re told in chapter 13, I’ll go back and read, two other verses, our study has led us into a lot of other things, here it says “Only by pride” 13:10, “cometh contention.” So strife only comes, strife only comes by pride, doesn’t come by this, and maybe a little of this, ‘it’s only by pride cometh contention.’ 22^nd chapter, it says “Cast out the scorner and contention shall go out.” Get rid of the critic, get rid of the proud person, contention, strife, it settles down, it goes away. “He that is of a proud heart stirs up strife,” that person’s never wrong, truth abides with them (in their own minds) “but he that putteth his trust in the LORD shall be made fat.” (verse 25) there’s a blessing there. “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.” (verse 26) which is related back to the guy whose proud of heart. Because Jeremiah 17:9 tells us the heart is desperately wicked, it’s incurable, who can know it. There’s part of what’s inside of us, the fallen nature, that’s just always there. Any time I look, anytime I look, there’s a traitor inside there. You know, there’s the new nature, it says the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit lusts against the flesh, these two are contrary, Paul says, there’s not even a third choice, they’re entrenched, they’re dug in against each other. So it says he who trusts in his own heart, in that sense, is a fool. “but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.” (verse 26b)

God Gives Back To Those Who Give To The Poor

“He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.” (verse 27) Isn’t it interesting the laws that God has set up? “but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.” someone who deliberately ignores those who have need that God puts in front of them.

Two-Way Formula, Wicked verses Righteous

“When the wicked rise, men hide themselves: but when they perish, the righteous increase.” (verse 28) Just the ebb and flow of government and of nations and so forth. [transcript of a connective expository sermon on Proverbs 28:1-28, given by Pastor Joe Focht, Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia, 13500 Philmont Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19116]