Reflections on Proverbs 19

 Proverbs 19 (Contemporary English Version)

1. It's better to be poor and live right than to be a stupid liar.
   
2. Willingness and stupidity don't go well together. If you are too eager, you will miss the road.
   
3. We are ruined by our own stupidity, though we blame the LORD.
   
4. The rich have many friends; the poor have none.
   
5. Dishonest witnesses and liars won't escape punishment.
   
6. Everyone tries to be friends of those who can help them.
   
7. If you are poor, your own relatives reject you, and your friends are worse. When you really need them, they are not there.
   
8. Do yourself a favor by having good sense-- you will be glad you did.
   
9. Dishonest witnesses and liars will be destroyed.
   
10. It isn't right for a fool to live in luxury or for a slave to rule in place of a king.
    
11. It's wise to be patient and show what you are like by forgiving others.
    
12. An angry king roars like a lion, but when a king is pleased, it's like dew on the crops.
    
13. A foolish son brings disgrace to his father. A nagging wife goes on and on like the drip, drip, drip of the rain.
    
14. You may inherit all you own from your parents, but a sensible wife is a gift from the LORD.
    
15. If you are lazy and sleep your time away, you will starve.
    
16. Obey the Lord's teachings and you will live-- disobey and you will die.
    
17. Caring for the poor is lending to the LORD, and you will be well repaid.
    
18. Correct your children before it's too late; if you don't punish them, you are destroying them.
    
19. People with bad tempers are always in trouble, and they need help over and over again.
    
20. Pay attention to advice and accept correction, so you can live sensibly.
    
21. We may make a lot of plans, but the LORD will do what he has decided.
    
22. What matters most is loyalty. It's better to be poor than to be a liar.
    
23. Showing respect to the LORD brings true life-- if you do it, you can relax without fear of danger.
    
24. Some people are too lazy to lift a hand to feed themselves.
    
25. Stupid fools learn good sense by seeing others punished; a sensible person learns by being corrected.
    
26. Children who bring disgrace rob their father and chase their mother away.
    
27. If you stop learning, you will forget what you already know.
    
28. A lying witness makes fun of the court system, and criminals think crime is really delicious.
    
29. Every stupid fool is just waiting to be punished.

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Solomon touches on many of the same topics in this chapter, knowledge, foolishness, false witness, laziness, etc. But I will reflect primarily on knowledge and undertanding. One who gains understanding is not in need of instruction about the consequences of foolish behavior. He observes it for himself.

Concerning knowledge and understanding:

• Zeal - Solomon begins by pointing out that zeal is not a substitute for knowledge. One may be inclined to lead with zeal realizing many will follow one who inspires through zeal. Or, one may be tempted to follow one who leads with zeal. But unless there is knowledge behind the zeal it is not wise to pursue those who are zealous. Solomon completes this statement by saying, "the one who acts hastily sins." Zeal tends to prompt hasty action to follow without thinking through the situation. This can, and often does, lead to sin.
  
• Rebuking - Rebuking one who errs can lead to gaining knowledge for the discerning. They learn from the rebuke and their knowledge is increased. But there is also benefit in striking a mocker. The mocker may not learn from it but the inexperienced who observe it may learn a lesson. Why does Solomon mention rebuking the discerning and striking the mocker? Possibly because striking is the only way to get the attention of the mocker. This striking seems to refer to public flogging. While the flogging may not help the mocker, it does help the inexperienced who observe it.
  
• Good sense - One who acquires good sense, Solomon says, loves himself. Not that he is self-centered or thinks too highly of himself, but he values his life enough to acquire good sense and avoid the consequence of living foolishly. But good sense and understanding do more than help one avoid foolishness. They help one find success.
  
• Listening to instruction - Solomon counseled his son not to stop listening to instruction. Why is this? Does one lose instruction and knowledge once they acquire them? They don't lose them, they are still in their mind, but they lose focus and without continual instruction one strays from "words of knowledge." Many who know better don't do better. They have to keep exposing themselves to the instruction if they are to continually heed it.
  
• Patience - Patience is a virtue that comes from insight or wisdom. And we should remind ourselves that wisdom comes from respect for God. It is God-given, not a virtue we are capable of acquiring on our own. Through patience one overlooks an offense. It is not wise to always retaliate when offended.
  
• A sensible wife - Solomon states that there is no particular virtue in gaining a house and wealth. These come to a son simply by virtue of being the son. But a sensible wife is something else, a benefit that comes only from the Lord. He makes this statement after saying that a nagging wife "is an endless dripping." It is best to let the Lord provide a wife who is sensible than to use one's own judgment, which may be driven mainly by physical attractiveness, and gain a wife who is a continual nag.