Proverbs 19 (Contemporary English Version)
- It's better to be poor and live right than to be a stupid liar.
- Willingness and stupidity don't go well together. If you are too eager, you will miss the road.
- We are ruined by our own stupidity, though we blame the LORD.
- The rich have many friends; the poor have none.
- Dishonest witnesses and liars won't escape punishment.
- Everyone tries to be friends of those who can help them.
- If you are poor, your own relatives reject you, and your friends are worse. When you really need them, they are not there.
- Do yourself a favor by having good sense-- you will be glad you did.
- Dishonest witnesses and liars will be destroyed.
- It isn't right for a fool to live in luxury or for a slave to rule in place of a king.
- It's wise to be patient and show what you are like by forgiving others.
- An angry king roars like a lion, but when a king is pleased, it's like dew on the crops.
- A foolish son brings disgrace to his father. A nagging wife goes on and on like the drip, drip, drip of the rain.
- You may inherit all you own from your parents, but a sensible wife is a gift from the LORD.
- If you are lazy and sleep your time away, you will starve.
- Obey the Lord's teachings and you will live-- disobey and you will die.
- Caring for the poor is lending to the LORD, and you will be well repaid.
- Correct your children before it's too late; if you don't punish them, you are destroying them.
- People with bad tempers are always in trouble, and they need help over and over again.
- Pay attention to advice and accept correction, so you can live sensibly.
- We may make a lot of plans, but the LORD will do what he has decided.
- What matters most is loyalty. It's better to be poor than to be a liar.
- Showing respect to the LORD brings true life-- if you do it, you can relax without fear of danger.
- Some people are too lazy to lift a hand to feed themselves.
- Stupid fools learn good sense by seeing others punished; a sensible person learns by being corrected.
- Children who bring disgrace rob their father and chase their mother away.
- If you stop learning, you will forget what you already know.
- A lying witness makes fun of the court system, and criminals think crime is really delicious.
- Every stupid fool is just waiting to be punished.
Concerning the tongue, Solomon says it is better to be poor and honest than to be deceitful or to be a perjurer. In other verses he mentions the drawbacks to being poor, so here he is saying it is better to suffer those drawbacks as a poor person than the outcome of being deceitful or a perjurer who mocks justice. Though Solomon doesn't go into the drawbacks of being deceitful, he is offering wise counsel for the good of those who will learn from it. In another verse he says that the one who acquires good sense loves himself. So in effect, he is saying here to love yourself and avoid being deceitful.
Throughout the book of Proverbs, in various ways, Solomon has contrasted foolishness with respect for the Lord. In the first chapter he said that respect for the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Here he says, in verse 3, that "A man's own foolishness leads him astray, yet his heart rages against the LORD." Foolishness and respect for the Lord are incompatible. Those who love and respect the Lord seek the high road. They desire understanding and wisdom so they can act in the best manner at all times. I believe this is another point on which it could be said that if one does this he "loves himself." On the other hand, the fool is not interested in instruction or understanding and will not learn when punished. In verse 25 Solomon speaks of striking a mocker. It is not the mocker who learns from this punishment, but the inexperienced. So rather than forgetting the punishment because the mocker will not likely learn from it, it is done for the benefit of those who can and will learn from it.
Solomon's comments about the family relate to disciplining children, having a sensible wife, having a nagging wife, and having a foolish child. What about comments about a sensible or an overbearing husband? Keep in mind Solomon writes this primarily for the benefit of his son. It is father to son. Although we might expect that he could at least instruct his son about being a good husband, he is instructing him to be a good person and to respect and appreciate a sensible wife. A sensible wife, he says, is from the Lord. The unspoken assumption is that the son should treat such a wife accordingly. She is a treasure. On the other hand, a nagging wife is like an endless drip. She is a constant irritation. Neither does he mention how this type of wife should be treated, but my assumption is that the advise is given for the benefit of avoiding even having such a wife.
Concerning discipline, he says in verse 18 to "discipline your son while there is hope." There comes a time when the course is set and discipline is no longer of value. But while the son's character can still be shaped, discipline him. It will be beneficial in the shaping of his character. But a comment on overdoing the discipline. He says, "don't be intent on killing him." Then a word, both to the son and to the father. Verse 13 says, "A foolish son is his father's ruin." To the son he is pointing out one of the results of being foolish. To the father he is pointing out one of the results of not disciplining his son.
Regarding the poor and the wealthy, he says that wealth attracts friends and poverty separates one from friends. I would want to place friends in quotation marks. Would true friends turn away from one simply because of his poverty? Or would those attracted to a person because of his wealth be true friends? Unfortunately, there is truth in these statements. We are prone to "suck up" to a person of wealth in hopes that we might benefit. But what benefit does a poor person offer us? Solomon gives us a benefit. He says that kindness to the poor "is a loan to the Lord, and He will give a reward to the lender." But shouldn't any benefit we gain from a friendship be a byproduct of that relationship rather than a motivation for it?
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