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Pathways Through Proverbs
Daily Devotional
October 22, 2008
Today's Reading - Proverbs 22
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Following Scripture Verses
Proverbs Chapter 23
- When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee:
- And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.
- Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat.
- Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.
- Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.
- Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats:
- For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.
- The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, and lose thy sweet words.
- Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.
- Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:
- For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee.
- Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.
- Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
- Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.
- My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine.
- Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things.
- Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long.
- For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
- Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.
- Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh:
- For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.
- Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.
- Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.
- The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him.
- Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.
- My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.
- For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.
- She also lieth in wait as for a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men.
- Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?
- They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.
- Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.
- At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
- Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.
- Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.
- They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.
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Today's Pathway:
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In this proverb we find principles concerning the relationships between the rich and the poor. Solomon opens by stating that rich people rule over poor people. This is obviously correct. When was the last time that you saw a person of a lower economic class ascend to a position of authority? It doesn't happen very often. In addition, wealthy people are able to exercise rule over the poor because the poor need money and the only place to get it is from the rich. This leads into the second half of the verse which is the part that I want to emphasize today.
When a man borrows money he becomes not only indebted to the lender, but in actuality becomes his servant. The degree of servitude can vary from one situation to another, but the fact is that a man is no longer free to do as he wishes once he owes money. If nothing else, the borrower must consider the lender before he makes any other financial decisions. He must consider the lender before he makes a job or career change. He may even need to consider the lender before he is able to give beyond his tithes and offerings to the Lord. His life is no longer exclusively his own, and just like a servant he must make his decisions based upon what his creditor thinks.
The obvious application here is that we need to be very careful about borrowing money. The Bible does not expressly forbid it (Matt. 5:42; Luke 6:34-35), but does advise using extreme caution before doing it. Before borrowing, I need to consider if this is really something that I need, if it is something that I need now, and if it is worth surrendering some of my freedom for. Of course, as with any decision, much time should be spent in prayer seeking the Lord's wisdom and direction.
If you can stay debt free, you will be more free to serve the Lord.
Pastor Mark J Montgomery
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