Posted on 04/18/2014 8:16:46 AM PDT by OneVike
Proverb 18 (NKJV)
The Name of the LORD Is a Strong Tower
01 A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire;
00 He rages against all wise judgment.
02 A fool has no delight in understanding,
00 But in expressing his own heart.
03 When the wicked comes, contempt comes also;
00 And with dishonor comes reproach.
04 The words of a man's mouth are deep waters;
00 The wellspring of wisdom is a flowing brook.
05 It is not good to show partiality to the wicked,
00 Or to overthrow the righteous in judgment.
06 A fool's lips enter into contention,
00 And his mouth calls for blows.
07 A fool's mouth is his destruction,
00 And his lips are the snare of his soul.
08 The words of a talebearer are like tasty trifles,
00 And they go down into the inmost body.
09 He who is slothful in his work
00 Is a brother to him who is a great destroyer.
10 The name of the LORD is a strong tower;
00 The righteous run to it and are safe.
11 The rich man's wealth is his strong city,
00 And like a high wall in his own esteem.
12 Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty,
00 And before honor is humility.
13 He who answers a matter before he hears it,
00 It is folly and shame to him.
14 The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness,
00 But who can bear a broken spirit?
15 The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge,
00 And the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
16 A man's gift makes room for him,
00 And brings him before great men.
17 The first one to plead his cause seems right,
00 Until his neighbor comes and examines him.
18 Casting lots causes contentions to cease,
00 And keeps the mighty apart.
19 A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city,
00 And contentions are like the bars of a castle.
20 A man's stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth;
00 From the produce of his lips he shall be filled.
21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
00 And those who love it will eat its fruit.
22 He who finds a wife finds a good thing,
00 And obtains favor from the LORD.
23 The poor man uses entreaties,
00 But the rich answers roughly.
24 A man who has friends must himself be friendly,
00 But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
The purpose of Writing the book of Proverbs by Solomon is to reveal the mind of God in matters high and lofty and in common, ordinary, everyday situations. It appears that no topic escaped King Solomon's attention. Matters pertaining to personal conduct, sexual relations, business, wealth, charity, ambition, discipline, debt, child-rearing, character, alcohol, politics, revenge, and Godliness are among the many topics covered in this rich collection of wise sayings.
Without wisdom, knowledge is nothing more than an accumulation of raw facts, influenced by emotional feelings. Many highly educated people are in positions of power in the United States, but very few of those educated leaders have the wisdom needed to rule properly.
One can say that they have been educated well beyond their intelligence. A cursory look at the court system will prove my point that knowledge without wisdom will only lead to an immoral society that eventually crumbles from within. Judges are supposed to be above the fray, and immovable to emotions. Instead, the vast majority of judges today are Godless individuals who are vacant of wisdom. So their rulings are totally based upon emotional feelings.
We the people are to blame, because we ignored God';s guidance in appointing our leaders. Instead of putting leaders full wisdom in power, we instead chose those who would scratch our itchy ears to lead us.
Along with my daily routine of reading the Bible, I try to read through the book of Proverbs once a Month. It's an easy task when you consider there are 31 Proverbs. So all you need to know is what day of the Month it is to know which Proverb to read. In the Months that have less than 31 days, I just double so I can begin the next month with Proverb 1 on the first again.
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