In Proverbs chapter 12, one of the issues it deals with is what some people do in private. Now, when we usually speak of things being done in private, we usually speaking about sin. But we notice in this chapter that some times the best things that we do should be done in private. Here are a couple that I have noticed:
12:11 - A good man COMMISSIONS SECRETELY. The opposite of quietly working and going about your business is the lazy man who follows the vain, or empty person. Here is a verse for all those who constantly seek after the "Get Rich Quick" schemes. There is no substitute for hard, consistent work.
12:16 - A good man COVERETH SHAME. The opposite is a fool who is always spouting off what they are angry about. But a good man is one who keeps their issues private. Or, using an older saying, "Don't air out your dirty laundry." Everyone goes through tough times, but you don't have to let everyone know about them all the time. I wonder how many Christians lament that people will not forget their mistakes of their past - yet they will not stop bringing them up all the time themselves?
12:23 - A good man CONCEALETH SUBSTANCE. The opposite is a fool who wants to tell you everything that is on their mind. You don't have to tell everybody everything you know! I think Facebook and Twitter, among other technologies, capitalize on our desire to always speak about everything that comes to our mind. Sometimes we forget that it is better to conceal a truth. It is not our right to know everything about everyone.
Hope this was a help to you today. What other verses spoke to you, what questions do you have?
I don't follow the lead-in for verse 11 -- but do understand that working for one's bread is God's plan.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite verse in this chapter is: Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad.
[Proverbs 12:25 KJV]
God's word is alway lifting burdens.
Verse 11 deals with work and speaks about working quietly in your own land. When you follow vain people who tell you how to get your bread without the work, you show your lack of understanding of the fact that God has ordained that we work.
ReplyDeleteI like verse 4 "A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband: but she that maketh ashamed is as rottenness to his bones". I like that a good wife makes her husband better.
ReplyDeleteOne of Lily's memory verses for this year was verse 18, "There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health". What you say can cut so deep, but kind words heal wounds and make people feel good inside. (Or at least that is what I tell Lily)
Verse 15 was also a memory verse this year, "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise." It is so important to get godly counsel, b/c everyone is right in their own eyes.
I am so enjoying the Proverb a Day in May and your notes have all been wonderful. Thank you, Bro. Brad. There is so much good in this chapter. Darci, I love V. 4 also about a virtuous woman being a crown to her husband.
ReplyDeleteSorry I am not responding on the day you posted this, but I have been pretty sick.
ReplyDeleteVerse 25 is the one I like the most, but this verse is one I want to study out more:
Proverbs 12:3 A man shall not be established by wickedness: but the root of the righteous shall not be moved.
The idea of not being moved is one that shows up a lot in the Psalms. It is one theme I want to do a word study on one of these days - perhaps to tackle as a message at the Mission.