Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth. 2 Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips. 3 A stone is heavy and sand is weighty, But a fool’s wrath is heavier than both of them. 4 Wrath is cruel and anger a torrent, But who is able to stand before jealousy? 5 Open rebuke is better Than love carefully concealed. 6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. 7 A satisfied soul loathes the honeycomb, But to a hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet. 8 Like a bird that wanders from its nest Is a man who wanders from his place. 9 Ointment and perfume delight the heart, And the sweetness of a man’s friend gives delight by hearty counsel. 10 Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend, Nor go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away. 11 My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, That I may answer him who reproaches me. 12 A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself; The simple pass on and are punished. 13 Take the garment of him who is surety for a stranger, And hold it in pledge when he is surety for a seductress. 14 He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, It will be counted a curse to him. 15 A continual dripping on a very rainy day And a contentious woman are alike; 16 Whoever restrains her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand. 17 As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend. 18 Whoever keeps the fig tree will eat its fruit; So he who waits on his master will be honored. 19 As in water face reflects face, So a man’s heart reveals the man. 20 Hell and Destruction are never full; So the eyes of man are never satisfied. 21 The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, And a man is valued by what others say of him. 22 Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, Yet his foolishness will not depart from him. 23 Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, And attend to your herds; 24 For riches are not forever, Nor does a crown endure to all generations. 25 When the hay is removed, and the tender grass shows itself, And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in, 26 The lambs will provide your clothing, And the goats the price of a field; 27 You shall have enough goats’ milk for your food, For the food of your household, And the nourishment of your maidservants.
Commentary
Vs. 1 Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.
People who boast about doing this or that fail to realize that they themselves control neither their own lives, nor their circumstances (consider Ecc. 9:12; also 8:7-8; Psalm 49:6-9; Job 14:5). For one day you maybe on top of the world, and the next day you may be buried in it! Be humble then, not shamelessly boastful because no is assured of life (consider Luke 12:16-21; James 4:13-17; 1 Peter 1:24-25).
Vs. 2 Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips.
Glorifying oneself is never glory, for nobody looks on that with admiration, rather people will admire you when someone else praises you for doing what is good and sound and right, and so not only will you have glory in the presence of others, but that will bring joy to your spirit and true glory to God who enabled you!
Vs. 3 A stone is heavy and sand is weighty, But a fool’s wrath is heavier than both of them.
The wrath of the fool is such that a man would be better off to bear a heavy load then bear it!
Vs. 4 Wrath is cruel and anger a torrent, But who is able to stand before jealousy?
A person’s wrath can be cruel, and their anger can come on you like a torrent, yet these can be endured and or appeased, and in time they will subside, but jealously is such that it only festers and seethes inside a person and it fuels the worst kinds of lasting enmity and hatred.
Vs. 5 Open rebuke is better Than love carefully concealed.
To rebuke someone; to try to turn them from the error of their ways; is to love them. In contrast love that is not shown in either affection or rebuke is a love that does not exist. Therefore, don’t hide your affections from your loved ones, and don’t be silent or look the other way when they go astray!
Vs. 6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
A true friend will say those things that need to be said to you, while an enemy will only smile and remain silent! Beware then of an enemies kind gestures and words, for they are not friends to you! For they are not seeking your well being.
Vs. 7 A satisfied soul loathes the honeycomb, But to a hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.
The spiritual principal of this proverb is seen in all of those who in searching for God find themselves caught up in cults, or false spiritual worship practices, or who sadly willingly submit and subject themselves to the doctrines and commandments of men, who turn the love and grace of God into doing dead works for salvation (consider Rom. 4:4-5; 10:2-4), all which is a most bitter experience. And yet because they are so spiritually hungry, they put up with them (consider Matt. 15:1-9; 2 Cor. 11:19-22; Gal. 2:4-5; 4:9-10. 17; 5:1, 13; Col. 2:8-10; 1 Tim. 4:1-3 etc.). While we who have come to truly know God through the Lord Jesus Christ in grace and truth have no such desires. For our souls are completely satisfied with Him and what He has done for us all, and so we do not need to, nor do we want to return to either the law as a means of justification, nor will we keep the doctrines and commandments of men (John 1:14; Gal. 3:21-25).
Vs. 8 Like a bird that wanders from its nest Is a man who wanders from his place.
A man who steps out of his place, and places himself in a seat or position that is not fitting of him, of his Spiritual gifts and calling, is apt to failure or a fall.
Vs. 9 Ointment and perfume delight the heart, And the sweetness of a man’s friend gives delight by hearty counsel.
Just as a good medicinal ointment, or the fragrance of a fine perfume delight (sooth) the heart, so to does the counsels of a trusted friend bring much consolation.
Vs. 10 Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend, Nor go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.
Two things are being admonished here, first is to keep those close personal and family friends’ relationships intact, for they will be there for you when you need them most. Second is always cultivate good relations with your neighbors, for again in the day of your calamity or need they will be there for you, rather than running to a brother’s house who is far away, which is indicating a brother who is emotionally detached from you. For trying to reconcile with him in your time of need may not go well.
Vs. 11 My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, That I may answer him who reproaches me.
The call here is to prove the wisdom of one’s father, spiritually for us this is done by our obeying the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ (consider 1 Peter 2:15).
Vs. 12 A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself; The simple pass on and are punished.
A recalling of 22:3 this proverb counsels us all to be wise, to repent and believe in the Gospel while we can, and do not be like those who ignore God’s call, and thus carry on in their sins and transgressions, and thus they will suffer the vengeance of the eternal fire (2 Thess. 1:6-10).
Vs. 13 Take the garment of him who is surety for a stranger, And hold it in pledge when he is surety for a seductress.
When someone is acting as a guarantor of debts for people who have questionable abilities to pay their debts, or they are guaranteeing the debts of those who are of a low moral character, be sure that when you have any dealings with them, that you yourself legally secure everything you own from them.
Vs. 14 He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, It will be counted a curse to him.
Nobody likes to be woken up early in the morning, especially on the weekend, after a hard week at work! Therefore, don’t go to your friend’s house early in the morning unexpectedly, and then expect them to be thankful that you did.
Vs. 15-16 A continual dripping on a very rainy day And a contentious woman are alike; 16 Whoever restrains her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand.
Who can endure the annoying dripping of water in a pan on a very rainy day, especially when you can’t go outside and get away from its noise? This then is likened to the contentious woman/wife who is in one’s life. For she is never satisfied, she is never appeased, and she will never stop nagging and pestering you, for that is her nature. And when her angry is aroused, which is more often than not, you will not be able to restrain her contentious spirit, just as you cannot restrain the wind, or grasp oil with your hand. Stay away from her then and let someone else marry her!
Vs. 17 As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.
Just as a knifes edge is sharpened and honed by drawing it across a hardened steel rod. So too does the healthy interactions one has with one’s friends and piers in sharing ideas, debating subject matters, (for we all need to be enlightened or corrected from time to time), and so through these we likewise sharpen and hone our own understanding. Even laughing together has very beneficial effects on one’s growth and understanding, as well ones overall well being. Self isolation then not only leads to ones own self deception and ruin, but sadly it can lead to the ruin of others as well.
Vs. 18 Whoever keeps the fig tree will eat its fruit; So he who waits on his master will be honored.
There is a reward for both doing and serving faithfully that naturally plays out in the world, and so here we told that serving one’s master faithfully (which for us who believe in God is our serving the Lord Jesus Christ) means that one day He will, God the Father will, honor us for doing so (see John 12:26). Now how we do this is as diverse as all of creation itself and all of the problems in it. For where there is a need there is a ministry (consider Matt. 25:31-46).
Vs. 19 As in water face reflects face, So a man’s heart reveals the man. Just as water reflects the face of a man, so too does his heart reveal what kind of person he really is. And often this is revealed in times of crises, tragedies, emergencies, and or pressing needs, by how he responds to them.
Vs. 20 Hell and Destruction are never full; So the eyes of man are never satisfied.
Just as hell and destruction are never full, i.e., never say enough, (consider Prov. 30:16), so too the eyes of man (i.e., the covetous heart of man) is never satisfied (Ecc. 5:10). Its why millionaires are not satisfied with their millions, and billionaires are not satisfied with their billions, for there are those kinds of people whose “hearts” always want more! And like hell and destruction is never satisfied, sadly, this will come at your and my wellbeing’s expense.
Vs. 21 The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, And a man is valued by what others say of him.
Just as silver is refined in the smelting pot, and gold is formed by the furnaces fire, so too there is a way for a man to be valued, and its by what others say of him, and not what he himself exalts himself to be. For self praise only reveals a very ego centric person, same if one always thinks themselves worthy and deserving of praise and honor, they only show themselves to be vain and lacking any genuine thankfulness or humility.
Vs. 22 Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, Yet his foolishness will not depart from him.
Such is the nature of a fool that even with severe chastening (along with enlightening words) you will not be able to drive his foolishness from him.
Vs. 23-27 23 Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, And attend to your herds; 24 For riches are not forever, Nor does a crown endure to all generations. 25 When the hay is removed, and the tender grass shows itself, And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in, 26 The lambs will provide your clothing, And the goats the price of a field; 27 You shall have enough goats’ milk for your food, For the food of your household, And the nourishment of your maidservants.
Here the Godly virtues of diligence and being watchful are clearly expounded to us all. And even though an agriculture setting is being used here; where these very real principals are daily seen and experienced; these very wise principals apply well beyond that setting, and especially to all leadership settings, or wherever one is placed in a position of trust or authority, from the state’s highest office to the family head, and to every Christian who has been entrusted with the greatest gift of all, "Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, and attend to your herds; for riches are not forever, nor does a crown endure to all generations."
Scripture Quotations
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