PROVERBS LESSON 37

     We will begin this lesson in Proverbs 23:1 "When thou sittest to
eat with a ruler, consider diligently what [is] before thee:" Proverbs
23:2 "And put a knife to thy throat, if thou [be] a man given to
appetite." Proverbs 23:3 "Be not desirous of his dainties: for they
[are] deceitful meat."

     In the last lesson, we read about a business man who was honored
and brought before the king. This is perhaps a continuation of that.
This is telling him to have really good table manners. He is to regard
the king more than he regards the food. He is told not to appear to be
a glutton. It would be really easy for this person, who works hard to
achieve, to be jealous and envious of the king. The grass always look
greener on the other side of the fence. There is a great
responsibility that goes with being king. We should be satisfied with
whatever state we are in and not be desirous to be in someone else's
position. It is not always as wonderful as it look from the outside.

     Proverbs 23:4 "Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own
wisdom." Proverbs 23:5 "Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is
not?  for [riches] certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as
an eagle toward heaven."

     Labor for purpose is much more rewarding than laboring to be
rich. First of all, you may never be rich; but if you are, it is
fleeting in nature. Usually a person who gains great riches and has
never been rich before cannot hang on to it, and it is soon gone. The
same chances that you took to get rich, you will still be taking to
get richer (because one is never satisfied); and to get more, you
endanger what you have. For sure when we die, we leave our earthly
possessions behind. We came into this world naked, and we shall not
take possessions with us when we leave. Riches are uncertain.
Godliness is forever.

     Proverbs 23:6 "Eat thou not the bread of [him that hath] an evil
eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats:" Proverbs 23:7 "For as he
thinketh in his heart, so [is] he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee;
but his heart [is] not with thee."

     We see in this that a man with greed may invite you to eat with
him, but he begrudges every bite you eat. He really has some motive
for inviting you to eat that he hasn't told you about. This man is
full of jealousy and even spite. He really cannot bear the sight of
other's happiness and joy. Verse 8 is going right on with this, also.

     Proverbs 23:8 "The morsel [which] thou hast eaten shalt thou
vomit up, and lose thy sweet words."

     This is just saying in the company of this man, this food is no
good. Food eaten under begrudging eyes never tastes good. Good
fellowship is what is what makes food good. You will really wish you
hadn't eaten it, and long to get rid of it to get this bitter taste
out of your mouth. When you get this feeling at someone's table, it is
hard to find nice things to say.

     Proverbs 23:9 "Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will
despise the wisdom of thy words."

     You are wasting your time and his, to speak to a fool. We have
learned in lessons before this one that a fool is not interested in
learning anything. He will think you are just trying to act smart, and
instead of appreciating your talking to him, it will make him angry

     Proverbs 23:10 "Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into
the fields of the fatherless:"  Proverbs 23:11 "For their redeemer
[is] mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee."

     This is saying beware of trying to defraud someone, who cannot
help himself, out of his land or property. God Himself will take up
his cause and fight for him. You would be trying to defraud God. God
will not hold him guiltless who tries to defraud the helpless.

     Proverbs 23:12 "Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine
ears to the words of knowledge."

     This is saying let the desires of your heart be to learn, and in
learning, accumulate knowledge. Listen to words of knowledge, turn on
your understanding, and keep it in your heart.

     Proverbs 23:13 "Withhold not correction from the child: for [if]
thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die."  Proverbs 23:14
"Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from
hell."

     We see here, that punishment should not be overlooked in training
a child. If he cries, it is not because you are killing him. A lesson
learned where punishment is involved is remembered better. In the Old
Testament, a rebellious child was killed. Rebellion was associated
with witchcraft. This is just saying, whip him and drive the rebellion
out of him, before it gets too much hold on him. In the long run you
will save him.

     Proverbs 23:15 "My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall
rejoice, even mine."

     This has to be said by the person who is the instructor. The
instructor rejoices more than the student when the student learns
well. It is a good reflection on both. The instructor - because he has
taught well, and the student - because he has learned well.

     Proverbs 23:16 "Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak
right things."

     In Psalms 37:30 "The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and
his tongue talketh of judgment." We see, here, the reins of the
teacher again. We know when righteous words come from the student's
mouth, that righteousness is in his heart. For out of the abundance of
the heart the mouth speaketh.

     Proverbs 23:17 "Let not thine heart envy sinners: but [be thou]
in the fear of the LORD all the day long." Proverbs 23:18 "For surely
there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off."

     We see, here, that sometimes sinners seem to be prospering in
this world. We are not to envy them or their evil ways. Never look
longingly at what they are doing. Their way is the way of destruction,
eventually. We must keep our eyes on the Lord and his teaching all the
way. Never let your eyes off the path of righteousness. Righteous
living sometimes in this life seems not to be noticed by anyone. There
is an end. The end is heaven, if you stay on the path that leads to
God.

     Proverbs 23:19 "Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine
heart in the way." Proverbs 23:20 "Be not among winebibbers; among
riotous eaters of flesh:" Proverbs 23:21 "For the drunkard and the
glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe [a man]
with rags."

     These are the things that a good teacher teaches. First, the
student has to open his ears of his understanding so that his heart
may receive. Winebibbers have to do with those who find every excuse
in the world to drink wine. Many of these people are winos or
wineheads.  People who take in a great deal of wine or other strong
drink find that their thinking is effected and they cannot think
clearly. The "riotous eaters of flesh" are those who do not eat a
balanced diet, but eat several pounds of meat at one sitting. Alcohol
and terrible excesses of food are very expensive and will take all of
the money one can muster to buy all of this. Even worse, is the fact
that you cannot work drunk, and a glutton is so big he can't work. You
can easily see, they would be poor. Laziness makes you poor.

     Proverbs 23:22 "Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and
despise not thy mother when she is old." Proverbs 23:23 "Buy the
truth, and sell [it] not; [also] wisdom, and instruction, and
understanding." Proverbs 23:24 "The father of the righteous shall
greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise [child] shall have joy
of him." Proverbs 23:25 "Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and
she that bare thee shall rejoice."

     We have discussed before that your father and your mother only
want to help you. You are their own flesh, and they want even better
for you than they had themselves. Be glad when God is good to you and
lets your parents live a long time. Tell the truth at all cost.
Whatever it takes of this world's goods to learn the truth, do it.
This world will pass away, but the truth is eternal. This "buy"
(speaking of knowledge and understanding) could have to do with paying
for an education. Parents are very proud of their children who live a
righteous life. The joy of the father and mother of a child, who God
has blessed with wisdom, and who has increased in righteousness and
knowledge, is even greater than the joy the child has.

     Proverbs 23:26 "My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes
observe my ways." Proverbs 23:27 "For a whore [is] a deep ditch; and a
strange woman [is] a narrow pit." Proverbs 23:28 "She also lieth in
wait as [for] a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men."

     We see some of the things of wisdom and understanding teaches in
verses 26, 27, 28. The first verse is another warning to listen to.
The word "whore" (prostitute} is a very emphatic word showing just how
revolting this sin is. We have said before that devastating diseases
are associated with whoredom and homosexuality today. A man or woman
of wisdom will not get involved in this type of sin. This sin involves
the body, and the body (if you are a Christian) is the TEMPLE OF THE
HOLY SPIRIT. This sin, more than others, involves God in the sin; and
this is an abomination to God. Don't let the desires of the flesh,
draw you out of fellowship with God.

     Proverbs 23:29 "Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath
contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who
hath redness of eyes?"

     A question drives home a lesson. This is what we see here. The
teacher is asking these questions to get you to thinking seriously
about what really does cause all of this; and then from verse 30
through 35, the teacher gives us the answer.

     Proverbs 23:30 "They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to
seek mixed wine." Proverbs 23:31 "Look not thou upon the wine when it
is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, [when] it moveth itself
aright." Proverbs 23:32 "At the last it biteth like a serpent, and
stingeth like an adder." Proverbs 23:33 "Thine eyes shall behold
strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things." Proverbs
23:34 "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." Proverbs 23:35 "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."

     This just talking about people who drink too much. Alcoholism,
drunkenness, and drugs are a real problem today. The hangover from
alcohol is like the serpent's bite the next day. The drunk cannot
remember the terrible things he did under the influence of alcohol.
One of the worst things now is driving while drunk. When the driver of
a car is under the influence of drugs and alcohol, the car becomes a
deadly weapon. Drugs can cause a hangover that lasts for literally
years. Drug flashbacks can be devastating. We see above that even
though the person who was drunk was beaten severely, he wasn't even
aware of it at the time, because he was unconscious and didn't notice.
That part of his life is a blank. He can't remember. He doesn't even
know who he was with, So he doesn't know who beat him. This should
surely convince you to leave drugs and alcohol alone.




                       Proverbs Questions 37

1.  What should you do, if you are a man of appetite when you sit with
    a king?
2.  What are the king's dainties called in verse 1?
3.  What is the man to regard more than the food?
4.  What reason should you not labor for?
5.  What two natural feelings are we to avoid when we are comparing
    ourselves to others?
6.  Riches make themselves__________and fly away.
7.  What kind of labor is more rewarding than riches?
8.  Who should you eat with?
9.  What is meant in verse 8 by the saying, "the morsel which thou
    hast eaten shalt thou vomit it up"?
10. What makes food good?
11. Why should you not speak wisdom in a fool's ear?
12. Who will fight the battles of the fatherless?
13. Apply thine heart unto_______, and thine ears to the words of____.
14. What are we not to withhold from our children?
16. Rebellion is associated with what evil?
17. Who besides the one being taught, rejoices at the knowledge
    learned?
18. What is intended by "my reins shall rejoice"?
19. Let not thine heart envy whom?
20. In verse 19, he is warned not to be among whom?
21. What 2 shall come to poverty?
22. What lengths are we told to go to, to get the truth?
23. Which two want only the best for you in life besides God?
24. The world will pass away, but truth is ___________.
25. What is a whore called?
26. What is another word for whore?
27. Why is sex sin worse than some other sins?
28. in verse 29, for what purpose are all these questions?
29. Who is meant by "they that terry long at the wine"?
30. A hangover is compared to what in verse 32?
31. What does a car become in the hands of someone drunk on drugs or
    alcohol?
32. What should these last verses in this lesson convince you not to
    do?