PROVERBS 10

10.1 The proverbs of Solomon.

• This is how chapter one begins. In chapter one he gives us the purpose for proverbs. Proverbs are intended to give instruction, to bring you wisdom and understanding.
• Here in chapter ten, each verse is a proverb. In these proverbs he is usually making contrast. So you want to look for the contrast. For instance the very first one...

 

A wise son makes a glad father 

There are 5 references to the wise son ion the proverbs, and they are contrasted with a foolish son, a scorner and a lazy son.

• How true it is that fathers are proud of their sons when they display wisdom. You feel like you’ve accomplished your purpose as a father, when your son is wise. “He makes a glad father.”

but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother.

• Looking upon that foolish son, a mothers heart becomes heavy at his foolishness. How true that is.

o   Pr 15:20 A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish man despiseth his mother.

 

Since the happiness or misery of parents depends so much upon the character and conduct of their children, this should be an incitement to them diligently to train them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and then pray that their heart will be tender towards and obedient to God’s truth.

 

10.2 Treasures of wickedness (wealth wrongfully gotten) profit nothing:

• If you have gained wealth by wickedness (cheating, fraud, illegal selling of drugs), are of no worth in the eyes of The Lord, and in fact, they will eventually catch up with you, because the wages of sin is death.
• Judas gained his thirty pieces of silver, but what profit had he in them? What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul? We enter his world naked and we leave the same way.

o   Lu 12:15-21 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

 

but righteousness delivereth from death (10:2).

• Now, I want you to notice that as he talks about righteousness, and he will in many of the Proverbs. Righteousness is always contrasted with wickedness.
• Of course it is not hard to see how it is Christ’s imputed righteousness that delvers us from death and the wrath of God.

 

10.3 The Lord will not allow the soul of the righteous to famish:

• If you are living a righteous life, God is going take care of you.

o   Mt 6:30-33 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

 

but he will cast away the substance of the wicked.

• So righteousness and wickedness again contrasted.

 

In the next proverb we have the contrast between laziness and diligence.

10.4 He becomes poor that deals with a slack hand:

• If you are slack in your business, if you’re slack in your duties, tends towards poverty. But, in contrast...

the hand of the diligent maketh rich.

• The general law of God's moral government is, industry and plenty, poverty and want. Our faith is not a lazy man’s faith beloved….see 2 Thess 3! 
• Pr 12:24 The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute.
• Ec10:18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through.

 

We are taught as Christians to be hard working as unto Christ.

• So you get your interesting contrast. Continuing with sort of that laziness and diligence...
• J. Vernon McGee said, there are two words that won’t go together in the Bible, faith and laziness.
• 1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

 

10.5 He that gathers in summer is a wise son:

• That is, you take advantage of the harvest. You’re working out, and you’re harvesting the crops.

but he that sleeps in the harvest is a son that causes shame.

• Our idle days are Satan's busy days. Spurgeon
• Spiritually speaking, Jesus is looking for people who will go into His harvest and seek the lost….are we sleeping or gathering?

 

10.6 Blessings are on the head of the just: but violence covers the mouth of the wicked

• Once again the just or the righteous, in compared to the wicked, and contrasted. The blessing of God are beyond human value…they cannot be calculated….His peace, His love, His grace.

 

10.7 The memory of the just is blessed (10:6-7). But the name of the wicked will rot.

• I think of Jesus mother Mary, what a blessed woman she was. I think of Daniel and all of the other great men and women of God throughout the history of the church.
• The name of the wicked…Judas Iscariot….Adolf Hitler….they will rot.

 

10.8 The wise in heart will receive commandments: you’ll receive instruction, you’ll listen. but a prating fool shall fall.

• The prating fool is the know it all. “I know it! Leave me alone. I know what I’m doing, just leave me alone!” If you are wise in heart, you’ll take instructions. Say, “Well thank you, appreciate that”.

 

10:9 He that walketh uprightly walketh surely:

• If you walk uprightly, you don’t have to worry.
• Ps 25:21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee.
• Ps 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

 

but he that perverteth his ways shall be known.

• in contrast with walking uprightly, if you pervert your ways, shall be known. Be sure your sin will find you out. All crooked practices will in the end be detected and punished.

 

10.10 He that winketh with the eye (a sign of malicious cunning) causeth sorrow: but a prating fool shall fall.

• Ps 35:19 Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause.

The forward person, the wicked man:

• Pr 6:13 He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers;

 

10:11 The mouth of the righteous[And of course the righteous and wicked contrasted, “the mouth of the righteous”,] man is a well of life:

• You notice, “life”, again, associated with righteousness. The mouth of the righteous is a well of life; refreshing, cleansing. The things that they speak tend towards life.

o   Pr 10:21 The lips of the righteous feed many

but violence covers the mouth of the wicked (10:11).

 

10:12 Hatred(here hatred and love are contrasted, of course we know there’s quite a contrast between hatred and love!) stirs up strifes:

• How many strife’s are stirred up by hatred? Think of how many, how many things that have been stirred up by you, because you hated someone, or have been stirred up against you because someone hated you. Hatred stirs up strife, it creates strife.
• Pr 15:18 A wrathful man stirreth up strife.
• Pr 28:25 He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife

 

love covers all sins.

• Peter writes 1Pe 4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
• Loving spirits will not take offence, but bear and forbear for Christ's sake, but evil-disposed persons make the smallest matter a ground of offence, and are for ever fanning the fires of enmity. Spurgeon

 

10:13The lips of him that has understanding [in the lips] wisdom is found: the rod is for the back of him that is void of understanding.

• Again, contrasting wise men, and foolish.

 

10:14 Wise men lay up knowledge: but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction.

• That is, the wise men preserve knowledge. The foolish, destroyed. Near destruction.

o   Pr 1:5 A wise man will hear, and will increase learning.

o   Pr 9:9 Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.

 

10:15 The rich man’s wealth is his strong city: [By his wealth he fortifies himself.] but the destruction of the poor is their poverty.

• They are destroyed because of their poverty, they can’t afford to defend themselves.

 

10:16The labour of the righteous tendeth to life:

• Again life and righteousness associated, properly so! Because the way of righteousness is the way of life.

the fruit of the wicked to sin.

• So there’s a contrast here also between the labor of the righteous and the bad fruit if sin.
• As we saw earlier, labor, not idleness, is the stamp of a servant of God.

 

10:17 He is in the way of life that keeps instruction: [If you listen and you follow instruction, you’re in the path of life.] but he that refuses reproof erreth.

• It’s a mistake not to listen to reproof. That is another form of pride.

o   Pr 12:1 Whoso loveth instruction loveth knowledge: but he that hateth reproof is brutish.

 

10:18 He that hides hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth slander is a fool.

• Hatred for another person can be hid with lying lips, flattering lips, dishonest lips.
• Lu 12:2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.
• To slander someone else, to repeat slander about someone else, fool.
• Solomon here condemns two opposite vices, secret hatred, and manifest slander. John Wesley

 

10:19 In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.

• Now there’s another proverb that is not in the bible but it fits in well with this verse. It’s better to keep your mouth shut and let men think you are a fool, than to open it and remove all doubts. 
• Pr 17:27 He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit.

 

10:20 The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.

• Contrasting the just and the wicked. Also notice the heart and mouth connection.

o   Pr 12:18 There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.

 

10.21 The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want of wisdom.

• I cannot help but think of Jesus words to Peter that Peter passed on to all future elders and pastors…Feed My sheep.

 

10:22 The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.

• True prosperity flows from God's presence and blessing.

 

10:23 It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding has wisdom.

• Pr 15:21 Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom: but a man of understanding walketh uprightly.

 

10:24 The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon himbut the desire of the righteous shall be granted.

• Ps 37:4 Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
• Mt 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

 

10.25 As the whirlwind passes, so is the wicked no more:but the righteous is an everlasting foundation.

• A tornado or hurricane is only known by the damage that it leaves behind. The unrepentant wicked person is eternally blown away by the judgment of God.
• Those who are in Christ have built their lives upon an everlasting foundation.

 

10:26 As vinegar to the teeth, and as smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard [or the lazy man] to those who send him.

• I mean, you send a lazy guy to do a task, and that’s just like smoke in your eyes. I mean, it just smarts, it hurts!

 

10:27 The fear of the Lord prolongeth days:

• Godliness has thus the promise of the life that now is.

but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.[God will cut off the wicked.]

 

10.28 The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: [Again righteousness and wickedness contrasted, “the hope of the righteous, gladness”.] but the expectation of the wicked shall perish. [It will not come to pass.]

 

10.29 The way of the Lord is strength (support, ptotection) to the upright:

The way of the Lord; either God's way of acting, or the way which he prescribes to men. 

• In the former sense the meaning will be, that God's providence protects the upright; in the latter, that obedience to God secures his protection.

but [the] destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.

• Gal 6.8 He that soweth to the flesh will from the flesh reap corruption.
• Ps 1:6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

 

Pr 10:30 The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth.

• That is, that new earth that God created. “Behold”, God said, “I make all things new. Create a new heaven and a new earth. The old things will pass away and never be brought into mind.” It talks about how the wicked will not be there, not inhabit it.

 

Pr 10:31 The mouth of the just bringeth forth wisdom: but the froward tongue shall be cut out.

• The just is contrasted with the perverse once again.

 

32 The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable: but the mouth of the wicked speaketh forwardness.

• Proverbs as we see gives to us much of the thought behind what we studied in James 3 about the tongue and it’s potential for good or bad.