Proverbs Chapter 22
1 A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.
2 The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all.
3 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.
4 By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life.
5 Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.
6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
7 The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.
8 He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity: and the rod of his anger shall fail.
9 He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.
10 Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; yea, strife and reproach shall cease.
11 He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.
12 The eyes of the LORD preserve knowledge, and he overthroweth the words of the transgressor.
13 The slothful man saith, There is a lion without, I shall be slain in the streets.
14 The mouth of strange women is a deep pit: he that is abhorred of the LORD shall fall therein.
15 Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.
16 He that oppresseth the poor to increase his riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want.
17 Bow down thine ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply thine heart unto my knowledge.
18 For it is a pleasant thing if thou keep them within thee; they shall withal be fitted in thy lips.
19 That thy trust may be in the LORD, I have made known to thee this day, even to thee.
20 Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge,
21 That
I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth; that thou
mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee?
22 Rob not the poor, because he is poor: neither oppress the afflicted in the gate:
23 For the LORD will plead their cause, and spoil the soul of those that spoiled them.
24 Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go:
25 Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.
26 Be not thou one of them that strike hands, or of them that are sureties for debts.
27 If thou hast nothing to pay, why should he take away thy bed from under thee?
28 Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set.
29 Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.
Commentary for Proverbs 22
1 We should be more
careful to do that by which we may get and keep a good name, than to
raise or add unto a great estate. #2|. Divine Providence has so ordered
it, that some are rich, and others poor, but all are guilty before God;
and at the throne of God's grace the poor are as welcome as the rich.
#3|. Faith foresees the evil coming upon sinners, and looks to Jesus
Christ as the sure refuge from the storm. #4|. Where the fear of God is,
there will be humility. And much is to be enjoyed by it; spiritual
riches, and eternal life at last. #5|. The way of sin is vexatious and
dangerous. But the way of duty is safe and easy. #6|. Train children,
not in the way they would go, that of their corrupt hearts, but in the
way they should go; in which, if you love them, you would have them go.
As soon as possible every child should be led to the knowledge of the
Saviour. #7|. This shows how important it is for every man to keep out
of debt. As to the things of this life, there is a difference between
the rich and the poor; but let the poor remember, it is the Lord that
made the difference. #8|. The power which many abuse, will soon fail
them. #9|. He that seeks to relieve the wants and miseries of others
shall be blessed. #10|. Profane scoffers and revilers disturb the peace.
#11|. God will be the Friend of a man in whose spirit there is no
guile; this honour have all the saints. #12|. God turns the counsels and
designs of treacherous men to their own confusion. #13|. The slothful
man talks of a lion without, but considers not his real danger from the
devil, that roaring lion within, and from his own slothfulness, which
kills him. #14|. The vile sin of licentiousness commonly besots the mind
beyond recovery. #15|. Sin is foolishness, it is in the heart, there is
an inward inclination to sin: children bring it into the world with
them; and it cleaves close to the soul. We all need to be corrected by
our heavenly Father. #16|. We are but stewards, and must distribute what
God intrusts to our care, according to his will. 17-21|. To these
words, to this knowledge, the ear must be bowed down, and the heart
applied by faith and love. To live a life of delight in God and
dependence on him, is the foundation of all practical religion. The way
to know the certainty of the word of truth, is to make conscience of our
duty. #22,23|. He that robs and oppresses the poor, does so at his
peril. And if men will not appear for them, God will. #24,25|. Our
corrupt hearts have so much tinder in them, that it is dangerous to have
to do with those that throw about the sparks of their passion. 26,27|.
Every man ought to be just to himself, and his family; those are not so,
who, by folly or other carelessness, waste what they have. #28|. We are
taught not to trespass on another man's right. And it is hard to find a
truly industrious man. Such a man will rise. Seest thou a man diligent
in the business of religion? He is likely to excel. Let us then be
diligent in God's work.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.
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