Imagine if someone found a previously unknown cache of documents by one of America’s Founding Fathers; like George Washington or Thomas Jefferson. It would cause quite a stir!
About 200 years after Solomon, court officials under King Hezekiah compiled this collection of additional proverbs by Solomon. 📜 It’s possible they were “lost” in the royal archives and someone found them- perhaps scattered through many miscellaneous records. It seems fitting that they would decide to put this proverb first in the collection:
“It is God’s privilege to conceal things and the king’s privilege to discover them.”
Proverbs 25:2 NLT
Chapter 25 deals a lot with the king and how to be a good citizen. Chapter 26 is mostly on fools and lazy people. Chapter 27 seems to have a lot of proverbs about relationships.
I also noticed a couple of repeats from earlier chapters. Compare the “Prepper Text” from Proverbs 22:3 with this one from 27:12:
“The clever sees danger and hides, but the simple go on and suffer.”
Proverbs 22:3 LEB
“When the clever sees danger, he hides; the simple go on and suffer.”
Proverbs 27:12 LEB
There are also some very similar verses about having to live with a nagging wife.
🤨 One can never have too many proverbs warning about naggy women.
Agreed. Besides those, there were some other proverbs that stood out to me. Let’s get into them…
SELF-CONTROL
“A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls.”
Proverbs 25:28 NLT
An ancient city without walls was a sitting duck. 🦆 It didn’t have a chance when attackers came along.
So it is to live without self-control. You’re a sitting duck when the Enemy attacks. You are, in a word: vulnerable. Your weakness will be exploited by those who would take advantage.
I remember a character-building video that my little brothers would watch. It had a couple of stories and songs that helped children understand what self -control was and why we should practice it. The video defined self-control as, “Stopping myself when it is best for myself and others.”
That’s a pretty good definition for children. But self-control also involves “Starting myself when it is best for myself and others.” If we can’t get ourselves up off the sofa and start, we’re just as vulnerable as someone who can’t stop a behavior.
As we work on self-control – every time we make ourselves exercise or say no to the junk food or fast food, every time we control our tongues and tempers and the Amazon cart – we might picture ourselves building a wall around our personal city. Self-control is self-defense.
CURSES
A lot of people get really worried about curses and the power of negative words. And yes- words can do terrible damage and sometimes it takes a lot of work to undo that damage. But, just because someone curses you doesn’t mean you’re doomed.
“Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse will not land on its intended victim.”
Proverbs 26:2 NLT
The German reformer Martin Luther said, “You cannot keep birds from flying over your head but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.” He was talking about temptation and not curses, but the two sayings convey a similar idea.
Remember that a curse is really just a wish for bad things to happen or labeling with condemnation. Balaam was a professional at curses and blessings. And here’s what he said:
“Listen, I received a command to bless; God has blessed, and I cannot reverse it!”
Numbers 23:20 NLT
The born-from-above saint is in Christ. We are blessed with eternal life and hope and the in-dwelling of God’s Spirit. I don’t think any curse of the Enemy can supplant God’s blessing. A curse may flit about you or even dart at your face, but we have Christ’s power to shoo it away. It can’t land on us and build a nest in our hair unless we allow it.
🐦⬛🪺
If you have allowed a negative word to “build a nest in your hair,” I would encourage you to officially come out of agreement with that word. Disavow it. Renounce it. Out loud. Forgive. Release. Hand it over to Jesus.
ANSWER A FOOL? OR NOT?
Proverbs 26:4 and 5 seem to contradict one another. Verse 4 tells you NOT to answer a fool while verse 5 tells you TO answer a fool. So which is it?
I think this is probably a case of you can’t win either way. And that’s what it’s like trying to reason with a fool.
😒
HUNGRY AND FULL
“The full soul loatheth an honeycomb; But to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.”
Proverbs 27:7 KJV
🍯
I like this verse in the KJV. And I don’t think it applies only to food.
People in wealthy, developed countries get bored with 300 tv channels 📺, complain there’s nothing to eat when the cupboards are full 🍝, and say “I have nothing to wear” with a closet full of clothes 👚. While people who have far less tend to enjoy what they have much more. They have genuine delight in gathering to worship or celebrate a friend’s milestone. They get excited for interesting conversations over a cup of tea ☕️ , good teaching, or having their own copy of the scriptures in their own language.
Those of us who are “full” would do ourselves a favor to reconnect with real hunger. It will help us rediscover sweetness.
Did you know that intermittent fasting is being shown to improve dopamine receptivity? This translates into pleasant activities feeling pleasant again. Dopamine is one of the “feel good” chemicals in our brains. If things you used to enjoy are no longer fulfilling, try fasting. And not fasting from social media and tv (though those are good ideas too). I mean actually not eating for 24-48 hours. (Drink plenty of water though.) When I do this, I will often break a fast with an avocado 🥑 drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with good salt and a dash of freshly ground pepper. It’s AMAZING how good that tastes after not eating for a while.
Of course, God knew all along that allowing ourselves to go hungry for a bit would increase the pleasure we experience. And He let Solomon in on that secret. Modern medical science is just now catching up with 3000 year old wisdom.
To The Reader 