1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider well who is before thee;
2 and put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.
3 Be not desirous of his dainties; for they are deceitful food.
4 Weary not thyself to become rich; cease from thine own intelligence:
5 wilt thou set thine eyes upon it, it is gone; for indeed it maketh itself wings and it flieth away as an eagle towards the heavens.
6 Eat thou not the food of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainties.
7 For as he thinketh in his soul, so is he. Eat and drink! will he say unto thee; but his heart is not with thee.
8 Thy morsel which thou hast eaten must thou vomit up, and thou wilt have wasted thy sweet words.
9 Speak not in the ears of a foolish [man], for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.
10 Remove not the ancient landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:
11 for their redeemer is mighty; he will plead their cause against thee.
12 Apply thy heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.
13 Withhold not correction from the child; for [if] thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die:
14 thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from Sheol.
15 My son, if thy heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine;
16 and my reins shall exult, when thy lips speak right things.
17 Let not thy heart envy sinners, but [be thou] in the fear of Jehovah all the day;
18 for surely there is a result, and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
19 Thou, my son, hear and be wise, and direct thy heart in the way.
20 Be not among winebibbers, among riotous eaters of flesh.
21 For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty; and drowsiness clotheth with rags.
22 Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.
23 Buy the truth, and sell it not; wisdom, and instruction, and intelligence.
24 The father of a righteous [man] shall greatly rejoice, and he that begetteth a wise [son] shall have joy of him:
25 let thy father and thy mother have joy, and let her that bore thee rejoice.
26 My son, give me thy heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.
27 For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.
28 She also lieth in wait as a robber, and increaseth the treacherous among men.
29 Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow? Who contentions? Who complaining? Who wounds without cause? Who redness of eyes?
30 -- They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to try mixed wine.
31 Look not upon the wine when it is red, when it sparkleth in the cup, and goeth down smoothly:
32 at the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
33 Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thy heart shall speak froward things;
34 and thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, and as he that lieth down upon the top of a mast:
35 -- ''They have smitten me, [and] I am not sore; they have beaten me, [and] I knew it not. When shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.''
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Proverbs 23
Commentary on Proverbs 23 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 23
Pr 23:1-35.
1. Avoid the dangers of gluttony.
2. put a knife—an Eastern figure for putting restraint on the appetite.
3. are deceitful meat—though well tasted, injurious.
4, 5. (Compare 1Ti 6:9, 10).
thine own wisdom—which regards riches intrinsically as a blessing.
5. Wilt … eyes—As the eyes fly after or seek riches, they are not, that is, either become transitory or unsatisfying; fully expressed by their flying away.
6-8. Beware of deceitful men, whose courtesies even you will repent of having accepted.
evil eye—or purpose (Pr 22:9; De 15:9; Mt 6:23).
8. The morsel … words—that is, disgusted with his true character, all pleasant intercourse will be destroyed.
9. (Compare Pr 9:8). "Cast not your pearls before swine" (Mt 7:6).
10, 11. (Compare Pr 22:22, 23).
11. redeemer—or avenger (Le 25:25, 26; Nu 35:12), hence advocate (Job 19:25).
plead … thee—(Compare Job 31:21; Ps 35:1; 68:5).
12. Here begins another series of precepts.
13, 14. While there is little danger that the use of the "divine ordinance of the rod" will produce bodily harm, there is great hope of spiritual good.
15, 16. The pleasure afforded the teacher by the pupil's progress is a motive to diligence.
16. my reins—(Compare Ps 7:9).
17, 18. (Compare Margin). The prosperity of the wicked is short.
18. an end—or, "hereafter," another time, when apparent inequalities shall be adjusted (compare Ps 37:28-38).
19-21. guide … way—or direct thy thoughts to a right course of conduct (compare Pr 4:4; 9:6).
20. riotous … flesh—prodigal, or eating more than necessary. Instead of "their flesh" (compare Margin), better, "flesh to them," that is, used for pleasure.
21. drowsiness—the dreamy sleep of the slothful.
22. Hearken—that is, obey (Pr 1:8; Eph 6:1).
despise … old—Adults revere the parents whom, as children, they once obeyed.
23. Buy—literally, "get" (Pr 4:5).
truth—generally and specially as opposed to errors of all kinds.
24, 25. (Compare Pr 10:1; 17:21, 25).
26-35. A solemn warning against whoredom and drunkenness (Ho 4:11).
give me—This is the address of that divine wisdom so often presented (Pr 8:1; 9:3, &c.).
heart—confidence.
observe—keep.
my ways—such as I teach you (Pr 3:17; 9:6).
27, 28. deep ditch—a narrow pit, out of which it is hard to climb.
lieth in wait—to ensnare men into the pit, as hunters entrap game (compare Pr 22:14).
28. increaseth … transgressors—(Pr 5:8-10). The vice alluded to is peculiarly hardening to the heart.
29, 30. This picture is often sadly realized now.
mixed wine—(Compare Pr 9:2; Isa 5:11).
31. when … red—the color denoting greater strength (compare Ge 49:11; De 32:14).
giveth … cup—literally, "gives its eye," that is, sparkles.
moveth … aright—Perhaps its foaming is meant.
32. The acute miseries resulting from drunkenness contrasted with the temptations.
33, 34. The moral effects: it inflames passion (Ge 19:31, 35), lays open the heart, produces insensibility to the greatest dangers, and debars from reformation, under the severest sufferings.
35. awake—that is, from drunkenness (Ge 9:24). This is the language rather of acts than of the tongue.