Verses 1-4
v1 A man might refuse to change his behavior, even if many people try to correct him.
A terrible trouble will suddenly ruin that man’s life. No remedy can save him.
v2 When good people succeed, everybody is happy.
When wicked people rule, everybody suffers.
v3 A man’s wisdom brings joy to his father.
But a man, who loves to have sex, wastes his money on women.
v4 When the king is fair, his nation is safe.
When a king accepts bribes (secret gifts), he destroys his nation.
Commentary
We try to help people. But they will not always follow our advice. We can try to teach such people. And we can warn them. But we cannot change their behaviour. In the end, they will lose their last chance. If they refuse to learn, then God will punish them. See Proverbs 1:24-33.
We do not want wicked rulers. We should pray that our rulers will be good rulers. Everyone will benefit if our rulers are good.
A father is glad if his son grows to be wise.
But some sons are foolish. They love pleasure. They love sex. And they sleep with many women. These sons waste their own money. They waste their own strength. Perhaps they even waste their fathers’ money. So their fathers are sad.
Solomon’s son did not grow to be wise. This son, called Rehoboam, was a foolish king. He loved pleasure. His selfish attitudes caused his country to split in two. His people suffered greatly because of him.
Solomon was a king. And he was also a judge. He believed that a ruler must be fair. He taught his officials to refuse bribes (secret gifts).
Later Hezekiah became king. His officials found this good advice and they copied it (Proverbs 25:1). Hezekiah was a good king who respected God.
And this verse is still good advice today. People do many evil things because of bribes.
Verses 5-14
v5 A man may praise his neighbor with words that are not sincere.
Such a man will cause trouble.
v6 An evil man will suffer because of his own evil actions.
But a good man can sing. And he will be glad.
v7 Good people want fair laws that will help poor people.
But wicked men do not want this.
v8 Insults will cause a city’s inhabitants to be angry.
But wise men will help the people to be calm.
v9 When a wise man opposes a fool, the fool might laugh.
Or the fool might be angry.
But the fool will not be calm.
v10 Cruel men hate an honest man.
They want to kill him.
v11 A fool can become very angry.
But a wise man behaves well.
v12 When a ruler listens to lies, his officials become wicked.
v13 There are poor people.
And there are evil rulers.
God allows them all to see the reality of the situation.
v14 If a king is fair to poor people, his nation will always be safe.
Commentary
The first man has an evil scheme. He uses words that are not sincere to praise his neighbor. So this evil man pretends that his neighbor is a great man. The evil man wants the neighbor to trust him. Then the neighbor will give gifts to the evil man. Or perhaps the evil man will steal from the neighbor.
We are not sure about the meaning of the second line. Perhaps it means that the purpose of such words is to cause trouble for the neighbor. Or perhaps the meaning is that the evil man will cause trouble for himself, as in verse 6.
This evil man causes his own problems. But a good person has great joy. So he sings.
If the law is fair, poor people will benefit. The law will protect them so that they will not starve.
In England, 150 years ago, many good people worked hard to free slaves. These good people persuaded the government to make good laws. But many people opposed these good laws.
Selfish people will always oppose good laws. These people do not care about poor people.
People hate insults. The inhabitants of this city will be very angry. They might even want to attack the people who insulted them. But this reaction is not always sensible.
Wise men will help the city’s inhabitants to be calm. Then people can consider the situation carefully. And they will make a sensible decision.
When we are angry, we cannot always make sensible decisions. We should try to become calm. Then our decisions will be good decisions.
By ‘fool’, Solomon means an evil man. This evil man does not like the wise man’s sensible words. The evil man hates the wise man. And the wise man’s calm words may upset the evil man. So the evil man’s reaction is foolish. Perhaps he insults the wise man. Or perhaps the evil man is angry. But the evil man cannot be calm.
Cruel people oppose honest people. Cruel people do not want anyone to be honest. The honest person could ruin their evil schemes. So cruel people think that honest people are their enemies.
A fool is an evil person. And he has many evil schemes. If you upset this man, he will be very angry.
But a wise person should not be very angry. The evil person may try to upset him. But the wise man keeps calm.
A ruler needs good advisers who speak the truth. The ruler should not prefer officials who lie. If he does, then the whole government will be evil.
These people are poor because their rulers are evil. God allows the people to know this. And God also allows the rulers to realize this.
A king should care about his poor people. He should defend them.
The king should not allow cruel people to cheat the poor people. Good laws oppose cruel people. Good laws defend poor people.
Verses 15-21
v15 A smack teaches wisdom.
v16 When wicked people succeed, there is more evil behavior.
But, in time, this evil situation will end.
v17 Correct your son! Then he will bring relief to you.
You will be glad, because of your son.
v18 People do evil things when they do not know God’s message.
But God is pleased with the person who obeys God’s law.
v19 You cannot teach your servant with mere words.
He can understand your words, but he will not obey you.
v20 Even a fool is better than a man who speaks without thought.
v21 If you give special luxuries to your servant, he will cause you trouble in the end.
Commentary
A mother must teach discipline to her child. Otherwise, the child’s behavior will cause shame to her.
See Proverbs 22:15. This mother is upset because her child is evil. She should punish her child. Then her child will learn good behavior. Otherwise, the child will continue to do evil things, even when the child becomes old.
Wicked people will not always succeed. In time, God will punish them. Then good people will rule the country.
We see that some people are very evil. Perhaps there always seem to be some evil rulers. But, in the end, God will punish evil people. Even the countries that we know in this world last only for a short time. But God’s rule in heaven never ends. So he is always king. (Daniel 4:3).
God rules from heaven. In heaven, nobody is evil. In heaven, nobody suffers. In heaven, there is no pain. See Revelation 21:4.
See verse 15. When your child learns to do the right things, you will be glad.
If someone does evil things, then tell God’s message to that person. Tell that person about Jesus. Tell that person about God’s love. And tell that person that he must invite God into his life.
Some people will obey your advice. They will invite God into their lives. They will learn to do the right things. And they will serve God, because they accepted God’s message.
Sometimes people cannot understand our words. They need to see our actions.
This servant might be a child. So the master must punish his servant as a child. The servant’s punishment should be fair. Then he will learn right behavior.
Think before you speak! Perhaps you need to obtain advice from wise people. Make a good decision! Then, when you speak, your words will be wise.
This servant might be a child. Be sensible when you give gifts to your children. Give gifts that will help them.
This verse is difficult to translate. Other possible meanings are:
1. If you give your child only luxuries, he will become a servant. And he will suffer in the end.
2. If you give honor to your servant boy, in the end he will become your son.
Verses 22-27
v22 The man who has a bad temper is always ready to start arguments.
He will cause a lot of trouble.
v23 A proud man will become humble.
But a humble man will receive honor.
v24 In court, even a thief’s friend becomes his enemy.
The thief’s friend promises to God to tell the truth.
Then the thief’s friend does not dare to say anything.
v25 If you are afraid of people, then this fear will cause troubles for you.
But the person that trusts God is safe.
v26 Many people want judges to help them.
But only God deals fairly with everyone.
v27 Good people hate evil people.
Evil people hate good people.
Commentary
Anger is dangerous. A bad temper causes many troubles. We should learn to stay calm.
The proud man wants to be a great man. But God will not allow such a man to become great. See Proverbs 16:18.
But God loves humble people. And God will give honor to them. See Luke 1:51-53.
Jesus was humble. Although Jesus is God, Jesus became a man. And he lived like a servant. He even died like a criminal. But God has given the greatest honor to Jesus. And everyone will know that Jesus is God. See Philippians 2:5-11.
The thief’s friend does not help the thief. When the thief is in court, the thief wants his friend to lie.
In court, the friend promises to God to tell the truth. The friend is not afraid of the court. But he is afraid of God. And this friend remembers that God will punish people who lie.
So, when the lawyers ask their questions, the thief’s friend says nothing.
People will cause many troubles. There are many cruel people. But do not be a coward! God will protect you. Trust in him. See Psalm 91.
Perhaps you trust judges. Perhaps you think that the court will help you. But there are some evil judges. And even good judges sometimes make wrong decisions. So trust God. He is fair with everyone.
Good people and evil people have nothing in common.
Do not suppose that evil people will support you. If you do the right things, then evil people will still hate you.
And do not support an evil man’s scheme. His scheme will be cruel. Or his scheme will be evil. Or his scheme might even be terrible. It will not be a good scheme, because the man himself is evil.
Instead, warn the evil man. He must confess his evil deeds to God. And he must invite God into his life.
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