Proverbs 28

1 The wicked are edgy with guilt, ready to run off even when no one's after them; Honest people are relaxed and confident, bold as lions.

2 When the country is in chaos, everybody has a plan to fix it - But it takes a leader of real understanding to straighten things out.

3 The wicked who oppress the poor are like a hailstorm that beats down the harvest.

4 If you desert God's law, you're free to embrace depravity; if you love God's law, you fight for it tooth and nail.

5 Justice makes no sense to the evilminded; those who seek God know it inside and out.

6 It's better to be poor and direct than rich and crooked.

7 Practice God's law - get a reputation for wisdom; hang out with a loose crowd - embarrass your family.

8 Get as rich as you want through cheating and extortion, But eventually some friend of the poor is going to give it all back to them.

9 God has no use for the prayers of the people who won't listen to him.

10 Lead good people down a wrong path and you'll come to a bad end; do good and you'll be rewarded for it.

11 The rich think they know it all, but the poor can see right through them.

12 When good people are promoted, everything is great, but when the bad are in charge, watch out!

13 You can't whitewash your sins and get by with it; you find mercy by admitting and leaving them.

14 A tenderhearted person lives a blessed life; a hardhearted person lives a hard life.

15 Lions roar and bears charge - and the wicked lord it over the poor.

16 Among leaders who lack insight, abuse abounds, but for one who hates corruption, the future is bright.

17 A murderer haunted by guilt is doomed - there's no helping him.

18 Walk straight - live well and be saved; a devious life is a doomed life. Doing Great Harm in Seemingly Harmless Ways

19 Work your garden - you'll end up with plenty of food; play and party - you'll end up with an empty plate.

20 Committed and persistent work pays off; get-rich-quick schemes are ripoffs.

21 Playing favorites is always a bad thing; you can do great harm in seemingly harmless ways.

22 A miser in a hurry to get rich doesn't know that he'll end up broke.

23 In the end, serious reprimand is appreciated far more than bootlicking flattery.

24 Anyone who robs father and mother and says, "So, what's wrong with that?" is worse than a pirate.

25 A grasping person stirs up trouble, but trust in God brings a sense of well-being.

26 If you think you know it all, you're a fool for sure; real survivors learn wisdom from others.

27 Be generous to the poor - you'll never go hungry; shut your eyes to their needs, and run a gauntlet of curses.

28 When corruption takes over, good people go underground, but when the crooks are thrown out, it's safe to come out.

Proverbs 28 Commentary

Chapter 28

Verse 1 Sin makes men cowards. Whatever difficulties the righteous meet in the way of duty, they are not daunted. Verse 2 . National sins disturb the public repose. Verse 3 . If needy persons get opportunities of oppressing, their extortion will be more severe than that of the more wealthy. Verse 4 . Wicked people strengthen one another in wicked ways. Verse 5 . If a man seeks the Lord, it is a good sign that he understands much, and it is a good means of understanding more. Verse 6 . An honest, godly, poor man, is better than a wicked, ungodly, rich man; has more comfort in himself, and is a greater blessing to the world. Verse 7 . Companions of riotous men not only grieve their parents, but shame them. Verse 8 . That which is ill got, though it may increase much, will not last long. Thus the poor are repaid, and God is glorified. Verse 9 . The sinner at whose prayers God is angry, is one who obstinately refuses to obey God's commands. Verse 10 . The success of ungodly men is their own misery. Verse 11 . Rich men are so flattered, that they think themselves superior to others. Verse 12 . There is glory in the land when the righteous have liberty. Verse 13 . It is folly to indulge sin, and excuse it. He who covers his sins, shall not have any true peace. He who humbly confesses his sins, with true repentance and faith, shall find mercy from God. The Son of God is our great atonement. Under a deep sense of our guilt and danger, we may claim salvation from that mercy which reigns through righteousness unto eternal life, by Jesus Christ our Lord. Verse 14 . There is a fear which causes happiness. Faith and love will deliver from the fear of eternal misery; but we should always fear offending God, and fear sinning against him. Verse 15 . A wicked ruler, whatever we may call him, this scripture calls a roaring lion, and a ranging bear. Verse 16 . Oppressors want understanding; they do not consult their own honour, ease, and safety. Verse 17 . The murderer shall be haunted with terrors. None shall desire to save him from deserved punishment, nor pity him. Verse 18 . Uprightness will give men holy security in the worst times; but the false and dishonest are never safe. Verse 19 . Those who are diligent, take the way to live comfortably. Verse 20 . The true way to be happy, is to be holy and honest; not to raise an estate suddenly, without regard to right or wrong. Verse 21 . Judgment is perverted, when any thing but pure right is considered. Verse 22 . He that hastens to be rich, never seriously thinks how quickly God may take his wealth from him, and leave him in poverty. Verse 23 . Upon reflection, most will have a better opinion of a faithful reprover than of a soothing flatterer. Verse 24 . Here is the wickedness of those who think it no sin to rob their parents, by wheedling them or threatening them, or by wasting what they have, and running into debt. Verse 25 . Those make themselves always easy, that live in continual dependence upon God and his grace, and live by faith. Verse 26 . A fool trusts to his own strength, merit, and righteousness. And trusts to his own heart, which is not only deceitful above all things, but which has often deceived him. Verse 27 . A selfish man not only will not look out for objects of compassion, but will look off from those that call for his attention. Verse 28 . When power is put into the hands of the wicked, wise men decline public business. If the reader will go diligently over this and the other chapters, in many places where at first he may suppose there is least of Christ, still he will find what will lead to him.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 15

In this chapter we have a short history of the reign of Abijam, 1Ki 15:1-8 and of Asa, 1Ki 14:9-24, both kings of Judah; and of the reigns of Nadab the son of Jeroboam, and of Baasha, who destroyed his family, both kings of Israel, 1Ki 15:25-34.